.22 LR for Self Protection: Ammunition Check and Overview

When mulling over the query of what’s the most effective caliber for self-defense, the .22 LR just isn’t on the prime of anybody’s checklist. Nevertheless, carrying a .22 for self-defense isn’t unreasonable for some shooters and a few circumstances—and ammo makers have responded to that want.

The Federal Punch line of ammo spans many main self-defense calibers from 200-grain 10mm Auto on right down to the 29-grain .22 LR, which was launched in 2021.

In centerfire handgun calibers (.380 Auto and up) the Punch hundreds jacketed hole level bullets, however within the rimfire configuration it makes use of a nickel-plated flat nostril design. The revealed muzzle velocity from a 4-inch barrel is 1080 fps and per Federal’s product specs the bullets are designed to realize deep penetration from short-barreled handguns, which might be the everyday configuration for somebody carrying a .22 LR for private safety.

After I purchased my first carry weapons again within the Nineteen Eighties, I added a Beretta Mannequin 21A as a backup possibility. It was by no means very dependable—no less than with the ammo I put by means of it—so it spent the vast majority of its time in my secure besides for infrequent journeys to the vary. It had an inclination to misfeed and I additionally didn’t take care of the micro-sized security, which I discovered awkward to control. I don’t know what number of instances I truly carried it, but it surely wasn’t typically. I simply didn’t trust in it, and when in comparison with my totally dependable .40 S&W Glock 23, I might by no means carry myself to rely on the little .22 LR if carrying the .40 was an possibility.

However instances have modified. We now have higher firearms and higher ammunition, so I used to be curious to guage the .22 LR Punch with an open thoughts to see if my age-old bias towards the .22 LR for self-defense nonetheless had advantage or was a relic of outdated considering.

• Caliber: .22 LR
• Bullet: 29-grain nickel plated flat nostril
• Muzzle Velocity: 1080 fps
• Muzzle Power: 75 foot-pounds
• 50-Yard Velocity: 951 fps
• 50-Yard Power: 58 foot-pounds

To assist take a look at the ammo, I reached out to Jeff Hoffman at Black Hills Ammunition. He agreed to do some gel testing with the .22 LR Punch utilizing a wide range of firearms, whereas I frolicked on the vary evaluating it underneath sensible taking pictures situations.

.22 LR For Self-Protection: Who’s It For?

The traditional reply to this query is that it’s suited to ladies and those that are recoil delicate. I discover this evaluation unsatisfactory. Even my aged mother can deal with a .380 Auto and a well-balanced .38 Spl. wouldn’t give her any points. She doesn’t have any particular handgun dealing with abilities that elevate her above the common shooter.

I feel the true reply is that there are legions of people that have .22s and won’t personal every other handgun, or who don’t have a larger-caliber handgun that’s appropriate for all their carry wants. They could have a full-framed responsibility pistol that isn’t handy to hold or have a compact pistol that they’ve issue concealing when sporting lighter clothes.

Then there’s the difficulty of ammo. Everyone knows that common coaching with any firearm is necessary and particularly so with defensive handguns. Not everybody has the price range to buy a sub-compact auto or revolver and provide it with sufficient ammunition to maintain their taking pictures approach sharp. For these shooters—and there are lots of them—a .22LR for self-defense is smart. It’s additionally price noting that Federal simply expanded the Punch line to incorporate a .22 WMR offering as effectively, which shoots a 45-grain jacketed hole level at 1000 fps.

Two .22 LR Revolvers for Private Safety

For this analysis I used two 8-shot revolvers, a Ruger LCR and a Smith & Wesson Mannequin 43 C.

The Ruger ideas the scales at 14.4 ounces empty and comes with a generously sized Hogue grip. The Smith is extra svelte, weighing 11.4 ounces. Each revolvers are constructed on aluminum frames, however the Ruger’s body is bulkier and has a metal cylinder whereas the Smith 43 C’s cylinder is product of aluminum. That, together with the Smith’s smaller grip account for the burden distinction.

Each are nice to shoot, nevertheless, and straightforward to regulate. With their hammers hid throughout the body, each are double-action solely. When it comes to set off management, the Ruger is the smoother of the 2—although the Smith’s isn’t unhealthy by any stretch. The LCR’s hearth management system incorporates what Ruger calls a “friction decreasing cam” and it provides the revolver a constant and even stack because the set off is pulled to the rear. When working the Smith, in distinction, you get suggestions from the timing mechanism by means of the set off. The general pull is easy, however that tactile suggestions is current, whereas you don’t get something of the like with the Ruger.

