Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Reason(s) to get a 22 WMR

I love the cartridge. But I can't think of a good reason why you need one

CR 1948 hit it square on the head.

.......because you can't get 5mm Remington magnum shells anymore.

Google it.

Gentlemen, thanks for all of your valuable input. The ornament in question is the Ruger American Talo "American Heartland"... for some reason I like the idea of it. Ran across a used one in .22LR but I tend to like new so I searched, only to find 22 WMRs at the usual places. Unfortunately, this morning had a big ol' pile of FML waiting for me so this will need to be put on hold for a while I focus on sorting things out, keeping first things first... who knows how long that will take.

WMR remains very popular among no-internet forum types, especially those who work hard, actually kill stuff around the farm, and don't have time/interest/money to reload a Hornet or punch paper three days each week.

WMR is much more sudden and effective than LR, and you can point blank to just over 100 yds on middlin' sized critters like raccoons, woodchucks, fox, skunks, porkies, and (yes) coyotes. Interestingly, legal for deer in ME. Believe it or not, excess noise is a thing around farm animals. We go inside barns and shoot CCI Quiets all night. A WMR outside the barns is alot more animal friendly than the lowly .223.

Agree WMR is just a flash/noise-maker in pistol length barrels. Poor-man's 5.7, suppose.

I have a ugly cerakoted American in WMR, and like it lots.

'Course, it has a 6MQ on it......... 40 gr Win HP clocks 1800 fps from 18" barrel. It's a shooter, too, as MD has noted.

I ordered one just like ingwe’s. Gonna understudy for the nearly identical 5.7, which is pretty spendy to shoot factory in and tedious to reload. .22 mag ammo is about the same price as 9mm if you look around a bit, and in a handgun duplicates .22LR rifle ballistics. I’m hoping it is more accurate than the 5.7, which is pretty much service grade thus far, both factory and handloads. Tests I’ve seen show the 5.7 usually gets through 3A soft armor, even with VMaxes, but I don’t recall seeing the mag do so. Still, the power increase over LR is considerable, and most LR pistols hold 10, not 30.

Haven’t given much serious thought to a .22 mag rifle lately as I have a Hornet that doesn’t get out enough as it is, but sometimes rifles just happen…

Before Biden, try pre-Obama. Since Obama and COVID, crap has been expensive. I quit shooting my .22 WMR during that time frame at prairie dogs. I've replenished my stockpiles somewhat when Reeds was selling Speer TNT 30 grain ammunition for $100 a brick.

I like to shoot called 'cats in tight cover with a Remington 597 in 22 MAG. These shots are typically close, more coming under 50 yards than over, so being able to double or triple tap a 'cat at those short ranges without damaging the pelt too much is a nice to have option. A lot of people don't like the Remington 597, but the 2 597s in 22 MAG have been as reliable as the Ruger 10/22M that I used to own.

I also carry a 22 MAG revolver fairly regularly, either a Rossi 515 or a S&W 48, as the CCI snake shot loads are a lot more effective at killing snakes than any 22 LR snake shot that I've tried.

Someone mentioned the 5mm RM earlier in this thread. I have found that the original, long discontinued, Remington/Peters 38 grain HPPL load to be significantly more accurate than the 30 grain Centurion load in my Remington 592 and rebarreled 580. It would be nice if the new Remington ammunition company would bring the original 5mm RM load back as a regular, or at least seasonal, cataloged production item. Anyone who has shot 'chucks with both the 17 HMR and 5mm RM would likely tell you that the 5mm RM produced bigger wounds with the 38 grain HPPL load than any of the 17 and 20 grain 17 HMR loads.

I keep a shotgun and a 22 magnum at the back door. The 22 magnum is for pest control without the obnoxious noise. I keep it loaded with Winchester 40gr JHP. It's the smallest I still consider more than adequate for coyotes. It works great on beavers too.

I guess every rifleman should own a .22WMR at least once in his life, just to get it out of his system if for no other reason. If I didn't have .22 Hornets in my life that I've routinely loaded down with 45-50gr. cast bullets to .22WMR levels I would probably have one myself.

If I didn't have a life and had nothing but time to handload, I might go
the 22 Hornet route.

Need has nothing to do with it, you want one,,, buy one

For plinking a 22lr is a much more economical choice. But I like a 22WRM. It has a surprising amount of power. I'd get one if you want one.

Ah, but grasshopper when you're retired like I am and have worked all your life to be able to forego the rat race and devote yourself full time to your hobbies......

I’m loading $.10 and $.11 Speer bullets in mine, as well as in the 5.7x28. Plus, any component that’s been in hand for over ummm, three years is considered “free”.

Reasons? You do not have one!


That is the reason I employed, and this is coming from someone who has rifles up the ying yang....but no 22 mag. Now I have one.

A .22 mag lever gun makes a great everyday truck gun. Not much you can’t do with it, and much quieter than a centerfire.

We just don't have that much big stuff or far away stuff to shoot at here in Wisconsin, so the .22 WMR has been the perfect just rambling around rifle round for me in a peep sighted Savage 24H over a 3" 20 gauge. Not too expensive to shoot a few times and small enough for a crow, red squirrel or porcupine. For a close in calling rifle for a fox or coyote it works too. Being a rimfire, it is legal here all year long. WI. did have a rule about no centerfire rifles during certain months. It might not still be the case since we went state wide for rifles in deer season. Lots of dairy farms here and while shooting a .223 or something large might be safe enough, a farmer believes what he hears and a big boomer isn't welcome in the rural part of where I live.

A 22 mag is the deal. M77/22. Will put 3 in a dime at 50. Killed several coyotes with a 40 grain winchester hp. Love calling with one for more of a challenge. Some drop stone dead, some run. Killed one at 225 one day. Absolute must have for a varmint buster. If I'm reloading for a fireball or a Hornet, I'd rather just buy a 223 rem with factory shells. Each to their own, but a 22 wmr is a must have leaned up next to the back door or wedged in a truck seat.

My wife told me I needed one.