oppinions of the 17hornet

[jraney]

i must have been sleeping or something but this thing is new to me. i just heard about the 17wsm and got to thinkin do i need the 17 hornet? i really like shooting cheaply, but i like to be able to reachout and touch things also. my 223 and 22-250 allow me to reach out but they also wiegh alot, not just real easy for in the truck type shooting. anyhow ,what kind of velocity ,trajectory, bullet weight , and availabilityare we talkin about? can it be a somewhat replacement fun gun or truck gun over the 223?

 

[jkats]

Mine is an Ackley hornet so its not quite the exact same but I love mine. I shoot the 20 gr vmax for the most part and am getting around 3800 fps with 12.5 gr of powder so its cheap and efficient to shoot. I have shot coyotes and fox with it but only if its under 250 yards after that I use something bigger but crows and prairie dogs are fair game out to 400 or so. As far a trajectory from a 100 yard zero I have 1 inch of drop at 200 and about 6.5 and 300. So depending on your use of a truck gun it might be just perfect or completely useless.

 

[K22]

Did you reload? Is so why not get a 223 Tikka T3 Lite. Handles easily and if you're already set up for reloading you won't have to buy another caliber unless that's what you want.

I don't own or plan to own any 17 caliber rifles so those who do can comment on their effectiveness. I do know the 223 is very effective for me out 250 yards; it does everything I want it to do on groundhogs and predators. If I'm hunting an area where I can have shots over 250 yards or so, I use the 22 250 which is an outstanding long range caliber. I believe the Tikka T3 Lite is also available in 22 250. I have one in 243 and it's an outstanding light weight rifle.

 

[jraney]

hey thanks for the comments. as far as getting another 223 i would but i kinda want the hornet lol. i think i could sell my hmr and get the hornet instead. i like the hmr but if i can get something a little better why not. now i am not doing anything illegal here but how loud is the gun ? i do not like having to wear muffs or plugs all the time. i now i will hear it about that but when i am out walking or whatever i would like to just pull up and shoot not have to put on the ear protection. so i understand that with the AI you get alittle more speed so the standard hornet with the 20gr bullet same or close to same powder should be just a few hundred less, right or close?. sorry folks i type like i talk. i wonder if i could get this hornet in a savage, anybody know?

 

[jkats]

I'm pretty sure the new 17 hornet is very similar to the 17AH. I would guess the new hornet would be within 100 fps of the AH. A few shots without hearing protections isn't a problem for me but I sure wouldn't want to go shoot up a dog town with it. Here is a link to hornady's web site, if you click on the different loaded ammo it gives you there velocity's.
http://www.hornady.com/store/17-Hornet/

 

[Bangs OH]

I bought a .17HH in a Savage, for the same reasons you state. Biggest disappointment (besides the stiff bolt lift, jam-feeding and poor accuracy of their first ones out) was the loudness of the report: an almost irritating crack that is no quieter than a .223, and louder than a .22 Hornet. Which I promptly traded the .17 for, with no regrets. Might work better for you, too.
btw: wouldn't recommend shooting ANY firearm without hearing protection.

 

[MrMajestic]

I'm pretty sure the new 17 hornet is very similar to the 17AH.

It certainly is and with Hornady's powder choice they show velocities greater than I get with my Ackley Hornet. The H2O capacity of my fired R-P cases is 16.2 grains and W-W are 15.4. Yes this does make a big difference when reloading these small capacity cartridges. I don't have a HH to compare with but my understanding is that they have less capacity because of a shorter headspace datum and shallower angle. Won't swear to this however....

 

[CatShooter]

I'm pretty sure the new 17 hornet is very similar to the 17AH.

It certainly is and with Hornady's powder choice they show velocities greater than I get with my Ackley Hornet. The H2O capacity of my fired R-P cases is 16.2 grains and W-W are 15.4. Yes this does make a big difference when reloading these small capacity cartridges. I don't have a HH to compare with but my understanding is that they have less capacity because of a shorter headspace datum and shallower angle. Won't swear to this however....

The Hornet (and all of it's variants) headspace on the rim (0.060", +/-0.005"), so there can be no variation in headspace.

