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  #1  
Old 09-01-2018, 10:18 PM
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Do any of you reload for the 22 Hornet?
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Old 09-01-2018, 10:20 PM
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Yes. Lilgun powder is all I use
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Old 09-01-2018, 11:15 PM
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Yes. Lilgun powder is all I use

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
What he said!
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Old 09-01-2018, 11:32 PM
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I have no Hornets now, but have had about ten in the last thirty-five years or so. Two of these, a BSA Martini and a CZ were accurate. Best powder for me was 1680 with #2400 a reasonably close second. Seems I read somewhere years ago that #2400 was developed for the Hornet.

Never saw much point in using any bullet weights other than 40 or 45 grains; optimum for the cartridge and the Hornet was developed around this weight bullet.

Of all the bullets I tried, the short, stubby 40 grain Speer was by far the most accurate. A second would be the Hornady 45 grain Spire Point. Sierra makes (or did make) a 45 grain round nose. My notes don't have any comments on accuracy, but if I were to work with another Hornet, I'd try this bullet again. The Hornady roundnose bullets generally shoot quite accurately.

The Hornet is at best a 150 yard cartridge; fun to work with even if it's not very practical. Probably perfect as a turkey cartridge but a bit light for coyotes.
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Old 09-02-2018, 12:02 AM
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The Hornet is at best a 150 yard cartridge; fun to work with even if it's not very practical. Probably perfect as a turkey cartridge but a bit light for coyotes.
The point above is really true. If you go to the K hornet you may be able to add another 25 yds. I have been loading the 40 gr Ballistic tip and it shoots really well out of my Ruger 77H. It surprisingly is the most accurate Hornet I have ever had. Had 4 M-70s couple of 43s Savage 340 or two and none were much better than an inch- inch and a quarter guns. But that is fine for the Hornets uses. I have 2 Contenders in Hornet and K Hornet and they shoot very well. I have some of those old Sierra round nose bullets and they were one of the more accurate with 2400 and 680. L'il Gun is probably the best powder ever in the Hornets
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Old 09-02-2018, 12:28 PM
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The Hornet is one cartridge where I really like Calhoun bullets
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Old 09-02-2018, 08:12 PM
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Not at present, but years ago I had a Winchester Model 43 in .22 Hornet. I always used IMR 4227 and it performed well. As I remember, a .222" diameter bullet was recommended, not the .224". I think 2400 is also known as a good powder for that caliber, but I did not use it. I used my .22 Hornet for crow hunting. It was a big deal to outsmart the crows back then. I did know one guy who used the .22 Hornet for deer hunting. It was legal for use in West Virginia at that time. He usually got his deer. The .22 Hornet died out after the .222 Rem and .223 Rem took over as they were much better for any use. And if you really wanted .22 Hornet performance for some reason, both the .222 and .223 could be downloaded. I sort of miss the .222, I doubt that many, if any, rifles are still made in that caliber today, and I haven't seen a box of .222 ammunition on a store shelf for a long time. The only similar caliber in shorter supply is the .222 Magnum.

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Old 09-02-2018, 08:56 PM
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I load for the Hornet. The cases are very delicate, so you have to take care resizing and seating the bullets.

I am down to two Hornets currently, a H&R Handy Gun II, which is more accurate than it should be; and a TC Contender. Some day I might find a nice Low Wall Winchester or even a CZ Manlicher style bolt gun to replace the Ruger 77/22 Hornet I traded off. I never could get it to shoot like it should.

In my opinion the Hornet is like a 28 Gauge, in that it is more effective than it should be.
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Old 09-04-2018, 11:29 AM
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The 22 Hornet and 28 Gauge shotgun are "Fun" toys to play with.............

Just that the ammo is either hard to find or very expensive, so
reloading is the only answer, if you own these little gems.

The "Tripple Duce" was king in its day and also a great accurate loading,
that is seldom seen at the local rifle ranges around here.

Enjoy that work of art.
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Old 09-04-2018, 05:58 PM
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I am a great fan for 22Hornet, along with 218 Bee (in single shot rifles), and 221 Fireball! I never worked with the "Improved" versions as they basically duplicated the next cartridge in the line up. In my accumulating brass, I have K-Hornet empties as well as Mashburn Bee cases. To me taking a fine shooting rifle, and "Improving" it risked the loss of accuracy, and gained nothing more over a rifle I already owned.

