.22 Winchester Magnum Rimfire

[orygun]

It's a rimfire cartridge at center-fire prices and therefore a hard pass from me. I prefer my rimfire cartridges to be rimfire priced.

Four years ago i bought a Colt Peacemaker 22 with both cylinders. Ammo was nearly non-existent at the time, but my son in law sold me some CCI A22 "Magnum" ammo. This ammo was designed for the A22 Savage semi auto rifle and it is lame. Not only was it inconsistent with ignition in the Colt, something the gun is notoriously known for, but it was not noticeably "hotter" than the good ol 22LR, which had consistent ignition. First I sold the A22 ammo, then I sold the gun.

My Son in law had earlier purchased one of those Kel-Tec PMR-30s.... What an unreliable POS. It didn't matter what mag or what ammo, 4 or 5 rounds, then misfeed. 4 or 5 more rounds, repeat. Not fun to shoot when you have 30 rounds on board but have to mess around many times to get thru a mag.

Ages ago I had an Automag II. In that gun I shot "real" 22 Mag ammo. It was a firecracker! Big noise, big muzzle flash! Neat gun, but ammo picky. If I remember CCI uses a slightly smaller rim diameter and that lead to multiple extraction issues. I sold the gun (dumb move) because it was hard to find "good" ammo (Federal or Winchester) and ammo cost a lot more than the 22LR. In my mind, it was a fun plinker but the ammo priced it out of the plinking league. I could reload 38 Special with cast bullets for the same price. These days I might have a different outlook, as time to reload has become harder to come by.

My buddy bought a Marlin 22 Mag bolt action, clip fed rifle. He bought it just for fun, but I saw how hard it it the tin cans, I knew it would be a good little rifle for small game. Typical Marlin, pretty darn accurate with everything you feed it.

 

[Spitpatch]

My Single Six was the first gun I bought when (as a result of a burglary when I was in the Service) I came home with no guns. Defense of home and property, along with the capability of rustling up some dinner were the priorities.

Then, the Long Rifle cylinder was utilized quite often, and with accuracy that was entirely acceptable if not to the precision of the WMR in the gun. Economy was a factor to consider in all things when a young man.

Teaching a girlfriend to shoot was also a consideration, and the lower noise and recoil of the LR was eminently more preferable toward that purpose. A Single Action revolver was also perfect, as a rapid-fire repeater of ANY type is the absolutely worst platform for instruction of a new shooter.

Sorry, 10-22 and AR15 fans. Want your female friend (or kid) to learn to really ENJOY shooting? Toss the "budda-budda" guns in the figurative trash can to start, and forget about your 9mm's, .38's/.357's and deer rifles.

She'll love you for being gentle with her at first. And if you didn't start with a methodically-operating .22 (Shorts are even better!), she'll become a better shot than you before you know it.

 

[Paolung]

Barrel length is critical with .22 mag. Here is energy level by barrel length. It goes up drastically as barrel gets longer.
View attachment 1974556
Contrast that to something with a flat curve, energy is about the same as barrel length gets longer.
View attachment 1974557
View attachment 1974560
All 3 rounds above are mouse guns at short barrel lengths. At rifle lengths the .22 mag is equivalent to 9mm pistol in energy (ie no longer a mouse gun).

Yeah, it really doesn't make much sense at all to have a .22 WMR with less than a 5" barrel IMO

 

[Certaindeaf]

Since nothing has lungs the .22WMR is eminently useful.

 

[Spitpatch]

Yeah, it really doesn't make much sense at all to have a .22 WMR with less than a 5" barrel IMO

I cannot argue, with no experience with such.

However, more than one Member on this thread does have that experience, and reports a different conclusion.

A chronograph/expansion test might well put us both in that fold of true believers.

 

[Dozer99]

Speer subsonic makes a huge difference in short barrels (-4 inch). once my wing heals I'll use the chrono on my Walther WMP and report back on how it does with regular ammo.

 

[Spitpatch]

It used to be sort of an "insider's secret", but lately I've found that almost all .22WMR devotees know about it:

Looking for a "milder" load for your Magnum? Something with a heavy, slower bullet that will penetrate rather than violently expand? (And it's even of the correct diameter bullet!)

