Which "upgrade" From .22Lr?

[toxo 160]

I'll never get rid of my Anschutz 1417 but the bunnies are getting canny and staying farther out. I'm hoping to put in for something a little bigger this year. What are the recommends lads bearing in mind the following;

Don't like the noise/cost/windage probs with .17hmr.

If C/F I wouldn't mind reloading if neccessary (cost/availability of cases etc)

Not interested in Foxes.

Want some rabbit left. I have four dogs to feed.

[shropshire dan 467]

.22 Hornet or .17 hornet/remmingtom

[mad4it 694]

.22 hornet would be my choice.

[Deker 3,478]

I'll never get rid of my Anschutz 1417 but the bunnies are getting canny and staying farther out. I'm hoping to put in for something a little bigger this year. What are the recommends lads bearing in mind the following;

Don't like the noise/cost/windage probs with .17hmr.

If C/F I wouldn't mind reloading if neccessary (cost/availability of cases etc)

Not interested in Foxes.

Want some rabbit left. I have four dogs to feed.

 

Anything else will be just as noisy or more, cost as much or more and will tend to be overkill for rabbits unless they are in the next county.

 

Hornet as mentioned above is worth a look. I have never seen the WMR as a rabbit gun, but noise and cost will be similar the HMR, but cheaper than centrefires generally. HMR better rabbit gun generally than WMR in my opinion.

 

[toxo 160]

Mach2 Deker? is that not quieter/ cheaper/ less noisy than the hummer? Don't know about the cost or availability.

[Deker 3,478]

Mach2 Deker? is that not quieter/ cheaper/ less noisy than the hummer? Don't know about the cost or availability.

 

Oh yes, the HM2

 

Its still HV so has a sonic crack, it suffers more from wind drift than a HMR but it may be a bit cheaper on ammo than HMR.

 

I could be wrong but other than Sako Quad I don't think anyone chambers it anymore (and only them because they can't shift the barrels they have). Ammo is also only made by CCI now as well, everyone else has dropped it. I stand to be corrected on the chambering/ammo situation, but it has died. Both ( ) the people in the UK who run HM2 say they love them, they must have a very narrow field of use.

 

The OP suggests your rabbits are moving further out, you may just as well get a HMR or very small centrefire, for when they move a couple of yards further after using the 17HM2, because nobody in their right mind will buy your HM2 in a year or two.

 

Just my opinion.

Edited January 4, 2016 by Deker

[andyf 144]

Yes HORNET is for you, I've never owned one personally, but I have shot one (CZ 527), and good it was (quiet in context) and

very accurate, I chose a .223 at that time, but your right that would blow bunnies to bits.

Only downside is the Hornet cases are a bit 'thin' and fragile for reloading, but other than that top hole!

[goldfinger 135]

I use .17HMR on rabbits out to 150 yards never had a problem with wind drift an inch either way there not going anywhere, as for noise/cost/ probs with .17hmr I find that not a problem ammo quite reasonably priced,I do prefer .22 subs though the perfect bunny round in my opinion.,anything bigger unless you want fox as well is I think over kill.

[Alsone 789]

Small and light is ideal for bunnies but equally suffers windage. Any round with more energy / weight is going to damage meat if body shot.

 

I reckon a .17 CF is the way to go but you are going to suffer damage and windage issues. .17 hornet is about the least powerful of the .17cf's but it's still good for 300yds+:

 

There's a good comparison chart here:

 

 

Another consideration is ammo availability. 17 Hornet is available off the shelf if you don't want to reload as is Remington.

 

Only thing to be aware of as well is ammo cost. .17 remington is a necked .222 Magnum case from memory, so relatively large case and powder content. I believe it's around £38-40 per 20 box compared to around £20 for a box of 25 .17 Hornet.

Edited January 4, 2016 by Alsone

[toxo 160]

Small and light is ideal for bunnies but equally suffers windage. Any round with more energy / weight is going to damage meat if body shot.

 

I reckon a .17 CF is the way to go but you are going to suffer damage and windage issues. .17 hornet is about the least powerful of the .17cf's but it's still good for 300yds+:

 

There's a good comparison chart here:

 

 

Another consideration is ammo availability. 17 Hornet is available off the shelf if you don't want to reload as is Remington.

 

Only thing to be aware of as well is ammo cost. .17 remington is a necked .222 Magnum case from memory, so relatively large case and powder content. I believe it's around £38-40 per 20 box compared to around £20 for a box of 25 .17 Hornet.

Good post Alsone. I think the cost is going to weigh heavily in any decision I make. I shoot for a hobby and don't sell anything so couldn't justify a £ a go. A zero/plinking session last week had my 100 round box half empty. Maybe look at the .17hmr with new eyes

[Deker 3,478]

If you are looking at ammo prices, some examples, from Dauntsey and Gunshop!

 

.17 HMR £12.95 x 50 = 25.9p each

.17 Hornet £20.95 x 25 = 83. each

.22 Hornet £19.95 x 25 = 79. each

.17 Rem £39.24 x 20 = £1.96p each

 

Life isn't that simple/easy, your choice of 17 Rem is virtually zero, and your choice of 17 Hornet only marginally better, many RFD carry neither!

 

.22 Hornet isn't quite so bad, but a reasonable choice of HMR is available at virtually every RFD in the country. It is of course also the cheapest of the above by a long way.

 

HMR certainly has issues, but I find it a very useful long range bunny gun, and it can give me circa twice the effective range of my .22lr with subs.

 

Edited January 4, 2016 by Deker

[charlie caller 3,654]

I would go WMR and get semi auto, Hornady do the 30 grain vmax which is a superb round,hornet is a brilliant little round,but really must be re-loaded to get the best out of it, but on the upside,when I re-loaded for my hornet,I reckon I could do them for around 18-20 pence a bang

[Deker 3,478]

I would go WMR and get semi auto, Hornady do the 30 grain vmax which is a superb round,hornet is a brilliant little round,but really must be re-loaded to get the best out of it, but on the upside,when I re-loaded for my hornet,I reckon I could do them for around 18-20 pence a bang

 

My current WMR lives on 30g Hornady V-Max and performs excellently with them, for some reason my last WMR preferred the CCI 40g Maxi Mag.

 

Anyway, if I go out after the longer bunnies I will always reach for my HMR. If I'm after the fox out in the field close(ish), or culling Canadas, the WMR with the Hornady is first choice. Even though the 30g Hornady V Max fly very similar to the 17g HMR out to around 100 yards, I still rate the HMR as the rabbit gun.

 

[goldfinger 135]

On bunnys tried and tested .22 subs cheap as chips and very quiet and a pleasure to shoot and for the distant ones .17 hmr Hornady V-Max won't break the bank,save the bigger stuff for charly.

[Alsone 789]

I would go WMR and get semi auto, Hornady do the 30 grain vmax which is a superb round,hornet is a brilliant little round,but really must be re-loaded to get the best out of it, but on the upside,when I re-loaded for my hornet,I reckon I could do them for around 18-20 pence a bang

 

No need to reload for the .17 Hornet as being a new round, all the ammo is good off the shelf. Only issue as Deker says is availability isn't fantastic as it's not the most widely used calibre. Much better though than some of the other .17's in that regard.

 

As for .22 Hornet, 4 issues - need to reload, heavier bullet, more energy, ballistics poor at long range (just look in the table above at 300yds with a 200yd zero for .22 Hornet - 17 inches of drop!) - just depends at what range his bunnies are at.

 

That's one thing he hasn't said that's crucial really. No point in having a .17 Remington if they're at 100yds. Similarly if they're at 200yds, pretty much looking at CF unless you're a very very good shot with a HMR.