I like our .22LR rifle. It's all sorts of fun, easy shootin', and (normally) very inexpensive per round to fire. It's one of the best tools out there to teach people rifle marksmanship. "Mrs. B.H.C." first learned long guns on what I affectionally call "The Assault .22", which is a bone-stock Ruger 10/22.

However, we also know that actually finding .22LR ammo is, like many other cartridges, near-to-impossible at the present time.

For those who do reload, we know that reloading .22LR, while possible, takes a lot of effort to do. This is why almost nobody actually does it.

As a reloader, I, too, got concerned about this during the Sandy Hook-induced ammo panic that dried up all the .22LR. I had some on hand, but it makes one think, what if I hadn't?

I do realize that a .22LR can be accurate out to 200 yards. I also know that most people who shoot .22LR do so out to 50 yards or closer. Therefore....
. .
And the ammo.
. .

The bullet is a 105gr cast bullet on top of 3.9gr of Bullseye or 4.2gr of Titegroup.

This combination is what I've come to call the "reloadable .22". It feels pretty much like a .22LR, maybe a .22 Magnum, when you fire it. Like an actual .22LR rifle, it has very low recoil, and within 50 yards, it's "dead-on-balls-accurate"** if you do your part. So, for those who are having some trouble finding ammo, or those who either reload or know someone who does, consider a levergun in .38/357 as a backup for your .22 and use the above-mentioned load. Mrs. B.H.C. loves it as much as I do.

** this is a technical term

We gotta stop telling people about .357 leverguns until we've all got ours sorted.

Ahem. .32

wings wrote: Mon Mar 01, 2021 5:23 pm We gotta stop telling people about .357 leverguns until we've all got ours sorted.

Well, there's the Ruger 77 .357 Mag. Stainless 18.5 which will also handle .38 sp.

wooglin wrote: Mon Mar 01, 2021 5:28 pmAhem. .32

Yup. I have a Single-seven, a GP-100, a Colt Police Positive, a Suaer & Sohn 38H (the 38 is the year of introduction) and a Beretta 81. All in various flavours of 32.

The last two are 32ACP, and the others start at 32 S&W and go to 327 Federal Magnum (except for the Colt, 32 S&W Long is it) All of the revolvers will shoot 32 Wadcutters happily.

Marvelous calibre.

Good ideas, all. But a lightly loaded 30 caliber round can never actually replace a .22LR if only because of the sheer number of .22LR you can carry in a zip-loc bag...

The 10/22 is still my SHTF gun of choice.

SailDesign wrote: Mon Mar 01, 2021 6:15 pm

wooglin wrote: Mon Mar 01, 2021 5:28 pmAhem. .32

Yup. I have a Single-seven, a GP-100, a Colt Police Positive, a Suaer & Sohn 38H (the 38 is the year of introduction) and a Beretta 81. All in various flavours of 32.

The last two are 32ACP, and the others start at 32 S&W and go to 327 Federal Magnum (except for the Colt, 32 S&W Long is it) All of the revolvers will shoot 32 Wadcutters happily.

Marvelous calibre.

Plus Henry makes a lever action for the revolver cartridges.

depends on what kind of shit and what kind of fan.

wooglin wrote: Mon Mar 01, 2021 7:31 pm

SailDesign wrote: Mon Mar 01, 2021 6:15 pm

wooglin wrote: Mon Mar 01, 2021 5:28 pmAhem. .32

Yup. I have a Single-seven, a GP-100, a Colt Police Positive, a Suaer & Sohn 38H (the 38 is the year of introduction) and a Beretta 81. All in various flavours of 32.

The last two are 32ACP, and the others start at 32 S&W and go to 327 Federal Magnum (except for the Colt, 32 S&W Long is it) All of the revolvers will shoot 32 Wadcutters happily.

Marvelous calibre.

Plus Henry makes a lever action for the revolver cartridges.

Yup - working on making space for one in the safe.....

Have a pair of Henry’s one in 357 steel and the other in 44 mag brass alloy.

Light .38 loads have filled this “niche” in my battery for years. I think I have only bought a couple 100 rd packs of CCI Mini mags In The past decade or so. The fact that you can’t reload .22 LR makes them not that useful for me. I used to use my Ruger MK II target for pest control - but I have found a light .38 works better in this role, too (more humane.) Any kid who can handle a .22LR can handle a light .38 in a Henry carbine (as long as the length of pull is right.)

My son And I plink beer cans with .38s most of the summer. Though we backed off a bit due to the small pistol primer scarcity this past summer - but still shot quite a bit. He’s old enough to shoot heavy, max load .357 magnums now, but prefers .38s or .45 ACP hand loads.

If you are a reloader, it is hard to beat the .38/.357 versatility. I have casting & sizing equipment, and can load a light .38 round for about .06 (basically the cost of a primer and a bit of powder.) though in most cases I buy lead bullets in bulk. You can load a light 125 gr. LRN “cowboy action .38” up to a stompy, whitetail hunting, max .357 load - 158 gr JHP; to be shot out of a carbine getting another 400 ft/s.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

All of that is true. You sure can go heavy, or light, with the .38/357, and yes, that does include the Ruger 77/357. It gets to play, too.

I do find .22LR useful, even though I cannot reload it. It is my primary long gun teaching tool. I'm merely pointing out that, in a pinch, the "mouse-phart" .38 loads can be a good substitute. In normal times, we usually can get .22LR in those Walmart 525/550/555-packs (Remington/Federal/Winchester, respectively) for about 3 cents/round. It usually costs me about 6 cents/round for our .38 Special powder-puff load, just as a point of comparison. Right now, though, buying .22LR is pretty pricey. That's one area in which this alternative can come into play. Dealing with pests, as someone else mentioned above, is another; a light .38 will do the job, also.

I've been thinking about the Russian 5.45x18mm cartridge more and more as a suitable .22LR replacement. Granted it was "Americanized" to a degree. Copper jacketed lead instead of the copper jacketed bi-metal stuff the KGB used. Thinking about a small bolt action repeater or even better a light weight semi-auto carbine with a 16.5 inch barrel (think Miniature-M-1 Carbine) and it would be a dandy of a small game rifle in addition to an "in a pinch" Home defense tool.

I love zombie threads. Yes on the light .38. Makes me want to develop a light load for my Marlin .30-30. No point in shooting full power at paper.

CDFingers

Last weekend I shot some Mk VII .303 in my No 4 and I gotta say, that brass butt plate had its way with me. I'll be loading up some light cast bullet loads for that one. After all, I'm just a delicate little flower:)

There's something to be said about avoiding unnecessary pain.

CDFingers

Airguns! SUPER cheap to shoot. Can even shoot indoors, not always legally but…