22 Hornet for Deer

[treydfoster]

What Timberline is saying is that you need to read the 223 thread, and prepare to have your eyes opened. KE is basically irrelevant; wound channel is everything. A 338 with a FMJ has all the numerical measurements that you cite are lacking in the Hornet, yet you realize that would be unethical to use on a deer. However, if the Hornet can penetrate ~10", doing 2" diameter in damage, then it would be more than enough for a deer.

My question is, can the Hornet do that (I think it can), and if so, which bullet will do that the best?"

That thread has alot of koolaid.

 

[treydfoster]

Can I see that front quarter? No offense, but as you know shooting a tiny doe with an explosive round is different than a quartering away or toward uphill shot on a mature buck at 200 yards.

Additionally, the gutless method shows alot of blood when you quarter.

 

[FCCDerek]

Definitely not enough kinetic energy or bullet diameter there.

It also DEFINIETELY was not a 22 Hornet. 22 Hornet is a very anemic round once you get out past 100 meters or so. I would't head out into the deer woods with one. No thanks. 223 is the smallest I'd go. I feel plenty comfortable with one of those going after 4 legged critters. I know it will do its job inside of 400 meters if I do mine. I do not like having my range restricted like the 22 Hornet would.

 

[Timberline001]

It also DEFINIETELY was not a 22 Hornet. 22 Hornet is a very anemic round once you get out past 100 meters or so. I would't head out into the deer woods with one. No thanks. 223 is the smallest I'd go. I feel plenty comfortable with one of those going after 4 legged critters. I know it will do its job inside of 400 meters if I do mine. I do not like having my range restricted like the 22 Hornet would.

What load do you shoot in your .223 for 400 meters?

 

[FCCDerek]

What load do you shoot in your .223 for 400 meters?

77TMK at 2700fps. Its not my go to if I'm expecting to shoot past 200 meters, but it will do the job for sure. If I'm deer hunting and expecting a longer shot I carry my 22CM with 88ELDM's at 3000fps. Either one will do the job just fine. I don't like light weight fragile bullets for deer hunting. If I'm shooting a target bullet I want it heavier so I can get the penetration necessary.

 

[FCCDerek]

That thread has alot of koolaid.

It's got a lot of good info as well though. Plenty of inarguable facts when it comes to terminal performance of the 223 with the proper bullet, placed where it should be placed.

 

[Unclecroc]

I have a browning a bolt 22 hornet. It has a 1-16” twist so I’m very limited on bullet selection.
For deer I have a 33gr shock hammer loaded to 3300 fps. I have not harvested any deer with it yet but based on the performance of a 35 hammer at 2800fps on a wt doe I feel it would do admirably to 150 yards or so.
The Sierra 45 grain soft point (the normal varminter not the hornet) is my second choice if deer was on the menu. They seem to be a tougher bullet than most sp suitable for the hornet.
If you have a cz or a ruger with a 1-14” twist you could run a heavier ball and add some better penetration insurance.
I have no doubt a hornet would handle deer duty utilizing a good bullet and shot placement.

 

[zdc1775]

A 22 Hornet certainly wouldn't be my first choice but I have used a Savage 340 that was reamed out to be a K Hornet to kill about a dozen deer and I my grandfather used the same rifle to kill at least 100 or so that I know of. I'm sure he used other bullets for it over the years but all of the deer I killed and at least most of the ones he killed were shot with a 45 grain (IIRC) RNFP cast bullet loaded with Unique to around 2000-2100 fps.

Worked very well with the smallish deer we had around the farm out to 100 ish yards with double lung or neck shots. Double lungs resulted in them running 40-50 yards and collapsing and neck shots almost always resulted in them dropping in their tracks. For the lung shots the bullets normally deformed into an about 1/2-3/4" almost coin shaped mass and stopped in the offside ribs/hide but occasionally exited out the other side in an almost quarter sized hole, he always hated when they did that since if he recovered them he would add the deformed bullet back into the casting pot.

I also used a 22 magnum on several deer with basically the same results.

 

[PistolPete]

Got the supplies on the way to try this out on some deer in the fall. The rifle will actually be a single shot ultralight bolt action in 5.7x28, not 22 Hornet, made by Dark Mountain Arms. Using Lil-Gun, GRT says I should be able to get a 60 TMK to ~22-2300 fps MV. My goal is to make the best possible youth deer rifle for my kids, ages 5-11; one producing a sufficient wound channel to ~200 yds but with the lightest possible recoil.

