17 HMR VS 22LR
- Thread starter Frankr
- Start date
CJ6 said:
I do not have quite the same experience. There is a LOT less BANG...I'll agree with that. But my 17 is shockingly accurate. Much more so than my 22.
17 is a lot more expensive to shoot. A lot louder. (to me, I'll often use earplugs.) But it's SO accurate.
But if I were going to have only one for squirrel, plinking, small game. 22lr.
A cooper 57m?
Ouch! Big $$$$
For that money, you could get both a Savage 22lr and 17hmr, scopes on both..and have LOTS of money left over.
Ouch! Big $$$$
For that money, you could get both a Savage 22lr and 17hmr, scopes on both..and have LOTS of money left over.
rkittine
Gold $$ Contributor
+1
I bought the Savage Heavy Barrel S/S 17 HMR and with the mounts and scope it was pretty reasonable. Then bought a Henry Golden Boy also not bad in the price department even with scope and mount. Of course I do not expect the Henry to be that accurate as a .22 target rifle, but it is fine to 100 yards, but the 17 holds nice groups at 200 yards. Yes ammo is more, but have gotten it on sale at about $14.00 a box so not much more than .22 match.
Bob
I bought the Savage Heavy Barrel S/S 17 HMR and with the mounts and scope it was pretty reasonable. Then bought a Henry Golden Boy also not bad in the price department even with scope and mount. Of course I do not expect the Henry to be that accurate as a .22 target rifle, but it is fine to 100 yards, but the 17 holds nice groups at 200 yards. Yes ammo is more, but have gotten it on sale at about $14.00 a box so not much more than .22 match.
Bob
For meat shooting a head shot would be required using the 17hmr. I am getting rid of a number of custom 10/22s after getting a 17hmr. It shoots flat out to 150 yds (2 1/2" drop) has a devastating impact even at that range, and still has no recoil. Body shots from 75-100 yds, even shooting hollow point 22lrs, are problematic as the squirrel often drags itself for some distance requiring a follow up shot.
Accuracy is far superior compared to the 22lr, especially using semi-autos. . Yes the ammo is more expensive, however, I buy it when it is on sale. My Anschutz cannot go over 130 rounds without cleaning, so I stop at 100 and clean.
My plan is to use a 22lr out to 75 yds (suppressed) and then take out the 17hmr for shooting out to 150 yds all of this is jmho.
Chuck
Accuracy is far superior compared to the 22lr, especially using semi-autos. . Yes the ammo is more expensive, however, I buy it when it is on sale. My Anschutz cannot go over 130 rounds without cleaning, so I stop at 100 and clean.
My plan is to use a 22lr out to 75 yds (suppressed) and then take out the 17hmr for shooting out to 150 yds all of this is jmho.
Chuck
jds holler
Gold $$ Contributor
For someone who reloads (which I do), a rimfire .17 just doesn't hold much attraction.
There are a lot of zippy little center-fire 17's and 22's which will fill the bill better than the rim-fire version.
If I wasn't a reloader, I'd be all over one of the rimfire 17's. jd
There are a lot of zippy little center-fire 17's and 22's which will fill the bill better than the rim-fire version.
If I wasn't a reloader, I'd be all over one of the rimfire 17's. jd
jds holler
Gold $$ Contributor
I also meant to say that a very sweet and high quality 22 bolt gun always interests me. jd
If you enjoy the challenge of taking ONLY head shots then an HMR would work well. But any body shots taken with a 17 HMR will result in a wasteful bloody mess. Within distances that tree squirrels are usually shot, a 22LR has more than enough power and accuracy to accomplish the job at hand.
Tommie said:
+1
Ohio Varmint Shooter said:
Yes you could. BUT it would not be a cooper 57M
sometimes having a nice super accurate rifle with a real nice trigger makes a big difference when taking a shot of hand in the field. I actually have a old marlin 22 bolt gun that would shoot 1/4" 5 shot groups at 50 yards so I know for sure no matter how custom you get some times cheaper works but it is not and was never a nice rifle to wield in the field and it does not shoot any more. it is broken, trigger,clip broke barrel is toast.but it was fun shooting them little groups with a 169.00 dollar rifle when some custom bench guns were struggling to do that..Some people don't believe it. But it was unreal accurate. I have a 52B Winchester repro now, shoots good. I like it but I want something a little better.
But it does look like the 22LR gets the #1 vote.
17 HMR without question. So far I've killed squirrels out to 132 yds (headshot) fox to 130 yds and groundhogs to 275 yds and hit a golf ball @ 188 yds on my second shot. I have a couple 22's but since getting a 17 HMR I don't shoot the 22's anymore. I handload for all of my centerfire guns but still find it to be great fun to grab a handful of ammo and the 17 HMR. A 17 mach 2 would be a good choice for squirrels but I wanted a little more power for fox and hogs.
To add to my previous post:
Not only is the 22 LR plenty of power for a squirrel, but I'd go so far as to state that it's almost overkill. I once read that shooting a squirrel with a 22 is the equivalent to shooting a deer with a 20mm cannon. More than once I've nearly blown a squirrel in two with a 22LR hollowpoint. Truth be told a 22 short will plant a squirrel with plenty of authority.
I'm a big fan of the 17 HMR and have shot countless prairie dogs with one. Yes, the HMR will reach farther and buck wind better. And it's proven to be superbly accurate. But it's not my choice for hunting edible small game.
JMO
Not only is the 22 LR plenty of power for a squirrel, but I'd go so far as to state that it's almost overkill. I once read that shooting a squirrel with a 22 is the equivalent to shooting a deer with a 20mm cannon. More than once I've nearly blown a squirrel in two with a 22LR hollowpoint. Truth be told a 22 short will plant a squirrel with plenty of authority.
I'm a big fan of the 17 HMR and have shot countless prairie dogs with one. Yes, the HMR will reach farther and buck wind better. And it's proven to be superbly accurate. But it's not my choice for hunting edible small game.
JMO
For squirrel hunting a 22lr is perfect. Don't knock a guy for wanting a Cooper. I really enjoy mine! I'm kind of a rimfire junky, close to a 1/3 of my gun collection is rimfire.
I have a custom Sako quad and a 52d an Annie among other higher end 22s and the funny thing is, the one that has killed the most squirrels is a old Win 62a.
I have a custom Sako quad and a 52d an Annie among other higher end 22s and the funny thing is, the one that has killed the most squirrels is a old Win 62a.
TheOtherZilla
Pull my finger
I converted my CZ 455 from 22 Mag to 17 HMR, because ammo is plentiful.. Good 22 ammo is hard to find.. The 17 is plenty accurate.. If ya got the money a Cooper or an Anschutz would be the deal
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