.22 Long ammo

[Old Dog]

I have several old rifles chambered in .22 LONG only. I can't find any .22 LONG ammo anywhere on the web, or in my local haunts. Anyone here know where I might find some?

 

[BFR50-110]

I'm pretty sure Cabelas in Noblesville had quite a bit of it when I was in there last week. You might call them and double check.

 

[billybob44]

Could you post a picture of this "Long Only" on the barrel??
I just haven't seen one of these THANKS Bill

 

[billybob44]

Google is your friend

https://ammoseek.com/ammo/22-long

I found this quick..

 

[Old Dog]

https://ammoseek.com/ammo/22-long

I found this quick..

Thanks- when I went to ammoseek earlier I apparently did not get something entered correctly as I did not find .22 Long.

 

[Old Dog]

I'm pretty sure Cabelas in Noblesville had quite a bit of it when I was in there last week. You might call them and double check.

Thanks, I can check them out sometime.

 

[billybob44]

Good deal..

Usually Shorts+Longs are higher $$ than Long Rifle ,kind of buying 16ga. or 28ga vs 12 + 20's the old "Supply+Demand" thing ..Bill

 

[Old Dog]

Could you post a picture of this "Long Only" on the barrel??
I just haven't seen one of these THANKS Bill

Winchester 1890 , barrel stamped .22 Long. I meant that it was "only" chambered for .22 Long as compared to newer rifles that were chambered for .22 S, L and LR, not that the barrel was stamped as "LONG ONLY".

 

[Old Dog]

Good deal..

Usually Shorts+Longs are higher $$ than Long Rifle ,kind of buying 16ga. or 28ga vs 12 + 20's the old "Supply+Demand" thing ..Bill

I hear Ya, they know you have to have it if you want to play. Some of the odd stuff is only produced at certain times of the year and you have to get it when you can. I wonder if that is what was going on with the .22 Long. Once .22LR production was caught up some maybe they brought in some Long production.

 

[billybob44]

i don't know for sure, but I would venture to say that a LR would chamber in these rifles??
Most likely that the strength of these rifles were only tested (Proofed) for the low pressure of the Long round.
See if a LR will chamber OK.. You probably would be able to shoot the late model LR rounds that are marked Low Velocity..
Just a thought here--NO FACT known here..Bill.

 

[bigbaloo95]

I had one of those 1890s in “long only” . Great gun but I got rid of it because of ammo availability. This was at the dawn of the internet and finding it locally was hit or miss. I traded it for a cz 455. Now I look for them at gun shows but can’t find a decent deal so far.

 

[snapping turtle]

The 22 short was first real modern cartridge introduced.

The 22 long was introduced in 1871 and the long rifle in 1887. Many rifles did not use it until 1891. And modern high velocity or what they called high speed rifles in 22 came along later when the 22 was loaded with more modern powders than black powder they needed better steel in the barrels as they were not hard ern enough. Many a fine quality firearm has been ruined by shooting high speed or high velocity ammo and the barrels need to be refined. I can only vouch for marlin 39 rifles the HS for high speed was added in 1932. Shooting anything modern over 1000 FPS in anything made before 1932 is not what I would do. Those old rifles I just don’t shoot much and make sure I stay subsonic when I do shoot them.

Most 22 rifles after 1891 were s/l/Lr interchangeably but many gallery rifles were still made 22 short only. I know of many pistols made in 22 short for international shooting at 25 yards. That went away on 2004 when they switched to air pistols.

 

[snapping turtle]

I have not seen any commercial made 22 long in at least 20 years. I bought a few bricks of it when an older hardware store closed around 1992. Since shorts and regular longs are 29-30 grain bullets and shorts can be purchased I would see no real issues with single feeding shorts in your 1890. The barrel twist will be correct for the grain of bullet just the jump to the lands and grooves will be longer. Your accuracy will not be as good as the Longs most likely but not that much worse. At least the barrel twist will be right. And yes true 22 short guns have a different twist the 22 long rifle. Your s/l/Lr 22 will not shoot shorts or longs as well as a gun with the correct twist for 22 short. At least in theory.