 

[jraney]

boy this conversation just went way over my head. but i think since the mod 25 in savage is the only 1 i can find and they seem to be somewhat of a dissapointment to everybody that has 1 i think i will try for the 17 remington or the fireball, these 2 i am sure have drawbacks of their own but at least i can get 1 in the platform i want. anyhow thanks for the info and thoughts.

 

[jkats]

Ruger and CZ make rifles in 17 hornet too so savage isn't your only option.

 

[MrMajestic]

The Hornet (and all of it's variants) headspace on the rim (0.060", +/-0.005"), so there can be no variation in headspace.

Not after fire forming! Most knew what I meant, don't you have a cat to shoot! ;D

 

[CatShooter]

The Hornet (and all of it's variants) headspace on the rim (0.060", +/-0.005"), so there can be no variation in headspace.

Not after fire forming! Most knew what I meant, don't you have a cat to shoot! ;D

Not "after fire forming" or before.

I shot the cat

 

[MrMajestic]

I can chuck my fire formed cases in a lathe and turn off the rim, other than having to use a cleaning rod to eject they will shoot better than yours head spacing off the rim, so there!
And you missed the one living in my garage that I dare not shoot according to the "War Department"! ;D

 

[tuck2]

About all of my shooting is at prairie dogs . I don't need a 17 caliber rifle for groundhogs, fox or coyotes because I have a bigger varmint caliber rifles for them. I have a CZ Varmint 17 Hornet on order and should a company make a Win 17 SM rimfire rifle I like, I ll get one. The little 17 Hornet only uses about 10 to 12 grains of powder with the 20 grain bullet but it will have plenty of energy to take out p dogs at 250 yards. I like the low recoil and muzzle blast of the 17 caliber rim and center fire rifles.

 

[Ackman]

It's been around for a long time as the 17AH. They're very similar. It's always been an excellent cartridge but now that it's factory round people get all excited. Go figure. This little centerfire is in a whole different league from the 17WSM that people are worked up about. It shoots a heavier bullet a whole bunch faster. Neither are plinkers, they're for shooting stuff. The rimfire ammo isn't readily available yet and don't believe the hype, when it's on shelves there's no way it'll be cheaper than reloading Hornet ammo. Any version of the 17Hornet is miles ahead of a 17rimfire in every way.

 

[sbranden]

Had a chance to be around a 17HH for the firest time yesterday - loud little thing! (I thought). I'll stick to my good 'ol 22 hornet and when longer ranges are calling, break out the 222, 22-250, 243, etc. If you don't already have a hornet, well... this may scratch an itch for some people. Definitely better than the BMag/rimfire option IMO, but the whole point of my hornet is to have something with centerfire punch - but with just rimfire magnum levels of noise production, for shooting close in around developments, highways, shopping centers, etc. Something that also that doesn't "ice" the fields. Might as well just go 223 or find yourself a good 'ol 17 Rem which has amazing performance for no more noise than it puts out.

 

[southern_idaho]

Couldn't resist throwing in my .02 worth. I have a Savage model 25 in .17 Hornet. Sort of have a love hate relationship with it.
It was a real disappointment at first - the rifle, not the cartridge. The rifle would not feed a factory round from the magazine without jamming, had to babysit it everytime. It was also extremely hard to open the bolt after firing a shot, which seemed rather odd when using factory ammo.
Accuracy wasn't that great at first either. I was getting about 2" groups at 100 yds.

I sent mine back to Savage with a list of complaints and in about 3 weeks I got it back. They fixed everything. It now shot about 1" groups, but I was hoping for better.

I do reload, and I haven't been able to do much better than an occasional 5/8" group. Bullet weight and powder choices have not made much difference.

About 2 weeks ago at the range, I had the extractor and several pieces associated with it fall off into my hand when I opened the bolt - so its currently back at Savage.

I have chrono'd the rounds both factory and reloads, and I can't get anywhere close to the factory velocity with my reloads.

The one bright and shining star I have found while shooting the cartridge, is that I stumbled across a reduced load that sounds a lot like a .22 rim fire when it goes off, and the point of impact is pretty close to "hot" rounds at 100 yds. which in itself is quite interesting. I shot one rock chuck with the reduced load and a 20 gr. Vmax. He didn't seem to know the difference between a reduced load and a hot factory load. The reduced load is no scientific concoction. fill a case with SR4759 and seat a 20 gr. bullet on it and go for it. The charge weighs out to about 8.5 grains.