Federal .22 LR Punch on the Vary

Virtually talking, each revolvers ran the .22 LR Punch equally effectively. Each have notched rear sights with a entrance publish marked in white. The 43 C’s rear notch is U-shaped with a big spherical white bead up entrance, and the Ruger has a sq. notch with a square-sided entrance ramp sight emblazoned with white.

I did a collection of drills on paper and metal at 3, 7, and 15 yards. Each shot quick and precisely, and I feel most shooters will have the ability to get numerous hits on the right track shortly with a little bit of observe. Recoil is negligible and so long as a shooter has a stable base of handgun taking pictures fundamentals their hit share ought to be glorious even when working the weapons at pace.

Ballistic Gel Testing

Hoffman does lots of bullet testing in ballistic gel. A lot of his prospects are navy and LE and require documentation on how the bullets and ammunition they’re contemplating performs. Finished appropriately, the gel is calibrated to provide apples-to-apples information so you possibly can evaluate one bullet’s outcomes to others with confidence. (The calibration is completed by taking pictures a BB at a set velocity and measuring its penetration within the gel. If the BB penetrates too far, or not sufficient, that signifies the gel wasn’t correctly ready.)

Ballistic gel is supposed to imitate the density of human tissue, so the depth of bullet penetration in gel is indicative of how the bullet will carry out towards an individual. After all, elements like clothes, taking pictures by means of obstacles, putting bone, and others will impact a bullet’s real-world outcomes (and which is why the complete FBI testing protocol—the business normal for defensive ammunition efficiency—requires information on extra than simply plain gel) however the normal expectation is for a self-defense load to penetrate between 12 and 18 inches.

Now gel provides as lot extra info than most penetration depth. The bullets create a wound channel within the gel that give a really feel for its terminal ballistics. Hoffman measures that wound channel, trying on the cavity created by the bullet because it traverses the gelatin block. He data the place the cavity is at its widest, the place the cavity begins, and the size of the cavity.

Federal .22 LR Punch within the Lab

Hoffman ran the Federal .22 LR Punch by means of three firearms with completely different barrel lengths. They included a short-barreled (2.4 inch) Beretta Mannequin 21, a Ruger Mark IV with a 4.4-inch barrel, and a Ruger 10/22 with an 18.5-inch barrel.

Gun	Ammunition	Bullet	MV (fps)	Penetration Depth	Cavity Diameter	Cavity Size	Retained Bullet Weight
Beretta 21	Fed. .22LR Punch	29-gr. Flat Nostril	1,018	13.5 in.	1 in.	10.5 in.	one hundred pc
Ruger Mk IV	Fed. .22LR Punch	29-gr. Flat Nostril	1,277	14.5 in.	1.5 in.	9.5 in.	one hundred pc
Ruger 10/22	Fed. .22LR Punch	29-gr. Flat Nostril	1,591	8.75 in.	2.75 in.	6 in.	one hundred pc
Kahr Mk 9	BHA 9mm+P JHP	124-gr. JHP	1,065	12 in.	3.25 in.	4.25 in.	98 p.c

“I used to be fairly impressed,” stated Hoffman. “Each the .22 pistols penetrated greater than 12 inches, which is the brink that the FBI likes to see. They need from 12 to 18 inches of penetration and this bullet completed that.”

The chart consists of outcomes from a 9mm +P defensive load as effectively, taking pictures a Hornady 124-grain Jacketed Hole Level at 1065 fps from a 3-inch barreled pistol. The numbers present how the 9mm outperforms the .22 LR, however the distinction is lower than I might have thought.

With 8 rounds on faucet that may be fired shortly and precisely in an easy-to-carry and conceal revolver with purpose-built ammo, you possibly can see how a .22 LR for self-defense turns into a viable possibility.

Learn Subsequent: Best Handguns of 2022

Is a .22 going to displace my compact carry 9mms or my 5-shot J-Body as an on a regular basis carry possibility? In all probability not. However I received’t look down my nostril the identical approach at somebody who opts to make use of a .22 LR for private safety.

The perfect gun to have in a battle is the one which’s with you—and in case your circumstance dictates that it’s a .22 LR, there’s no want so that you can really feel under-gunned when you’ve gotten one thing like Federal’s .22 LR Punch loaded within the journal or cylinder.