A Semiauto 17 HMR? Thomas C. Tabor
tician, developed the 17 HMR cartridge in 2002 for it to become the talk of shoot- ers worldwide. For many gun enthusi- asts it even resulted in changing the way they thought about rimfi re cartridges and did something that few thought was even possible – steal popularity away from the 22 L.R. Even though the cost of a box of 17 HMR ammo is a bit pricey when compared to a standard box of 22 L.R. shells, many shooters seemed willing to lay down those extra dollars in order to take advantage of the HMR’s higher velocities and harder hitting potential. Seemingly overnight firearms manufacturers kicked their production into high gear in an effort to capitalize on the growing craze of the 17 HMR. In some cases, particularly that of some bolt-action designs, manufacturers found that they could utilize some of their existing models by simply substi- tuting a 17 HMR barrel for that of a 22 WMR barrel. But, that certainly wasn’t the case when it came to semiautomatic designs and unfortunately for some manufacturers they learned that a bit late in the process. Even though the typical 17 rimfi re
I
bullet weighs only about half that of the standard 22 L.R. bullet and logically that change could account for a reduc- tion of chamber pressures, there are other factors that must be taken into account. For example, the considerably higher velocities produced by the HMR over that of even the 22 magnum could result in elevating the pressure levels; the fact that the 17 HMR is loaded with a jacketed bullet as opposed to a solid lead bullet also could affect pressures; and moving away from the straight- wall case design of the 22 rimfi res to the bottleneck design of the HMR clearly would have the potential to do the same. Understandably, during the ignition process the gases must exit the cartridge case. When this occurs in a bottleneck shaped case those gases are forced to move through the vortex constriction formed by the shoulder, which some- times can result in escalating chamber
t didn’t take long after Dave Emary, Hornady’s senior ballis-
The test Volquartsen Custom 17 HMR rifl e was impressive in overall performance. From its laminated stock to its snake-fl uted barrel it is an eye-catching work of gunsmithing art.
While appearing somewhat similar in outward appearance to the triggers used on the Ruger 10/22, the lack of similarities with the Volquartsen triggers becomes blatantly obvious upon the fi rst squeeze.
In order to provide a comprehensive and thorough look at the accuracy potential of the Volquartsen Custom rifl e, three brands of 17 HMR ammo were tested: Federal V-Shok, Remington Premier, and Hornady.
www.varminthunter.org Page 17
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