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View Full Version : Tips to lower velocity spread in 22 Hornet??


Joe C
04-18-2009, 01:17 AM
HI .
Just started loading for the 22 Hornet , (CZ ) and allthough i am getting decent groups , i am sure they would be better if i can lower the spread between some of the high/low velocity readings i am getting ..

Mostly working with Lil-Gun and 40 gr bullets. Some of the numbers i am getting run from a low of 2970 to a high of 3070, using 13 gr , and a 40 gr Sierra . Most shots were in the 3010-3030 range.

Another string i fired(different load) most avg. 2940-2960 , with a low 2870 to high 3040

Never really worked with cases this small before. Mostly from .222 on up .
(Spent most of last year shooting a 45-90 going from 85-100 grs of black powder and 540 gr paper patch bullets.:eek::eek: )

Thought some of you might have some "Hornet specific" tips i can use.

thanks
Joe

GLWenzl
04-18-2009, 01:22 AM
Try a Lee Factory Crimp Die. Lilgun seemed to work better and lower the spread in my 218 Bee when I used Max loads to??? Something to think about…. The Hornet is a lot of fun!!!

twisted 14
04-26-2009, 08:44 PM
try a smaller primer. I use a small pistol or a small pistol mag.

Marty

larryinIA
04-27-2009, 03:25 AM
try a smaller primer. I use a small pistol or a small pistol mag.

Marty

Is the remington 6-1/2 a good primer for this round?

Alycidon
04-27-2009, 04:01 PM
Primers are the secret. Not sure if they are suitabe for Hornet but those Russian primers work well in bigger cases. A friend got single figure ES at around 3700 !! on a 5 shot string.

A

microgun
04-28-2009, 01:59 AM
Try AA1680 between 11-12 grns. I have the 17 ackley hornet and lil gun was very erratic in it.

JoeZ
04-28-2009, 03:43 AM
17Ah and a 22Hornet are not even close. GL and Marty have this one. Lee crimp die and play with primers

microgun
04-28-2009, 06:47 PM
17Ah and a 22Hornet are not even close. GL and Marty have this one. Lee crimp die and play with primers

load data is very similar in most of my manuals

GLWenzl
04-29-2009, 03:48 AM
Yes the pistol primers work well in the Hornet, good going Marty because I didn't even think to mention it but I use pistol primers in at least five of my small calibers that has made a noticeable difference...

I also forgot to mention that starting low and loading into the lands may provide some good results but in order for me to do that I had to switch up to the Hornady 45 gr Bee bullet…. I also can’t remember in the Hornet case but I do know that the 218 Bee had lower spreads with the high end lilgun loads too????

Be careful and safe because I have heard mixed results with lilgun…..

Dean2
01-09-2010, 03:21 PM
Twisted 14 is very right about the small pistol primers.

40 grain Sierra Blitzking, with a Federal small Psitol primer. 12.6 grains Lil"Gun 3073 av velocity 42 FPS Max Vel dev LOA 1.770
Does under .6 at 100 from a CZ 527 with factory 22 Hornet barrel. The exact same load using CCI small rifle primers shows a 150 FPS max spread in velocity.

The Speer manual actually cautions to use all of their loads with only small pistol primers and to not substitute small rifle. They say that this really improved the unpredictable pressure swings for all of the powders they loaded in the hornet.

Larry in VA
01-09-2010, 09:32 PM
Is the remington 6-1/2 a good primer for this round?
Larry:
Many over on the GGVG board swear by the Rem 6 1/2 in the hornet based cartridges. I haven't tried them yet but do have a box of a 100 I plan to play with as soon as I can get around to it. Too many toys/projects for this old man to concentrate on right now.

Joe C:
When using Lil'Gun I get the best ES's with very tight neck tension. Bought the Lee Factory Crimp die and that helped then I started using a bushing die for neck sizing and Wilson seater. Accuracy improved over the Lee FC die but haven't ran that batch over the chrony yet to see if it helped ES’s.
Another accuracy secret (may not help your ES's though) for the 22 Hornet and 22 K-Hornet for that matter is the 35gr VMax. That short little stubby projectile shoots better in all my 22 Hornet rifles than any other bullet. All my rifles have 1:16 twist so that might have something to do with it.

TinMan
01-09-2010, 11:46 PM
A couple of more items should be added. The most commomly available brass are Remington and W-W. They have different case volumes by almost 0.5gr, with the W-W the smaller. Do not mix headstamps. Be sure to deburr flash holes. After the initial firing, neck size the brass only, leaving the neck/shoulder junction untouched. If you have to FS after several firings, bump the shoulder back a minimal amount only. As others have said, neck tension is critical to ignition. Lil'Gun is sensitive to neck tension and very cold temperatures, which makes ignition issues (and ES) increase. I gave up on it, sticking with W296, AA1680 and H4227 depending on what the rifle liked.

Hate Rem 6.5 primers. Second time out with a new Cooper M38 Classic in Hornet, a pierced Rem 6.5 pitted the boltface. I use WSR or CCI-BR4. My rifles seem to prefer 40 and 45 gr bullets. The 35 VMAX are also very accurate, but the wind drift is much worse than the heavier bullets. Just my experiences with feeding 5 different Hornets.