22 Hoprnet

[dale1948]

Hi folks
I recently bought a new Savage 25 Walking Varmiter in 22 Hornet. This subject has probably been broached a thousand times but I thought I would ask anyway. What are people loading these little guys with (powder & bullets)? I have a bunch of Win 296 which I read is a good powder for the Hornet. Any suggestions where to buy components? What are your thoughts on the K chamber conversion?

I realize there are many alternatives to this little bullet. I own most of them already. Just one more thing to play with. I have Lee dies including Neck and Crimp dies. Thanks in advance. Dale

 

[moorepower]

A 40 grain V-max, small pistol primer. I use LilGun. 296/H110 works well. I have some 300MP to try, but have not yet. Stick with the same brand of brass if possible, because their internal volume is enough different, you should not use the same loads.

 

[pacificman]

I also have a Savage 25 and mine likes 13.5 grains of Hodgdon Lil-gun powder with the 35 grain v-max. I started out with small pistol primers but my groups tightened up considerably when I tried Remington 7-1/2 small rifle primers. I have not seen the 35gr. v-max for a long time now...sure hope they will put them back into production soon. I will agree with moorepower about sticking with the same brand of brass as I feel consistency is a big factor in getting this little round to shoot good. I bought all Winchester brass back when you could find the stuff. : I also tested crimping and it made no difference in my rifle. As far as finding components seems ya just have to keep looking and checking all the time with places like Mid-South, Powder valley, etc. The 22 Hornet is one of my favorites...Very fun to shoot. Once I got my Hornet shooting good the thought of any conversion was gone. Let us know what your rifle likes when ya get it shooting.

 

[dale1948]

Thanks all. I have found Hornady 40 grain v-max in my quest for the 35 grain v-max and bought 250. The 40s load too long to fit the mag but chamber ok. The gun has a 1 in 14" twist so I might try some 45 or 50gr. The brass has been another story. Hope it is not going to be as hard to find as my 35 rem. brass.

Thanks again. I'll post again after a few trips to the range. Dale

 

[Outrider27]

In addition to the powders listed above, all of which will work fine in a hornet, you can also try 4227. Among IMR4227, H110, Win296 and LilGun, LilGun will pretty consistantly deliver the highest velocities with any bullet choice, so the final choice, if max velocity isn't your only goal, will be which one delivers the best accuracy in your gun. I have had good results with, of all things, 35gr Doghouse bullets, a catch-all brand name used by Midway for bulk packed "blems". I mostly use 4227 because it's what I had when I started with the Hornet, but I'll get a pound of LilGun to play with one of these days. I have 2 hornets, one a "stocker" and the other rechambered to KHornet; of the two, the Khornet is less fussy to make shoot well, and it certainly was a painless introduction to wildcats. Either, with a little tinkering at the reloading bench, will shoot minute of ground squirrel to 175 yards (my self imposed limit for that cartridge) consistantly.

 

[dale1948]

Thanks for the info Outrider27.

I will look for the doghouse 35 gr. bullet. I have 15lb or so of IMR 4227 and 48lb of Win 296. I use both in my 44 mags. I was able to find the 40 gr. Hornady V- Max. Bought 250 from Midway. They will be here July 10. Then the adventure begins! Doing it for 60 years and still can't get enough.

I no longer obsess over the "all in one hole". I'm happy shooting cans with my grand daughter these days. We compete but she wins.

I had a 22 Hornet many years ago and could not remember much about it.
I don't think I will cast bullets for this one. My fingers are no longer nimble and these pills are small. Thanks again sir. Dale

 

[Rick in Oregon]

Dale, the bullets Outrider is referring to are called "Dogtown". You may have trouble finding them if you Google 'doghouse'.

They are made by Nosler for bulk distribution, same as the "Varmint Nightmare" sold by others; all the same cup & core bullet.

 

[hunter243sgk]

Dale, the bullets Outrider is referring to are called "Dogtown". You may have trouble finding them if you Google 'doghouse'.

They are made by Nosler for bulk distribution, same as the "Varmint Nightmare" sold by others; all the same cup & core bullet.

I think you can only get them at MidwayUSA That is where I would check first.Hope this helps.

 

[dale1948]

Right you are Rick. I guess I was thinking I might be in the "dog-house" if I keep picking up more reloading stuff/guns (ha ha). I did find the Dogtown bullets on midway's site. Back order. Thanks to all for the help. Dale

Dale, the bullets Outrider is referring to are called "Dogtown". You may have trouble finding them if you Google 'doghouse'.

They are made by Nosler for bulk distribution, same as the "Varmint Nightmare" sold by others; all the same cup & core bullet.

 

[Outrider27]

Dale, the bullets Outrider is referring to are called "Dogtown". You may have trouble finding them if you Google 'doghouse'.

They are made by Nosler for bulk distribution, same as the "Varmint Nightmare" sold by others; all the same cup & core bullet.

Rick, thanks for the good catch on the Dogtown bullets. Old age must be catching up with me.

 

[langenc]

Lil gun and small PISTOL primers!!

 

[Outrider27]

Lil gun and small PISTOL primers!!

Or not; one of mine likes CCI small pistol primers, the other prefers Remington 7 1/2 small rifle primers. Your rifle will tell you what it likes.

 

[sbranden]

I tried Sierra 45's - but my CZ 1in16 twist didn't like those too much. Had great results with the little Sierra 40 snub nose/SP hornet bullet, and the 35 V-MAX, and the 34gr Midway dogtown bullets. But then I tried 40 V-MAX's which I shoot pretty much as the standard now in an old 222rem and FANTASTIC! So you did good bringing in a box of 250 40 V-MAX's.

40 V-MAX
13.2 of Lil'gun
Rem 6 1/2 SR primers
and Remington brass
1.765" OAL (which works perfectly in my CZ magazine, with no mods of any sort)

2,875 fps and sub 1/2" @ 100 yards all day long if I do my part.

I have a Nikon Monarch UCC 5.5-16.5x44mm AO scope on mine, and this combination works fantastic for fur.

I find the 40 V-MAX tracks much better in wind than anything else and like the 35 V-MAX, they hit hard. Really anchor stuff well. Much better than the little Midway hollow point bullets.

 

[TheOtherZilla]

Someone mentioned Lil Gun, 296 and H110. All three work for me. I prefer H110 because it doesn't require a compressed load as Lil gun does. So far I like Hornaday 50gr SPSX's with H110 the best. Lil Gun works too when I can't find 296 or H110. 40 VMax with Lil Gun is also a good load.

All with CCI small pistol primers

Tried some Speer 33 grain HP's, jury is still out on these lil guys..