I just Got a 22 Hornet & have never owned one before, I would like to Reload for this rifle & would like the best size bullet & powder for this Caliber. I have only reloaded a 22 caliber in a 22-250 & havent heard to much about the Hornet. I hope some of you guys have had experence with one. Thanks for any information.
22 Hornet
- Thread starter Bman
- Start date
sac4
Member
it would depend on what type of rifle you got. If its a ruger the 35gr vmax is the best I found due to the mag and coal. If its another make then I would go with a 40 vmax. I know lilgun is a fav for most around here. I use vn110 and it has worked great in 2 hornets. H110 did ok but vn110 wa the most accurate for me. Make sure you use small pistol primers they make a big difference in the hornet.
Martyn4802
New member
I have three 22 Hornets that I feed regularly.
Like any centerfire rifle, you'll have to do some testing to find the best load for your rifle.
I began my reloading in 1948 for a 22 Hornet, and have had at least one for the intervening years.
I think there are some special things that are worth trying to get best accuracy from a Hornet. I now use small pistol primers, and crimp bullets after seating them. Outside of those two things, everything else is the same as loading for other CF rifles.
My rifles like 10.2 grains of H-110, and/or, 13.0 grains of Lil-Gun powders.
Bullets that work now, and 60 years ago, are the Sierra 45 grain Hornet bullets. Others that shoot well are the 40, and 45 grain Starke bullets, and the 40 grain Blitz, with either of the powder charges mentioned above. Quite possibly, the Hornady, Nosler, and Speer 40 and 45 grain bullets will shoot best in your rifle. Some get good accuracy with the Calhoun bullets, however, they don't shoot well for me. But, that's a rifle thing, and your rifle will tell you what it likes, not the other way around.
Like any centerfire rifle, you'll have to do some testing to find the best load for your rifle.
I began my reloading in 1948 for a 22 Hornet, and have had at least one for the intervening years.
I think there are some special things that are worth trying to get best accuracy from a Hornet. I now use small pistol primers, and crimp bullets after seating them. Outside of those two things, everything else is the same as loading for other CF rifles.
My rifles like 10.2 grains of H-110, and/or, 13.0 grains of Lil-Gun powders.
Bullets that work now, and 60 years ago, are the Sierra 45 grain Hornet bullets. Others that shoot well are the 40, and 45 grain Starke bullets, and the 40 grain Blitz, with either of the powder charges mentioned above. Quite possibly, the Hornady, Nosler, and Speer 40 and 45 grain bullets will shoot best in your rifle. Some get good accuracy with the Calhoun bullets, however, they don't shoot well for me. But, that's a rifle thing, and your rifle will tell you what it likes, not the other way around.
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I have used Lil-Gun and AA1680 with good results ,Nosler 40gr ballstic tips shoot well in my Savage 40 and TC Contender Carbine . I recommend neck sizing with a Lee collet die ,crimping with a Lee factory crimp die ,Small pistol primers rather than small rifle primes will give you better groups (I use Rem 5 1/2).I have a Redding T-7 dedicated to Hornets . I also use a Lee disc powder measure to drop the charge and I find it to be the most accurate measure I have used . I had to hone the disc to get the right charge . Good luck those Brownings look good !
I'm going to have to try small pistol primers at some point I guess. I have been using Rem 6 1/2 Small Rifle primers just fine though in my hornet, a CZ 527 American.
HSM 37gr Calhoon SDHP's were very accurate for me. I shot some good Cooper Varmint Extreme's too (42gr SDHPs). But as far as reloading, the 35gr V-MAX is the winner in my gun hands down. No issues with COL where I wanted something that would fit my magazine and wouldn't require me to feed them one at a time in the field when hunting. The 35 is VERY destructive too at 3,000+ fps. If the book COL is 1.725 (I can't recall right at the moment), I ended up at 1.735 using 13.2gr of Lil'Gun and the Rem 6 1/2's.
I also found the 40 Sierra SP to be a very accurate little bullet. 13.0 with that one was my max, and book COL was just fine. My gun wouldn't do as well with the 45 Sierra. I think 12.7 was my most accurate load with the 45's, but it was more like MOA or slightly over performance versus the 1/2" @ 100yd performance I could get out of these other two. And I didn't even bother trying to reload the SDHP's because while I am sure it is a very accurate little bullet, I wasn't impressed with its terminal performance on what I hunt mostly - ground-hogs.
Hornets are great though. Made much better too by reloading in most cases. Hard to argue with the punch that this little round can deliver with just 13 grains of powder!
