Originally Posted by generalstuart
Hello Kevin
Most will argue that the .22 W.M.R. Cartridge is not much more Powerful in a handgun than the Milder .22 L.R. Cartridge but I find that is not true. Chuck Hawes has made some recent comments on both caliber's being shot out of revolver's and his finidings are below and show the two cartridge velocites and Muzzle differences to be very different, still making the .22 W.M.R. in the Lead over any .22 L.R. Round. Regards, TheGeneral



From the 6.5" barrel of a revolver the velocity is 1400 fps with an energy of 174 ft. lbs


These hyper-velocity .22 LR cartridges are the best choice for a .22 pistol used for personal defence. From the muzzle of a handgun their velocity is about 1260 fps and their energy is about 115 ft. lbs.
General,

Actually, I think those velocities kinda make my point (well to me at least), but in all honestly I was thinking in terms of normal (less than 6�) barrel lengths when I wrote the first time; contrasting against the OP�s 8 3/8� barrel. Yes, that shows a 140fps difference and on paper that�s a real difference. But what that translates to in the field is almost nothing. You�ll have a flatter trajectory with the .22 mag, so if you�re doing long range target shooting, certainly the mag has a usable edge. But if you�re talking about killing game, to me at least, that 140fps doesn�t equate to much. I mean, I�m not going to shoot at something with the .22 mag that I wouldn�t shoot at with the .22lr. When talking 40-50 grain .22 bullets, it takes more than 140fps for a cartridge to really be �different� in my book.

For a .22 rimfire handgun (magnum or LR), a Coyote is probably the largest thing you�re likely to ever shoot at. I wouldn�t shoot at a Yote beyond 25 yards with either. Yeah, I�d have a touch more confidence with the .22 mag, but not so much that I felt like I had a gun in a whole different class. Now give me the OP�s 8 3/8� revolver, over an 8 3/8� .22lr, and I�d start to feel like I have something a little different. I�d shoot that Yote with a bit more confidence, and I�d be willing to even tack on another 10-15 yards.

So, my point is that the difference between the two guns isn�t transformational, like the difference between .38 Special and .357 mag.