Hey guys. I was recently visiting some friends in rural West Virginia, and I encountered a lot of people who were varmint hunting (Snakes, Groundhogs, Skunks, etc.). This was definitely a culture shock, as I had never encountered this sort of thing in the People's Republic of NJ! I was pretty surprised at some shots the locals would take. They use .22LR to take out all kinds of small game, with virtually no backstop..shooting into open fields, wooded areas, up mountainsides, and sometimes even in the general direction of buildings! I know they can travel ~1 mile if they don't hit anything, but I was curious how far a .22LR would go and how much penetration power (or whatever the technical term would be, haha) it would have after going through a varmint and hitting/deflecting off the ground.

 

(And no, I wasn't participating in the aforementioned varmint hunting. I'm not a hunter by any means - Not that I'm against hunting, but it's just not my thing! )

the idea of .22s going a mile or mile and a half is I beleive at 26 deg angle point blank range only a few hundred yards at best

How far it would go after hitting anything isn't really predictable. The obvious is to look at what you're shooting at and what is beyond it. If you wouldn't shoot in that direction with no varmint, then you shouldn't be shooting at one in that direction. That goes along with shooting over water, what's off in the distance that will get hit.

For a CCI Mini-Mag 36gr HP, zeroed at 100yds, the drop at 200yds is 32". If you aim at a 45 degree angle up, it changes to around 15". At 400yds, the drop with a 45 degree angle is around 191".

 

If you are zeroed at 50 yds (probably more common for a 22LR), the drop at 200yds is 42".

 

So, unless you are shooting at a big angle (as previously mentioned), you're not going to be shooting anywhere near a mile.

Yeah, not a mile. Skipping up off the ground should be considered though, especially at slight angles.

Thanks for the info guys! I was just curious to see what those types of (unsafe!) shots would do after hitting the ground. Interesting stuff for sure. When I asked one of the locals if they were ever concerned about where their shots end up, I was promptly informed that they "don't need no advice from a damn city slicker yankee boy". :hand: Oh well.

Ahhhh.... gotta love responsible rednecks.... lol.

Since I am responsible for every round I send down range, I don't shoot at anything unless I know where the bullet is going to stop. I guess the rednecks don't want common sense ruining their fun. Oh well, how much damage can a .22LR do to a double wide. Not like any of those rounds are going to hit a Noble laureate.

Since I am responsible for every round I send down range, I don't shoot at anything unless I know where the bullet is going to stop. I guess the rednecks don't want common sense ruining their fun. Oh well, how much damage can a .22LR do to a double wide. Not like any of those rounds are going to hit a Noble laureate.

 

Neither noble nor Nobel - so your statement fits