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The '.22 Winchester Magnum', more commonly called '.22 WMR' (for ''Winchester Magnum Rimfire'') or '.22 Magnum' or simply '.22 Mag', is a rimfire rifle cartridge. Commonly loaded with a 40 grain (2.6 g) bullet, it can deliver velocities in the 2000 ft/s range from a rifle barrel.

Contents

History

Uses

Firearms using .22 WMR

Ammunition

Child cartridges

Defense use

See also

References

External links

History

The .22 WMR was introduced in the 1950s by Winchester, and it was the only successful rimfire cartridge introduced in the 20th century. The .22 WMR uses a larger case than the more popular .22 Long Rifle, both in diameter and length. The .22 WMR's case is thicker, allowing higher pressures. The combination of more powder and higher pressures gives velocities over 2000 feet per second from a rifle using a 30 grain bullet, and 1500 feet per second (460 m/s) from a handgun.

Uses

Since the .22 WMR generally uses the same weight bullets as the .22 Long Rifle, it is generally used in similar situations. The 40 grain .22 WMR at 100 yards still retains the velocity of a .22 LR at the muzzle, which can provide improved penetration at all ranges, and more reliable expansion at longer ranges with expanding bullets.
If sighted in for maximum point blank range on a 3 inch high target, the 40 grain .22 WMR can reach ranges of nearly 125 yards. This makes the .22 WMR an effective short to medium range varmint rifle cartridge. The relatively quiet sound of firing and negligible recoil also make it a very pleasant rifle to shoot for extended periods of time. It is less expensive to shoot than its nearest competitiors, the centerfire .22 Hornet, the .17 HMR, and the new 5.7 x 28 mm.

Firearms using .22 WMR

The .22 WMR operates at pressures beyond what normal blowback actions typically handle, but in the 1990s semiautomatic .22 WMR rifles were introduced by Sturm, Ruger and Marlin Firearms. Before this time, most .22 WMR firearms were bolt action rifles, though the .22 WMR is also found in a number of revolvers by Taurus, North American Arms, and Sturm, Ruger, and was previously available in semiautomatic pistols by the now defunct manufacturers AMT and Grendel. Both of these designs used specially designed chambers with flutes or gas ports, designed to lubricate the long, thin cartridge with gasses from the chamber, overcoming the Blish effect and allowing easy extraction of the cartridge.

Ammunition

While the .22 WMR is a more powerful cartridge than the .22 Long Rifle, ammunition is not available in as large a variety as .22 LR ammunition. Availability is also not as great as the .22 LR; while the .22 WMR is by no means hard to find, nearly every retailer that sells ammunition will carry .22 LR. The price of .22 WMR is substantially higher than almost all .22 LR ammunition, though it is less expensive than ammunition in the new .17 Rimfire calibers. Since many of the rifles that chamber the .22 WMR use tubular magazines, bullet noses are generally flat or blunt to allow smooth feeding. Recently two new bullets have emerged from CCI and Remington, and have poly-tipped ballistic tips. While a pointed bullet is not going to rest against the primer of the round in front of it (like in a centerfire cartridge), a pointed bullet could still hang on the manufacturer's stamp, which is found in the middle of the base of the cartridge.
Due to the limited selection of commercial ammunition, the .22 WMR was the case used by a small but dedicated group of wildcatters for handloading high performance rimfire ammunition. Generally these loads would use more aerodynamic pointed bullets, the same type used by .22 caliber centerfire cartridges. While these bullets were often heavier than standard .22 WMR bullets, the sharp nose and tapered tail retained velocity better, and delivered more energy downrange. Other wildcatters would neck the .22 WMR down to smaller calibers, such as .20 (5 mm) and .17 (4.5 mm) or even smaller, in an attempt to get maximum velocity and the flattest possible trajectory (see external ballistics).

Child cartridges

The .22 WMR was also the basis for the first new commercial rimfire of the 21st century, the .17 HMR. The .17 HMR, with its tiny .172 caliber (4.5 mm) bullet, offers much higher velocities and a flatter trajectory than the .22 WMR, though the .22 WMR still offers better penetration with its heavier bullet (see terminal ballistics).

Defense use

Not generally thought of as a defense cartridge, for its size it is formidable. From a handgun it will generate over a 42% one shot stop ratio on human targets, according to Marshall and Sanow. From a rifle it develops muzzle energy equal to that of the subsonic 9mm Luger loadings. The new 5.7 x 28 mm SS196SR round chambered in the FN P90 personal defense weapon produces very similar ballistics to the .22 WMR rifle, firing a 40 grain bullet at 1800 f/s.

See also

★ List of handgun cartridges

★ List of rifle cartridges

★ 5 mm caliber

References

1. ''Cartridges of the World 11th Edition'', Book by Frank C. Barnes, Edited by Stan Skinner, Gun Digest Books, 2006, ISBN 0-89689-297-2 pp. 490, 492


★ ''Cartridges of the World 11th Edition'', Book by Frank C. Barnes, Edited by Stan Skinner, Gun Digest Books, 2006, ISBN 0-89689-297-2 p. 479

External links

★ Chuck Hawks' page on the .22 WMR

★ Chuck Hawks on .22 WMR ammunition selection

★ The .22 WMR TODAY, Guns Magazine, June, 2001 by C. Rodney James

★ Three .22 WMR Loads From Remington, Handguns Magazine, by Phil W. Johnston

★ Reloading Techniques: .22 Win. Magnum Rimfire, Performance Shooter, April 1996