Look around for a box of .22 Winchester Rim Fire. (.22 WRF). Usually loaded with a 50grain lead bullet (though jacketed versions...CCI...are made), this cartridge used to be nearly Unobtainium, with Winchester loading a batch every 6-10 years to feed all the Model 1890's and such still out there and working. Now even Aguila loads for it, and I saw boxes of the Winchester offering on a shelf in Lewistown, Montana just two weeks ago.

A perfect trapping load, it won't mess up a prime pelt. Convertible handgun owners may find it to be more accurate in their guns (it is fired in the WMR cylinder) than the Long Rifle in its dedicated cylinder.

Not cheap. But then, again, it ain't for plinkin'.

 

[Koolbak]

I love the round solely due to the Kel-Tek PMR-30. Fun to shoot, reliable and primarily, 30 rounds in the mag. My go to house gun....

 

[titsonritz]

It used to be sort of an "insider's secret", but lately I've found that almost all .22WMR devotees know about it:

Looking for a "milder" load for your Magnum? Something with a heavy, slower bullet that will penetrate rather than violently expand? (And it's even of the correct diameter bullet!)

Look around for a box of .22 Winchester Rim Fire. (.22 WRF). Usually loaded with a 50grain lead bullet (though jacketed versions...CCI...are made), this cartridge used to be nearly Unobtainium, with Winchester loading a batch every 6-10 years to feed all the Model 1890's and such still out there and working. Now even Aguila loads for it, and I saw boxes of the Winchester offering on a shelf in Lewistown, Montana just two weeks ago.

A perfect trapping load, it won't mess up a prime pelt. Convertible handgun owners may find it to be more accurate in their guns (it is fired in the WMR cylinder) than the Long Rifle in its dedicated cylinder.

Not cheap. But then, again, it ain't for plinkin'.

I use to have a Winchester 1890 pump in .22
WRF, it was one of my first guns. Nowadays, the only rimfire cartridge I own is .22 LR for plinking, fun, training and teaching on the cheap. If I used a rimfire for hunting or defense I'd pick up a. magnum and WRF.

 

[red442joe]

I had a Savage MKI youth, single shot 22lr.
I wanted a 22 mg but prices were prohibitive.
After much research I bought a chambering reamer from Pacific Tool & Gauge, and rechambered it to 22WMR.
Fantastically accurate! My buddy decided he wanted it more than I did.
I got another, with a beautiful blue laminate stock, and rechambered it. Shoots like a house afire!
Research and measurement dispels myth.

Joe

 

[Spitpatch]

I had a Savage MKI youth, single shot 22lr.
I wanted a 22 mg but prices were prohibitive.
After much research I bought a chambering reamer from Pacific Tool & Gauge, and rechambered it to 22WMR.
Fantastically accurate! My buddy decided he wanted it more than I did.
I got another, with a beautiful blue laminate stock, and rechambered it. Shoots like a house afire!
Research and measurement dispels myth.

Joe

With a strong action, I see no great problem with asking the .224 bullet (even jacketed) to swage itself a bit for the .223 bore. My greatest concern with such a conversion would be the bolt face machining for the larger rimmed case head. Some LR guns might be sloppy enough to accommodate, others not.

In fact, with an old Savage 23D Hornet (also bored .223), I shoot .224 bullets exclusively. (Tried the .223 "Hornet" bullets, finding that .224's....as you describe....shot better in this "seasoned" bore.)

As to a "myth dispelled", I'm not sure what is referred to.

A conversion from Long Rifle to Magnum certainly would not be advised in weaker .22lr actions, and there are thousands of Magnum guns out there that are not the least prohibitive regarding cost. A conversion is not something I would find necessary, but your reports are interesting for sure.

 

[red442joe]

SAAMI specs, and tolerances.
Yes, bolt face "counterbore" needed slight opening on one, the other surprisingly fit the 22WMR case head. I attribute this to Savage using the exact same reciever, and barrel, and possibly bolt, for the MK in 22LR and 22 WMR, which contributed to my decision to do the conversion.
As for "weaker" 22LR actions, the biggest myth is the "obvious higher pressure" of 22WMR.
Now, pressure over greater surface area...I did the calculations, after extensive measurement, and....then did the conversion. PT&G did say that if I had explained what I was doing, they would have supplied a reamer with different lead to improve accuracy. My guns certainly dispel the myth that 22WMR is inaccurate. I'm happy!

