Why did nobody tell me?

Aimless

Aimless

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When I was much younger, I shot .22 springers, and when I got into PCPs in adulthood I switched to .177 for all the usual, logical reasons that people give.

When I was looking for a BRK Ghost, I knew I wanted to go for .22 because, at heart, my animal brain likes “bigger bang”. Obviously, I was expecting to give up the speed and flatter trajectory and I was worried that it’d feel like a catapult by comparison.

And that is true for the 16-18gr offerings, sure. But why did no one tell me about the RS and Express offerings?!

I’m getting 11.5-11.7 ft-lbs with the lighter offerings, which is around 605-625 FPS (dependent on pellet weight). My go-to in .177 was the 10.34 heavies, which would get me around 11.2-11.3 ft-lbs, which is ~700 FPS.

The difference in flight pattern is minor, but I still get the benefits of greater retained energy, greater ability to withstand wind, less risk of over-penetration, fewer dropped pellets on cold days with numb fingers, and a louder “thwack” at the target.

Sincerely, I think I’m converted. Lightweight .22s are a hidden gem that I cannot believe aren’t getting more hype.
 
Aimless said:
Sincerely, I think I’m converted. Lightweight .22s are a hidden gem that I cannot believe aren’t getting more hype.
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I think that they are more popular than you may think, and seem to get lots of good press on here, as many .22 shooters have finally cottoned on to just how good they are, particularly in springers - i try to use them exclusively where i can, but there are a couple of my rifles that definitely don't like them.
 
Aimless said:
greater ability to withstand wind
Click to expand...

Sorry to dispel your delusion: JSB .177 10.34gr have significantly better wind resistance than .22 RS. According to JSB's own data, the .22 RS have a lower BC than .177 Heavy, and a lower muzzle velocity at same ME, so energy retention is going to be worse too. The differences between. 22 Express and .177 Heavy are more complex. The Jumbo Express BC is higher. However, the much higher MV of the .177 Heavies means the range at which the greater deceleration results in greater cumulative displacement is well beyond maximum ethical hunting range, and beyond the ranges of FT and HFT events.
 
Desperation led me to using .22 JSB Express and RS! A recently acquired PCP was performing badly with my usual choice of mid weight H&N, JSB, JTS Dead Center pellets, all very erratic beyond about 20 yards. I was beginning to think I'd got a duff barrel or faulty reg. I had some lighter weight Crosman Prems and RWS Superdome at hand and got a significant improvement in accuracy from using these. Did a search for light weight .22 pellets, decided to give the RS and Express a try and I'm now getting good groups when tested out to 35 yards.
Getting around 11ft/lb muzzle energy with the 13.34gn and a bit more with the 14.35gn.
The rifle will be used mainly for pesting so shooting out to no more than 35 yards.
Yet to try the RWS Hobby, as Bren suggested, and I'll be well chuffed if these perform well too.
 
BallisticBill said:
Sorry to dispel your delusion: JSB .177 10.34gr have significantly better wind resistance than .22 RS. According to JSB's own data, the .22 RS have a lower BC than .177 Heavy, and a lower muzzle velocity at same ME, so energy retention is going to be worse too. The differences between. 22 Express and .177 Heavy are more complex. The Jumbo Express BC is higher. However, the much higher MV of the .177 Heavies means the range at which the greater deceleration results in greater cumulative displacement is well beyond maximum ethical hunting range, and beyond the ranges of FT and HFT events.
Click to expand...
...however, due to more surface area/ meplat, that .22 will, defacto, install more " hurt" on what it hits, less " knitting needle" wound channel & pass through...putting ( at sane ranges & provided one's on his " drop game") more transfer - a better hunting pellet. Bigger holes are harder to stitch up. Better a bigger/ slower bullet, found next to the hide, on the downstream side, vs. an exit hole.👌👍 As to your " FT/ HFT" Thing...if shooter is an ace, pellet caliber makes no difference.
 
IMG_7686.webp


As l always say…..

Springers best in .22
PCP’s best in .177
Blunderbuss in .25
 
Aimless said:
When I was much younger, I shot .22 springers, and when I got into PCPs in adulthood I switched to .177 for all the usual, logical reasons that people give.

When I was looking for a BRK Ghost, I knew I wanted to go for .22 because, at heart, my animal brain likes “bigger bang”. Obviously, I was expecting to give up the speed and flatter trajectory and I was worried that it’d feel like a catapult by comparison.

And that is true for the 16-18gr offerings, sure. But why did no one tell me about the RS and Express offerings?!

I’m getting 11.5-11.7 ft-lbs with the lighter offerings, which is around 605-625 FPS (dependent on pellet weight). My go-to in .177 was the 10.34 heavies, which would get me around 11.2-11.3 ft-lbs, which is ~700 FPS.

The difference in flight pattern is minor, but I still get the benefits of greater retained energy, greater ability to withstand wind, less risk of over-penetration, fewer dropped pellets on cold days with numb fingers, and a louder “thwack” at the target.

Sincerely, I think I’m converted. Lightweight .22s are a hidden gem that I cannot believe aren’t getting more hype.
Click to expand...
Barrels decide. I don’t have 1 .22 that shoots lighter pellets. Not one. Thing is, you won’t know that until the gun is bought. If you walk out the shop with a gun that likes light pellets, all well and good. If it doesn’t, then you are back to square one.

Atb

Bob
 
Ian Cartmell said:
.177 purely for cheaper ammo.
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I'm not trying to be contentious, but a PCP setup can go into the £1000s.
And like-for-like, .177 is £3-£5 cheaper per 500 - it's maybe 1p-per-pellet more expensive for .22.

If you're going for a budget springer build, fair enough, but personally I feel like the difference in ammo cost is negligible when you're talking about a full PCP kit.
 
bob4026 said:
Barrels decide. I don’t have 1 .22 that shoots lighter pellets. Not one. Thing is, you won’t know that until the gun is bought. If you walk out the shop with a gun that likes light pellets, all well and good. If it doesn’t, then you are back to square one.

Atb

Bob
Click to expand...
Very fair point.
 
BallisticBill said:
Sorry to dispel your delusion: JSB .177 10.34gr have significantly better wind resistance than .22 RS. According to JSB's own data, the .22 RS have a lower BC than .177 Heavy, and a lower muzzle velocity at same ME, so energy retention is going to be worse too. The differences between. 22 Express and .177 Heavy are more complex. The Jumbo Express BC is higher. However, the much higher MV of the .177 Heavies means the range at which the greater deceleration results in greater cumulative displacement is well beyond maximum ethical hunting range, and beyond the ranges of FT and HFT events.
Click to expand...
That saved me a post!
 
Aimless said:
I'm not trying to be contentious, but a PCP setup can go into the £1000s.
And like-for-like, .177 is £3-£5 cheaper per 500 - it's maybe 1p-per-pellet more expensive for .22.

If you're going for a budget springer build, fair enough, but personally I feel like the difference in ammo cost is negligible when you're talking about a full PCP kit.
Click to expand...
I don't wear a dress
 
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