.22 Hornet and Lee Bator

[Hickok]

Getting back into .22 Hornet shooting, after selling a Savage Model 40 awhile back, I have a Savage Model 25 Walking Varmiter ordered and on the way.

The Model 25 has a 1 in 14 inch twist(as did the Model 40). I realize it is hard to predict, but would the Lee .22 Bator be usable in this rifle. It seems to be a short and stubby boolit.

I read all I could find on this site about the .22 Hornet and cast. The Lyman #225438 would seem an ideal boolit for the Hornet, but the Lee mold has a price advantage.

I use a Wilson neck/bushing die and arbor press for my .22 Hornet reloading and found small pistol primers grouped best. The Model 40 was a consistant 1 moa rifle for 5 shots with j-words. Hope the Savage Model 25 will do as well, just want to get some cast boolits a try.

[AlaskanGuy]

I love the bator, but cant comment on your hornet... I think you just need to get some of them bators to try before you buy... They work well in all my 22 cal guns, including the 22 jet....

AG

[Larry Gibson]

The Bator will do as well as you cast and load them in your 14" twist 22 Hornet. I use a Redding bushing die to NS for my Hornets.....bushings are best way to size for the Hornet with the Lee Collet die being next. With the bushing die I only size the neck to the base of the seated bullet. That leaves the rest of the neck to keep things very concentric in the Hornet chamber.

Larry Gibson

[Hickok]

Larry, I concur with the neck sizing/bushing dies as best. In fact, my Hornet brass never gets a full length sizing. I have been able to just neck size until the case starts to show signs of head separation after many firings.

Thanks for the heads-up on the use of the Lee Bator in the Hornet, and I read your past posts on the .22 Hornet with great interest!

[gnoahhh]

Serendipitously, I just loaded 50 rounds of Hornet ammo with the bator and 6gr. 2400, SP primer. Washed up, grabbed a beer and went on line only to find this topic. That load gives one to two MOA groups at 50 yards for me- my second favorite load in the Hornet. (But my rifle has a 1-9" twist. Still in all, brass lasts seemingly forever and at 1600fps is a dandy squirrel whacker.) 3.5-4 grains Unique or Universal Clays is a close alternative.

[FLHTC]

Serendipitously, I just loaded 50 rounds of Hornet ammo with the bator and 6gr. 2400, SP primer. Washed up, grabbed a beer and went on line only to find this topic. That load gives one to two MOA groups at 50 yards for me- my second favorite load in the Hornet. (But my rifle has a 1-9" twist. Still in all, brass lasts seemingly forever and at 1600fps is a dandy squirrel whacker.) 3.5-4 grains Unique or Universal Clays is a close alternative.

If you want to step it up a bit, 6.5 grains of 296 works equally well for me in a Contender Carbine (1 in 10) and to slow it down, 3.0 grains of Red Dot is the chit for squirrels.

[gnoahhh]

1600 fps is about as fast as I have any desire to go with cast bullets in the Hornet. How much velocity does the 6½gr. 296 develop? Has anyone tried to see how low you can go with L'il Gun and cast bullets in the Hornet?

[canyon-ghost]

Had someone send me some Bators for hornet. I use the 225438 Lyman. The difference is the gas check on bottom, otherwise, they're approximately the same shape and weight. I've shot hornet in TC Contender 10" for years. Of course, the shorter barrel does like lighter bullets.

[Hickok]

I am wanting to try the Hornet with cast boolits as a substitute for the .22 Mag. rimfire, for squirrels and the like. Hopefully, get a velocity 1500-1700 fps with good accuracy.

Load developement and trial and error forthcoming.

[canyon-ghost]

Trial and error: go by one-tenth grain at a time. The smallest group usually only shows up once!

[telebasher]

[QUOTE=gnoahhh;2825629]1600 fps is about as fast as I have any desire to go with cast bullets in the Hornet. How much velocity does the 6½gr. 296 develop? Has anyone tried to see how low you can go with L'il Gun and cast bullets in the Hornet?
My experience with LiL Gun has shown that it doesn't do well with reduced loads. On the other side of that coin , no other powder can match its velocity/pressure ratio with jacketed bullets. I use either Unique or 2400 for lower velocity and Bullseye for small game hunting. I don't worry about 22 rimfire availability as long as I have my Hornets. FWIW I use AA1680 for full powered Hornet loadings as recommended by Paco Kelly. Works great in my guns.

