Browning 1885 .22 Hornet

[escopeta]

Recently acquired a like new 1996 vintage Browning 1885 in .22Hornet to play with. Have had several Hornets over the years from the BRNO ZKW 465 thru Anschutz 1430 and Savage O/U combo. Gun guns but never really accurate but good enough for the task of critter getters. For ammo I could only find some PPU factory ammo to try and get brass. Cleaned and borescoped before testing and rifle showed little firing since new.
Had a Mueller 4-14 scope to try and went to range for sight in at 50yds. Very disappointing with shotgun groups, but freed up about 50 pieces of brass. Had some Sierra 40 grn. varmint bullets, N110 powder, and Fed. 205m primers. Used Lee collet die set and AutoTrickler V3 for load. I found that this rifle has a lot of free-bore and with the bullets I had about.035” was as close as I could get and still have bullet seated in the case. The PPU factory rounds were more than .100” off.
Loaded up some ammo with 9.5 gns N110, Fed 205m primers, Sierra 40 grn. varmint bullets about.035” off lands. Took it out in the high heat of South Texas yesterday and again today and I was pleasantly surprised to see my rifle shot very well and better than any others I have had.
See attached factory shots at 50yds.rifle setup and hand loaded ammo. I did try different bullets with poor results. Speed on my hand loads 2630fps. with 4.7sd over 5 shots.

 

[escopeta]

Cockpit error on last 2 pix. Don’t belong.
Sorry

 

[1raggedhole]

I’ve been chasing a good load with my 1885 for more than one year with only marginal success. Had it rechambered to a k-hornet before ever trying the factory chamber. Still chasing…

 

[natdscott]

I’ve been chasing a good load with my 1885 for more than one year with only marginal success. Had it rechambered to a k-hornet before ever trying the factory chamber. Still chasing…

If you're any kind of handloader, you MIGHT could get the rifle checked out by a good-smith-that-ain't-the-first-one.

Your loads may not be the problem.

 

[c170b]

Good Test & reloading. I'm testing 22 hornet now too..Best groups are 11gr 4227.. 40gr hornet bullet. Sill working on it... But not as HOT here as where ur at..

 

[brokeasajoke]

While mine is not a browning, 1680 powder was magical dust to tighten groups for me in my Ruger.

 

[1raggedhole]

While mine is not a browning, 1680 powder was magical dust to tighten groups for me in my Ruger.

Good to hear. This is next on my list.

 

[1raggedhole]

If you're any kind of handloader, you MIGHT could get the rifle checked out by a good-smith-that-ain't-the-first-one.

Your loads may not be the problem.

Thanks for the advice. Mine actually shoots groups at 100 that look like the OPs factory load at 50, so it’s not terrible, but I’m trying to find the best load.

 

[escopeta]

If mine didn’t shoot to my liking I was planning to rechamber to .222 as would fit without too much work. I like N110 as I use it in magnum pistol loads as less flash and blast than H110. With the 9.5grn. load it fills the case into the neck without compression. No pressure problem in my 95+ heat and only a 10fps spread across multiple shots. Equal or better than my custom 6BR. Neck size only with Lee collet die which I use for all of my rifles as they give me the most uniform neck tension with less brass ironing and hardening. I also tried some Hornady 55grn soft points with terrible results as expected. Will try some Sierra 52 SMK, but think my current combination will be hard to beat. This is just a short range critter getter and I have my old 40x 22-250 for longer range.

 

[RGRobinett]

With the Browning and Win. branded 1885s ya NEED short bullets: both models feature 1:16" twist barrels.
I jumped into this rabbit labyrinth last fall, clutching a Win., made by Miroku - the stock doesn't "hold a candle" to the OPs Browning. I didn't check twist-rate, or, do other "homework" until I read the user manual!
The Miroku [internal] barrel finish is excellent and shows no tendency to foul. To save the factory fore-end, "as-is", the next step, is making one, which will be "pillar bedded" to the hanger, and, otherwise, completely free of contact with the action and barrel.

Back to THE point: Ideally, for 1:16" twist, the bullet length should not exceed 0.60". RG

 

[brokeasajoke]

Some people are liking the 40gr vmax. I have not tried them but am using 35gr vmax and 33gr Remington seconds ment for the 22mag which are doing well.

 

[c170b]

Yea. my Annie is 1-16 twist. I doesn't like the 52 grain, hits 50yd target sideways..
So 45gr and less..

 

[escopeta]

With the Browning and Win. branded 1885s ya NEED short bullets: both models feature 1:16" twist barrels.
I jumped into this rabbit labyrinth last fall, clutching a Win., made by Miroku - the stock doesn't "hold a candle" to the OPs Browning. I didn't check twist-rate, or, do other "homework" until I read the user manual!
The Miroku [internal] barrel finish is excellent and shows no tendency to foul. To save the factory fore-end, "as-is", the next step, is making one, which will be "pillar bedded" to the hanger, and, otherwise, completely free of contact with the action and barrel.

