22 Magnum for Varmint Hunting

Am Shooting Journal ^ | 9/21/2018 | J McAdams

[w1n1]

Everything about calibers these days is power, how it can knock down fifty gallon tank water or hit mach 5.
Many manufactures gets better at perfecting and innovating more advanced cartridges.
If you’re just out on a walk-about and doing some varmint hunting, do you need such power?
Whats a common caliber and often overlooked that you've come across for varmint hunting? Many small time hunters talk about the .22 Magnum.
The .22 Magnum may be the sweet optimum shooting little caliber for this purpose.

The .22 Winchester Magnum Rimfire cartridge has a long history since its invention in 1959 by Winchester.
Winchester’s Model 61, a pump-action rifle, came along in 1960 and became a great gun to have around for small game and vermin.
The .22 WMR cartridge had much more power than the .22 LR. The longer shots at groundhogs were now possible from a light and very easily carried .22 WMR rifle.

Closer Look Here’s a closer look at the cartridge itself. When you have a 40-grain full metal jacket, soft-point or jacketed hollow-point projectile, speeds around 2,000 feet per second. (Ballistic Mathematicians say this)
A 50-grain projectile slows the speed a bit but hits harder on target.
A good quality like the Remington Premier 33-grain V-Max .22 Magnum cartridge is good one to have. It’s lights out for groundhogs.... Read the rest of this 22 magnum for varmints.

[Tennessee Conservative]

Our .22 Magnum rifle blows rabbits and rats to bits. It’s too powerful. For small varmints we use a 177 pellet air rifle, not that we shoot many. We live and let live unless they are a nuisance.

[riverrunner]

If it can not be done with a 22LR.

I move to a .224 center fire that I can reload far cheaper than I can buy 22mag.

[Tennessee Conservative]

We also use a 22LR rifle. The 22Mag is a powerful rifle. IMO, too much for rats and rabbits. The pellet rifle is good also and pellets are cheap. It’s also quiet.

[farming pharmer]

Deer poachers love .22 magnum(s) also.

[lgjhn23]

I normally just use .22LR for small varmints. However, I’ve also used the .17HMR as well. It has a louder report but has better long range ballistics than the .22LR and does a pretty good job.
I’ve not used .22 Mag in years.

[riverrunner]

.22 cb caps work very well if one needs or wants quite.

[Fightin Whitey]

Where are the .17 HMR and WSM fans?

Thought they would be all over this thread.

[SirLurkedalot]

Squirrel and dumplings are quite tasty. My only issue with CB caps is that I’ve always had to cycle the action manually; I’ve never owned a bolt .22; just a 10/22 and a MK2.

[umgud]

I have .22lr, .22mag, but my go to is a 17Mach2. Very flat shooting. From there I bypass the 17HMR and go straight to .223. I fear however, the 17M2 won’t be around for the long haul.

[SkyDancer]

CCI .22 mini mag works great.

[Don_Ret_USAF]

Owned a Win pump 61, 22 mag with a 3-6 power Bushmaster scope. Very accurate weapon. I could nail a thumbtack at a 100 yd’s. But set the sight for 2 inch about the thumbtack, Best dead on hold out to 150 yd. Many N. Mex. jackrabbits bite the dust and the cattle farmers loved that. Miss that weapon. But the Savage 223 beat the win 22 mag for the must kills. Burned out two barrels on the 223. Could burn a 1000 rounds over the weekend and spend the rest of the week reloading.

[Glennb51]

I used my .22 mag on a Texas hog hunt this year. The blind was set up 100 yards from the feeder.

When I shot the hog (approximately 200 pounds) in the ear, he did a back flip. It did require a follow up shot, though.

In Arizona, a 22 mag rifle is legal for javelina,also for varmints.

[Centurion2000]

PMR-30. Nothing quite like 30 shots of 22 mag in an accurate pistol.