Which is better????? 17Mach 2 or 17 HMR

peter36

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I am thinking about getting one of the two, can any one tell me the difference and which is the better of the 2??? I am leaning towards the MACH2 because there is a cheap semi auto out noe.....Who knows???
 
The .17 HMR is a .22 WMR necked to .177 and the Mach2 is based on a smaller .22 cartridge I believe.
 
Mayer is right. The 17 HMR is a 22WMR necked down to 17 the same with with the Mach2 its the 22 necked down to the 17.

I have a Marlin Mach2 and it shoots fairly flat and a good distance before it starts to drop but it doesn thave the knock down power on yotes and what not that a HMR has.

Dont buy a Semi Mach2 I have been told they are about as good as a Semi HMR. The HMR is a nice toy but is a little more money to shoot than a 22. I still bring my 22 because of the low price of ammo.

I wouldnt get an HMR either. The shells are as much as UMC 223 ammo and the 223 will give you more knock down power and a little more range than a HMR. HMR ammo prices are crazy right now because they cant make enough of it fast enough. Buy a 10/22 or a mach2 and a 223.
 
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Actually the 17 mach 2 is a necked down version of a stinger case. A necked down 22lr is a 17pmc or aquila. Slight difference.

Personally with all the talk of the mach 2 being close to the 17hmr is irrelevent to me for one reason. I can pick up 17hmr ammunition in any of the stores around here including canadian tire. I have seen 17 mach 2 in one store and it's not always stocked there as well.

Talking to a few owners they all say that they sell about 10 times the hmr's to mach 2's.

As for 223. Great idea if you have the room to shoot it without noise complaints. Even better idea if you are going to reload and can tailor your loads to your gun. I've seen 17hmr shot out to 200m accurately and that's about it. I've seen 223 or better yet 204 ruger's shoot out to 400m and still accurately hit gophers.

The downside being noise. The hmr is much quieter.
 
I don't think its a case of which one is better but instead which one fits you best. .17HMR is more powerfull, flatter shooting, in some cases more accurate, shoots better in the wind and ammunition as well as rifles can be found in more locations. Downside is ammo is a tad more expensive, and maybe a bit louder.

Take a look at the ballistic charts at the top of the rimfire page - that will give you a bit of an idea and may help you choose which one is best for you.

I would get the .17, just because of all the reasons I listed but if you are set on the HM2 then go for it! I am sure you will be happy with your choice.
 
I own both a .17 HMR and a .223

I pay $0.26 a round for the .17 (V-shock)

I pay $0.40 a round for .223 FMJ

These are retail, non-bulk prices.

The .17 HMR definitely has it's niche. It also won't assault your eardrums when you're firing it at an indoor range.
 
I reload .223 for about $0.30 a round using Hornady Match HPBT and Benchmark powder. There are cheaper bullets that would bring the cost down quite a bit.
 
Get a 22lr for short range/cheap shooting and a .223 or for longer range. Why buy intermediate? 17 isn't as cheap as 22lr and can't reach out as far as .223. Unless you're only planning on getting one rifle, then I guess it would be ok for both. Just my opinion.
 
The 17MACH is a good rifle out to about 100yds, then starts to fall off. It does not have as flat trijectery as the 17HMR, which is good out to 200yds (I have shot gophers at 300yds,and missed alot to!).
The 22WMR has about the same range as the HMR,but holds the knock down power a whole lot better.
They are all about the same price,so its a matter of what you want to do with it.
 
I have both the .17 HMR and the .223, I use whichever one or both on a particular day depending on how hard the wind is blowing. You might as stick the .17 where the sun don't shine if the wind gets up at all if your trying 200 yard shots. The .223 is a little more forgiving when the wind is blowing.
 
I had this same debate with my hunting friend just the other day while out looking for some chickens.

But the debate ended when we started talking about cost. I can reload for my .243 for about 35 cents a round with a V-max 65 grain bullet on Varget powder and "pip the ace" every time.

.17 ammo is what? 15 dollars for a box of 50. That's 30 cents a shot.

If the boom isn't a factor and you reload. Go for a accurate centre fire rifle. 223, 22-250, 222, 204, 25-06, 243. You can make some pretty amazing varmint rounds for any one of these.

But, with that said a .17 hmr is very accurate and bullets are readily available so if the boom is a factor and you don't reload go with the 17hmr. I can only think of one place here that sells the Mach2 but there are several with the hmr.
 
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I haven't seen the mach2 rifle or ammo in this neck of the woods but 17hmr is everywhere . I have a CZ452American in 17hmr , I love it . Its very accurate and has zero recoil . reaches out there too .
The ammo costs at this point mean nothing to me , I like it that much . The only thing that bugs me about the 17's ( all of them ) is your normal cleaning rod and equipment is to fat and you need to have unique stuff for this calibre .
 
That's like saying you're bugged by the fact that you had to buy "unique" cleaning rods for your .22LR rifles, when you already had perfectly good cleaning supplies for your .308 rifle.
The only thing that bugs me about the 17's ( all of them ) is your normal cleaning rod and equipment is to fat and you need to have unique stuff for this calibre .
 
The 17Mach2 is a "me too" cartridge. For a little bit more, you get the ballistics of the 17 hmr. Yes, you can re-barrel a .22 for the 17hm2. But they do fundamentally different tasks. 22's plink and hit game for a price that nothing can touch. 17 hmr's are accurate gopher guns that you don't go deaf shooting. Why bother with something in between that can't measure up to either side?
 
I had an HMR. I sold it for a few reasons:

1. I can reload my Hornet for about the same price, or slightly less and the Hornet has better range and better smack
2. The HMR has an unusable trajectory. What I mean by that is that the HMR is very very flat, but past about 150 yards or so, it's not carrying enough power to do very much even to a gopher. A 22WMR is a better choice as it has an acceptable amount of power throughout its pointblank trajectory of about 125 yards.
 
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