Back to THE point: Ideally, for 1:16" twist, the bullet length should not exceed 0.60". RG

My fore-end is is not touching the barrel. A piece of paper easily slides all the way to receiver. My rifle is from first year so maybe things changed over time.

 

[Rick in Oregon]

Mine is also a first year production rifle. I purchased it the first month they came out. Only put abut 50 rounds through it before rechambering to K-Hornet. I've never looked back...longer case life, better velocity, and for no apparent reason, accuracy seemed to improve once it was "K-d".

A1680 seems to be what it likes, along with the old Nosler 45gr Hornet Solid Base bullet. Glad I laid in a few 'thou of them prior to being discontinued. That should last me the rest of my days, as my 20VT gets most of the rat shooting duties.

I don't shoot much paper, but this is how it shoots when I do:



The forearm is floated, a nice trigger job reduced the horrendous pull down to 2 lbs, and the shiny gloss finish the factory puts on for some unknown reason was all buffed down with 4/0 steel wood for a nice matte finish.



It's a sweet companion for cruising through the sage and junipers for jackwabbits, rockchucks, or sage rats, which it has dispatched a few hundred. Way fun little rifles!

 

[escopeta]

Found the PPU .22 Hornet ammo bullet measures .2225” which might be fine for pre- war guns with.223” barrels but not in current.224”. Explains why it shot badly. Even a sized case will not hold the bullet well. Pictured is bullet touching rifling and stock factory load. Will be pulling all the bullets to use brass. Buyer be ware of this ammo for your modern rifle.

 

[1raggedhole]

I’ve been chasing a good load with my 1885 for more than one year with only marginal success. Had it rechambered to a k-hornet before ever trying the factory chamber. Still chasing…

And by strike of luck, today I found it:
40 v-max, 12.8 Lil, cci450, ppu cases
Avg of 3x 5 shot groups = 0.62”
Avg 2900 fps
Be a lot of dead dogs in its future!

 

[V509]

I had a Ruger NO1 Hornet that was fussy. It did shoot sub moa with Hornady 35gr bullets
I sold it when I found a Browning 1885 Hornet. The Browning shoots almost anything sub moa.

 

[Dennis22]

If mine didn’t shoot to my liking I was planning to rechamber to .222 as would fit without too much work. I like N110 as I use it in magnum pistol loads as less flash and blast than H110. With the 9.5grn. load it fills the case into the neck without compression. No pressure problem in my 95+ heat and only a 10fps spread across multiple shots. Equal or better than my custom 6BR. Neck size only with Lee collet die which I use for all of my rifles as they give me the most uniform neck tension with less brass ironing and hardening. I also tried some Hornady 55grn soft points with terrible results as expected. Will try some Sierra 52 SMK, but think my current combination will be hard to beat. This is just a short range critter getter and I have my old 40x 22-250 for longer range.

The 1885 has a .223 barrel, not .224 it has a 1-16 twist
the shorter bullets will work better
.222 might be a little hot for the smaller diameter barrel

 

[Dennis22]

And by strike of luck, today I found it:
40 v-max, 12.8 Lil, cci450, ppu cases
Avg of 3x 5 shot groups = 0.62”
Avg 2900 fps
Be a lot of dead dogs in its future!

This is almost exactly my load, I'm using 13g Lil Gun and I'll get an occasional sub.5 group but generally around .7 at 100 yds. I have to swirl the powder to get it all in the PPU case

 

[Conaso]

The 1885 has a .223 barrel, not .224 it has a 1-16 twist
the shorter bullets will work better
.222 might be a little hot for the smaller diameter barrel

.223 barrel is WRONG! The .223 grove diameter is typically pre-WWII based upon the wildcat development of the Winchester .22 Centerfire, they used .22 rimfire barrels due to availability and low cost. The Browning 1885s are recent manufacture.

"The 22 Hornet's ancestry is generally attributed to experiments done in the 1920s using the black-powder .22 WCF at Springfield Armory. Winchester adopted what had so far been a wildcat cartridge in 1930, producing ammo for a cartridge for which no commercially-made guns yet had been built. It wasn't until 1932 that any company began selling commercially-made guns for the cartridge. Older guns generally have a slower twist rate of 1-16" of barrel length for lighter bullets with a .223 caliber dimension. Newer guns feature a faster 1-14" twist for 40 to 45-grain bullets in the more standard .224 caliber."​

.22 Hornet​

History​

Developed by American wildcatters in the 1920's, the .22 Hornet was adopted and officially introduced by Winchester in 1930. At the time the most commonly used rifle for converting to .22 Hornet was the 1922 Springfield .22 long rifle. Because the groove diameter of the .22 long rifle measured .223”, the Hornet was loaded with .223" caliber bullets. The Production of commercial rifles eventually saw the change from .223" to .224" groove diameters, today, Hornet projectiles are still offered in either .223" or .224" calibers.

Also, I would not recommend using a CCI 450 - unnecessary. Try a pistol primer for such a small case, many find improved accuracy. I have a semi-custom HW in .22 Hornet, 1-16 twist, .224 barrel.