Best 0 distance for 22 hornet calling rifle

danthefoxman

New member
New to the 22 hornet what do you guys find to be the best distance to zero at. Plan on running 35gr Hornady vmax factory load. Mostly Fox with occasional coyote.
 
At 200yds you should be about 5.6"low......If you flipped it and went with a 200yd zero you would 2.8" high at 100yds. There are other factors that would come into play with this, your particular gun, temp, humidity, B/P, and altitude, these would be close numbers, not chiseled in stone.

Here Kitty Kitty
 
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Your bullet is light.

You need penetration on coyotes and that bullet is not a good one. That 35g Hornady V max is a squirrel and p. dog bullet.

Go to a 40-45-50g bullet.

I shot 12.0g of 296 with a 50g ballistic tip, tiny groups at 100 yards. A 40g Sierra hp or Sierra 45g spt with little gun should work as well.
 
I am shooting a 22 TCM, but balisticly they are very similar to the Hornet. I have shot a lot of the 35gr V Maxes, they shoot very accurate, and very explosive in my gun at 2950 fps. For more penetration I have switched to a Speer 40gr Spire point bullet. Shot a skunk this morning, he dropped in his tracks. These also seem pretty accurate in my gun.
 
Well shooting session did not go as planned. Not new to rifle shooting so I should have known better. Started normal break in process hit my 20 rounds then decided it was time to group. First 3 groups were disappointing. Then it was like a new gun. Groups shrunk from 3" at 100 down under 3/4" with 2 different loads. Zeroed at 100 yds and ran out of daylight. Killed big male red at about 120 yds and dropped him with authority. Just a tiny entry hole no exit. Will need to field test more but impressed.
 
Originally Posted By: ackleymanYour bullet is light.

You need penetration on coyotes and that bullet is not a good one. That 35g Hornady V max is a squirrel and p. dog bullet.

Go to a 40-45-50g bullet.

I shot 12.0g of 296 with a 50g ballistic tip, tiny groups at 100 yards. A 40g Sierra hp or Sierra 45g spt with little gun should work as well. what is trajectory like with that 50gr load?
 
When you are calling with a Hornet, you know your shots are on the 150 yd and less area. Don't be carrying a Hornet when you should be carrying a 243.

We were hunting in Az, and if we were to average the shots while making stands on the ground, then 85 yards would probably be in the ball park.

We shot 50g nosler ballistic tips and 50g Sierra lead tip blitz. Our main bullet was the 40g Speer Spt that fit in the Ruger magazines were we could touch the lands at magazine length. The 40g Speer is a great coyote bullet, very accurate...weird looking little sucker for sure with accuracy. The 40g Speer will penetrate, break shoulders.

When shooting a 50g bullet, you have to make sure that you have a 14T, NOT a 16T.

I killed coyotes on a regular basis at 150 yards with the 50g Speer spire point, my Ruger 77 and Mauser 210 was very, very accurate, and I would not hesitate to shoot a coyote at 200 yards. You really have to know your rifle, I sighted mine in at 100 yards.

There should be no need in shooting over max loads in a hornet, go to a 222 or a 223 if you feel like you don't have enough gun.
 
It's funny here in Maryland all the coyotes I've had come to the call have been in the woods tight shooting. Now foxes will occasionally hang in a big field and try to play the wind requiring along shot but it seems like our dogs won't come rolling across a field to we'll but woods sets consistently produce
 
I sighted my Browning Micro Hunter .22 Hornet at 100 yards and have shot groundhogs at 128 to 150 yards.....still waiting on a Coyote to come in to see how well it performs on larger Predators.
 
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Originally Posted By: ackleymanWhen you are calling with a Hornet, you know your shots are on the 150 yd and less area. Don't be carrying a Hornet when you should be carrying a 243.

We were hunting in Az, and if we were to average the shots while making stands on the ground, then 85 yards would probably be in the ball park.

We shot 50g nosler ballistic tips and 50g Sierra lead tip blitz. Our main bullet was the 40g Speer Spt that fit in the Ruger magazines were we could touch the lands at magazine length. The 40g Speer is a great coyote bullet, very accurate...weird looking little sucker for sure with accuracy. The 40g Speer will penetrate, break shoulders.

When shooting a 50g bullet, you have to make sure that you have a 14T, NOT a 16T.

I killed coyotes on a regular basis at 150 yards with the 50g Speer spire point, my Ruger 77 and Mauser 210 was very, very accurate, and I would not hesitate to shoot a coyote at 200 yards. You really have to know your rifle, I sighted mine in at 100 yards.

There should be no need in shooting over max loads in a hornet, go to a 222 or a 223 if you feel like you don't have enough gun.


Plus one here on that 40 Speer softpoint! Great little bullet!
 
AS with others, I limit my distance on coyotes to about 100yds when facing me, and I stretch to about 150-175 if they are broadside.

My go to bullet for at least 10 years is the Barnes XLC in 45gr, and when I run out of those, I'll use the TSX.

I carry my Ruger M77 Hornet when I have another person along to handle the longer shots. When I go by myself, I take my 222remmag or the TC 243.

For high body count, the 243 is tough to beat. Any range, any angle, any shot, and it just works.
 
Have to agree on the bigger cal I have a 25wssm with 75gr vmax that will flat put a coyote in his place feet up in the back of the truck. Main reason for the hornet is to be fur friendly on my foxes which are more abundant than the coyotes here. Also a big fan of the 204 but it is not to fur friendly on fox.
 
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