Reloading .22 Hornet - A varmint obliterator.

So a quick followup: I have found that in my savage rifle, it really likes the .35 grain hornady projectiles, with 12 grains of l'il gun powder behind it. Tapered bullets did not work well, and I don't believe the crimp die is needed for these if seated correctly. 12 grains of powder gives me about 1/4 inch of space for the bullet to seat without compressing the powder. These bullets are FAST, and to my ear has about half the report of a .223

Still one of the most underrated calibres out there. Very versitile

DONT crimp the cases! You`re just destroying them by crimping them. The Hornet cases are extremely thin. You won`t get near as many reloads out of them if you keep crimping them. There is no worries with neck tension. Just neck size the cases, thats all you need. Do NOT full length size the cases, or you will start to see your cases cracking. And i saw where you were measuring for 12.5 grains of Lil`Gun, maybe you changed something, but i put 13 grains of Lil`Gun in my hornet loads and they are not near as full as yours are. You might want to recheck your scales, something just isnt right there if you`re at 12.5 grains and the cases are that full. Now, if you really wanna see that 22 Hornet come to life, stop using rifle primers. Use pistol primers. Rifle primers are just to strong for the 22 Hornet. I would explain the pistol primer use in the 22 Hornet but i`m limited on how to put it all in here good enough for you to understand it. Not raining on your party here, just trying to pass on past experiences with the Hornet loading to you. I`ve loaded 22 Hornets for MANY decades (50+yrs experience reloading), i`ve tried a million things, pistol primers is what make this cartridge really come to life in accuracy. And forget the 55 grain bullets, especially if you have a 1-16 twist barrel. They will never stabilize. Keep your bullet weight no higher than a Hornady 40 grain Vmax. I shoot 30 & 33 grain out of all my Hornets, one hole groups at 100yds all day long, as long as i do my part. The 22 Hornet is a very fussy cartridge. Follow what i said here, and you`ll find that it just works. My favorite 22 Hornet as of lately, is the CZ527. That gun just drives nails all day long. They have a great set trigger that they put in the 527`s. Anyhow, have a great day!

I recall being told that a kid with a 22 Hornet in Africa lined up on a bird in dense bush. He fired and saw the bird drop. When he went to get the bird, he'd brained a big cape buffalo right through the ear canal!! Lucky kid!! I have a beautiful little BSA 22 Hornet. It's got a top feeding floor plate that holds 7 in the magazine. It was made in the 60's, and has a Monte Carlo cheekpiece, leaf sights, and a factory-cut muzzle brake. In 50yrs I've NEVER seen another rifle like it!! 😊👍

Finally put together another video. I needed a varmint round that had lots of power for a clean, accurate kill (I don't want animals to suffer), but the round also couldn't travel very far if it missed or ricocheted off of something. These are moving at ~3000 feet per second, but have a very limited maximum range. Basically a .223 close range, and .22 long rifle past 100 yards. I'm going to stick with the 35gr, the 55 grain didn't group well, and the brass expanded and got jammed in the chamber a couple of times, so probably too much pressure.

Another 55 grain bullet user....congrats! I worked up a load 22 years ago using the W/W Fmj 55 gr bullet, Federal small rifle primers, and 10.5 grains of Reloader #7 powder. This load is strictly fired in the Ruger VHZ 77/22 rifle, and groups well at both 100 and 200 yards. These 55 grain loads are hand fed, one at a time into the barrel chamber, as they are too long to fit into the magazine. With the heavier bullet, the wind causes very little drift effect on the 200 yard range. For My Thompson Contender, I load std Hornets, using data straight out of the Speer manual. ~DDZZ

My CZ 527 loves the 40gr Vmax and 40 grain and Nosler Varmagedon. I only size .170 in of the neck PPU brass 13.3 grains of lilgun Fed GM small mag pistol primer 3100 FPS with absolutely no sign of over pressure 1.860 COAL Had to modify the CZ magazine to make the 1.860 fit but it was well worth it. 40 grain bullet turns the Hornet into a 75 maybe 100yard advantage over the 35s From my experience

You might want to try those calhoon bullets, the lighter bullets made by Fred Calhoon take the hornet to a different level in explosiveness to varmints. Great video!

