energy imparted by them - 136
ft/lb at 25 metres compared to
129 ft/lb for the hollow-point,
rather than from any increase
in frontal area. With rabbits,
much of the energy imparted
by the solid is wasted because
it fully penetrates the body,
expending its energy beyond
the game, while the hollow-
point sheds most of its energy
inside the body due to its
greater frontal area and much
faster expansion.
Nevertheless, I am
convinced that both the
hollow-point and solid .22LR
cartridges have been badly
underrated by the majority of
rimfire hunters. The solid .22
is much more effective on
small game up to the size of
foxes than most of us realise
It became apparent from my
tests that .22 lead bullets don't
always perform the way we’d
expect. It would be logical to
expect that a standard velocity
solid bullet at 1100fps, would
make a smaller diameter,
shorter cavity in the clay than a
high velocity solid at 1250fps.
Right? Wrong! At 25 metres, a
standard velocity .22 bullet
penetrated deeper than a high
velocity, cutting almost as wide
a channel.
Most hunters think a solid
bullet will penetrate deeper at
close range where its velocity is
higher. Alas, it didn't happen
that way. At 100 metres, the
high-velocity solid penetrated
30cm, compared with 25cm at
25 metres. Now there is some
logic in this. As a bullet's
velocity and energy increase,
the resistance to it in any
yielding material increases
even faster, resulting in less
penetration, but a larger cavity.
As the range increased and
velocity dropped off, the
hollow point's penetration
varied very little, and the
width of the cavities lessened
as the energy diminished.
To compare, I fired a .22
high-speed hollow-point Short
at 25 metres. The bullet blew
apart in the block of clay
WWW.SPORTINGSHOOTER.COM.AU | 671
Powerful High-velocity
hollow-points like Winchester
Laser are a top choice for rabbits
in open country.2
Most bolt-action .22 rimfires
are accurate with a variety of
ammo, every thing from subsonics
to the hyper velocit y stuff.3
For many years Nick Harvey
used the .22 Long Rifle to take
a great many foxes that came to
the whistle.ON THIS SPREAD
Violent disruption of
issue, occurs within
the irst 25mm.”
forming a balloon-like channel
15cm deep. But while the Short
has proved capable of handling
vermin the size of rats, rabbits
and feral cats, at close ranges, it
is greatly outperformed by the
Subsonic hollow-point.
Then, in 1977 CCI introduced
a "hyper velocity" round called
the Stinger, driving a 32gn
hollow-point bullet at 1640fps.
achieving a muzzle energy of
191 ft/lbs by using a heavier
charge of slower burning
powder than that used in .22
Long Rifle ammunition. The
increase in velocity resulted in
a flatter trajectory, increasing
the effective range of the .22
rifle and gave a more explosive
effect on small game. Other
ammomakers followed suit- Winchester came out with its
Xpediter, and Federal the
Spitfire, while Remington
entered the fray with two
offerings - the Yellow Jacket
and Viper, still later CCI
offered the Quik-Shok with a
32gn bullet designed to break
into four pieces on impact.
Although the hyper-velocity
ammo scores dramatic kills at
short ranges, the light bullets
shed velocity much faster than
do heavier bullets used in
conventional .22 ammo. So the
remaining energy of the
hyper-velocity stuff is no more
than that of the slower rounds
at a range of around 100 metres.
Also hyper-velocity ammo does
not deliver the best accuracy in
many riflesmen’s rifles. Also,
some gunmakers recommend
2
3