As a life-long handgunner, I don’t get all worked up every time a new rifle cartridge is announced. That said, when the .17HMR was introduced it got my attention on several levels. First, since the cartridge is based on a .22 Magnum case necked down to .17 caliber, I knew it would fit into a variety of revolvers that I’ve used with great pleasure throughout my life. Second, even after down grading the 2500 fps velocity touted for rifles, handgun velocities could be expected to run around 2000 fps, thus extending the hunting range capabilities of existing rimfire .22 caliber revolvers. And finally, being a rimfire, the new .17 could be purchased at reasonable prices, meaning a varmint hunt would not require days of preparation at the reloading bench. If an opportunity arose, I could simply stuff a handgun and a couple cartons of .17 HMR ammo in a bag and head up to the Spur Outfitters in Wyoming for a few days of serious shooting.
In fact, my first exposure to a .17 HMR handgun was at the Spur when Bob Baker of Freedom Arms showed up with one of his smaller frame Model 97 single action revolvers so chambered, equipped with a 7.5 inch barrel and topped with a variable power 2×6 Bushnell handgun scope. Freedom Arms builds two different size revolvers, both with incredibly tight tolerances, both meticulously assembled, and both line-bored for superb accuracy. These are the qualities that made them the dominant revolvers in metallic silhouette shooting and make them superb for varmint shooting. The smaller frame Model 97s are six-shot revolvers when chambered in calibers less than .40, five-shot revolvers when chambered in .41, .44 and .45 calibers. Standard factory barrel lengths are 4.75, 5.5 and 7.5 inches, but you can order a custom barrel length from the factory if you so desire. Mr. Baker’s performance with that first scoped .17 revolver was truly impressive. The man doesn’t just build guns, he seriously hunts with them.
Having acquired my first .22LR caliber Ruger Single Six at the age of 16 and used it for decades, transitioning to Ruger’s new .17 HMR was a no-brainer. For me, picking up any single action Ruger is like taking a drink from the fabled fountain of youth. The only noticeable changes from my first Single Six are the 6.5 inch barrel, the transfer bar system, the adjustable sights and the loading gate release mechanism of the cylinder; there is nothing that changes the original revolver’s ergonomics. While the adjustable sights can be used as issued for pursuing varmints, my aging eyes do much better with some sort of optical assistance for precise shooting at tiny targets.
I ordered my Freedom Arms .17 HMR long before receiving this writing assignment and had decided to equip it with a Trijicon Red Dot sight. For me the red dot setup offers a couple of advantages over a scope on a handgun. When the handgun is raised to eye level, I can see down range through the red dot’s housing regardless of whether or not the gun is precisely aligned with the intended target. With a handgun scope, a slight misalignment means you have no field of view through the tube and the scope has blocked your view of the target. Additionally, if I have to shoot a revolver off hand, the pistol scope magnifies my “wobble,” and without the steadying assistance of a shoulder anchor point and cheek weld provided by a rifle, I have a tendency to jerk the trigger. Finally, I find a revolver much handier and more manageable when equipped with the smaller red dot than a larger scope. Freedom Arms provided a compact adaptor mount for the Trijicon RMO sight and I was in business.
By the time Ruger announced their Single Six in the .17 HMR caliber, I had spent several enjoyable days with the Freedom gun successfully pursuing varmints at the Spur and knew how I intended to equipped the Ruger. With a 6.5” barrel (one inch shorter than the Freedom,) it made no sense to install a larger optic. Easy choice; I ordered a current model Trijicon RMO with a small minute of angle dot. Note: the larger dots, e.g. more than 5 MOA, popular for self defense oriented handguns will completely cover and obscure a rodent sized varmint (typical game animal for a .17 caliber handgun) at longer ranges. I encountered a minor setback when I realized that neither Trijicon nor Ruger made adaptor mounts for the Single Six. A visit to Reeder Custom Guns in Flagstaff, Arizona resulted in the Trijicon mounted on a GNR sight base that Gary Reeder builds in house expressly for the small framed Ruger. Gary specializes in custom hunting handguns and builds sight bases for the larger caliber handguns as well.
Since both of these .17 HMRs are single-action six-shooters, there were no hiccups in my transitioning from one gun to the other on the test range. The Freedom has an extra inch in barrel length, a longer cylinder, a different shaped grip, and a smoother, lighter trigger pull. The Freedom also retails for nearly three times the price of the Ruger. I expect the increased velocities of the Freedom can be attributed to the longer barrel and its extremely tight barrel/cylinder gap. I would also suspect that it’s the trigger/action job and overall tighter tolerances of the Freedom that account for its enhanced accuracy. It’s what handgunners have expected for years when they buy a Freedom Arms revolver. That said, the little Ruger performed superbly, and with a professional trigger job would be expected to give excellent performance at ranges beyond 50 yards. Left with just the factory iron sights, the Ruger makes a great “walkabout” gun for small game.
