.22 magnum bullet in a normal .22 rifle?

Beno

I'm fairly new at shooting, and i was just wondering, would a .22 magnum actully fit inside the gun and is there any danger in fireing it?
I know its longer buts its the same diameter as a normal .22 bullet but i cant see why it shouldnt work

macnas

I wouldn't try it, the chamber in the 22lr would be shorter than the mag round. You might get it in but it won't come out.

Citizen_Erased

Its unlikely that the magnum round would even fit properly, and unless its a single shot breech loader, you would not be able to feed from a mag

Beno

i can put it in through the breach ( thats the way i useally load it) why wouldnt it come out its the same dia isn't it

Sparks

There's also the possibility (if it's a light rifle - the ISSF rifles with the bull barrels might not have this problem, but an LSR might) that the magnum's pressure would be beyond the limit of the rifle and could cause damage to it (it might not explode in your face, but it'd damage the barrel or the bolt or firing pin mechanism or whatever).

Bad idea, basicly. It's similar to the 5.56 NATO vs .223 Winchester round idea - they look the same, many of the dimensions are identical, but because of the chamber pressures, you don't want to mix them up or you risk a bullet getting jammed in the throat of the barrel.

Rovi

Here are the major dimensions of a .22 LR (Long Rifle) cartridge case-


and here are the major dimensions of a .22 WMR (Winchester Magnum Rimfire) cartridge case-

(these pictures are to scale)

The bullet diameter is pretty close (.223 vs. .224), so the bullet would probably go down the .22LR barrel (depending on the type of rifling and manufacturing tolerances), but I'd be very concerned about the other dimensions.

Apart from the obvious approx. 1/2 inch difference in case length, the magnum case is 0.017in. bigger, and it's rim is 0.023in. bigger.
These differences may not look like much, but in terms of cartridge and chamber fit, they're vast!

While I doubt that you'd get a magnum round into the chamber of a .22LR target barrel, it might be possible to get one into a sporting/semi-automatic barrel, particularly if it's well worn. That's assuming you could get the action to open far enough to get the 1/2 inch longer cartridge in in the first place!
As the magnum case is longer than a complete .22LR round (0.975in.), I'd expect that the case would probably engage the rifling of the barrel, and the bullet would have to be completely shoved into the rifling.
It'd be tight getting it to chamber. If it's not, you've got a VERY 'out of spec.' .22LR chamber!
As the magnum rim is bigger, the extractor may or may not grip it properly, and if it does get hold of it, it may not want to let go!

I can't find chamber pressure figures for these cartridges anywhere, but the magnum case holds 9 grains of powder vs the LR's 4 grains, and with 40 grain bullets it develops 195ft-lbs of muzzle energy vs. the LR's 97 ft-lbs.
That's more than double in both cases! :eek:
Assuming the receiver and bolt were fit to withstand the pressure and didn't burst, I'd reckon that the empty case would be pretty well wedged in there.

I don't think I'd want to try this experiment with any of my rifles, and certainly not with my face stuck right beside the scene of the fireworks.


My conclusion?
I wouldn't do it, and I wouldn't recommend anyone else do it either.

(Images courtesy of AmmoGuide)

jaycee

I wouldn't do it, and I wouldn't recommend anyone else do it either.

LOL... (No Comment .! )

Gives a whole new take on "Lettin all the smoke out " ..
All in all ..Interesting .... But "Stupid.." :eek:

E@gle.

more than likely the rifle would probaly blow up in your face.
i read in a magazine that someone put a 20 bore shotgun cartage in a 12 bore gun and he ended up in hospital

so dont go trying it.

Rovi

E@gle. wrote:

i read in a magazine that someone put a 20 bore shotgun cartage in a 12 bore gun

This is such a well known phenomenon that it's got a specific name- “12-20 burst”

Here's some info from www.ncp.com

H. Never put a 20-gauge or smaller shell in a 12-gauge gun. Never store shells of mixed gauges in a common container or in your pockets. Examine every shell you put in your shotgun. The most certain way to bulge or rupture a barrel is to drop a 20-gauge shell into a 12-gauge chamber. The 20-gauge shell will not fall completely through the barrel; its rim will be caught by the front of a 12-gauge chamber. Your gun will misfire (with the chamber appearing to be empty). It is then possible to load a 12-gauge shell behind the 20-gauge shell. If the 12 gauge shell is then fired, the result will be a so-called "12-20- burst" which can cause extensive damage to your shotgun and serious injuries or death to you and persons around you.

.

civdef

Beno, what sort of rifle do you have?

As has already been stated, a .22wmr shouldn't chamber in a .22lr. The wmr round is significantly larger.

<<< Speculation follows please do not act on this >>>

If the round does chamber fully, and it's a bolt-action, I'd guess it'd probably fire OK. 22lr rifles generally have a large margin of safety pressure wise. This wouldn't be the case with a semi - (breech isn't locked)

Herr Glock

er Civ,
shouldnt that be the other way round?A 22lr not taking a 22wmr??
you can get adapters to take a 22lr in a 22wmr.I have a few for my savage 22wmr/20ga.They are like brass sleeves in which you put the 22lr and then into the 22wmr chamber.Some folks in the USA use "disposable" adapters,by cutting the base off the fired 22wmr round and inserting the22lr round.Works fine in single shots or 22wmr revolvers.
Accuracy wont be target rifle standard,but good enough for tin cans and bunnies.Would advise if you do this and your gun is somwhat old[as is mine] to wear shooting glasses as there can be an escape of propellant gas from around the breechface somtimes,due to the somwhat loose tolerance difference of the different 22 bases.It also only happens with some types of ammo.As for explosive pressure in a 22wmr barrel,it is well capable of handling a 22lr.
I see in the latest irish shooters digest somone is selling a bunch of intresting calibre adaptors.
like 22lr/22wmr in 12 GA/20GA
45colt to 22lr
270 to 22lr.
mad prices tho.There is a guy in alaska who custom makes these for half the money and ships worldwide.

Rovi

Herr Glock wrote:

I see in the latest irish shooters digest somone is selling a bunch of intresting calibre adaptors.
like 22lr/22wmr in 12 GA/20GA

How does this work?
Is the 12GA barrel sleeved down to .22 (be a pretty big 'sleeve'), or does the .22LR bullet just rattle it's way down the 12GA pipe and go vaguely in the direction of 'away' when it emerges into the daylight?

.

allnight_2002

Rovi wrote:

How does this work?
Is the 12GA barrel sleeved down to .22 (be a pretty big 'sleeve'), or does the .22LR bullet just rattle it's way 12GA pipe and go vaguely in the direction of 'away' when it emerges into the daylight?

.

The way i missed some of the shots I had last week vaguely in the direction of 'away' would have been accurate

Beno

I've got a marlin 881 .22lr bolt action

And i've no intention of trying it out

civdef

shouldnt that be the other way round?A 22lr not taking a 22wmr??

Em..no Read my sentence again ".22wmr shouldn't chamber in a .22lr".

Beno, what sort of accuracy are you getting from your rifle. Also what do fired cases look like, any obvious powder staining to the outside or stretching/tearing? It sounds very much like you have an out of spec chamber, if a 22wmr round will fit in.

Herr Glock

How does this work?
Is the 12GA barrel sleeved down to .22 (be a pretty big 'sleeve'), or does the .22LR bullet just rattle it's way down the 12GA pipe and go vaguely in the direction of 'away' when it emerges into the daylight?

by rights, they should be only used ,if it is the 12GA"cartridge" type for a humane killer type situation.there are some with appx a 6in barrel,so you can get somwhat like pistol accuracy from them.