Joe

 

[Spitpatch]

SAAMI specs, and tolerances.
Yes, bolt face "counterbore" needed slight opening on one, the other surprisingly fit the 22WMR case head. I attribute this to Savage using the exact same reciever, and barrel, and possibly bolt, for the MK in 22LR and 22 WMR, which contributed to my decision to do the conversion.
As for "weaker" 22LR actions, the biggest myth is the "obvious higher pressure" of 22WMR.
Now, pressure over greater surface area...I did the calculations, after extensive measurement, and....then did the conversion. PT&G did say that if I had explained what I was doing, they would have supplied a reamer with different lead to improve accuracy. My guns certainly dispel the myth that 22WMR is inaccurate. I'm happy!

Joe

Yep, both cartridges "operate" at similar pressures, and SAAMI max is identical for both.

However: swaging that .224 bullet carries the possibility of higher pressures, where a strong action would be my preference for a conversion. Most modern bolt guns meet that bar. An old Stevens Falling Block may not.

 

[Spitpatch]

My curiosity piqued, I dug out my 77/22(lr), removed the magazine and bolt, and pressed (it went in only with firm direction) a .22WMR cartridge into the bolt face.

It went.

But I could tell that the dual extractors were maxxed for travel, and (no way to test) may not "pop over" the rim to hold the cartridge if it did not feed, "Mauser style" from the bottom and sliding into the extractor groove.

Also: after intalling the bolt (and WMR cartridge) into the bolt channel of the receiver, the ejector mechanism disallows any forward bolt travel (I think it is contacting the front of the larger diameter rim of the WMR on the forward travel of the bolt).

The little Savage action is not encumbered with the complications of the Ruger, and being a Single Shot, simplifies all else as well. The Ruger is not a candidate for the conversion so simply.

...but that is what 77/22M's are for.

 

[red442joe]

I have found a 22WMR bore at minimum, and a 22LR bore (other unrelated guns) at maximum.
This also figured in my decision. Meaning I found acceptable overlap in bore/groove spec to measurement in my guns.

Joe

 

[Kruel J]

I'm a big 22WMR fan.

 

[TopGun007]

I think they're fun to shoot - in both handgun & rifle. I've found few rifles can shoot the round accurately - i.e., 1 moa. But still fun to shoot. Yes expensive. That's why I shoot my .22 lr much more often. My R.I. XT 22 mag 1911 style is loud, fun to shoot, but undeadly inaccurate even at 10 yds. I'm sure an S&W 648 would be much more accurate, and therefore more fun ... but its a large handgun, difficult to conceal, heavy to carry.

A lot of people use .22 lr for form and function practice to save money.

I just enjoy shooting sports so I shoot anything and everything I can get my hands on.

 

[ilikegunspdx]

I think they're fun to shoot - in both handgun & rifle. I've found few rifles can shoot the round accurately - i.e., 1 moa. But still fun to shoot. Yes expensive. That's why I shoot my .22 lr much more often. My R.I. XT 22 mag 1911 style is loud, fun to shoot, but undeadly inaccurate even at 10 yds. I'm sure an S&W 648 would be much more accurate, and therefore more fun ... but its a large handgun, difficult to conceal, heavy to carry.

A lot of people use .22 lr for form and function practice to save money.

I just enjoy shooting sports so I shoot anything and everything I can get my hands on.

Also 22lr is easily suppressed and 22lr suppressed ammo is cheap. Incredibly wide range of various 22lr models of pistols, subguns, and rifles are available vs 22 mag is limited.

 

[Spitpatch]

Another rimfire thread reminded me that the "Chipmunk" rifles for kids were also chambered in .22WMR. Saw one at a gun show a while back, and it had exceptionally burled wood.

No kids in this house, but I could not imagine a Dad or Grandpa walking past it without paying asking price.

 

[boattail]

I have two 9" barreled single six's and two 6" revolvers that chamber the magnum. They pack a punch but Like everyone else I shoot LR in them because of price. What I really need to get is a revolver chambered in 17HMR.....I have a mountain of that ammo and would not feel bad burning through it for giggles. I keep my eye out for one but have not found one...last time looking I ended up with another 22 mag revolver