In the 80's and 90's the quality of factory ammo became so bad, that many fine rifles only produced a "pattern" instead of a group! Hornady broke this trend with their Varmint Express ammo with a 35 grain bullet at 3100 fps. (There were reports of Prairie Dog hits at 300 yards, but I never saw any!)

I have had 3 of the Savage 340 rifles all old enough to not have serial numbers (that started in 1968) the gun went out of production in the late 50's or early 60's, then started again in 70 or so. So that made mine 40 or a lot more years old when I bought them. These are some of the most accurate rifles you can find. With Hornady VX ammo, one inch at 100 is the norm and the one I kept is a 1/2" gun. I had several tip-up action single shots and accuracy was very consistently sub 1"! I had a CZ in the mid 80's that wouldn't hit a barn if shot inside it! I also had a bull barreled Anschutz 54that was a 1+" gun with the 35 VX ammo but not 2" with 45 grain traditional loadings!

For Hornady's 35 gr V-max I found AA1680 at 3100fps was 1/2" to 3/4" in most all rifles that had a good history, but 3200fps was 1 1/4" at best!
For 45 gr semi point, H or IMR 4227 seemed to be best with the Townsend Whelan load of 11.5 gr @ 2700fps usually around 3/4" to 1"
For 40 gr Ballistic Tip, 4227, 1680 and 296/H100 all preformed very well.
I had serious trouble with LilGun blowing out case walls .2 & .4 grains below max. on 218 Bee (Virgin Brass!) and never messed with the success I was having on the Hornet.

I have somewhere around 3000 brass by 4 or 5 manufacturers. Currently, Nosler makes the very best! It has been available for Midway in 2 grades. Ready to load" 100 count and "Needs Prepped" 250 count. The entire batch will be within .1 grain of weight, within .002" case length, and .001" (or less) of neck wall thickness. The "needs prepped" will need flash hole and primer pocket work, as well as sized! This is so much better than the second best-Hornady!

There is some 1950's thru 60's military surplus ammo by Canadian firm CDC, that is 45 grain semi-spritzer FMJ (our Air Force seems to have issued this also) This was for survival rifles. It is known to be very accurate, but you need head shots *** there is no expansion! The brass was of "normal" quality for that time frame; which beat the 80's/90's US stuff to heck!

For primers, the opinions very! I have used Federal 205M with the loads above. Friends use the Remington 6 1/2, with equal success. One friend has phenomenal accuracy with Federal 201M (small pistol match), out of a 14" Contender, But his velocity is more like 22 Stingers or 22 Mag, if paper is all you kill this is worth a try! (with AA1680 powder)

Ivan
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Old 09-04-2018, 06:18 PM
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I used to, back when IMR 4227 was still considered a pretty decent powder for the cartridge. At one point, I had a Ruger Number 3, and an H&R Topper, both chambered for the Hornet. The #3 was much more versatile; it had a whole bunch more freebore. I still have the H&R.
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Old 09-04-2018, 07:46 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bulletslap View Post
I load for the Hornet. The cases are very delicate, so you have to take care resizing and seating the bullets.

I am down to two Hornets currently, a H&R Handy Gun II, which is more accurate than it should be; and a TC Contender. Some day I might find a nice Low Wall Winchester or even a CZ Manlicher style bolt gun to replace the Ruger 77/22 Hornet I traded off. I never could get it to shoot like it should.

In my opinion the Hornet is like a 28 Gauge, in that it is more effective than it should be.
Had the same experience with a Ruger 77/22 in Hornet; no matter what I hand-rolled and fed it the thing never would shoot like it ought to. I have an H&R Handy Rifle in .22 Hornet now that drives tacks and isn't terribly picky.

Agree, too, about Lil Gun and 2400, and sticking to less than 50 grain bullets. Very fun round to play with.
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Old 09-04-2018, 08:00 PM
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I agreed with everything said here which is amazing. Don't forget the los
noise level . You'll love the hornet
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Old 09-04-2018, 08:11 PM
Ackley1952 Ackley1952 is offline
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I wish someone would bring up using small pistol primers for accuracy. I've tried occasionally for 10 years with zero improvement but bet this will start an argument
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Old 09-04-2018, 09:53 PM
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I will happily identify myself as a .22 Hornet fan boy.

