Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Rimfires Looking for .22 Magnum ammunition for 2" barrel revolver

Looking for .22 Magnum ammunition for 2" barrel revolver for wife to carry. The Amscor 40 gr JHP nickle plated brass @ 1875 fps for 312 ft. lbs looks pretty good at 24 cents a round. I'm not familiar with this brand. Wonder what the more knowledable guys here may now about it or have any experience with it. This is all the caliber she is going to fell proficient with. She just can't handle the .38 well enough to practice with. I've resigned myself to the .22 magnum. She has a small PT-22 now, just not reliable enough to depend on and the slide is to much for her to clear a jam. Can't hardly rack the slide myself, never seen such a spring in a slide in my life. Thanks for any input, Chuck.

There are a couple of YouTube Videos about this. They test ,22 Mag ammo in guns with various barrel lenths and show you how well they expand and penetrate, etc.
I've used a 5.5 inch barreled handgun on several critters. Much better killer than a .22 Long Rifle. E

Hornady has a 45gr. load made for self-defense, IF you can find it. I see it now and then at a couple of the local shops, but I've never tried any.

I've only got one .22 Magnum, and it doesn't impress me much, even though it's a rifle, on a good action.

Yep Hornady Critical Defense. Hard to find.

Personally, I would trade off the .22 mag for or buy her one of the Ruger LCR snub nosed revolvers in .327 Federal Magnum.

She can shoot 32 SW shorts or longs for low recoil practice rounds. Or even 32 H&R mag reduced loads like the Cowboy loads.

And then load it up with either 32 H&R Mag or .327 Federal Mag loads for carry. It will beat the heck out of a 22 mag for personal defense, IMHO.

I wouldn't be one bit afraid of using a .22 mag for self defense.

Yeah, you're 1800fps is gonna be 800fps in you 2" gun.

It's better than a sharp stick, but if people are really serious about protecting themselves, they need to step up.

ChuckKY: Unlike many here I have actually seen human beings who have been shot with 22 Magnum pistols!
ALL... I repeat ALL of them ceased and desisted of the activity they had been partaking of immediately prior to being shot.
YOU... do NOT want to be shot with a 22 Magnum!
I will relay just ONE case I have first hand knowledge of!
The "urban youth" in the city I was employed by many years ago were consistently robbing the banks on the perimeter of the ghetto previous generations of their ilk had created.
Our department trained 8 male members of our Tactical Squad how to be bank tellers and deployed them two by two at various banks around said ghetto.
Sure enough, and soon enough, an "urban youth" came to one of our departments special tellers and pulled a gun on him and demanded "the money"!
That teller in question could not get to his main gun in a timely fashion so he pulled the 22 Magnum derringer from beside the teller desk opening and plugged the "urban youth" one time!
That "urban youth" fell onto his back instantly and never fired a shot.
Our hero/teller dropped down unholstered his main gat and jumped over the teller barrier.
The "urban youth" was DEAD when the when the Medic One unit arrived and began life saving procedures.
I guarded the operating room at nearby Harborview Hospital where the amazing Doctors there brought that welfare spawn back to life!
One shot from a 22 Magnum (center mass) and that fella died!
And was unable to even take ONE step (according to bank videos which I saw later!) to try and escape or commit an offensive act!
DO NOT sell the 22 Magnum short in stopping power!
If said original posters wife feels comfortable with a 22 Magnum then I would advise her to "carry on" and double tap every object she intends to shoot!
I have carried a 22 Magnum Derringer as a back up gun on many, many occasions and felt comfie doing so.
Yeah, WAY better than a sharp stick!
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

The CCI 22 WRF ammo is much more pleasant to shoot in that short-barrel revolver as practice ammo.

My elderly friend settled on the 22 WRF ammo full-time in his little NAA pocket gun. It is sort of half-way between Long Rifle and WMR in power.

He says it is 22 1/2 times better than nothing as a defense gun.

Kel Tec is offering a 30 shot .22 magnum pistol. I am thinking about getting one for self defense. The .22 mag is an amazing round for what it is. If I ever have to bug out into the mountains for a lengthy period of time just give me a rifle and pistol in .22 WMR and I'll be fine.

Appreciate all the replys and information guys.I have gave serious thought about a .32 revolver, but am afraid it would be another pistol she wouldn't shoot. It took years to get her to consider any handgun at all. The .38 in my 638 completely turned her against anything near that and I don't think I can change her mind. She is carrying a PT-22 now and loves the little gun, but I can't make it anywhere near 100% reliable for cycling one magazine. Tried 2 different magazines, polishing feed ramp, dozen different types of ammo. I just don't think a .22LR semi-auto pistol can be depended on being as reliabe as a centerfire pistol. Ordered her a .22 magnum revolver and don't think she will be able to tell difference from .22LR enough to matter. I just found out about the Hornady ammo last night, but am having trouble finding it as people have already said. Thanks again for the advice to all who took time to reply, Chuck.

I have little trust for small 22 autos.
22 D/A revolvers are formidable weapons.

I do own a .22 Mag revolver and used both Hornady and the Amscor 40gr JHR in it and they both will work good, the 22 mag is much louder then a .22l.

Yep. Keltec PMR 30. Have a friend who is carrying one for self defense. Load it with 30 rounds of Hornady Critical Defense and you have a lot of firepower.

The Keltec PMR 30 is no help to the OP looking for a concealable defense gun for his lady.

As Outbackandy said, the 22 WMR is extremely loud out of a handgun. The first handgun I started my wife and daughters on is a Charter Arms 22LR. The first loads used when my daughters were quite young was CCI CB Longs.

Then we moved up to Standard Velocity or the Remington Subsonics, eventually switching to HV and Stingers.

They all eventually moved up to 38 Specials.

The 22 WMR is a more effective round than 22 LR, but it has a ferocious bark that may be a bit much for a timid beginner. If that is what you go with, I highly recommend starting with the 22 WRF rounds for that reason.

That's the one.

A sample of one is meaningless, but I'm sure you already know that it was as much luck as anything else.

To the OP, unless your wife has some physical disability, there's no reason why she can't learn to handle a 38 or at least a 32.

Either would be superior to the 22 Mag.

No doubt one example doesn't mean the .22 WMR is a good self defense round. I'd prefer a .38 any day but they aren't fun to shoot in a light revolver. Some people are put off by that level of recoil. If so, a .22 WMR may be the best option. When it comes to rimfires, revolvers are far more reliable than small pistols and could be a good choice. There are now several types of .22 WMR ammo designed for self defense including Hornady and a CCI Gold Dot version. I would choose one of those.

I totally agree and know that. She suffers from being a hard headed woman. I've learned to live with it thus far and am just happy she has accepted the idea of carrying a handgun period, even if it is a rimfire.