17hmr vs 22lr

[whitetalehunter12]

Im going to buy a new rimfire rifle. I have my eye on a henry lever action 22lr or a savage arms bolt action 17hmr. Both are very good guns with 5 star ratings. Which would be your preferance? Is the fun factor involved with a 17hmr worth the ammo price?

[altex]

Buy both.

[whitetalehunter12]

lol cant afford it.

[stinkynuts]

As far as i am concernd the fun factor on the .17 is worth the price. the only way i like a .22 for shooting gofers is if its a real good semi auto. This is so i am able to make follow up shoots . With the .17 you will make farther more accurte shoots . I have seen to many gofers run back down the hole after you hit them with a .22 but few if any with the .17 HMR good luck choose wislely

[Jamie Black R/T]

I own both of the guns you mentioned and i love them both.

What are you doing with the gun?

For rabbits or grouse ill take the henry in .22LR

for gophers and other small varmints around the ranch i take the .17HMR

If you are just looking to plink with it mostly....nothing can replace the .22 IMO

[NUK SOO KOW]

I have had a savage 17hmr for five years. I havn't shot my 22 since. It is way more fun than a 22. For some longer range shooting and making gophers do back flips the 17 all the way.

[elkhunter11]

I prefer the 17Mach2 over either the 22lr,or the 17HMR.It shoots flatter than the 22lr,and ammunition is half the cost of the 17HMR.I see it as the best balance between cost and performance.

[HunterDave]

What are you doing with the gun?

For rabbits or grouse ill take the henry in .22LR

for gophers and other small varmints around the ranch i take the .17HMR

If you are just looking to plink with it mostly....nothing can replace the .22 IMO

I like Jamie's answer but I like a semi-auto 22LR (Ruger 10/22) because I'm lazy. :lol: If I could only afford one or the other I'd choose the 22LR because the ammo is ALLOT cheaper and it won't destroy grouse and rabbits. Gopher kills won't be as dramatic as a 17hmr but it works fine for that too. :)

[Twisted Canuck]

I rarely shoot the .22 since I got my Marlin .17hmr (actually sold two of my .22s, and just kept the Ruger 10/22 and the Browning BL-22, which my kids mostly shoot). The .17 is just so darn accurate and fun to shoot, even if it does cost significantly more. I never have to shoot a gopher twice, that's for sure!
It really depends what you are doing with it. My Browning is the best grouse gun ever, quick to come to the shoulder and point, quick follow up....but not really fun for gophers. The Ruger is always a hoot for laying down the lead on gophers, but not much past 50 yrds....75 is a stretch. With the .17, my longest one shot kill was 163 m last year on a gopher. Pretty nice for a rimfire, and I think I could stretch it to 200 without a crosswind. Whatever you get, you'll enjoy.

[podman]

The fun factor is totally worth it. Like the others above I have not shot my 22 since I got my 17hmr. I could shoot it all day and not get bored.

[whitetalehunter12]

I think im leaning towards the 22 as I will use it for plinking quite a bit and for hunting squirrles, gophers, rabbits and other small game. Thanks for all the input.:)

[Alberta Bigbore]

Id say buy a .22 wmr if your only going to have one. If not... Buy the 17 hmr now... and a nice .22lr when you can afford it

[Arn?Narn.]

If I could have only one, it would be the .22

That said, if you can have both, you're .22 will be neglected..lol

I find most .17 hmrs shoot very well, and I have owned 8..

.22's on the other hand, not so much.

I like to have a quality .22. It is a staple plain and simple.

I would buy a .22 first, then the ,17 hmr when I had some spare money to play with.

[Dr. Phil A]

My .22s are gathering dust since I got the 17HMR. I like the whole 100 yards plus on gophers.

If you are just going to be plinking mostly then the 22 is the way to go ...cheap ammo.

[Got Juice?]

.17's are cool as all get out. No argument from me there. But I can shoot 5 times as many gophers cost wise!

And I tend to go through a brick a week, so .17 really would kill me cost wise.

I have been going through a brick a week all year actually. With the pistol silhouette really starting to take on a life of it's own, I just don't see a .17 in my future.

.223 that I can reload, sure, but not a .17

[DOGFISH]

17HMR = 2500 fps .22lr = 1600 fps:bad_boys_20: I think you know my answer.

[DOGFISH]

17HMR = 2500 fps .22lr = 1600 fps:bad_boys_20: I think you know my answer.

[DOGFISH]

Sorry for the double post, our server did not show me my post and I entered it again.

[JohninAB]

I am with elkhunter on this one, have a 22lr, 17 HMR and 17 Mach2, Mach2 is a blast to shoot, accurate as all get out and has a lot of fun factor on gophers and half the price to shoot as the HMR.