3rd generation Hornet loader. Pistol vs. Rifle primers? That is load/rifle dependent so I do not necessarily argee with previous commitments. Currently it will come down to component availability. But that flexibility is a HUGE advantage. Very much agree with neck size only and would add partially neck size to the extent needed to seat bullets to extend brass life. We all know the advantage of the case being fire formed to the chamber to facilitate that. That is until you eject hot brass in the snow and cannot reclaim it. Not a snub on the video as I have lost my fair share night-time varmint hunting. I cannot understate brass prep. Keeping brass OAL by trimming is tedious but important. Unless you find high end brass that the primer pocket flash holes were drilled vs standard punched, plan on buying a flash hole deburring tool and thank me later. If you are new to loading, or loading the Hornet, patients goes a long way. You will need to appreciate up front this is about as small (and thin) of a case as you get and you will crush a few. For greatest accuracy you will want to weight sort brass. If you are that kind of person there are cheaper and easier cartridges to play with. Powder charges +/- 1/10 th of a grain out of a full size rifle may not mean much, but in a Hornet case with these charge weights, it very well may. Small changes make bigger differences with this cartridge. Seating depth for this cartridge, I feel, is the single most important variable. Again, small changes/bigger differences. Regarding not crimping. That is totally rifle dependent and for me is vital in my favorite rifle. For all of you that have in-line magazines that permit bullet seating out a few thousandths off the lands, nope you all don't. But my Ruger 77/22 Hornet with the rotary magazine limiting COAL was going down the road or wrapped around a tree. Two summers of loading was an exercise in frustration. I could get what I wanted accuracy wise and not crimp, with a long COAL, single loading the chamber. The rifle was floated and glass bedded. New sear, springs, bolt shims,etc. Against conventional wisdom once the Lee factory crimp die entered into the equation I average putting a bullet through the center of a Lifesaver mint 75% of the time with ammo now chambering from the magazine. Finally, from running Varmint Grenades, 45 grain Hornady Hornet bullets as my standard, and 45 gr TSX for deer. All have different seating requirements. The micrometer style depth seater makes life easier.

You’re back! Love the video and how it’s straight to the point.

A .22 hornet would be a better choice than a .22 magnum because it reloadable. I think it is more cost effective to save the cases and reload them. Also, the .22 hornet has more velocity and muzzle energy.

I just reloaded some 223 ammo and thought I would use some of that Lee paste lube on the cases. I was surprised ! I am using that stuff from now on. I just got a big tube of it from Natchez shooting supplies. Nobody has 22 Hornet brass in stock now. I put in a order at Natchez they might be getting some soon. I have around 150 factory rounds though and a barrel for my Contender ..

Love your channel just started watching today been binge watching them. hope we get to see you shoot some targets at 1000 yards on your range. I bet it would look cool on a camera seeing bullets fly out that far maybe in slow motion as well.

I have this same exact rifle in 223. 1:9 twist. Very accurate, but i idon’t like the trigger. Loading RL 10x with Hornady 68 gr BTHP. Greetings from Brazil

I’ve just purchased a 22 Hornet and looking to start reloading. Loved the video 👍🏼 liked and subscribed

I recently got a Winchester Model 43 in .22 Hornet and look forward to handloading but as others have stated, brass is virtually impossible to find - bullets almost as bad. I'm going to try 11 grains of IMR 4227 and 45-gr Sierra Hornet bullets (if they ever make them again). I suppose supply chain issues... ??? I've always admired the .22 Hornet because it has twice the muzzle energy of a .22 WMR and is reloadable, is not as loud as a .22-250, burns less powder, and has all the power up close as you would ever need for a water-filled popcan.

Make sure you clean your powder measure good after using lilgun. The coating on powder is oilly and reacts with aluminum and acrylic

I have a contender with a custom bulberry barrel in 22 k hornet. It is a few hundred fps over a regular hornet and the brass lasts much longer.accuracy is awesome.

The problem with 55 gr bullets in a 22 hornet is that they don't stabilize well. Lousy accuracy. The hornet really likes 40-45 gr bullets.

I've got a beautiful anschutz 22 hornet .. but the magazine is short with no extra room to play with seating depth... how many of your are having this same problem... and who out there is single loading?