However, I have ended up converting all my .22 Hornet barrels to .22 K-Hornet.
Lot's of benefits; much better case life when reloading, fireforming .22 Hornet in .22 K-Hornet barrels is not only quick and easy, but you lose no accuracy when shooting the Hornet in a K-Hornet barrel, and of course, you can up the ante for powder charge if you like.

For powder, Lil'Gun is my only and ever "go to" powder for handloading the .22 Hornet/K-Hornet.
A really fun cartridge out of a Contender pistol.
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Old 09-04-2018, 11:12 PM
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You guys shooting the Ruger M77 should try shimming the bolt
On the M77 I had a shim made 100 yard groups 1/2” smaller.
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Old 09-04-2018, 11:38 PM
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I appreciate your info. The Hornet that I have is a very good condition Savage Model 219C already grooved for a scope. I have shot about 30 rounds and it functioned with no problems.
I found out one thing and that is if you want your empties just break it far enough to get the brass out then finish cocking it. It throws the brass a long way if you break it all of the way.
A bolt action would be nice but this was cheap and came with a El Paso made variable scope. It was either a V2 or V2.5-7 power and was just as clear as a new one.
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Old 09-05-2018, 07:39 AM
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Yes.......I cast a 55 grain bullet and use 2400 and 4227 powders!
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Old 09-05-2018, 07:48 AM
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I bet I thought about getting a hornet 20 times, but just never did. I opted instead for an old Browning safari grade heavy barrel in 222, and never looked back. I would like to shoot one though
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Old 09-05-2018, 07:52 AM
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Have an old Winchester model 43 in hornet. One of my favorites. Over the years I have tried many combinations of bullets and powders. Found the rifle absolutely will not shoot anything above 45 grains. Drop in a 50 grainer and the thing will not hit a 4"x8' sheet of plywood at 100.

Numerous powders have been tried over the years as well. 2400 has been a favorite until recently when I went back to working up an accuracy load. The gun could always do 1 1/2" at 100 but always hoped for better. Don't recall exactly who suggested W296 powder but gave it a try and the group size came down. Then found the 30 grain varment grenade bullet. Groups dropped to under 1/2" with 3000 fps mv.

Also went to using the Lee collet sizing die which I believe helps brass life as well as accuracy.
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Old 09-05-2018, 12:39 PM
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I sold my Win M43 in .22 Hornet back in the early 1970s. Still another of that legion of guns I wish I had kept. I haven't even seen a M43 in a very long time, so I guess their owners just never sell them. I remember that they also came in .25-20, .32-20, and .218 Bee, maybe others. I would buy one today in any of those calibers at a reasonable price.
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Old 09-05-2018, 02:11 PM
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I have two Anschutz 22hornets. Both are well under 1” guns.
I load one load-
Win cases
Fed sm rifle primers
13.2 gr lil gun
Any 40 gr bullet
I usually use 40 grain burgers because they cycle through magazines, here as the 40 grain plastic are too long to run through a magazine.
It is a fun cartridge for small varmints, and I’ve shot several coyotes with it.
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Old 09-05-2018, 02:31 PM
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The Hornet is alive because it is the perfect "suburbia" varmint rifle. Low noise, decent power. Been loading it since 1980. Right now I'm loading 46 grain cast, gas checked bullets over Unique powder.

I use IMR 4227 for jacketed. Both my hornets have been sub-moa guns.
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Old 09-05-2018, 02:38 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Bakebfr480 View Post
Yes.......I cast a 55 grain bullet and use 2400 and 4227 powders!
For intents and purposes you have a reloadable 22 mag with that cast bullet...with a heavier than normal bullet. I tried that way back yonder with my 2nd M-43. The 43s had trouble shooting good groups because of the mid bolt locking lugs. It could also be shimmed if IRC. Never did. My first hornet...in fact first centerfire rifle was a Savage 340 in the Hornet. It was a shooter. Found that rifle in a hedgerow. Much later I found out it was ditched by a fellow jacklighting deer. My 77-22H has a shim in it. shoots great.
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Old 09-05-2018, 02:52 PM
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I partial size my Hornet cases to increase both case life and accuracy.
To do this you raise the ram then screw the sizing die to touch the shell holder, leaving the die loose. Then back the die off 2/3 of a turn, again leaving it loose.
Run a case up into the loose die, then tighten the ring. If you use steel dies you only need a small amount of lube on the neck, and you don't get those hydraulic shoulder dents that the Hornet is famous for.