HSM 37gr Calhoon SDHP's were very accurate for me. I shot some good Cooper Varmint Extreme's too (42gr SDHPs). But as far as reloading, the 35gr V-MAX is the winner in my gun hands down. No issues with COL where I wanted something that would fit my magazine and wouldn't require me to feed them one at a time in the field when hunting. The 35 is VERY destructive too at 3,000+ fps. If the book COL is 1.725 (I can't recall right at the moment), I ended up at 1.735 using 13.2gr of Lil'Gun and the Rem 6 1/2's.
I also found the 40 Sierra SP to be a very accurate little bullet. 13.0 with that one was my max, and book COL was just fine. My gun wouldn't do as well with the 45 Sierra. I think 12.7 was my most accurate load with the 45's, but it was more like MOA or slightly over performance versus the 1/2" @ 100yd performance I could get out of these other two. And I didn't even bother trying to reload the SDHP's because while I am sure it is a very accurate little bullet, I wasn't impressed with its terminal performance on what I hunt mostly - ground-hogs.
Hornets are great though. Made much better too by reloading in most cases. Hard to argue with the punch that this little round can deliver with just 13 grains of powder!
I have the abolt and found in mine a lil-gun, Small Pistol Primers, and a 40gr vmax worked the best. If you want to squeeze a Little more out of it a crimp brought it in a little tighter but is tough on the thin hornet cases. I did have trouble getting the 35gr vmax to shoot well.
A quick hint on the prep and reloading stage. They are thin cases keep the lube to the min needed if there is any excess it is easy to dimple the cases. Also then seating the bullet make sure they are lined up or you will crumple the necks.
A quick hint on the prep and reloading stage. They are thin cases keep the lube to the min needed if there is any excess it is easy to dimple the cases. Also then seating the bullet make sure they are lined up or you will crumple the necks.
Martyn4802
New member
Originally Posted By: sbrandenI'm going to have to try small pistol primers at some point I guess. I have been using Rem 6 1/2 Small Rifle primers just fine though in my hornet, a CZ 527 American.
I just loaded up some Hornet test rounds yesterday with the Rem 6 1/2 primers. I never used them before, but found some locally about a month ago, and decided to try them. They'll take the heat off the Small Pistol Primers I have. I hope they shoot well. The store I bought them from limited each customer to 500 per, so I bought 5 boxes of 100.
As mentioned above, IMR-4227 is a good Hornet powder, and that's what I used when I started reloading. Also, 2400 was used by many Hornet loaders back then, but I never tried any of it.
Martyn
I just loaded up some Hornet test rounds yesterday with the Rem 6 1/2 primers. I never used them before, but found some locally about a month ago, and decided to try them. They'll take the heat off the Small Pistol Primers I have. I hope they shoot well. The store I bought them from limited each customer to 500 per, so I bought 5 boxes of 100.
As mentioned above, IMR-4227 is a good Hornet powder, and that's what I used when I started reloading. Also, 2400 was used by many Hornet loaders back then, but I never tried any of it.
Martyn
I like to think that my reloads can not be topped by factory loaded ammo, but my little contender 22 hornet has proven other wise...! The rifle shoots the 46 gr win load so sweetly..!!
If you dont have brass for your rig, this is also very good way to aquire the component & also get some trigger time. If you find a factory load your rifle likes, you can also duplicate its performance with your reloads & have a 'go-to' back up RND..
Its nice to swap from reloads to factory (or visa versa) with out haveing to re-sight.
If you dont have brass for your rig, this is also very good way to aquire the component & also get some trigger time. If you find a factory load your rifle likes, you can also duplicate its performance with your reloads & have a 'go-to' back up RND..
Its nice to swap from reloads to factory (or visa versa) with out haveing to re-sight.
K-22hornet.
New member
Lilgun powder and a small pistol primer is hard to beat in a hornet. I get about 2,900fps with a 45gr bullet and 13.0gr of Lilgun, and, according to Hodgdon, about 10,000psi less than other powders.
For reference, most powders suitable for the Hornet run around 42-45,000psi, while Lilgun runs around 32,000psi. With Lilgun, I have increased my speeds by about 200fps, reduced the psi by about 10,000, and gotten better accuracy. What's not to like?
For reference, most powders suitable for the Hornet run around 42-45,000psi, while Lilgun runs around 32,000psi. With Lilgun, I have increased my speeds by about 200fps, reduced the psi by about 10,000, and gotten better accuracy. What's not to like?
K-22hornet.
New member
I use CCI small pistol primers and have used Wichester and Federal in the past.