Bye bye .22

[Dogowski]

I’m planning to ditch .22 altogether for my hunting needs—it feels like the ground squirrels around here are wearing Kevlar vests! The .22 just doesn’t do enough damage, even though the gun’s zeroed and I can make headshots on lizards all day long. The .25, though—that one sends them to their maker quick.

25 is also my favorite caliber for pest control as it just gets the job done!

 

[PasadenaMike]

No guarantees in hunting, I've had ground squirrels run down the hole with literally no head. Personally I absolutely love .177 and .22 for ground squirrels, I typically try getting within 30/40 yards for best results. On some of the properties getting in that close really isn't an option so I step up to .30 for those longer pokes beyond 100 yards. After years of killing hords of ground squirrels I've learned that my comfort level is important... having some good shade, a stable shooting position and a ton of patience.

Well said from Lord Ground Squirrel

 

[Chief55]

We all have different opinions based on our own personal experience and what we have researched. I say if it works for you, go with it and if it doesn't then move on to what does. Doesn't matter what works for the next guy who is not in your shoes and under different circumstances. I have had .177, .20, .22, .25, .30, .457, .495 and I personally like .25s the best overall. I have 3 of them and they all make me smile.

 

[JimT66]

25 is also my favorite caliber for pest control as it just gets the job done!

Well, I'm not gonna say nothin against the 25. I love em. Matter of fact just got another one other day. But not gonna say bye to my .22's over it. They kill critters and pests, just as dead, long as I do my part of the job. I'll keep em both!

 

[Roamin Greco 1]

Both my Condor and my Escape SS are in .22 cal. I shot a crow last week at almost 50 yards with the Condor, using a Hades pellet. It blew out his back, big hole. He dropped like a stone, DOI. Not plugging for the Hades, just was what I had loaded. I will shoot 'yotes, skunks, trash pandas, fox, or bobcats with them. They all catch a sudden and severe case of death.

...high velocity lead poisoning, heh heh heh....

 

[PapaT]

I'll continue to say hello 22, but I also haven't felt my skills ready to move to live quarry yet (y'all seen my challenge attempts ).

 

[PasadenaMike]

I'll continue to say hello 22, but I also haven't felt my skills ready to move to live quarry yet (y'all seen my challenge attempts ).

Yeah for dirt clumps, stop signs, neighbors Christmas lights .22 is plenty

 

[JimT66]

I'll continue to say hello 22, but I also haven't felt my skills ready to move to live quarry yet (y'all seen my challenge attempts ).

Seen you bust those CO2 cylinders PapaT. Do t think you have any issues popping tree rats or pest birds.

 

[Farmplinker2]

This is wView attachment 13751hat they are now. Notice how slow they travel.

Well they are useful for folks who can't afford a silencer for their rimfire or know about GOOD airguns.

 

[Chief55]

Wow Jim the Condor with those 40 grain slugs would make way more FPE than those CCIs but the way the CCI breaks up is really cool.

 

[Pumacarl]

I just re-read this thread. I think that some of the comments are tongue in cheek and some people aren't getting it, so like Bladebum did, I am going to respond again to clarify for newbies reading this.

I am not using .22 for pests anymore, because I want, or need, more power from a .25 caliber. For what I would use up to .22 for, I don't need or want that power. I am finding the .177 at 21fpe shooting JSB KO slugs to be plenty accurate and powerful enough with minimal ricochet potential, total energy dump, and no pass through. For pests, up to squirrel size, I am often shooting straight up and when I miss (it's happening more and more) I want the smallest thing flying through the air as possible. Get on Strelok and check out the ballistics of a .177 JSB MK3 10.03gr slug doing 965fps, or a 12.5gr NSA slug, a .22 isn't better, just different in a way that I find no advantage in, for my uses.

The new problem with this discussion is that there is actually three types of .22's now, the old ones that make up to 30fpe, the intermediates that hover between 30-50fpe, and the new ones that can pull off up to 120fpe. If you don't draw a line somewhere, have zero concern for pass throughs, cost, air usage, than yeah, .22 uber alles! At least for versatility.

I have an intermediate power one now and it performs in a different league than I am use to for a .22. I could use it for woodchucks but I just don't need to, I have .25's and a .30 for that already, that do the job easily. I am not saying bye-bye to .22 anyway, I just agreed with why Mike is, for his reasoning, and my favorite one caliber is .25, no doubt about that.

My favorite round for plinking sessions is the .22 because it does check all the right boxes. I easily shoot 3x more .22 than anything else, maybe more than that, and that's not changing any time soon. It is just big enough to smack reaction targets at 100y, not bad on air usage, quiet, 500 per tin, costs are not bad in bulk, and I can usually see it flying(.25 is better here). What's not to love.

 

[Danman]

I just re-read this thread. I think that some of the comments are tongue in cheek and some people aren't getting it, so like Bladebum did, I am going to respond again to clarify for newbies reading this.

I am not using .22 for pests anymore, because I want, or need, more power from a .25 caliber. For what I would use up to .22 for, I don't need or want that power. I am finding the .177 at 21fpe shooting JSB KO slugs to be plenty accurate and powerful enough with minimal ricochet potential, total energy dump, and no pass through. For pests, up to squirrel size, I am often shooting straight up and when I miss (it's happening more and more) I want the smallest thing flying through the air as possible. Get on Strelok and check out the ballistics of a .177 JSB MK3 10.03gr slug doing 965fps, or a 12.5gr NSA slug, a .22 isn't better, just different in a way that I find no advantage in, for my uses.

The new problem with this discussion is that there is actually three types of .22's now, the old ones that make up to 30fpe, the intermediates that hover between 30-50fpe, and the new ones that can pull off up to 120fpe. If you don't draw a line somewhere, have zero concern for pass throughs, cost, air usage, than yeah, .22 uber alles! At least for versatility.

