An article I read recently by an Australian writer who tested the hornady 30 gr .22 mag ammo made claims that a 40 gr load would be far more efficient than the 30 gr load produced by Hornady..He seemed to think that a 40 gr at 2000 fps was acheviable and that the .22 mag had been lacking seriously any real development in ammo for anumber of years. I have read many of his articles before and found him to have alot of credibility. What do you other shoooters reckon of his theory..?? All his facts seem to add up to me but what do I know compared with blokes with real serious experience...Mick..

Welcome to the forum Mick. I never had...before yesterday, the want or need to fire up the smaller grain .22 mag ammo. I noticed some Hornady 30 gr VMax sitting at my gun store and impulse made me grab it up. Most of my .22 mag shooting is crows, squirrels and woodchucks while growing up in Ohio. When they came out with the faster smaller stuff, I figured it was more or less a parlor stunt just to do something with the .22 mag ammo...even though probably nothing had to be done. I still think it is an incredable caliber. I'll try these VMaxes soon, but feel most likely I'll stay with the 40 grain HP's. Here is an article that deals with what you ask...and quite a bit more. It is a great read and written by one of our own posters right here on Varminter-Com...AMMOe
http://www.jesseshunting.com/articles/guns...egory16/92.html

The fellow may be right, technically, but I wonder if he's shot much of the 30 grain stuff. I don't own a .22 Magnum, but a buddy of mine has several, and he dotes on the stuff, from an accuracy standpoint, it's head and shoulders above all the other factory loads he's tried, and he's tried them all. I think that's the reason behind it, not energy, not "thump" or "knockdown power" it's accuracy, and that load will shoot a group you can completly cover with a dime, at 100 yards, in Doug's CZ 452 Magnum, and nearly as well in his Marlin or his 10/22Ms. It's really remarkable stuff, and shoots almost as flat as the .17 HMR, with a bullet almost twice as heavy. How bad can that be? It almost makes me want to buy a .22 Magnum....................

I don't think you'd ever regret that purchase. A lot of bang for the buck caliber. Not to hijack anything here...but I saw a .22 LR today at my new gunshop that I think I need to own. It is a beauty...
http://www.cz-usa.com/product_detail.php?id=3 ...And to stay on track, it comes in .22 Mag

The Luxes are sharp but a little difficult to mount a scope: Lots of drop at the comb. I had one that a buddy talked me out of for that reason. What I did like was the 24" tube. Made ammo testing interesting.

As to the 2000 fps mark with the 40 grain; RWS imported some pricey ammo a while back that did 2040 fps. CCI's "TMJ" ammo has had the speed upped to 1960 fps for the lots I've tried. That's not bad for speed and really accurate, too. ~AMMOe

I agree that's why it's become popular. It seems to shoot well in most rifles. Although initially the speed and flatter trajectory was probably the "hook" to get people to buy it. I shoot it at times, but prefer the 40 grain bullets for the added energy and lower cost. Unfortunately the accuracy of my 40's is not quite as good but it's do-able.

I was disappointed with the 30 grain Hornady V-Max. Expansion seemed to vary quite a bit even at close range. The Federal "Classic" 30 grain HP, however.... Whew!~AMMOe

The bloke who tested the 30 gr stuff reckoned it was the most accurate stuff he put through his CZ but was very convincing that 40gr ballistic tip @2000FPS was the go and that much of the other ammo for.22 mag was not as ballistically efficient as it could/should be ..He also compared with other ammo..Maybe somebody will make factory 40gr ballistic tip ammo and let us shooters have a good go..Mick..

I haven't had a chance to hunt with the ballistic tip 30gr 22WMR yet, but it breathes new life into my 22 mags at the range. 100 yard performance is excellent. I'm thinking that it will perform quite well on small game out to 100 yards. My Winchester 9422M even really likes the stuff. I still shoot the 40gr ammo at closer ranges, but intend to use the 30gr ballistic tip in the field this year. We'll see how it goes, but I'm betting it'll be just fine.

Mick,

I highly doubt a 40 grain ballistic tip @ 2000 fps 22mag twist barrel would frag very far down range well. 1500- 1600 fps for a 40 grain Blitzking to frag on varmints comes to mind and that one frags at a bit slower speeds than the Hornady VX. So unless Hornady designs a all new 40 grain plastic tip for the 22mag (which I then would stuff in a 22 Hornet case )...........I am not sure it's what you would want for hunting????

Bill, the writer of the article suggested the projectile would most likely be a Hornady Vmax 40gr which would go for a hornet to. The ballistic coefficient of the 40 grain is .200 which the writer claims is double that of the 30 gr vmax and still would have 230 ft/lb of energy at 100 yards against 153ft/lb of energy for the 30 gr and the 40 gr vmax would also suffer from wind deflection alot less also, nearly only half as much according to him. If I could somehow scan and attach the article I would ..I don't think Australian sporting shooter has any such stories printed online but it is exciting reading for .22 wmr fans ..Hopefully hornady or some other company with reasonable standards loads such a beast..Mick...

The 40 grain V-Max as it stands now would be far too long to make the SAAMI over all length of 22WMR. It would take an entirely different bullet with a markedly decreased B.C. Additionally, the 40 grain at 2000 fps or higher is a seldom seen creature. RWS imported one for a while but it was costly and American's didn't go for it. The CCI 40 grain HP is a marvelous killer, as is the Winchester 40 grain HP. The CCI has a roll-plated bullet that has a very thin jacket. The Winchester offering has an exposed lead tip HP that will mushroom well at 1920 fps. As I stated earlier, the ballistic tip 30 grain didn't expand reliably for me at 2300 fps. I can't see a 40 grain at 2000 fps doing any better. The best BC out there is the "Remington" 33 grain V-MAX bullet at 2150 fps. I think it's one of the best and have easily killed jacks at 150 yards using it. ~AMMOe

The 33 grain premier is an awesome round. The 35 grain coyote killer was even better for me, at least at punching paper. I am dying to get a shot at a hog or something big to see how they expand/frag. Tried to order a brick recently, but they appear to be out of business (website has been down). Maybe the manufactures will not produce it because it's intended for bolt action rifles only. If CCI did produce 'em I believe they would be a real hit. If they did it they would not cost $25 a box.