Neither calibre will feel good in the shop
. Rifles will feel good in the shop, and once you have found a rifle that fits you nicely, then choose which calibre you want.
If you want the best of both worlds then get .20, never used one but i hear good things.
Pellet choice isn't difficult. Try a couple of different types of quality pellets, both will be accurate. But one will be slightly more so than the other. Use that, then buy a different type and try that against the ones that your using. Generally, there are maybe 5 brands of pellet that get used the most. You don't need to try every brand out there. If you can put 10 pellets under a 2p at the ranges you hunt, then thats all you need
.177 pellets will never have the knock down effect of a .22 due to a smaller impact area, Heavier pellets wont hit harder than lighter pellets in .177 due to the power of the rifle not changing. A heavier pellet will just travel slower than a lighter pellet. The only difference you will notice ( or not
) is that a heavier pellet retains more energy at 50 yards than a lighter pellet. .22 have a larger surface area, so hit harder, be they lightweight or heavy weight .22. Also they retain more energy down range than a .177.
.22 trajectory is just as predictable as .177, its just loopier. for instance, if a .177 shoots 2 inch low at 50 yards, it will always shoot 2 inch low at 50. Compare that to say 4" drop on a .22, but it will always be the same 4" drop at 50. Difference is, a .22 pellet at 50 will carry 8 ftlbs of energy for example, whereas a .177 will have say 6.5. Also .177 are effected more easily by the wind, so that flatter trajectory out to 50 means nothing in a bit of wind. It could move off upto 2 to 3" in any direction.
Hollow points just flatten on impact, increasing impact energy. Only accurate out to 30 yards max though. Good for close up ratting or ferals in a barn.
So, looking back at all the other posts. I want to just choose one calibre and learn it well. .22 or .177, whatever feels best in the shop.
However, I see that pellet choice can also affect the likelyhood of a runner
So would a heavier grain pellet work just as optimally as a standard grain 22 pellet?
Seems that everyone suggests to adjust the range to suit your gun as well. .22 to keep the range down to help keep a more predictable trajectory and .177 to up it to help avoid a pass though. Seems really if you were to do it properly you should have both calibres and pick and choose which is the best tool for the job!
As for hollow points... I hear they are designed to spread out when they hit the quarry... This doesn't mean disintegrate does it? as last think I would want is to eat bits of lead? Although, how often do you eat the head of an animal. I guess hollowpoints just flatten out better and so do not penetrate as well?
