22 Hornet

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Re: 22 Hornet

Post by marksman » 21 Dec 2018, 8:21 pm

I have a zkw 22 hornet
it's a great little gun to shoot and carry, I use lil gun powder, with 40 grain projectiles, its best to use handgun primers to get better accuracy
I have two 17 ackleys as well that are used more often for the rabbits
I like the hornet especially in an old brno :drinks:
“If you do not read the newspapers you are uninformed. If you do read the newspapers you are misinformed”. Mark Twain
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Re: 22 Hornet

Post by Chappo » 21 Dec 2018, 8:56 pm

gunnnie wrote:
The ZKW465 is a magic rifle, mini-Mauser action, double set triggers, walnut timber a classic European styling. Its younger sibling isn't of the same standard of fit/finish, but nonetheless beautiful..



Interesting!
If I bought another hornet it’d be a Brno.
For some reason id’ve thought the fox a better rifle.
Apart from fit and finish have you got any other gripes? Wouldn’t the fox have the same action and trigger setup?
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Re: 22 Hornet

Post by bigrich » 21 Dec 2018, 9:10 pm

gunnnie wrote:Go on, you know you want another one!!!
I'm sure there's room in your safe for a nice BRNO ZKW465!


i had one of those, my old krico was better ! true ! :thumbsup:
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Re: 22 Hornet

Post by gunnnie » 21 Dec 2018, 10:54 pm

Chappo wrote:
gunnnie wrote:
The ZKW465 is a magic rifle, mini-Mauser action, double set triggers, walnut timber a classic European styling. Its younger sibling isn't of the same standard of fit/finish, but nonetheless beautiful..



Interesting!
If I bought another hornet it’d be a Brno.
For some reason id’ve thought the fox a better rifle.
Apart from fit and finish have you got any other gripes? Wouldn’t the fox have the same action and trigger setup?


Chappo, the Fox Model 2's were in the same league as the ZKW's. There are differences in the action, though not major. The trigger is the same, with the front trigger being very heavy unset. The main differences are in the stock shape/style and the overall quality of fit & finish.

I'd always craved a ZKW but the prices for a decent one just seemed to keep going up & up. So when I lucked on to a Fox Model2 Hornet I jumped on it. Then as luck would have it, a ZKW turned up at a price too good to pass up. There's just something about the early BRNO's. I've since added a model 2 Fox in 222 & a CZ 527 222 varminter to the collection.
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Re: 22 Hornet

Post by bigrich » 22 Dec 2018, 5:00 am

gunnnie wrote:Go on, you know you want another one!!!
I'm sure there's room in your safe for a nice BRNO ZKW465!


i did own one of those , it was rebarreled with a slim barrel profile and the barrel band that attaches to the stock halfway down the barrel wasn't fitted . it shot like crap for me, so i moved it on . couldn't get it to group under 2 1/2 " @ 100 . damn the set triggers are light on those . i tried winchester 46 gr hollow point factory ammo in my krico and it shot really really well . which is a first for win ammo :lol: :lol: easy under a inch at 100. i bought some 46 gr win projectiles, and they work well in reloads :drinks: :thumbsup:
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Re: 22 Hornet

Post by SCJ429 » 22 Dec 2018, 8:35 am

marksman wrote:I have a zkw 22 hornet
it's a great little gun to shoot and carry, I use lil gun powder, with 40 grain projectiles, its best to use handgun primers to get better accuracy
I have two 17 ackleys as well that are used more often for the rabbits
I like the hornet especially in an old brno :drinks:


What sort of primers are you using? Something like a CCI 550?

I like the idea of a Hornet but then think about other cool calibers like a 20/222 or 20 Practical. I have not seen many Hornets that are impressive accuracy wise. Perhaps because not many use aftermarket barrels.
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Re: 22 Hornet

Post by JimTom » 22 Dec 2018, 9:07 am

SCJ429 wrote:
marksman wrote:I have a zkw 22 hornet
it's a great little gun to shoot and carry, I use lil gun powder, with 40 grain projectiles, its best to use handgun primers to get better accuracy
I have two 17 ackleys as well that are used more often for the rabbits
I like the hornet especially in an old brno :drinks:


What sort of primers are you using? Something like a CCI 550?

I like the idea of a Hornet but then think about other cool calibers like a 20/222 or 20 Practical. I have not seen many Hornets that are impressive accuracy wise. Perhaps because not many use aftermarket barrels.


Maybe just the rifles you have used mate, the Hornet I have used are real tack drivers.
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Re: 22 Hornet

Post by gunnnie » 22 Dec 2018, 9:51 am

I also use CCI Sml Pistol primers. There are a few explanations as to why this is the better way to go, such as lower initial pressure spike from the primer not forcing the projectile forward, but it just seems to produce better accuracy in my rifle/loads.

bigrich, hard to say why your rifle wouldn't group. Was the headspace set up for a specific brand of brass? The usual remedy was to rechamber to K-Hornet & headspace on the shoulder of the case. This would often see rifles producing sub-MOA accuracy.