Will update when I get to loading/chrono/shooting...

 

[MallardSX2]

My 50 grain hornadys varmint sp would for sure kill a deer at close range if you shit it in the lungs. But why would you risk it.

I lost them sitting on top of 10 grains of h110

 

[PistolPete]

My 50 grain hornadys varmint sp would for sure kill a deer at close range if you shit it in the lungs. But why would you risk it.

I lost them sitting on top of 10 grains of h110

That's the thing; what I'm attempting is to create a load that won't be "risking it," but will be totally sufficient - just as we've seen that the 223/77 is fully sufficient for elk/moose/etc.

 

[WCB]

I've seen multiple deer and Antelope killed with 22 Hornets and even a couple with .17 Hornets (velocity advantage of course). 22 Hornet shooting 35 gr Vmax? and the .17 shooting 20gr Vmax. Animals basically hunch up and stand there for a few seconds and fall over. All middle of the lungs shots. I've seen a lot of deer stand longer and run longer distances with much bigger rifles. All shots were 200yds or under...most were 100yd range.

Ugliest gun known to man, it’s doesn’t count lol.

I have the Savage 25 Walking Varminter in .17 hornet painted up the stock, looks like any other rifle and I guarantee out shoots 99.9% of any custom gun guys have built on here.

 

[JRS3]

The good ole Green and Yellow box 45gr PSP out of my Anschutz has taken many WT.

 

[StupidLightweight]

I love this thread! Having recently bought a custom CZ 527 in .17 Hornet, it’s time to push Sierra to make a 30-gr. TMK.

 

[PistolPete]

Well, I have some progress. I picked up the Dark Mountain Arms Stowaway in 5.7. It's a really neat design, but the trigger is an adventure. So I've been hacking on my mechanicals, of course, and I have it to where it's serviceable - kind of a redneck 2-stage feel.

Anyway, mine will chamber 60 TMKs out to 1.760", though that's leaving the boat tail inside the neck - I used 1.720". So with a tiny charge of Lil-Gun (under 10 grains), I'm getting 2300+ fps out of that bullet and 16" barrel. That gives me (my kids I mean) a 200-yd expansion window and point blank range. Out of a 3-lb gun.

For us 200-yd deer hunters, when a 223 is too much (I don't need an elk gun!), this might be just right (for our kids, that is). I should be doing some terminal testing in just over a month.

 

[PistolPete]

Accuracy looks good initially, but I haven't done anything official - just 50 yds with a 3x prism. Here's the little guys next to a 223 case.

 

[PistolPete]

Also: a real adventurous person could probably load the 69 TMK to push 2200 fps; not sure you'd have the twist to stabilize it at that lower velocity though (the gun is 1/9, I think)...

 

[The Guide]

Accuracy looks good initially, but I haven't done anything official - just 50 yds with a 3x prism. Here's the little guys next to a 223 case.

That is a neat little rifle! I'm interested in it's return to zero after take down. If it is pretty good to the distance that the cartridge is capable of, that would be a heck of a gun for going for a walk in the woods with.

Jay

 

[4090Sharps]

Well, I have some progress. I picked up the Dark Mountain Arms Stowaway in 5.7. It's a really neat design, but the trigger is an adventure. So I've been hacking on my mechanicals, of course, and I have it to where it's serviceable - kind of a redneck 2-stage feel.

Anyway, mine will chamber 60 TMKs out to 1.760", though that's leaving the boat tail inside the neck - I used 1.720". So with a tiny charge of Lil-Gun (under 10 grains), I'm getting 2300+ fps out of that bullet and 16" barrel. That gives me (my kids I mean) a 200-yd expansion window and point blank range. Out of a 3-lb gun.

For us 200-yd deer hunters, when a 223 is too much (I don't need an elk gun!), this might be just right (for our kids, that is). I should be doing some terminal testing in just over a month.

Awesome! I’m really considering one for fun and to get my daughter shooting (maybe even deer!) but I was concerned the trigger might be lacking.

 

[PistolPete]

Oh it's a mile long pull, and I'm still not sure the best way to fix it. It's a stupid simple design, which is cool, but it needs to be addressed to make the gun shootable.

Awesome! I’m really considering one for fun and to get my daughter shooting (maybe even deer!) but I was concerned the trigger might be lacking.