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Difference in .22 & .22mag barrel

clays
I have a colt Frontier Scout .22lr pistol that I just recently obtained a .22mag cylinder for. The barrel on my gun is stamped .22lr, but I have also seen this same gun stamped .22mag. My question is, what is the diffence between the barrels and can I safely shoot the magnum cylinder which fits my gun perfectly.
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Comments

12 comments

Date Votes
  • sheepdip
    I didn't know that. Thanks, I learn more stuff from you guys.

    dipit,dipit,dipit!
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  • clays
    Thanks for that information, I was unaware of a difference in bullet diameter.

    Bob
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  • Xracer
    .22 Long Rifle has a nominal diameter of .223. .22 Magnum has a nominal diameter of .224.

    Standard .22 Rimfire thru a .22 Magnum barrel is fine. .22 Magnum thru a .22 RF barrel is not a good idea.
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  • omalon
    I had this confirmed by Taurus Tech rep who stated a Model 941.22mag can fire .22LR without any problems, but the Model 94 .22LR can't fire .22 mags. The only difference in the guns is the cylinders, the 941 is 8rd and the 94 id 9rd. My next guestion is why don't Ruger & Heritage just offer the Mag cylinders in their models rather than having 2 cylinders? The tech guy from Taurus they offer 2 models because of the 9 & 8 shot difference.
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  • Tailgunner1954
    I always find this an interesting topic, for a couple of reasons.
    Has anyone here PULLED the bullets from a few 22MAG rounds, and measured their diameter? All my demintial data is from measuring the bullet diameter ahead of the case mouth (assembled ammo).
    My 22LR's run from .223 to .224 for the bullet diameter, and my 22Mag sample (CCI JHP) is .222.
    However, the case dimentions are another story, as the LR cases are from .224/225 in diameter while the Mag is .239 (as best I can read this moniter).
    IOW I doubt that any manfacture would "advise" that it would be safe to fire such an under diameter case in there chamber. The best that you could hope for would be a swolen case, the worst would be a split case and some potental gas cutting of the chamber.
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  • lts
    capacity of the cylinders differs due to chamber dimensions. time to hold a 22 mag and a 22lr in your hand omalon.
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  • omalon
    I realize the cylinders are different, but Tailgunner1954 raises an interesting guestion. Is it safe to use a mag cylinder to fire 22LR as Taurus suggests and also is the accuracy the same?
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  • nmyers
    Interesting the difference between manufacturers.

    This from Ruger:

    "Response:
    The Single Six can safety fire LR and Magnum cartridges if the two different cylinders made for that cartridge are used. Serial numbers below 150000 cannot have a magnum cylinder fitted.

    If you need further information, please visit our website at www.ruger.com "

    Neal

    EDIT: The real issue here concerns the BORE size. I have yet to read where any manufacturer has said, "Our .22 mag bore is larger than our .22 LR bore because it is unsafe to fire a .22 mag through a .22 LR BORE." I don't think I can measure the difference with a micrometer if the difference is only .001".
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  • Hawk Carse
    The Taurus Tech Rep was full of beans, as they used to say.
    A long rifle will tend to bulge and split in the larger i.d. magnum chamber. A friend here found himself with a Colt .22 magnum in trade and found that out. He made adapters by cutting off the heads of fired magnums and using them as bushings to load long rifles in.
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  • splitcane
    I picked up a couple of ruger single sixes in a trade a few months back. One fired great and the other would split cases. Not every shot but about half the time. The cylinders are not marked so I got a 22 mag cartridge and found it would chamber in one Ruger but not the other. I thought that they were both 22lr but was wrong. In my opinion, 22lr should not be fired in 22mag cylinders, or at least not in the Rugers.
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  • RCrosby
    I got burned on a similar thread not too long ago, so won't rise to the bait a second time. Only offer that a quick search will turn up some interesting conversation on this same issue.
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  • tsr1965
    quote:Originally posted by omalon
    I had this confirmed by Taurus Tech rep who stated a Model 941.22mag can fire .22LR without any problems, but the Model 94 .22LR can't fire .22 mags. The only difference in the guns is the cylinders, the 941 is 8rd and the 94 id 9rd. My next guestion is why don't Ruger & Heritage just offer the Mag cylinders in their models rather than having 2 cylinders? The tech guy from Taurus they offer 2 models because of the 9 & 8 shot difference.


    Your tech guy from Taurus is feeding you a line a BS...all the more reason to stay away from that brand name.

    Not only is there a difference in the number of chambers in each respective cylinder, there is a difference in chamber dimensions of the 22LR, and 22WMR. If you shoot a 22LR in a 22WMR chamber, most of the time the the 22LR case will rupture or split. That is not a bad thing if you like the taste of burn gunpowder, and hot gas and metal.

    Also, as noted above, there is a difference in bore dimensions. It is not safe to put the larger bullet thru the smaller bore. Putting the larger and sometimes copper jacketed bullet thru the smaller bore that is made for ammunition that had lead or copper PLATED lead bullets, will elevate your pressures. I'm not saying it will burst every time you do this, but the question is of more, than when is it going to happen.

    Hopefully by now the tech guy from Taurus you talked has found a new job flipping burgers at Burger King.

    Best
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