[telebasher]

I am wanting to try the Hornet with cast boolits as a substitute for the .22 Mag. rimfire, for squirrels and the like. Hopefully, get a velocity 1500-1700 fps with good accuracy.

Load developement and trial and error forthcoming.
Try 4 gr Unique with whatever boolit you have, and SP primer.

[43PU]

Try 4 gr Unique with whatever boolit you have, and SP primer.

That is my most accurate load for the hornet I use the lee collet neck sizer until I can just seat the bullet in by thumb pressure. then let it seat on the lands. Out of my TC custom shop 22 hornet. I can get one hole groups at about 75 yards

[quilbilly]

Every rifle barrel has its own personality but my Hornet loves the bator boolit. I just had to change powders from 4198 for jacketed to 2400 for the bator.

[richhodg66]

I've been playing with a Savage 219 in .22 Hornet and the 225438. I want a load to take the place of .22 LR, and started using it without gas checks and 2 grains of Bullseye.

Just got back from the range and had loaded four groups of five each, 1.5, 1.6, 1.7, 1.8 grains of Bullseye. These loads all shot better than two grains, but I think the 1.5 shot best (hard to tell when they're all on top of each other, range was 25 yards which is realistic squirrel hunting range in my experience).

I have a Bator mold now, I will have to get some cast up and try them. I'm liking this .22 Hornet and am looking forward to getting in the woods wit it this Fall.

[Hickok]

Thanks to all to you fella's for the good input. Like many of you, with the price and lack of rimfire ammo, I am looking to the Hornet and cast boolit's to fill the gap.

[FLHTC]

1600 fps is about as fast as I have any desire to go with cast bullets in the Hornet. How much velocity does the 6½gr. 296 develop? Has anyone tried to see how low you can go with L'il Gun and cast bullets in the Hornet?

I haven't put it over my chronograph yet but I'd bet it's in the high teens or low 2,000's

[Screwbolts]

With my old Stevens 322 re cut to K-Hornet and it's 1x16 barrel I drive the BRP 226-47 easily to 2600+ with standard loads from any manual of IMR4227 using Wolf SP primers. My old 219 that my son now proudly has, and we recently cut to K, with the same reamer will do a little better because of the longer tube.

If Altheating finds this thread all 5 of his hornets love the the BRP 47, and one of his his and my 222 is of the 722 variety, they are very happy at the same speed with the NOE 226-55 FN.

Your 1x14 barrel should be right at home with the Bator and also be capable of good speed from a "heavy" for Hornet boolit. The limiting factor being keeping the pressure safe, but 1x14 should easily handle the Bator IMHO. Our 722s are 1x14 as most old 222s are.

[Hickok]

I just ordered the Lee Bator from Midsouth, thought I would get a mold while they were availible. Thanks to all for information.

[TCFAN]

I have been playing with the Lee Bator in my 218 Bee.It shoots very well for me at higher velocity but when I slow it down to 1100 or 1200 fps for 22 LR type loads it shoots very wild.My barrel is 1-14 twist and is 22 inch long.The NOE 37gr boolit will cut the same hole for 5 shots at 65 yards at 1200 feet per second.The Bator will not stay on a 12 inch square piece of paper at 25 yards at 1200 FPS..........Terry

[altheating]

Like Screwbolts said, the BRP-47 shoots very well in all of our K hornets and my Pre 65 Model 70 Hornet. I have been playing with it in the 221 Fireball too. It shoots well enough to hit a 4" gong at 150 yards and a 10" gong at 200 yards. Here is a pic of a moth that landed on my backstop the other day. Shot with a Ruger 77/22K at 100 yards. Took his head clean off! Screwbolts, Voopie and I sure have had great sucess with that boolit. The NOE 226-55 FN works well in the Fireball too. Dressed with my version of Lotak and a homemade aluminum gas checks weighing right at 60 grains out of my 722 in 222 Rem killed a whole bunch of 8" gongs last week out to 350 yards.