tomf52
Member
So what do you all think aboout reloading and casting for this caliber? Thought it may be a fun 100 yard informal target shooter.
A 22 Hornet rifle has caught my eye.....
- Thread starter tomf52
- Start date
Register to hide this ad
ColbyBruce
Member
I own a CZ 527 Lux .22 Hornet. It shoots the 35 grain factory Hornady ammo well enough that I have not bothered to reload for it in a long time. I had a Ruger 77 and #1 that were not accurate, period. Had a Savage 340 clone that would shoot near as well as my CZ. It is a fine cartridge if used within it's limited range. I never tried cast bullets in it.
Alk8944
US Veteran
Only the earliest Hornets used .223 bullets, all pre-WWII. This is not an issue.
This is a nice little cartridge that still has it's place, you should enjoy it. They tend to be somewhat particular about cast bullets, just like all smaller calibers. If the gun you choose has a 14" twist it should do fairly well. Give it a try.
I have a H&R Handi-Rifle in Hornet that a friend gave me a few months ago. I have only shot it with cast once so far (that's all I have shot it!) with Lyman 225415 that is supposed to be 45 grains, mine casts at 55 grains. Even though this theoretically shouldn't stabilize in the Hornet it did shoot a couple of 3-shot groups at about 1/4" at 25 yds. I was just getting the scope adjusted initially. No sign of tipping.
Last edited:
The Hornet was never designed as a tack driver, and although you may get one that is, don't be surprised if roughly moa is where you end up.
Also, they are not overly fond of the heavier bullets, from what I have been led to understand. But I am about to contradict that. See below...
I have an NEF in Hornet that I had converted to a "K" because of longer case life and a bit better ballistics. The rifle shoots quite well; matter of fact, the best load I have found for it is the standard Winchester 55-grain soft point and 10 grains of AA 2200. The load is almost one ragged hole at 100. To say I was surprised would be a big understatement.
And don't under-estimate the round with cast. My favorite plinking load is the Lyman #225107, coated with liquid Alox and seated un-sized in front of half a grain of Accurate #2 and a cotton pellet, lit with a small pistol primer. It is dead silent, and shoots to one hole at 25 yards. I developed the load to get rid of squirrels in my parents' back yard; one year during a bad drought they were stripping the bark from the pecan trees. The load is dead silent: all you hear is the hammer falling, and I have to break open the NEF and blow down the barrel to get the cotton pellet out, but it is absolute death on squirrels to 25 yards!
I have the Lyman #225450 mould as well. One of these days I am going to get around to working up a load for that projectile, too.
Enjoy your Hornet; just be careful seating bullets, as that neck is VERY thin and easily crushed.
Also, they are not overly fond of the heavier bullets, from what I have been led to understand. But I am about to contradict that. See below...
I have an NEF in Hornet that I had converted to a "K" because of longer case life and a bit better ballistics. The rifle shoots quite well; matter of fact, the best load I have found for it is the standard Winchester 55-grain soft point and 10 grains of AA 2200. The load is almost one ragged hole at 100. To say I was surprised would be a big understatement.
And don't under-estimate the round with cast. My favorite plinking load is the Lyman #225107, coated with liquid Alox and seated un-sized in front of half a grain of Accurate #2 and a cotton pellet, lit with a small pistol primer. It is dead silent, and shoots to one hole at 25 yards. I developed the load to get rid of squirrels in my parents' back yard; one year during a bad drought they were stripping the bark from the pecan trees. The load is dead silent: all you hear is the hammer falling, and I have to break open the NEF and blow down the barrel to get the cotton pellet out, but it is absolute death on squirrels to 25 yards!
I have the Lyman #225450 mould as well. One of these days I am going to get around to working up a load for that projectile, too.
Enjoy your Hornet; just be careful seating bullets, as that neck is VERY thin and easily crushed.
Ivan the Butcher
Member
I'm down to one Bolt action Hornet and a 10" Contender. Over the years I have owned about 14 different rifles and 3 Contenders. The traditional bullet is a semi spitzer 46 grain soft point jacketed flat base at 2700 fps. using IMR 4227. Several years ago Hornady came out with a 35 grain semi spitzer V-Max that shoots great at 3100 fps. I have a Lyman 45 grain flat nose gas check 22 cal bullet that was designed for 218 Bee. It shoots well at about 2100 fps with IMR 4227 in most rifles. If you use Remington primers, go with the 6 1/2. If Federal use Small Pistol standard or Match. The neck walls are a nominal .010 thick, but many times the thickness is inconsistent, causing uneven neck tension. This more often a problem in short barrels like Contenders and Raging Hornet revolvers. The only cure for that is neck turning! 20 & 24" rifles don't usually suffer from this problem. I weigh all my charges on these small cased rounds, a 1/10 grain +/- is a big deal! Ivan
The 22 Hornet can be very accurate when properly loaded. I have an Anshutz 22 Hornet and with my reloads will group well under 1/2 inch at 100 yards. With factory loads with standard Hornet bullets, it will only group around 3/4 to 1 inch at 100 yards.
I used a Lee collet sizing die that only size the neck, Sierra 40 grain Blitz Kings, either Lil Gun or AA 1680 powder, small pistol primers, and a light crimp. The bore on the Anshutz slugs .223 but I've had no problem using .224 diameter bullets. Some say the 40 grain BKs are too long when properly seated to fit the Anshutz magazine. But just seating a little deeper than normal and judicious loading of the magazine, they worked great for me.
One of the keys for good accuracy with the Hornet is using the small pistol primer. The reason for the small pistol primer is that a small rifle primer will start the bullet before the powder combusts due to the small capacity case causing inconsistent ignition. Also for best accuracy, use a light varmint bullet of your choice and not the stand "Hornet" bullets.
Hope that helps.
I used a Lee collet sizing die that only size the neck, Sierra 40 grain Blitz Kings, either Lil Gun or AA 1680 powder, small pistol primers, and a light crimp. The bore on the Anshutz slugs .223 but I've had no problem using .224 diameter bullets. Some say the 40 grain BKs are too long when properly seated to fit the Anshutz magazine. But just seating a little deeper than normal and judicious loading of the magazine, they worked great for me.
One of the keys for good accuracy with the Hornet is using the small pistol primer. The reason for the small pistol primer is that a small rifle primer will start the bullet before the powder combusts due to the small capacity case causing inconsistent ignition. Also for best accuracy, use a light varmint bullet of your choice and not the stand "Hornet" bullets.
Hope that helps.
Last edited:
dirty gary
Member
I've always liked the Hornet round, waiting to find the right gun. I have about half a 5 gallon bucket of once fired brass, came from Taurus when they were testing their Raging Hornet revolver.
Similar threads