[North of 53]

In my view a 17 hmr is a wast of time, if I am going to spend that much money per shot I will just reload my 223 and do anything the hmr will do and much more for about the same price or less.
When we go gopher shooting it can be a 1500 round weekend and that's just no going to happen at the cost of a 17 hmr. I shoot my cz452 out to 200 yards on gophers all the time. Get a mill dot scope and learn where your dots are on at. I have my gun set up so the post is on at 200 yards. I shoot 7000 rounds of 22lr a year and when I need more than 22lr the 223 works very fine I have even been shooting some reduced loads using 36gr V/G and blue dot powder. Very cheap to shoot and you never heat up a barrel and so much better than an HMR.

[haffordite]

I totally agree with the previous post. 17 is expensive to shoot & really has nothing to offer over the 22 long rifle other than a bit of a splat factor. I'm really disappointed with the cartridge. I'll probably be selling mine in the near future. 223 is a much much much better cartridge for just a little more. (if you're reloading)

[gitrdun]

The .22LR affords me a lot more trigger time to hone my skills. And, I also agree with the .223. Just to muddy the water a bit more, how about a .22 Hornet, centerfire that can be reloaded with a mere 6 gr of powder?

[North of 53]

The .22LR affords me a lot more trigger time to hone my skills. And, I also agree with the .223. Just to muddy the water a bit more, how about a .22 Hornet, centerfire that can be reloaded with a mere 6 gr of powder?

I would agree that a 22 hornet would be a great alternative to a 17hmr. There are a couple of reasons why I like the 223 better than the hornet, the main reason is because I own a 223 and not a hornet. The other reason is brass, I get my 223 brass for next to nothing , it works out to less than 1 cent a round for brass. I also found some great reduced loads using blue dot powder on campfire form. I can load a 36 or 40 grain bullet with 8 to 10 grains of blue dot and get around 2500 ft/sec. With these loads I am cheaper than some HMR when I can get my brass for a cent or less.

P.S. I would love to have a hornet but I think if I got one my wife would take up shooting and it would be me she was shooting.

[fordtruckin]

.22lr all the way. .17 is a great little round, but little and expensive it is.

[shakeyleg02]

i like the 22 magnum myself they make a nice splat factor also ..havent bought some shells in awhile not sure how they compare price wise to the 17hmr...after all the 17 is just a necked down 22 magnum shell with a 17 grain bullet right ? I know a buddy of mine paid around 600 for his 17 ..no thanks, not on my pocket book

[mudbug]

I like Jamie's answer but I like a semi-auto 22LR (Ruger 10/22) because I'm lazy. :lol: If I could only afford one or the other I'd choose the 22LR because the ammo is ALLOT cheaper and it won't destroy grouse and rabbits. Gopher kills won't be as dramatic as a 17hmr but it works fine for that too. :)

X2

[D-Cell]

22lr I can hit gophers at 120 yards usually the first shot with a 3x9 power scope on a 10/22 that has had thousands of round through it so the trigger pull is nice. The 22lr is good for at least 150 yards for gopher and 4.5 cents a shot vs 17 ish on the 17 hmr (I like the Winchester 36 grain hollow point 1280 fps about 1150 ish through a semi the work they best for the price on gophers the lightest hollow points really open up) .

At 70 yards in a 70 km/hour wind I can hit gophers first or second shot with a semi. That would be impossible with a 17 hmr as a 8 mph wind throws the tiny bullet off 10 inches at 100 yards, someone correct me if I am wrong. I am not some gun wizzard, with a steady rest and a afternoon I am positive anyone can do the same. After 67 ish yards the 22lr start to drop off.

I think the 17 hmr would be neat for upland game hunting, or coyote if you were going to keep the pelts (in calm conditions). Me I like the 7 mm rem mag on coyotes, folds them like a lawn chair. Whatever a persons preference is.

[elkhunter11]

At 70 yards in a 70 km/hour wind I can hit gophers first or second shot with a semi. That would be impossible with a 17 hmr as a 8 mph wind throws the tiny bullet off 10 inches at 100 yards, someone correct me if I am wrong.

The 17hmr drifts less in the wind than a 22lr.

http://photos.imageevent.com/tkerns/gophersetup/websize/bullet-drift-10mph-wind.png

[gitrdun]

Stop it! you're killing me.

[D-Cell]

I am wrong.

I like the 22 its cheaper.

[DOGFISH]

The 17hmr drifts less in the wind than a 22lr.

http://photos.imageevent.com/tkerns/gophersetup/websize/bullet-drift-10mph-wind.png

Facts, I like it. I guess Elkhunter11 and I will have to agree on this one