EMDFL takes me to task here a bit because I cast aspersion on the lowly 22 Hornet cartridge; seems that since the last time I looked at SAAMI specs, the 22 hornet has surpassed the rimfire cartridge in speed and power, and he poked fun at me for my ignorance.

See, I have this rifle. Well, it’s not so much a rifle as it is a bunch of pieces that I hope are someday a rifle once again. I’m a little afraid of doing anything with it, because when it was new, it used a cartridge which was probably double charged. Saami specs when this rifle was new were much, much lower than they are today, and now, apparently, you can load rifles way the hell up there.

And it’s still a 22 hornet, at the end of the day.

I get why people like the little hornet, though I think I’d like the 218 bee or the mashburn Bee better. Hell, if I was gonna futz around with an odd cartridge I’d probably even go for the Ackley Bee. I get the wildcat/odd cartridge thing. On the other hand, if you’re going to be serious about varminting, there are lots of far better cartridges better suited to the task.

At any rate, I have let that rifle sit because the idea of a 22 round that wasn’t as hot as a CCI stinger didn’t appeal; less so, because of the cost of operation. A box of 22 LR vs a box of 22 hornet? No comparison. Gimme the rimfire anytime and I don’t have to get down on my knees in the gravel and search for the expensive brass sized like hummingbird peckers. But as EMDFL says, it’s not your father’s 22 hornet. Thanks for the eeducation, dude!