.22lr in .22mag

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Bryan

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No such thing as a stupid question so here goes. Is it possible to shoot .22lr in a .22mag rifle? Been thinking about that for a while and will not use one of mine as a guinae pig.
 
I wouldn't try it. The chamber is longer and the bullet more likely wouldn't sit properly. Not exactly the same but similar to loading a .17HMR in a .22WMR. It's possible, but don't pull the trigger. Not a good idea...
 
Don't do it, period. Data stamps on barrels should be strictly adhered to if you value the way things are arranged on your face right now.
 
The .22 LR case should rupture in the wider mag. chamber, and don't know the direction or protection from gases or debris.
 
You hear questions like this every so often, but usually it's someone asking if you can put .22 short in a gun chambered for .22lr. (Yes you can)

The answer (to your question) is yes, it will chamber, but no you shouldn't pull that trigger. The best outcome in such a scenario is nasty fouling in the chamber of your gun, possibly preventing future rounds from seating correctly, and the worst outcome...well, I'm sure someone out there would miss you if you departed this world.
 
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WOW, more cgn fail.

No, you should not touch off a lr in a wmr chamber.
Will it work? Yes, it MIGHT bulge or rupture the case though.
Has it been done? yes, by many.
Is it safe? not really as you don't know where the gsses are going and they COULD end up in your eye.

You can shoot all the shorts in lr guns you want it will not harm your gun in anyway. It is the exact same thing as a .38spl in a .357 mag. It will foul your chamber and you might have to clean it before going back to shorts.
 
The magnum case is larger in diameter than the LR. The LR uses uses a heeled bullet whereas the Mag does not. Using a LR cartridge in the Mag chamber can rupture the case.

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To use LR in a Mag the chamber needs to be sleeved. Cut the rim off of a magnum case and slide it into the chamber, that is your sleeve. Clean the chamber first and use a cleaning brush to remove the sleeve. Do not use in a semi-auto. Not perfect, but works well.
 
Back on the farm my father was left a .22 Magnum by his cousin who came up yearly to visit and shoot gophers. (Increasing regulation made it a pain to bring across the border thus the reason he left it.)

Being a cheap @ss farmer he refused to buy the proper ammo for it and when the .22 Magnum rounds were gone he used regular .22LR. It shot fine and ejected reliably but the larger chamber trapped residue in it and one night when dispatching a troop of racoons who were visiting our chicken coop it jammed on him.

He later traded the gun because "it was no good".



So to answer the OP. Yes it can be done, and in an emergency situation I would not hesitate to do so, but it just way smarter to buy the proper ammo.
 
I used to shoot .22 subsonics in my .22 magnum ruger all the time. I tried it with and without the sleeve(made from a spent .22 magnum case with the head ground off enough to fit a LR round inside it)
Accuracy was poor due to the smaller bullet in the .22 LR, but I could consistently kill rabbits at 30-40 yds. I had a supressor on the gun(I lived in the UK at the time) and it was unbelievable quiet, probably due to the loss of velocity. I never had a case rupture, or blow back, but I would still be very wary of reccomending it as chambers and cases vary and I may have just had a tight chamber.
That was my experience, take from it what you will. I'm not saying it was safe, and if anyone has strong feelings about me doing it, please tell someone who cares, because I don't.
 
You hear questions like this every so often, but usually it's someone asking if you can put .22 short in a gun chambered for .22lr. The answer is yes, it will chamber, but no you shouldn't pull that trigger. The best outcome in such a scenario is nasty fouling in the chamber of your gun, possibly preventing future rounds from seating correctly, and the worst outcome...well, I'm sure someone out there would miss you if you departed this world.
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So why do you suppose that many rifles were stamped 22short,long,long rifle by the manufacturers? It's perfectly safe to use 22shorts or 22longs in a 22lr chamber.
 
Jäger said:
You hear questions like this every so often, but usually it's someone asking if you can put .22 short in a gun chambered for .22lr. The answer is yes, it will chamber, but no you shouldn't pull that trigger. The best outcome in such a scenario is nasty fouling in the chamber of your gun, possibly preventing future rounds from seating correctly, and the worst outcome...well, I'm sure someone out there would miss you if you departed this world.
Click to expand...

As already mentioned, rifles have been made by many manufacturers that are designed to shoot 22short, 22long, and 22lr. Mossberg have made them since the 1920's, in single shot, tube fed, and mag fed versions. There are even some semi's that can handle both short and lr...
 
Hitzy said:
As already mentioned, rifles have been made by many manufacturers that are designed to shoot 22short, 22long, and 22lr. Mossberg have made them since the 1920's, in single shot, tube fed, and mag fed versions. There are even some semi's that can handle both short and lr...
Click to expand...

stubblejumper said:
So why do you suppose that many rifles were stamped 22short,long,long rifle by the manufacturers? It's perfectly safe to use 22shorts or 22longs in a 22lr chamber.
Click to expand...

I have been misunderstood. I intended to say that most people ask about that rather than what the OP did. All that follows was answering his original question, not a comment on whether .22short was fine or not in a .22lr chamber.
 
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