The long’s Bring good money on the collector anmo market. Bricks of it add a big percentage in ammo collector circles. If you find some keep the boxes and recoop some of the cost of the ammo selling the boxes.

Just look for for someone to make a run of it at times. Maybe now that the 22 hording is ending one of the companies that increased production will roll out some 22 long.

Winchester made The Winchester rimfire 22 WRF also known as the 22 Remington special. It has been made every few years and was also loaded in the 1890’s. Those new loads are expensive also.

If it was me I would shoot the shorts single loaded or try shorts in the tube and see if they feed.
Shooting rounds for fun can be done with guns made after 1932 . A few rounds to make sure a weapon works is fine but watch out and do not be like my cousin who has ruined a couple of chambers of old guns shooting high speed ammo because he knew no better. I now have an old Remington pump with a re lined barrel that was to be a heirloom in his family.

 

[Old Dog]

Oh the fun of owning some oldies! I have discovered that LR will not even feed up to the chamber in my 1890's. Action stroke is too short to feed the round clear of the mag tube. Also everything that jmarriott said is also true. The .22 Long case is the same as the LR case, but the bullet is much shorter, therefore; chamber, throat, and lead on the oldies may be too short for LR to function safely. Also, .22 Long uses 29gr bullet which is stabilized in a 1 in 20 or 24" barrel and LR is 40gr stabilized in a 1 in 16" barrel. Accuracy could be anything if pushing that 40gr pill at over 1000 fps in a 1 in 20" twist. So... I will splurge for some .22 LONG and go have some fun.

 

[snorko]

In stock at Midway: https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1...2-long-29-grain-copper-plated-lead-round-nose

 

[snapping turtle]

The CCI load listed is the modern powder load. 1215 FPS so while it will function well in the older guns it is still smokeless powder and could with repeated firings cause issues over a period of time with older steel in older guns. I believe Aquila was making a slower version at one time in limited quantities. Play it safe with them with guns of value. I did like that one or two reviews called it dirty shooting. Normally dirty powders don’t have the pop of cleaner powders.

This is should be looked at as fine to shoot in say my marlin 39a’s made after 1932 (so all 39a’s just not 39’s) but once again high speed anmo (smokeless) should be limited it amount of rounds shot in barrels and bolts made before smokeless powder was common in ammo. Quality smiths that re line barrels are harder to find these days.

 

[billybob44]

The CCI load listed is the modern powder load. 1215 FPS so while it will function well in the older guns it is still smokeless powder and could with repeated firings cause issues over a period of time with older steel in older guns. I believe Aquila was making a slower version at one time in limited quantities. Play it safe with them with guns of value. I did like that one or two reviews called it dirty shooting. Normally dirty powders don’t have the pop of cleaner powders.

This is should be looked at as fine to shoot in say my marlin 39a’s made after 1932 (so all 39a’s just not 39’s) but once again high speed anmo (smokeless) should be limited it amount of rounds shot in barrels and bolts made before smokeless powder was common in ammo. Quality smiths that re line barrels are harder to find these days.

J**nmarriott speaks these Wise thoughts--An equally Wise Man would follow them...Bill

 

[bstewrat3]

CCI still makes the CB Long and it is regularly in stock in some Walmarts. I just bought some for my Winchester 67 in October.

 

[bigbaloo95]

CCI still makes the CB Long and it is regularly in stock in some Walmarts. I just bought some for my Winchester 67 in October.

This! The cb’s are what you will want. I don’t know about most wal marts but these are the ones that usually turn up.

 

[hopper68]

CCI still makes the CB Long and it is regularly in stock in some Walmarts. I just bought some for my Winchester 67 in October.

I know it says .22LR CB but they say long on the box. CCI® .22 Rimfire Ammunition : Cabela's