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Old 09-05-2018, 04:17 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Hairtrigger View Post
The Hornet is one cartridge where I really like Calhoun bullets
Speaking of James Calhoun, visiting his sight was the beginning of the end for my .22 Hornet ownership experience. Based on an info there ( To Bee Or 223, That Is The Question (Revisited)), I started down loading .223 to 22 Hornet velocities (actually all the way down to .22 mag at one point). Eventually, I found a downloaded .223 ( with Blue Dot powder and light bullets),outperformed my Hornet loads without all the drama of getting there. It also did so quietly and economically. Turns out the "Gopher Load" recipe is very popular with varmint hunters who need to keep the noise down a bit.
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Old 09-05-2018, 04:43 PM
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As I mentioned earlier, it is possible to duplicate .22 Hornet ballistics in .222 and .223 cases by downloading, which involves the use of faster handgun and shotgun propellants. Red Dot works very well for that purpose. About the only reason to do that would be to reduce the noise level for use in more-habitated areas. You can also do the same thing with larger calibers such as downloading a .30-'06 to .30-30 levels (or even less) in the same way.
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Old 09-05-2018, 05:31 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DWalt View Post
As I mentioned earlier, it is possible to duplicate .22 Hornet ballistics in .222 and .223 cases by downloading, which involves the use of faster handgun and shotgun propellants. Red Dot works very well for that purpose. About the only reason to do that would be to reduce the noise level for use in more-habitated areas. You can also do the same thing with larger calibers such as downloading a .30-'06 to .30-30 levels (or even less) in the same way.
Didn't you know that you need a 60 to 75 grain bullet at 4000 fps to kill ground squirrels in your yard!

All joking aside, I like owning several different rifle cartridges. I set up one very good load per gun, then whatever conditions I will hunt in, I take the right gun and ammo without having to guess where the scope or sights will land a bullet. (I can choose from 22 Hornet up to 450 Nitro Express, it just depends on what you call a varmint!)

For traditional varmints out to 600 yards I use:
22 Hornet
218 Bee
221 Fireball
223 Remington
22 Bench Rest
6mm PPC
6x284

And for really long range, out to 1300 yards:
223 Remington (non SAMMI load)
308 Winchester
338 Lapua Mag.

I've been known to use whatever is at hand. Like a groundhog that had been eluding me all summer (1984), I finally got him with a 7mm Mauser at 35 yards and 175 grain RN/FMJ WW I surplus ammo, after stalking him for an hour. Not a story worthy of a hunting magazine, but very satisfying just the same! This all took place right in my farm house back yard! When I was done with him, the last thing on his mind was a vapor trail!

Ivan

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Old 09-06-2018, 11:04 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Skeet 028 View Post
For intents and purposes you have a reloadable 22 mag with that cast bullet...with a heavier than normal bullet. I tried that way back yonder with my 2nd M-43. The 43s had trouble shooting good groups because of the mid bolt locking lugs. It could also be shimmed if IRC. Never did. My first hornet...in fact first centerfire rifle was a Savage 340 in the Hornet. It was a shooter. Found that rifle in a hedgerow. Much later I found out it was ditched by a fellow jacklighting deer. My 77-22H has a shim in it. shoots great.
Yes! And when you look at the price of 22 magnums, it is well worth it to reload the Hornet.
I bought a Savage 340 Hornet back in 1980 when it was "on the twilight years of obsolescence" according to one of my reloading manuals. Back then you could only find Hornet ammo in gun shops, at a high price. Those conditions forced me to buy a Lee Loader and get into the game of making my own ammo. It's been a lifelong hobby ever since. I've still got that Lee Loader but now I use presses.
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Old 09-07-2018, 11:11 AM
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I used to load for, shoot, and hunt groundhogs with a couple of Hornets.
Eventually got away from Hornets when I bought my first .223, and realized that it was a much more versatile cartridge because I could load it down to Hornet power levels when I wanted less muzzle blast, and up for more power when the increase in noise was not a problem.

I DO like the smaller actions that Hornets usually come in.
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