.22LR for defense

[Firewall]

Good Evening, Happy Thanksgiving

A member of my family isn't really into guns but has a pair of Charter Arms Pathfinders. I realize this is far from ideal for home defense purposes but its the best she has at the moment. I was wondering if ODT could make some recommendations on ammo to keep these loaded with. My main concern with rimfire would be reliability so I know the bulk pack stuff is out. That's about all I shoot so I dont really know what else is out there.

I'd like to limit the discussion to .22 ammo only, I'm not looking for replies like sell the charters and buy something better and the like (they were inherited anyways).

Thanks,
Matthew

 

[CherryCola]

In my opinion I would rather have her use a .22 than nothing at all. I use to carry a Walther P22 as a BUG since it's the only thing my girlfriend would touch and if anything happened to me shell have something, I suggest CCI Stingers

 

[Sagan]

If you are limited to .22 LR, then I would suggest CCI MiniMag hollow points, or the CCI Velocitor HP. They should range between 36 and 40 gr and between 1250 and 1450 fps. Not great for defense, but if you are working with what you have, then I would take this route.

 

[Sagan]

Stingers are good too, faster (1600 fps), but not as heavy. It really depends on preference. Here is one person's opinion, with photos..
http://www.varminter.com/forums/topic/6601-cci-stingers-vs-velocitors/

 

[mtgldr]

CCI always works but in my mini Winchester X shot straighter.

 

[Barton72]

CCI for the win. Shot a block of 500 through my P22 with no issues. As soon as I bought some cheap Winchester or Federal I started having firing, feeding and ejection problems. Stick with the CCI.

 

[furious]

CCI for the win
I just burnt through around 200 or so today with my Nephew and we didnt have one single FTF. Good stuff and cheap to practice with.

 

[kahrshooter]

Against bunnies or squirrels, Hi-Velocity HP's.

Against humans, bent on doing you harm, you need penetration, and HP ammo, in any caliber, detracts from penetration.

Now, that's likely OK with .38spl +P and on up, where you have enough mass for the bullet to maintain its momentum, and obtain good penetration.

But, IMO, not such a good idea in lesser calibers, including .22lr, which from pistol barrels will hit very much like .25acp from a pistol.

My choice for using a .22lr for defense (if I had to) would be the highest velocity, highest grain weight, solid projectile I could find. A flat nose would be nice, as well.

Same theory as .32acp or .380acp, from a pistol.

http://www.buffalobore.com/index.php?l=product_detail&p=127

Even then, you likely won't get the minimums recommended by the FBI (12-18 inches) for a fair chance at stopping an aggressor, when shots may have to enter from any angle, and make their way through a goodly posrtion of tissue and bone.

ALL handgun service calibers are fairly puny, relatively speaking, as "stoppers".

.22lr, even from a rifle length barrel, only gets you .32acp pistol type ballistics, and, as such, using one will require the user to hope for psychological, over physiological, deterence, and to implement very rapid, multiple shots.

At that, your chances to stop someone are HIGHLY diminished by such a choice.

Better than nothing, though !

 

[Wheeler]

point of aim is important. not just ammo choice. As it's a revolver, the ammo should not affect cycling/feed reliability. If your family member is absolutely prepared to actually use the gun for defense, the best hope for incapacitation is to keep all the shots in the facial region, closely followed by the exxtreme upper chest/throat. Unfortunatly, those are extremely difficult areas to target and hit in a dynamic situation. IMO, ammo should be the hottest flat point lead available Something in the 1300-1400 fps range.

Wheeler

 

[sovietak474u]

In my opinion I would rather have her use a .22 than nothing at all. I use to carry a Walther P22 as a BUG since it's the only thing my girlfriend would touch and if anything happened to me shell have something, I suggest CCI Stingers

This! I carry an NAA mini revolver as a backup. It has stingers in it. It sure beats throwing rocks.