Posted on 12/18/2023 3:56:30 AM PST by marktwain
The .22 Long Rifle cartridge is the most popular cartridge in existence. Every year, billions of .22 LR cartridges are purchased and shot. It is popular for both target shooting and hunting, and is used by many for self defense. It has been used by the military establishments of most countries, mostly as a training round, but also in combat. The .22 LR has been used to kill most animals from the smallest, including some insects, on up to elephants.
The .22 Long Rifle is derived from the .22 Short cartridge, both are rimfire cartridges which use a heeled bullet which is outside lubricated. The .22 Short was introduced by Smith & Wesson in 1857. The .22 Short was for their first cartridge revolver, the number 1, a seven shot bottom break revolver. The .22 Short derived from the .22 BB cap, a primer powered cartridge. The BB cap was introduced in 1845. It shot a round ball added to what had been a percussion cap. The Short used a 29 grain pullet and 4 grains of fine black powder. The .22 Long used a longer case, five grains of black powder and the 29 grain bullet. It was introduced in 1871. All four cartridges, the BB cap, the Short, the Long and the Long Rifle survive and can be purchased today.
A fifth cartridge, the .22 Extra Long contained six grains of fine black powder, and used a 40 grain bullet. It was introduced in 1880. It enjoyed commercial success for a few years. The Long Rifle used a 40 grain bullet, from the Extra Long Rifle, the lengthened case of the Long, and five grains of fine black power. It was introduced in 1887 by the Stevens Arms company for their single shot pistols and rifles. It was an instant success, more accurate than the Short, more powerful than the Long, and as powerful as the Extra Long in a more compact and less expensive package. The Long Rifle was said to be somewhat more accurate than the Extra Long.
The Stevens Arms Company was a premium brand in 1887. Its rifles and pistols were highly thought of and used in many competitions. The .22 Long Rifle was developed by Union Mettallic Cartridge Company (UMC) in coordination with Stevens from 1886 to 1887. It was quick to jump the Atlantic and find favor in England, where shooting was a popular sport, often practiced inside houses. Those of you who read Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes series may recall that Sherlock Homes often practices shooting a revolver in his rooms at 221b Baker St.
On February 7, 1889, Shooting and Fishing, an English publication, furnished a lengthy and thorough review of the new .22 Long Rifle cartridges. The article gives us a window to see what the first .22 LR cartridges were capable of. They were produced by the Union Metallic Cartridge Company. From the 1889 article:
It is the unanimous opinion of every rifleman who has shot the long rifle cartridge, that it is certainly the most accurate rim-fire .22-calibre cartridge which has yet been produced. The charge of powder in this cartridge is five grains of powder and a bullet weighing 40 grains. The charge is well proportioned, which contributes much to the accuracy.
There is also another point which makes the bullet a true flyer, which is it is uncrimped in the shell. The writer witnessed some very fine shooting done with the ordinary short cartridges when uncrimped, and feels this is a very important factor towards making this cartridge an unusually accurate one, but while it contributes to the accuracy, it is to a certain extent objectionable, as it forbids the removal of the cartridge from the chamber of the rifle without leaving the bullet in the rifle. This causes the powder to spill from the shell and prevents the use of the cartridge in a repeater.
The article contains an image of one of the best 10 shot groups with the new cartridge.
The bullseye, using the .22 caliber holes as a standard, appears to be 1 inch in diameter, as would be fitting a standard target at the time. The distance was 40 yards. The center to center group was measured at .90 inches.
A hobbyist found some old UMC black powder Long Rifle loads with copper cases, where the bullets were heeled but not crimped. This confirms the early cartridges were not crimped.
A crimp was added to the cartridge rather quickly. It is more important when used in repeaters than in single shot pistols and rifles.
Two different sources, American Rifleman and John Walters, give the velocity of the black powder .22 Long Rifle with a 40 grain bullet at 1095 fps and 1103 fps, an inconsequential difference of 8 fps. Smokeless powder Remington Standard Velocity ammunition, manufactured about 1956, produced an average velocity of 1099 fps, exactly in the middle of the above. It was likely designed to duplicate the black powder load. The average groups for the 1956 Remington, adjusted to 40 yards, were .904 inches.
A test of recent CCI Standard Velocity ammunition from a stock Rossi RS22 rifle two years ago, gave average five shot groups of .502 inches at 25 yards, extrapolated to .802 inches at 40 yards. The CCI 40 grain Long Rifle tested at 1073 fps.
The black powder .22 Long Rifle load performance is duplicated by modern smokeless powder, non-corrosive primed, Standard Velocity ammunition.
