I have a CZ Varmint RH .17hmr and a Browning T-Bolt Varmint LH .17hmr which both are excellent rifles and am not looking for a change but I saw a Ruger in .17hm2.
Do many use this calibre or was it a failed attempt of a .22 replacement? Not after a fight just a genuine question.
It does a great job for rabbits but just isn't as versatile as the 22LR (subs for quietness & high velocity for a little more power).
It is a good inbetween for a 22LR & 17HMR but if you already have both it doesn't offer much.
I thought that may have been the case as I believe it is based on a .22 case necked down. Having both .22 and a couple of .17hmrs I don't think I'll look further.
.22lr are very versatile because of their ability to use different and very cheap rounds for most applications from teaching kids to put holes in tin cans to dealing with a cheeky fox stealing you chooks. .17HM2 don't offer near the range of bullets and velocities that are easy for .22lr. If I was you mate I would be politely looking elsewhere.
From what I have heard they are a great little gun and a fair bit cheaper to run the the HMRs but I think you would find a .22 much more versatile and you have you HMRs to step up the power a little. Think they are sort of like a rimfire version of a wildcat round. Not really much better than what can be bought in a "normal" factory rifle but unique or different to the rest of the crowd.
I have 2 HMR's, 2 22mag, and a handful of 22lr yet use a 17M2 for nearly all my rabbit shooting.
Where the 22lr is often found lacking for range and the increased range the HMR offers rarely needed, the M2 just seems perfectly designed for rabbits. The case used is actually the same lenght as the CCI stinger, so about 1/10th inch longer than the standard 22lr. Ammo is limited but the same complaint can be leveled against the HMR.
I don't think it was ever designed as a replacement for the 22lr but like the HMR as an improvement for hunting over the parent round. In this regard it is much more succesful than the HMR and offers nearly double the range of the 22lr while the HMR might offer an extra 25% range over the WMR at best.
While it hasn't been nearly as popular in Aus as the HMR it seems to be reasonably popular in the US.
IMHO it offers the best value of any of the rimfires.
If the price is right I would suggest grabing it and trying it for youself. Being a Ruger you should be able to pick up a 22lr barrel and have a switch barrel without to much additional cost
The 17hm2 will do 80% of what the hmr will do. I have two. I do not think it was made as a replacement for the .22LR, but I think it was simply made as a small game killer. 1" from 0-100 yards means put it in the crosshairs and loose hell. Check out the image below
My suggestion would be to look at what you are going to be using it for, and see if it will make sense ballistically and financially to you. Or just sell one of the HMR's and buy an HM2, and throw reason out the door.
The figures and distances quated by "Jack appear exaggerated for a HM2, and he's Australian.
This is his post below:
ok please realise these are guesstimates as when hunting i dont really measure that well
goats 220 meters best range
roo's a bit more maybe 250 meters
got a mud crab at 3 inches ( it had a good hold on my lady friends foot and the rifle was the fastest way to get it off, a big mud crab will take a foot off)
feral cats out to 150 meters
and the longest shot on a kill was near 300 meters on a wild dog ( not a dingo but a wild or gone wild alsation type dog that was killing sheep near Bathurst)
he ran when we first fired, my mate had first shot with a .22 WMR and missed clean but he stopped and looked back when the sheep started to bleet again and he stood still too long.
HM2 is a good round for critters like this at distance but way over kill for bunnies under 150 ( or thats what i think)
wishing you good hunting
cheers
jack
We are talking about a .22 necked down to .17.!!! You read people who can do this but with powerful centrefires.
Cammo I think the old mate has no ability to estimate range which is like most humans.
The memory also has a tendency to add a few metres to a shot or kilo`s to a fish.
If I was after a 17 cal rimfire I would look very seriously at the 17m2 and as Sean said grab a 22lr barrel and you would have a very handy combination.
I make no claims as to the accuracy of distances stated. It was simply a thread to show what has been done with an hm2. The Internet should always be taken with a Grain of salt.
Cammo wrote:Dust
The figures and distances quated by "Jack appear exaggerated for a HM2, and he's Australian.
This is his post below:
ok please realise these are guesstimates as when hunting i dont really measure that well
goats 220 meters best range
roo's a bit more maybe 250 meters
got a mud crab at 3 inches ( it had a good hold on my lady friends foot and the rifle was the fastest way to get it off, a big mud crab will take a foot off)
feral cats out to 150 meters
and the longest shot on a kill was near 300 meters on a wild dog ( not a dingo but a wild or gone wild alsation type dog that was killing sheep near Bathurst)
he ran when we first fired, my mate had first shot with a .22 WMR and missed clean but he stopped and looked back when the sheep started to bleet again and he stood still too long.
HM2 is a good round for critters like this at distance but way over kill for bunnies under 150 ( or thats what i think)
wishing you good hunting
cheers
jack
We are talking about a .22 necked down to .17.!!! You read people who can do this but with powerful centrefires.
[quote="Dust"]I make no claims as to the accuracy of distances stated. It was simply a thread to show what has been done with an hm2. The Internet should always be taken with a Grain of salt. [quote="Cammo"]Dust
The figures and distances quated by "Jack appear exaggerated for a HM2, and he's Australian.]
I am not offended. I was also not trying to say that Australians can't judge distances . Just wanted the OP to see what can be done. The sister thread, about the HMR, isn't as long, and isn't as bloody, with a lot more of the replies being paper.
Not after a fight just a genuine question.
. Just wanted the OP to see what can be done. The sister thread, about the HMR, isn't as long, and isn't as bloody, with a lot more of the replies being paper.