The Winchester 22mag projectiles are a great little pill for the Hornet. My first Hornet was CBC151 single shot, ugly as sin & only capable of 1.75MOA on a good day. But when I started reloading for it I was advised to try those 40gn JHP's & 10gn of 2205 & crimping the pills. Massive improvement, down to consistent MOA @ 100M. Plus it was bloody cheap reloading, great news for a recently married young fella with the first kid on the way. I got 700 loads from a can of 2205 & the pills were around $7/100.

I found that my K-Hornet loves these with the 45gn Nosler BT's coming a close second. If I use 2205 I've found that I have to crimp the pills in the case otherwise I end up with unburnt granules of powder in the bore/chamber. Not good in a Martini action as it causes problems with closing. I was lucky enough to score 1500 of these pills earlier this year, so I have a good supply of these now.

With the standard Hornet, if you pay particular attention during reloading you will notice accuracy gains. The humble Hornet can produce good consistent MOA accuracy with load development. The first thing I do is to match brass to brand. As both my bolt action Hornets are of European origin I only use Sako, Norma or S&B. Sako brass will give a little more internal volume I've found, but all three brands will have a slightly thicker rim which matches the specifications of the chamber/headspacing used by manufacturers such as CZ.

From there the brass is prepped by checking uniform flash hole size, deburring the inside of the flash hole, checking case neck uniformity/thickness & the overal length. Each powder charge is weighed on the scales & dropped into the case via a long tubed funnel. The first loads with new brass I try to seat the projectile out to touch the lands. This helps support the case in the chamber so it expands/forms to the rifle's chamber dimensions uniformly.

Fired cases are only neck sized using a Lee collet die and if the brass is becoming slightly tight to chamber, I'll use a Redding body die to bump the case back just a fraction. But as I don't push hot loads, it takes a while before this happens, if at all. After the first firing, future loads have the pill seated to suit the magazine.

This may seem like a lot of fiddling around as compared to reloading for a 223. But then again, if you want the best in accuracy potential from a 223 then you have to take similar steps.

The big trap that has troubled the Hornet for years, is shooters buying a Hornet thinking its a 222/223! The Hornet is a niche cartridge these days when you look at where it sits in the calibre ladder & the other cartridges. It's a 150M small game round that is suited to small holdings where limited ranges & noise is a consideration. Used with these limitations firmly ingrained in one's psyche, the cartridge will deliver. In the hands of a very competant shot, who knows the rifle/load intimately, shots out to 250M in ideal conditions, are within reason on small game.

It isn't an all round cartridge by any means, but it is a great little round in it's own right. It has a long history & will continue for years to come.
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Re: 22 Hornet

Post by marksman » 22 Dec 2018, 3:45 pm

SCJ429 wrote:
marksman wrote:I have a zkw 22 hornet
it's a great little gun to shoot and carry, I use lil gun powder, with 40 grain projectiles, its best to use handgun primers to get better accuracy
I have two 17 ackleys as well that are used more often for the rabbits
I like the hornet especially in an old brno :drinks:


What sort of primers are you using? Something like a CCI 550?

I like the idea of a Hornet but then think about other cool calibers like a 20/222 or 20 Practical. I have not seen many Hornets that are impressive accuracy wise. Perhaps because not many use aftermarket barrels.


the cci 500 small pistol primer :drinks:

I bought the rifle for my daughter as a carry around rabbit rifle for her and I got it cheap
the stock was a black mess when we got it but this is what it was like when I cleaned her up

Image

there are plenty more accurate precise rounds out there but I like the hornet and really like brno's :drinks:
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Re: 22 Hornet

Post by SCJ429 » 22 Dec 2018, 6:24 pm

Nice work MM, I always liked the idea of a Hornet and A friend let me shoot his Brno, a K Hornet. He is an experienced reloader and said it was never going to shoot any better than just under an inch. I have seen others where the owners were a little frustrated trying to get some decent results. I have read that Lil Gun powder has been a real boone for Hornet owners.

I have never reloaded for a Hornet but would like to have a go. Perhaps someone I know will get themselves a 17 Hornet.
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Re: 22 Hornet

Post by marksman » 22 Dec 2018, 8:54 pm

SCJ429 wrote:Nice work MM, I always liked the idea of a Hornet and A friend let me shoot his Brno, a K Hornet. He is an experienced reloader and said it was never going to shoot any better than just under an inch. I have seen others where the owners were a little frustrated trying to get some decent results. I have read that Lil Gun powder has been a real boone for Hornet owners.