I have an intermediate power one now and it performs in a different league than I am use to for a .22. I could use it for woodchucks but I just don't need to, I have .25's and a .30 for that already, that do the job easily. I am not saying bye-bye to .22 anyway, I just agreed with why Mike is, for his reasoning, and my favorite one caliber is .25, no doubt about that.

My favorite round for plinking sessions is the .22 because it does check all the right boxes. I easily shoot 3x more .22 than anything else, maybe more than that, and that's not changing any time soon. It is just big enough to smack reaction targets at 100y, not bad on air usage, quiet, 500 per tin, costs are not bad in bulk, and I can usually see it flying(.25 is better here). What's not to love.

Well that about sums it up perfectly! I agree on the versatility. I don't think there really is an air gun caliber so vast (%) in FPE ratings and usage worldwide than the .22. Just jump on any of the African Airgunner YT channel and see what .22 is capable of. My (53fpe oe tune) and S510 (30fpe) are very different animals. Most of my pesting the is massive overkill and it's sitting about half the power of a .22LR!

 

[Luis Leon]

I just re-read this thread. I think that some of the comments are tongue in cheek and some people aren't getting it, so like Bladebum did, I am going to respond again to clarify for newbies reading this.

I am not using .22 for pests anymore, because I want, or need, more power from a .25 caliber. For what I would use up to .22 for, I don't need or want that power. I am finding the .177 at 21fpe shooting JSB KO slugs to be plenty accurate and powerful enough with minimal ricochet potential, total energy dump, and no pass through. For pests, up to squirrel size, I am often shooting straight up and when I miss (it's happening more and more) I want the smallest thing flying through the air as possible. Get on Strelok and check out the ballistics of a .177 JSB MK3 10.03gr slug doing 965fps, or a 12.5gr NSA slug, a .22 isn't better, just different in a way that I find no advantage in, for my uses.

The new problem with this discussion is that there is actually three types of .22's now, the old ones that make up to 30fpe, the intermediates that hover between 30-50fpe, and the new ones that can pull off up to 120fpe. If you don't draw a line somewhere, have zero concern for pass throughs, cost, air usage, than yeah, .22 uber alles! At least for versatility.

I have an intermediate power one now and it performs in a different league than I am use to for a .22. I could use it for woodchucks but I just don't need to, I have .25's and a .30 for that already, that do the job easily. I am not saying bye-bye to .22 anyway, I just agreed with why Mike is, for his reasoning, and my favorite one caliber is .25, no doubt about that.

My favorite round for plinking sessions is the .22 because it does check all the right boxes. I easily shoot 3x more .22 than anything else, maybe more than that, and that's not changing any time soon. It is just big enough to smack reaction targets at 100y, not bad on air usage, quiet, 500 per tin, costs are not bad in bulk, and I can usually see it flying(.25 is better here). What's not to love.

Very well written and from personal experience… kudos to you sir. Like you I have found that my sub 23 fpe PCPs get a lot of action. The small critters I target, sub 50 yards find them simply irresistible. My least use PCP is a 30+ fpe, it’s simply too powerful for the majority of uses of PCPs.

 

[JimT66]

Wow Jim the Condor with those 40 grain slugs would make way more FPE than those CCIs but the way the CCI breaks up is really cool.

Yes it is. I wanna say originally when they came out as Quick Strike, maybe 25ish years ago. They were high velocity rounds. That was when I bought 2 cases of them. Got em cheap since I ran the gun shop, lol. They filled up 2 20mm ammo cans nicely. I have popped a few trash pandas with them, remembering back, they worked perfectly.
Now though, I prefer my Condor!

 

[PasadenaMike]

After reading these posts, I’ve decided to give the .22 Talon SS another shot—maybe I’ll try different ammo. I know I can stack Hades into an inch at 25 yards, but domed pellets might perform better. I’ll give them a try. The Talon SS is super quiet and has a great shot count, so I’m hopeful I’ll find the right combination.

 

[Chief 10-Beers]

After reading these posts, I’ve decided to give the .22 Talon SS another shot—maybe I’ll try different ammo. I know I can stack Hades into an inch at 25 yards, but domed pellets might perform better. I’ll give them a try. The Talon SS is super quiet and has a great shot count, so I’m hopeful I’ll find the right combination.

Good luck with your trials Mike.

 

[Chief55]

Try regular JSBs, you should be getting a 1/2 group at 30 yards all day long. I don't get very good groups with Hades myself; I don't care for them.

 

[pan60]

Try regular JSBs, you should be getting a 1/2 group at 30 yards all day long. I don't get very good groups with Hades myself; I don't care for them.

yep

 

[FL22]

I know that I’ve only dealt with a few rodents, comparatively speaking to most of you but 90% was with .22 caliber.

What works best for me when pesting is head shot with the eye being the preferred POI as that is the thinnest part of the animal’s skull.

A .25 obviously creates a larger wound channel when making a shot targeting the vitals.

@PasadenaMike , my feeling on the matter is that you are the one using the Airgun. You have to do what’s best for your situation.

 

[JimT66]

I know that I’ve only dealt with a few rodents, comparatively speaking to most of you but 90% was with .22 caliber.

What works best for me when pesting is head shot with the eye being the preferred POI as that is the thinnest part of the animal’s skull.

A .25 obviously creates a larger wound channel when making a shot targeting the vitals.

@PasadenaMike , my feeling on the matter is that you are the one using the Airgun. You have to do what’s best for your situation.

Agreed. Despite all the carrying on and joking, I am very well aware that Mike knows a whole lot more about air gunning that I do. I go to Mike for advice on airguns. To me, this place is a lot like a family though, and most all should be open to a little joking around, especially when someone slanders the mighty .22 round.