Can I use .22lr bullet in my airgun?

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Shinyknight

Shinyknight

Member
Feb 26, 2019
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Minnesota
Lots of people switching over to slug. But they cost like $15 for only 100 rounds. I saw some .22lr bullets pack of 50 for only $1.93. that's 100 rounds for less than $4. Wow. I don't own a 22lr cause I live in the city and can't shoot firearm. And shooting range charges $25 to go shoot there. My question is, can I buy some 22lr and pull the bullet out and use them in my 22 airgun? They are basically just a slug in a bullet case right? Or are they different size?
 
Even if the bullet sizes were the same, there is one big thing to consider WAY before you even consider shooting a .22 rimfire slug from an air rifle.

First, SAFETY. Trying to extract a .22 slug from a primed and filled rimfire case is no joke. Without dedicated equipment, attempting to disassemble could trigger the primer in the rim and BOOM, bad things happen quickly. Not worth risking your health or worse over saving $5.

Edit: You could also buy a bullet mold and cast your own slugs.

PT
 
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I think that sounds like a bad idea all the way around, aside from the inherent danger in breaking bullets, I would think you would damage the integrity of the slug while using whatever it is you intend to use to pull them out of the casing. I strongly recommend against it, but if you do decide to do it, please stream it to youtube and send me the link. If you are hell bent on doing it anyway, it would depend on what air gun you have. I think an Impact with a slug barrel, my Huben would probably take them providing they are 11mm or less in length.
 
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Idk why everyone so scared of the .22 lr going off. Lmao. It will not go off unless you are an idiot and use your hammer to slam the back aka rim on the bullet. Hence the name rim fire. I take them off all the time but I have never tried to shoot them from an air rifle. The only thing I see is if the .22lr is larger than bore it can get stuck. That is the worst case. Or you can sand off tiny bit of the .22lr to make it fit. No danger. Idk why someone so scared of it. I would tried to push with a rod first to see if it fit before shoot it through your gun.

Here's an easy way to take off the bullet from the case. You don't need special tool. Just a piler and wood board. Idk why someone said you need special tools unless a piler everyone owns is a special tool for gun Smith lol.

Click to expand...

It's called "Internet advice." It's worth as much as someone paid for it. Without knowing the skill-set of the person asking, err on the side of caution isn't really a joke. Saying "no danger" and "it will never go off" is no guarantee to the contrary, depending on the methods used and who is doing it. I personally would be comfortable doing it, but I also did gunsmithing on firearms for two decades. I wouldn't recommend to just anyone on a whim. I also wouldn't do it in this regard due to sizing issues as others have pointed out.

And personally, I really don't want to stick anything in my bore that just got tag-teamed by a pair of pliers. I'll spend the extra $5 and shoot ammo that is manufactured to meet the sizing needs of my bore.

Different strokes for different folks I guess.

PT
 
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1st you can buy 22 bullets. They do reload 22's, believe it or not. I think the first thing to do would be to put tbe 22 slug in the breach and GENTLY see if you can push it all the way thru , easily. If so you can, play from there.

OMG the pellet companies sure wouldn't want to hear you were getting ANY kind of accuracy from this! 🤔
 
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It has been done, Daystate did it over 10 years ago and some of the models came with .22RF calibre barrels instead of .22 airgun, you are correct in your reasoning on cost.

I enquired again at ELEY recently as I wanted to do the same thing and buy just the bullet head (as advised never try to pull a live .22RF round).

Unfortunately they wont sell less than a few hundred thousand heads on there own.

Good news is though that with JSB & H&N slugs arriving in the next few months the cost will come way down!
 
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Assuming you could pull bullets without damaging them (doubtful), and could chamber them without tearing the breech seal, you're going to create a lot more pressure than the barrel and action were designed around. Further assuming you could shoot it without damage to you or equipment, the rifling design and twist rate are wrong. All in all, I recommend sipping a good bourbon and let someone else handle this project. 
 
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