Many rifle hunters think varmint shooting consists of setting up benches and spending an afternoon working targets out to 500 yards and beyond. This is understandable, particularly given the current interest and trend in specialty long range rifles and ammo. I too have spent more than a few hours sitting on the edge of a prairie dog town working my .223 caliber hardware out to maximum ranges. But this is not an optimal scenario or technique for handgunners, particularly those using rimfire handguns. As a kid with 20/20 vision, I considered .22 rifles as small game hunting tools good to 50 yards and slightly beyond depending on the shooter’s level of skill. Rimfire handguns were utilized at significantly closer ranges. Back then I could not have conceived of employing a rimfire handgun in locations such as Wyoming’s vast terrain. The .17 HMR has changed that way of thinking.
The Spur Outfitters do have large concentrations of prairie dogs and can cater to the “bench” shooters with long range rifles. The big attraction for handgunners is the opportunity to work smaller pastures that can be driven in trucks or ATVs offering hunters many shots at prairie dogs between 50 and 100 yards or even less. In addition, the Spur ranches grow much of the feed needed to get its cattle through the winter. These crops attract incredible numbers of ground squirrels up through harvest time, and it is not at all unusual to have these critters pop up less than 25 yards from your vehicle. When the grass gets long, smaller squirrels are hard to see, but early in the growing season and after harvest, these critters offer great opportunities for rimfire shooters. Don’t think small; a mature ground squirrel at the Spur can approach the size of a healthy prairie dog. When shooting from a truck (check regulations for legality) or frequently getting in and out of a vehicle, I found the two .17 HMR handguns much easier to handle safely and manipulate than any rimfire rifles.
Let me add a couple of comments on the shooting results shown in the tables below. On the only day I had access to a 100 yard range with a shooting bench the weather started out windy and got steadily worse. On that occasion, I only had the Freedom Arms and the 4 loads that I tested at 100 yards. By the time I got to the 17 grain Hornady loads, the wind was moving the targets and threatening to knock over the small chronograph. If the Hornady groups strike you as being a bit large, please keep in mind that all my shooting at the Spur had been done with the Hornady 17 grain loads, and that round had accounted for a lot of prairie dogs including a couple taken at over 100 yards. By the time I made my second visit to the local range, I had received the Ruger along with additional ammo but only had access to 50 yard targets. Fortunately it was a calm day with light cloud cover that allowed steady targets and reliable velocity measurements. Be wary of drawing any final conclusions regarding ammo performance until you have tried a variety of brands and loads in your handgun.
17 HMR Velocities and Groups
Freedom Arms @ 100 yards
Hornady 17 grain – 2153 fps – 100 yard group 4” (increasing winds)
CCI 20 grain – 1918 fps – 100 yard group 2.5”
CCI 17 grain – 2300 fps -100 yard group 2.5”
Winchester 20 grain – 1921 fps – 100 yard group – 2.75”
Freedom Arms @ 50 yards
Hornady 15.5 grain – 2147 fps – 50 yard group 1.75”
Hornady 20 grain – 1888 fps – 50 yard group 1”
CCI Green – 2136 fps – 50 yard group 1.25”
Ruger @ 50 yards
Hornady 15.5 grain – 1875 gps – 50 yard group 1.75”
Hornady 17 grain – 1984 fps – 50 yard group 2.5”
Hornady 20 grain – 1720 fps – 50 yard group 3.375”
CCI Green – 1877 fps – 50yard group 2.5”
CCI 17 grain – 2070 fps – 50 yard group 2.25”
CCI 20 grain – 1786 fps – 50 yard group 2”
Winchester 20 grain – 1723 fps – 50 yard group 2”
Obviously any comments I might make on killing power would be based on field observations using only the 17 grain Hornady ammo rather than on any laboratory “gel penetration” tests and “wound cavity” measurements, but here goes. The .17 HMR, which I believe was designed specifically for use in rifles, produces 2500 fps in a rifle length barrel. That’s roughly 500 fps more velocity than most of the ammo I fired in my two handguns. Ammo designed to provide explosive terminal ballistics at 2500 fps won’t do the same thing at other velocities. Compared to varmint shooting I’ve done in the past with the .22 LR and .22 Magnum, I think the .17 does more flesh damage than either of the 22s, but lacking the weight of the 22s, doesn’t seem to provide any additional “stopping power” on a solid hit to the body cavity, perhaps even less. The smaller diameter, lighter weight, higher velocity bullet seems to be more destructive on an extremity hit which may allow you more time for a follow up shot. What the .17 does give you is flatter trajectories facilitating longer range hits. And hits translate to increased success; misses don’t.
I still take a couple of centerfire rifles with me on my visits to the Spur, but over 90% of my varmint shooting is done with handguns, and most of that is with rimfire ammunition. I haven’t sold my .22 LR or .22 Magnum handguns, and when my Wyoming visits coincide with high visibility of ground squirrels, I’ll go to work with an assorted mix of fun .22 caliber pistols. But when the ranges grow longer, I reach for one of my two Super Rimfire Sixguns to dispense justice in the sage. The .17 HMR is definitely the handgun caliber king of the prairie!