ENJOYING THE OUTDOORS: FRENCHMAN'S PARLOR ROUND ENHANCED RECREATIONAL SHOOTING

In the world of shooting, if there is a common thread among hunters, target punchers and casual plinkers, it stems from the tinkering of Louis Flobert.

A French gunsmith, Flobert in 1845 fell upon the idea of inserting a round lead ball into a rimmed percussion cap to create a miniature cartridge for indoor "parlor" target shooting, a common recreation of the time. The result was the early BB cap, the forerunner of all .22 rimfire cartridges.

Flobert's original primer-powered ammunition was improved upon in 1857 when Smith & Wesson used the same sort of rimfire case, added a tiny blackpowder charge and mated it with a conical bullet, creating the .22 short.

From that point, rimfire cartridges took off in development, with varying calibers numbering in the dozens by the early 1900s. With centerfire, primer-in-the-middle cartridges likewise developing at the same time, however, virtually all the rimfires gradually fell into obsolescence -- except one, the .22.

The .22 in all its assorted forms is the most-fired of any ammunition. It's used widely in small game hunting and formal target competition.

Much more often, because it is by far the least costly of any cartridge ammunition, it's the choice of countless plinkers for poking holes in tin cans and other impromptu targets. One can squeeze off two or three dozen rounds of .22 rimfire ammunition for the cost of a single center-fire rifle cartridge. Worldwide, millions upon millions of .22s are fired annually.

The most successful -- because it is the most useful -- is the .22 long rifle cartridge. In standard velocity form, it launches a 40-grain lead bullet at some 1,140 to 1,150 feet per second. The high velocity version hustles up to 1,255 fps, or around 1,280 with a lighter 36- to 38-grain hollowpoint bullet.

The slower standard velocity long rifle cartridge is the universal choice for target shooters because it is the most accurate. The high velocity version is plenty accurate for game-shooting purposes, and this slightly more powerful option is the common pick of hunters.

The .22 short cartridge with shorter case and stubbier 29-grain bullet, is more useful as a gallery round, although it gets considerable use by plinkers. Standard velocity is 1,055 to about 1,095 fps, while high velocity versions go about 1,125 fps.

The .22 long -- an in-betweener with a long rifle length case matched with a .22 short-sized 29-grain bullet -- is less popular because it lacks the accuracy of its longer or shorter kin. It fires the light bullet at about 1,240 fps.

The "hyper velocity" .22s -- such as Remington's Yellow Jacket -- feature a slightly long rifle case and a lighter hollowpoint bullet for increased speed and greater bullet expansion. They're best for light varmint duties, being overly destructive on small game.

The big daddy of the .22 rimfire clan is the .22 Winchester Magnum Rimfire. Using a substantially longer case, thus more powder capacity, it fires a 40-grain jacketed bullet at about 1,910 fps. Much stouter, the .22 magnum hits harder at 100 yards (155 foot-pounds of energy) than a high velocity .22 long rifle slug does at the muzzle (140 foot-pounds).

It's best as a light round for varmints or medium game -- up to coyote size. The hollowpoint bullet versions are rough on small game meet, but in a pinch, full-jacketed bullets will work on small game.

The .22 magnum shouldn't really be lumped with other .22 rimfires. While the rest of the .22s shoot bullets that are .223 of an inch in diameter, the magnum's bullets are a fuzz larger, .224 of an inch. The ammunition isn't interchangeable.

The most-fired of all combinations is the high velocity .22 long rifle. Most .22s -- both rifles and handguns -- are chambered for .22 long rifle cartridges.

For practical purposes, the .22 long rifle is about a 75-yard cartridge because of its velocity and related trajectory limitations. With a scoped-sighted rifle zeroed at 25 yards, a high velocity 40-grain bullet will rise slightly above line of sight beyond that, drop back to dead-on a little beyond 50 yards, then be about 1 1/2 inch low at 75 yards. Out at 100 yards, however, it will have fallen to more than 5 inches low.

Within the limit of 75 or so yards, the cartridge is usually effective enough for dead-on hold for appropriate small game, and it's properly powered for squirrel- and rabbit-sized targets. Plenty of poachers have used the .22 long rifle to pot deer, and records indicate that one of the largest grizzly bears ever killed in North America was felled by a native Canadian with a single shot .22.

Lest one get delusional, however, common sense relegates the .22 to only small game animals.

Accuracy in most rifles is more than adequate within performance range. Once a shooter finds out what particular type of ammunition his gun "likes" best (different types and brands tend to give different results in each specific gun), it's not too much to expect impact groups of smaller than an inch at 50 yards.

That translates to half-inch groups at 25 yards. A really fine rifle matched with quality ammunition and fired with precision really should be a tack driver within reasonable range.

A superior short- to medium-range choice for hunting purposes is one of the subsonic (slower than the speed of sound) .22 long rifle cartridges such as those made by Remington or RWS. These put a soft, hollowpoint bullet in a long rifle case loaded to slower, target ammunition velocities.

There is notably less crack to be heard when a subsonic round is fired, so game in the neighborhood is less likely spooked. Too, the soft hollowpoint slug opens up nicely on impact even at the slower speed and hits squirrels like a sledgehammer blow.

A negative of the .22 rimfire round is that it is prone to travel far beyond its intended target and can be prone to ricochet if misdirected. If it is shot up in the air, it can come to earth a far piece away, and it still has the capacity to do damage.

Unlike many faster centerfire rifle bullets, which can expand more rapidly and essentially self-destruct on contact, a .22 rimfire slug can glance off a hard surface and carry downrange intact, offering potential damage.

Hence, the consequences of firing any .22 shouldn't be underplayed. The round should never be used without regard to where the bullets will end up. A safe backstop and choice of shooting locations are prime considerations.

While warnings of .22 ammunition packages suggest the potential range is one mile, reality is a little short of that -- but not much. A .22 long range bullet is reputed to have a maximum carrying distance of more than 4,500 feet if fired into the air.

There aren't many locations where a recklessly directed bullet couldn't endanger someone within 4,500 feet, thus careful usage is mandatory. Anyone who sprays .22 bullets around carelessly with the notion that it's no big deal because "it's only a .22" is a hazard to society who ought to be disarmed.

Used properly, however, .22s are of extreme importance to the shooting community. They're small enough to be inexpensive, yet powerful and accurate enough to be highly practical.

For a shooter, it's the best of both worlds from Mr. Flobert.

~Steve Vantreese is outdoors editor of The Paducah Sun.