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.22 Stopping Power, Phase 2

RCrosby
Had to add this, as several responses on the original post made reference to brain shots. Placement is critical, as many pointed out, but with the .22, a brain shot isn't necessarily fatal, though I wouldn't want to stake my life on it.
Back in the '60's (sorry, that's as close as my recollection will take me) the director of the local public health laboratory in Juneau, Alaska was traveling in San Francisco (I believe), was mugged and took multiple shots to the skull. Not bouncing off, these penetrated the skull and were left in the brain as inoperable. After a period of convalesance he was back on the job. One lucky dude[:D]

mobuck,
Congratulations to your son, and to you, on his graduation!
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Comments

10 comments

Date Votes
  • pip5255
    that's what they call being thick headed.
    my feelings would be more like 6 to the chest in random placement should get the job done if you can hit the vitals.
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  • Herschel
    I never heard of any self defense instructor advocating "head shots". The agency I worked for had a portion of the qualification course that was two shots to the body and one to the head. Aiming for center mass is the way to go. My .02.
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  • EVILDR235
    Keep in mind, we now have 22 ammo alot more powerful than 40 years ago.CCI Stinger makes some pretty nasty wounds.Quick shok also is nasty.It breaks into 3 pieces upon impact.No it's not a 357, but it's better than getting your a$$ kicked or worse.

    EvilDr235
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  • shooter10
    When I was 7, my dad armed me with a Winchester 62A and a box of long rifle ammo. The deer in the area we hunted were small whitetail. At about thiry yards the .22 dropped a 4 point buck that I walked up on. The bullet hit the left shoulder and the deer never took a step. Now it is illegal to use rim fire rifle today, but this does demonstrate the killing power of the .22 long rifle. I have also heard stories of people I know dropping 250 lb hogs with a .22. And last, did you see the guy on television about a year ago that accidently shot himself in the face with a 7mm rifle and lived. He took the full blast from chin to took of skull as I recall. Took many surguries and a lot of prayer to repair. He and his parents manage a huge ranch and he still hunts today.
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  • montanajoe
    • Community moderator
    quote:Originally posted by EVILDR235
    Keep in mind, we now have 22 ammo alot more powerful than 40 years ago.CCI Stinger makes some pretty nasty wounds.Quick shok also is nasty.It breaks into 3 pieces upon impact.No it's not a 357, but it's better than getting your a$$ kicked or worse.

    EvilDr235


    The fragment thing can be good, BUT, can also be bad. Here in Montana we have long,cold winters. Thats means THICK heavy coats. Ya gotta penetrate the coat.[;)]
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  • mcaso
    And some returning POWs from WW II came home with nails driven in their foreheads. Pellets from an old pellet gun in just the right place will do the job. And a good friend of mine can get the job done with his little finger. So lets get real, or be foolish and bring a .22.
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  • wpage
    The Mob hit men prefferd the .22 for its quietness. Placement is key...
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  • Mobuck
    I'll get specific here. Regardless of caliber a brain hit does not immediately kill. I've seen guys hit by head shots live for an interminable amount of time. My son took a hit from a 44 spec. through the anterior part of his brain which left him blind but alive. That was 10 years ago and he's graduating from college this year. There's a huge difference between killing and immediately disabling/stopping. I've been hit twice in the forehead by 25 ACP bullets which slid off be bone neither of which caused loss of control or consciousness. Had I been armed, I could have returned fire immediately. Only after the blood started pouring into my eyes would I have been ineffective. In self defense situations, killing may not be as effective as simply causing the other guy to stop doing what you don't want him to do.
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  • allen griggs
    I worked as a Paramedic for 14 years, and I worked hundreds of gunshot wounds.
    As an avid hunter and gun collector, I was fascinated to see the effects of the different rounds on the human body.

    I was astonished at how lethal the little .22 is.
    I saw more people killed with the .22 than any other round.
    Now, as to stopping power, that is hard to say because I never saw anybody get shot.

    But, 6 minutes after the shooting when I arrived on the scene, I saw patients who were dead right there from a single .22 shot to the chest. Yeah, we pulled out our heart monitor, we started IVs and applied the MAST trousers, but all the king's horses and all the king's men, couldn't put him back together again.

    I worked calls where the patient had taken two shots from the .22, and was up and talking to us when we arrived on the scene.
    By the time we got to the hospital 15 minutes later, the guy was unconscious, and he never made it to surgery, died in the ER.

    Surgeons hated the .22 because it didn't exit. The little slug would go into the chest cavity, bounce off a rib and ricochet, head down to the intestines. Every time the slug zig zags through the body, there is the chance that it will hit the heart, or the big artery, or cut through the liver or lungs.

    I saw plenty of people die from a single torso shot from the .22
    I saw very few survive two torso shots. A belly shot is very dangerous, because the liver and spleen will bleed quite a bit.
    Also, the big artery runs through the abdomen, on the way to the legs, if the bullet goes through that artery, call the coroner.

    There was a famous case a few years ago, a South Carolina state trooper pulled over this big guy, and a gunfight ensued.
    The bad guy fired a single shot from a NAA .22 mini, it snuck through the trooper's armpit, missed the vest, and entered the chest.
    The trooper ran around to the front of his car and collapsed, dead.

    That case didn't surprise me a bit, the little .22 is a vicious mankiller.


    http://www.firearmstactical.com/briefs3.htm
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  • SP45
    As stated, the .22 rf is an excellent killing round but a poor stopper. When I teach I teach real life not maybes and what ifs. Except for extreme situations people do not want to be shot and will do whatever they can to avoid being shot. Anyone who carries a gun concealed in public understands the difficulty of concealment. The majority of CCW holders do not carry all the time and some never do. That being the case a small .22 on your person is better than a gun in the glove compartment or under the seat. Confidence and ability are qualities that you exude and most bad guys will avoid you weather they know you have a gun or not. Victims are chosen by bad guys because they present themselves as victims. Very few people will continue to come forward when being struck with small projectiles accurately at a high rate of speed. Remember nonpolice are protecting themselves and removing themselves from danger whearas police are sometimes required to go forward into danger and that creates different issues. Most criminals take the path of least resistance.
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