Thread: 22 Magnum Killing Power?

Hey guys,

Considering a 22 WMR for the rabbits.

A good mate of mine started shooting deer when he was a young fulla with a 22 mag, shot about 7 fallow all under 50m.

Another cocky I know shoots most of his goats with one too.

Do any of you guys have any experience shooting goats or larger animals with this stuff?



Obviously I have suitable rifles and calibers for goats etc, cheers.

shoot anything in the head with that it'l kill it alright. great for rabbits and possums

I run a little 22 mag with me daily at work, lives on the bike. shot hundreds of deer pigs and goats over the years. between the eyes under 100m and they go down mate.

I have shot a few deer, pigs and plenty of goats, with my little pump action 22 magnum, along with thousands of rabbits and other small game,
I always liked the 50gr federal soft point for bigger game, The little 22mag is versatile workhorse,

When I used to regularly go pig hunting (mmm long time ago) it was my mate's rifle of choice for bailed pigs - never mussed a kill with it. Slightly kinder on the dogs ears than the 303s or even the 44-40s which were in vogue then.
On paper I think it will outdo a 17 HMR - I stand to be corrected of course. General issue with 22mag is a lot of them don't have the accuracy of a good 22 RF or a 17 HMR. Although I was out at a session a while ago and a Stirling was giving reasonable groups, better groups than a CZ also being shot.

it is one of those rimfire cartridges you either like or you don't . . i tried to like it, twice, first with a very accurate CZ American and later a heavy barrel for my sako quad that was a tack driver.
personally it wasn't a good fit for me taking into account cost vs performance .. the .17HMR out shoots it for accuracy and range on Rabbits n Hares . . .22lr Subs with a suppressor are better for cleaning up a mob of Goats . . i wouldn't even consider it for Deer, there are much better choices out there for that.

whatever i say about it someone else will have completely different views . .. sometimes you just have to try somethings

cheers R

Yep not quite the performance of a .17HMR, but you can get ammo with the same projectile as the 17 for them. Ive shot goats with them head shots, good little cartridge for smaller stuff, I toy with buying another

Originally Posted by 300_BLK

Hey guys,

Considering a 22 WMR for the rabbits.

A good mate of mine started shooting deer when he was a young fulla with a 22 mag, shot about 7 fallow all under 50m.

Another cocky I know shoots most of his goats with one too.

Do any of you guys have any experience shooting goats or larger animals with this stuff?

Attachment 50358

Obviously I have suitable rifles and calibers for goats etc, cheers.

Are those designed with a hand gun in mind?
If so they are probably a bit soft for larger, harder (goats heads) targets at closer ranges. Just a guess

Got 2 of them, one is actually for sale

Have shot goats, rabbits, hares, and a bush chicken in error...

I find the 30g Vmax or CCI 30g poly tips to be fantastic, drops everything, shorter range with 40h HP or those in the picture should do the trick nicely...

The newer light weight 22mag ammo has got me using the caliber again, a more versatile rifle than 17hmr to cary places where you are after rabbits but may see larger game.esp if you keep a mag of heavier ammo.
Still as it costs as much to use as a 223......


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I like my .22mag for the distant bunny shots over my .22LR subs, which I only use for closer, discrete shooting. I tried .22mag on wallaby but went up to 223. I wasn't confident doing head shots, and the 223 allowed me to aim for the main body mass and achieve an instant kill

I suppressed my .22mag too. Brings it down to an Unsuppressed .22. You certainly notice the very loud crack if you shoot .22mag Unsuppressed

I tired alot to like the 22mag , used it in a CZ semi , gun looked the business , and it should have been good , but it wasnt , the lack of consistant accuracy was what puched me to selling it , really wanted it to work , thats when rimfire ammo was available & reasonibly priced , back then the view was the accuracy was so-so , and one of the best rifles was the heavy barreled Marlin , and running 34gr jacketed ammo .

The best current for accuracy is the 30gr tipped ammo ?

Anyway , it makes sense if you can get the ammo much cheaper than centerfire , however in NZ , there it is cheaper to reload for a one of the hornets or 222/223 , and I know thats not apples/apples , the diferenc in range & killing power is vast , so as much as I want a 22mag or 17 hmr to work , for my use it has never stacked up .

I think you are better off , with a 22lr & a then one of the small 17/22 centerfire cals .

Big prob for me using reloaded cartridges is capturing the spent case, a pain in the rectum!

Originally Posted by Maca49

Big prob for me using reloaded cartridges is capturing the spent case, a pain in the rectum!

Put a brass catcher on then, looks ugly but works well


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Originally Posted by 7mmwsm

The right part of the head. There is a fair portion of the head which shots can be classed as non fatal. With head shots on deer, if they are not dead on the spot, you probably won't find them.

well im not gonna shoot it in the tounge am i, that parts tastey