I have never reloaded for a Hornet but would like to have a go. Perhaps someone I know will get themselves a 17 Hornet.


the 17 ackley or 17 hornady hornets are a cracker
I let two guys at the little river range shoot some forming loads in one of my 17 ackley's and no BS within the week they both had 17 hornady hornets,
both of them :lol: one of them is a guy who gets really bored with his rifles very quick and passes them on but he still has this one and its been a few years now since that happened, I have shown these guys how to make there own brass out of 22 hornet cases because at that time the cases available were not very good, no consistency at all and they were getting a hell of a lot of flyers,

the hornet I bought for my daughter to use and tweaked is a 1/2 moa performer, she can shoot rabbits out to 125 in the head all day with it no worries but she excels with the 22-250 out to 300, she has asked if I will rebarrel her hornet to 17 ackley because it is much more precise to shoot but I am having a hard time doing it as this rifle is in very good original order :unknown: I may have to buy another rifle for her :drinks:
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Re: 22 Hornet

Post by GLS_1956 » 23 Dec 2018, 1:33 am

Cal-ApeR wrote:Ok, the 22 Hornet. Who has one and what are you using it for? What sort of distances can it shoot? Would you buy one in today's day and age with 17hmr etc? My grandfather used to own one and talked fondly of the cartridge back in the day. I'm thinking it was his equivalent to our 17HMR.


I've got a couple of 22Hornets rifles, Sako Model 78 and Ruger No 3, as well as a 22Hornet barrel for a T/C Contender. What did I hunt with them, I've not gone after anything but some birds in a couple of decades, coyote, feral dogs, crows, and turkey. Distance depends on the accuracy and energy of the rifle and load, the Sako is more accurate than the Ruger, From the Sako I could get 1 1/2 to 2 inch groups at 100 yards which is plenty good enough for coyote, adults run in the 30 to 40 pound range, and the factory 40 grain bullet has enough energy to do the job. Would I get one today? I got the Ruger about 4 months ago if that answers the question. Big plus for 22Hornets are they are a very efficient cartridge and you get alot done with minimal powder, if you reload, but 55 grain bullet is probably max weight to use. Another advantage is that they are a, comparitivley, a quiet round, if you're shooting around populated areas their accoustic foot print is, while larger than the 22LR, much smaller than the 222Rem/223Rem round.
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Re: 22 Hornet

Post by SCJ429 » 23 Dec 2018, 9:16 pm

That Ruger #3 sounds cool, perhaps I need something like that. Does it use a Ruger extractor or did you have an extractor made to suit?
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Re: 22 Hornet

Post by gunnnie » 23 Dec 2018, 9:50 pm

Ruger produced the No3 as a standard listing, in 22 Hornet. Think the No3's were made up until the mid to late 80's. Saw one at the last gunshow in Penrith & it was going for $1200. Didn't think it was worth anywhere near worth that much.

Had considered buying one as I'm a fan of the Ruger single shots. But the No3 is pretty plain compared to it's big brother the No1. So a No1 in 25-06 was bought instead.
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Re: 22 Hornet

Post by GLS_1956 » 24 Dec 2018, 4:44 am

gunnnie wrote:Ruger produced the No3 as a standard listing, in 22 Hornet. Think the No3's were made up until the mid to late 80's. Saw one at the last gunshow in Penrith & it was going for $1200. Didn't think it was worth anywhere near worth that much.

Had considered buying one as I'm a fan of the Ruger single shots. But the No3 is pretty plain compared to it's big brother the No1. So a No1 in 25-06 was bought instead.


You are spot on, gunnie, Ruger did offer the #3 as a standard listing. I got mine because I have one, a #3, in 45/70 and wanted and wanted the other end of the spectrum. Neither are scoped which might be one reason the Ruger doesn't group as tight as the Sako. They share the same profile with the hornet being noticably heavier, and the 45/70 a bit stouter in recoil.
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Re: 22 Hornet

Post by SCJ429 » 24 Dec 2018, 10:58 pm

I did not know they made one as a factory chambering, I will have to keep an eye out. Can never have too many #1s.
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Re: 22 Hornet

Post by Bills Shed » 25 Dec 2018, 4:14 pm

I have two 22hornets and the 17H as well. I do run a 223 as well but the hornet family are a lot more fun and cheap to reload. They did what I need them to do with no fuss.

Not much not to like

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Re: 22 Hornet

Post by Maxjon » 16 Mar 2020, 9:57 pm

What about the 221 FB??
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Re: 22 Hornet

Post by northdude » 19 Apr 2020, 5:55 pm

bit late ive got 2 hornets 1 is a nef handi rifle heavy barrel and the other is a krico over here its legal to shoot stuff you guys arent allowed to i shoot possums when they are on the ground magpies and goats its a good caliber and one of my favourites
22 hornets and most things 6.5
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