Today, 40 grain Long Rifle cartridges can deliver velocities of 1400 feet per second, or are loaded down to 700 feet per second for reduced sound and range. This could not be done with black powder, because the powder has to fill the case, preferably a bit compressed, to give consistent ignition. Black powder cartridges generally had only one load. Adjustable sights were far less common. Stevens rifles and pistols were known for target shooting. Many of them had state of the art iron sights from the period. With the best iron sights, groups can be obtained comparable to those shot with a low magnification scope. Iron sights need good lighting conditions for top performance.
The .22 Long Rifle cartridge has seen improvement over the years, with smokeless powder, non-corrosive priming, and a greater variety of loads. The basic performance is very close to the original 1887 Long Rifle cartridge introduced and promoted by the Stevens Arms Company.
©2023 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.
Gun Watch
Ten shot group, fired before February 7, 1889, at 40 yards from rest, with Stevens single shot rifle and apature sights. A very early batch of .22 Long Rifle cartridges. 5 grains black powder, 40 grain bullet. The first few batches of .22 Long Rifle cartridges were not crimped.
If I had to list my firearms from most useful to least,10\22 would top the list.
I kinda like my pump gallery Gun. Lots of fun.
When I was a kid, I had a Marlin lever action .22. Beautiful gun. Walnut stock, brass trigger, eyes for a sling, scope mount. The scope mount allowed for use of the iron sights. I shot that thing so much I could free hand shoot hickory nuts out of a tree with scope or sights. I harvested squirrels every fall for my Grandmother.
Never considered it a defense weapon, but it is still the first gun I grab for anything smaller than deer. Don’t need a big bang if you are quiet and can make a button hole anywhere you want.
IMO, they are the two-bits of Exhange/barter in our coming economy.
I have a 10/22 and a Marlin 60. Both shoot the same but there is a likeable difference on the 60 with its tube magazine vs a hang down mag. Also, there have been more Marlin 60s sold than 10/22s
My squirrel gun, a Remington Speedmaster, is deadly! I have driven nails with it and shot squirrels that were running in the tree tops with it.
That might be a matter of preference.
If I recall correctly the Marlin came out first and was less expensive.
I’ll take the speed of reloading a rotating magazine compared to the tube.
Also easy to upgrade the trigger group.
The ten round magazine sets flush with the stock.
Yeah..I understand. And the ruger 10/22 has MANY variation capabilities like takedown, etc. But, my old marlin has a suffcient capacity tube and you don’t have to go routing around for a magazine to pop in. About the only thing I’d want now on my 60 is a 1/2-28 thread for the silencer.
I still have my old Glenfield (Marlin) Model 20, 7-shot clip, bolt action. I bought it brand new in 1977. Still my best little gun, and like you said, ideal for making button holes!
Not knocking the Marlin.
Like I said it is affordable. I also agree it is accurate.
This the only rifle me and my best bud had growing up.
Probably shot the rifling out of it it was used so much.
I’ll have to call him and see if he still has it.
Speed masters are very accurate.
One of the most accurate semi-autos I have shot.
It was designed by Eugene Stoner and it disassembles into its plastic stock and I have seen one Marine carrying one aboard a MAC flight without any interruption, because the Loadmaster assumed that he was just carrying a plastic stock all by itself.
I carried that light, reliable 8-shot semiauto .22 on all of my hikes up into the mountains and have fired well over 3,000 rounds through it and it has been the most useful, handiest, - and one of the most accurate - weapons I have ever owned. The more recent copies have not been up to the quality or dependability of that original Costa Mesa AR-7 - the Charter Arms version jammed a lot and the parts never fit easily inside its stock and the Henry version has a plastic-clad barrel instead of the aluminum-clad version and a weird red plastic front sight,
Still have my original!
Shot my first rabbit with a .22 short when I was about ten with my Dad standing next to me. He could spot rabbits like a laser beam and wouldn’t even bother with a gun, using a broomstick and sneaking up on them instead.
Last time I did an inventory we had around 10,000 or so Remington Golden hollow points and a couple thousand more from different makers.
We even have 50 .22 tracers.
L
The world would be a better place if the care and maintenance of 1022s, along with gun safety, were taught in public schools.
The Appleseed program should be mandatory.
Using the home made choke, I can reach out about 40' with good accuracy and killing power.
Any thing further than that is a no go since the kill rate is too low and I don't want to just wound the critters.
I’ve got my dad’s Remington Model 41 Targetmaster single shot bolt action .22 that his father bought for him circa 1936. He was expected to provide game for the family. He shot a lot of .22 shorts, bought .22 LR when they could afford it. He killed a lot of rabbits, squirrels and he shot wood ducks as they paddled in the creek, this near a spot where the creek would bring them close to shore after he had shot them.
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