The .22 Long Rifle
| Nation |
Year |
Max. press. |
| U.S.A. |
1857 |
|
There is no load data for this cartridge, because there
is no reloading it, at least not in the common manner. This is an old round,
going back to the cowboy days. In the old west, Indians were known to have
reloaded this round using match heads, and black powder. These are rimfire
rounds and have no primer as such. The brass is thin and easily crushed,
so a liquid primer material is sprayed or dripped, and then spun directly
into the rim of the case. There are some very powerful and very accurate
rounds being put together in this caliber. This is the round used in the
Olympics, and in most serious non-military competition. Notice how the
energy levels compare with the .25, and even the .380, and some low power
.38 Special loads. The hyper velocity rounds have almost identical muzzle
energy to the .380
Standard Load
| Bullet |
Velocity |
Energy |
Comment |
| 40gr RNL |
1140fps |
115fp |
Standard |
| 40gr RNL |
1280fps |
146fp |
High Velocity |
| 34gr LHP |
1500fps |
170fp |
Hyper Velocity |
Other .22 Rounds
Besides the classic .22 LR, there are a number of special
purpose rounds, including the .22 Magnum Rimfire. The .22 Long and Short,
are still made but generally only chamber in revolvers and single shot
rifles. The magnum round will not interchange with the standard long rifle
except in certain revolvers, and is generally used in specially chambered
rifles.
| Round |
Bullet |
Velocity |
Energy |
Comment |
| .22 Magnum |
40gr |
1910fps |
324fp |
compare to .38 Special |
| .22 Long |
29gr |
1180fps |
90fp |
|
| .22 Short |
29gr |
1045fps |
70fp |
compare to .25 auto |
| .22 CB (short or long) |
29gr |
725fps |
34fp |
compare to air rifle |
Shorts and longs are the traditional shooting gallery rounds along with
.22 BB caps.