Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Rimfires 17 HMR??

Interested in the 17 hmr but I don't know much about it. What niche does it fill? What is it good at? Are there any platforms for it that are particularly good in the sub-$500 range?

In that price range. I’d be checking out the Marlin.

DF

As far as the niche they fill - IMO they are the perfect ground squirrel rifle, except for the cost of ammo over the 22 LR. I haven't found much in the use of one otherwise, some folks do use them for short range Prairie Dog hunting but I have seen to many crawl-offs to use them for that role. I doubt that I would own one if I didn't have a plentiful supply of ground squirrels to shoot.

My 17 HMR is a Ruger Standard Rifle and it is quite accurate, usually 1/2" five shot groups at 50 yards and about 1-1/2" five shot groups at 100 yards. A couple of friends have a different version of the Ruger and theirs seem to be on a par with mine for accuracy. One thing to be aware of though is that the wind is not your friend with the 17 HMR, the slightest breeze pushs the bullet around a lot.

drover

CZ 452 here, good gopher gun, poor prairie dog gun. Have killed a coyote and coon with it. Ballistics are better than a 22 magnum. If I could find a good, accurate magnum I think I would go that route for my use. Or step it up a thousand feet per second with a 17 Hornet.

Aren’t CZ and Ruger prices pushing OP’s $500 cap?

That’s why I mentioned Marlin, which I prefer over Savage.

Or a good used CZ or Ruger? Haven’t checked prices lately.

DF

Better accuracy than a 22wmr. Great for sage rats, ground squirrels, and small vermin. Also has an edge over other rimfires in some of my clubs events/matches.

One should have several firearms in every rimfire Cal. including .22 WRF and .22 Winchester Auto.

The fun is expotential to the number of firearms one owns, your chance to increase your happiness.

how many WSM's ya got?.....

Only 2 , not a lot of choices .

And you how many??

That’s pretty good. Is A17 ammo harder to find?

DF

only one. But only because I can't afford 2 that are worth a chit....

The 17hmr is a varmint dropper. Wind can be an issue as previously mentioned. The responsible hunter will be able to recognize this and switch to the centerfire when the wind is beyond their ability for ethical kills. It is an excellent prairie dog round. Like hunting deer with a 30-06, a hindquarter shot placement is a limp, not a kill.

I'm a fan of the HMR & what it can do when ammo is 8 - $10 a box.

Now it's 20 - 25 a box & that takes away some of the love.

Is the RIM X .17 WSM out now?

You don't need to run A17 ammo through the A17 rifle. Mine actually has a preference for 17gr Federal v-max ammo. I bought a bunch of it when it was $8/box. Kind of sucks that ammo for the HMR is so expensive now. I'm seeing $17-20.00/box now... As for the A17 ammo, I don't like it very much.. The rifle I posted a pic of is an accurate sob. After buying it, I sold my Ruger 10-22 target laminate model. However, I felt so bad in our golf ball shoots, that I recently bought a 10-22, just to make it fair. With the A17 rifle, I have smoked other guys running Volquartsen 22 magnums and souped up 10-22's. It will take 5 golf balls off the strings in less than 2 seconds. If I were looking for a do it all 17HMR, I'd look for a rifle like that one. I have glass bedded it, free floated the barrel, cut a few coils off the trigger spring (reduced down to 2 1/4 pound pull). It feels great in the hands as well..

This is the perfect ground squirrel caliber. The point blank range with my Anschütz 1717D is 178 yards. And I have made clean kills out to that range, confirmed by laser.
Sight your rifle in 3/4” high at 100 yards and you’re good to go!

Love my Tikka T1X in 17HMR. It’s a long range squirrel hammer. It is right around 500.00

Here's a Marlin .17 HMR.at a good price at Collectors in Houston. I've dealt with them a good bit. Good guys to deal with. Their prices aren't always the best, but this one looks OK.

https://www.collectorsfirearms.com/products/158288-marlin-17vs-17-hmr-r30691.html

DF

For me, it's most often noted purpose is to put a grin on my face



That's actually 6 holes in that pic. 11:00 oclock this morning with decent overcast and calm winds
Ruger American with a 9 round magazine. I had repositioned the scope for cooler weather and wearing a jacket. Re-zeroed with the first 3 and put the next 6 in the pic

I've used mine on several varmints of opportunity, and although I killed 2 coyotes with it I'll never carry it for that porpoise.
Pretty much anything under coyote size and I'm good with using it

My Ruger American cost me $159 at K&K True Value in Bettendorf Iowa 3 years ago.

It wears a 40 year old Tasco Pronghorn 3-9x32 that I got on clearance at a Kmart for $15, IIRC