Quote:
Originally posted by kel
From the perspective of someone who wants to learn to shoot a rifle well. My goal is to move up to a larger caliber eventually (.308 winchester?) with a high power scope. Which is best for this application? 22LR is dirt cheap, but it's a limitation to my accuracy. 22WMR and 17HMR are more accurate but more expensive.
I was intending to buy a good scope no matter what rifle I buy. I want be sure that I am the limitation and not my rifle.
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Ok, actually, .22lr is one of the most accurate rounds ever manufactured. It will probably knock the socks off of both of the other abovementioned rounds at ranges < 100 yards.
the .17 HMR is a specialty cartridge....for relatively close range varmint hunting where the hunter wants a relatively low-power cartridge that has a very flat trajectory. It would not be my first even third choice for target shooting.
The .22 magnum is essentially a longer .22 lr (not quite though). The only advantage of this is that it is a bit faster. However, this extra oomph translates to decreased accuracy. It is also overkill for most small game.
The .22lr gained popularity over many other .22 cartridges, and over many other rimfire cartridges for several reasons:
1: It is cheap
2: It is unusually accurate. For target shooting at smallbore ranges (50 yards generally) shooters get the best accuracy out of a round that is propelled to just under the speed of sound (breaking the sound barrier adds some inherent instability). .22lr does this.
3: It is versatile. If you want, you can buy some pretty hot supersonic .22lr loads (relatively speaking) that move out at speeds in excess of 1600 fps. You can also buy quiet subsonic loads that make less noise than an airgun.
4: They make great hunting rounds since they do not travel as far as 'higher power' cartridges and they are not moving so fast that they destroy small animals (unlike the .17 hmr).
Besides, you are looking at probably a five hundred percent increase in price for .17 or .22WMR over .22Lr. It just isn't worth it for plinking.
Get the .22Lr first, and after you get accustomed to shooting, you can expand your collection to include these other, more specialized cartridges if you find you have a need for them.
Oh, and for your first gun, I would recommend that you purchase a weapon with good iron sights, and only add a scope after you have become a proficient shooter. Scopes will only add another level of complexity. They tend to break or go out of zero when you bump them And cheap ones are not parallax-free and will drive you crazy as a new shooter.
A good rifle with good quality iron sights will outshoot almost anyone.
Good luck