.22 WMR for Hogs

Diver43

Last week, I took a day off work and went with a co worker to kill some hogs on his property a bit north of Lake Okeechobee.  He has a mix of citrus trees that survived the canker a few years ago.  The oranges are sour so just fall, the mangos and lemmons are abundant.  I had brought an AR and he was using a old beat up Marlin .22 mag.  We shot together at a pair of sows right at 70 yards aiming for the base of her ear.  When we approached the dead hogs I was surprised to see that while both were dead, the 5.56 hit right in her ear and in, while his .22 mag had entered the base of its ear and caused trama that not only killed the hog, but the far side eyeball had exploded and the other eye was bulging.  The 5.56 put a hole in her brain, but the .22mag truly scrambled her brain.
It performed MUCH better than expected. I no longer consider the .22 mag not enough 

Zee

Quite interesting result!

They ain’t bullet proof with proper placement, it seems. 😁

Elk creek

Then I was in college I worked for a custom meat processor. On the weekends I would help slaughter in the mornings to get my hours early to have the afternoons off. Anyway, we used 22 mags to kill all the pigs and most beef. Most kills were one and done. The 22wrm kills way out of proportion to its size. 

We did  farm site slaughters so shots were anywhere form 3 feet to 35 yards...... one was crawling up my leg! 

Diver43

I miss typed, ammo I used was Fusion 62gr .223 Rem,  not 5.56

Zee

I have used that round to take quite a few pigs. Being bonded, it’s no explosive or overly traumatic. But it penetrates deer for a .223 Bullet and gets the job done while usually holding together well enough. 

earlyagain

One of my SD guns is loaded with 5 CCI 40gr FMJ Maxi-Mags. That round delivers extraordinary penetration for a rimfire. It's for specialised use and loses effectiveness outside the definitive margins of that use. Just have both eyes open when compromising.

Fisheadgib

On the ranch I prefer the .22mag for dispatching foxes, possums, and armadillos. A .22lr doesn't always anchor them on the first shot and center fire stuff is overkill and noisy.

Six-Gun

That is definitely surprising.  Any qualms I had about using a .22 mag for coyotes have just vaporized.

Diver43

I wish I had not left my phone at the house so I could have taken pictures.
The .22 wmr was some flavor of cci maxi mags.  

ShannonHayes

I've seen a lot of people cleanly kill hogs with a .22 WMR over the years, but as with any size cartridge, proper shot placement has to be made.

Gila

Six-Gun said:

That is definitely surprising.  Any qualms I had about using a .22 mag for coyotes have just vaporized.

Good luck getting one close enough to do that.  I use my 22-250...

BigDanS

I am sure the .22 wmr is great for an ear shot, if you can get the angle and the darn things aren't moving.  I prefer  a faster cartridge like a .243 or a 165 gr 30-06.

D

Six-Gun

Gila said:

Six-Gun said:

That is definitely surprising.  Any qualms I had about using a .22 mag for coyotes have just vaporized.

Good luck getting one close enough to do that.  I use my 22-250...

I’ve killed them with a shotgun and buckshot in Nevada.  Patience and a lip squeak.

Fisheadgib

Gila said:

Six-Gun said:

That is definitely surprising.  Any qualms I had about using a .22 mag for coyotes have just vaporized.

Good luck getting one close enough to do that.  I use my 22-250...

My friends and I have killed several with shotguns while duck hunting over stock tanks in Texas. One of my buddies shot one from about 10 yards behind me while I was calling.

Fisheadgib

As for the .22mag, I own a bolt gun and a single shot pistol in it and a .22mag Henry lever is on my short list.

Zee

I have a nice CZ, I unfortunately don’t shoot enough. 



Ammo being damn expensive. 😒



Probably the last time I shot it, 2015?!?

CHIRO1989

Zee said:

I have a nice CZ, I unfortunately don’t shoot enough. 



Ammo being damn expensive. 😒



Probably the last time I shot it, 2015?!?

https://www.outdoorlimited.com/rimfire-ammo/22-wmr-ammo/copy-of-armscor-22-wmr-ammunition-40-grain-jacketed-hollow-point-50-round/

$5.99, ammoseek is your friend

ShannonHayes

Fisheadgib said:

As for the .22mag, I own a bolt gun and a single shot pistol in it and a .22mag Henry lever is on my short 

Quote is wreaking havoc again. I had a .22LR Henry lever action, and it was a d*&% good rifle! If the Henry .22 WMR lever guns are anything like it, you'll be very happy IMHO.

Diver43

Zee said:

I have a nice CZ, I unfortunately don’t shoot enough. 



Ammo being damn expensive. 😒



Probably the last time I shot it, 2015?!?

Compared to other ammo, I consider it pretty reasonable.  Your rifle looks great and thats a NICE group.  And people say rimfires aren't accurate

ShannonHayes

Zee said:

I have a nice CZ, I unfortunately don’t shoot enough. 



Ammo being damn expensive. 😒



Probably the last time I shot it, 2015?!?

Nice rifle!

Diver43

Bet it smells great in your house