New Federal Punch .22LR Defensive Ammo.

[Grayfox54]

The debate over .22 for self defense? has gone on just about as long as every other caliber war and with similar results. Now Federal has taken it seriously with a new line of Punch Self Defense .22LR ammo. It features a 29 gr, nickle plated FN bullet that comes out of a 2" barrel at around 1070 fps. Out of rifle length barrels is said to reach 1600+ fps. The idea being penetration over expansion. 

I got this article from Guns America Digest in my e-mail today. Federal Punch .22 ammo

I also found this informative video from 22 Plinkster: Federal Punch: 22 Plinkster

While the debate may never be truly settled, I like the idea of an ammo company taking the .22LR for self defense seriously and developing ammo for this purpose.  For some people its the only viable choice. 

And yes, I'm well aware that all ammo is hard to get these days. But Federal is offering some of this new ammo for sale in their website. It's just sold out at the moment. 

 

Edited April 23, 2021 by Grayfox54

[Raoul]

It's better than nothing. But just.

[Ronald_55]

I remember a project online where they necked down a 50 BMG case to fit a .22 bullet. I might consider that for defense. 

Physics are physics though and a 29gr bullet can only do so much. I would take it if it is all I could get, but there are too many other options. 

[Jamie Jackson]

Thanks for the link and info @Grayfox54.

I'm actually pleased to see companies looking into .22 LR defensive ammo development. While it certainly isn't the ideal self defense round by any stretch, it is most definitely a used in such a role frequently. By Good Guys/Gals and bad.

Greg Ellifritz and Claude Werner have written about actual .22 use several times. Obviously they agree to carry and use the most effective (i.e.largest) caliber you can. But the majority of civilian shooting are a "Get off me" "Break contact" type of situation.

I will carry a .22 frequently, albeit as a second handgun. My primary being a 9mm or a .38 spl.

The .22 is my "Off hand" gun. It's an LCR that with over 2000 rounds fired through it this past year has proven incredibly reliable. I have had one, possibly two, rounds fail to fire on the first strike... and those were with old (circa 2012) Thunderbolts very recently... go figure LOL But a second pull of the trigger got me to the next round. Nice that revolvers can do that.

I have a few hundred rounds of Federal Spitfire solids and I keep the little LCR loaded with those. I'll shoot the cylinder full out when I go to the range 3-4 times per month.

I've seen folks shot with pretty much everything that fits in a handgun. Most folks survive handgun shooting fwiw...all handguns are pretty anemic. Placement counts!

I am in no way suggesting a person should handicap themselves by carrying a less effective round, but I do think the .22 has it's place in the stable.

I'm carrying a Glock 19 loaded with 147 gr HST as I type this... but that little .22 is in my pocket.

 

Options are a good thing.

 

 

https://www.activeresponsetraining.net/using-the-22-for-self-defense

https://www.growingupguns.com/2014/09/13/the-special-application-22lr-for-home-defense-part-1-weigh-the-evidence-and-make-a-decision/

ETA part 2:

https://www.growingupguns.com/2014/09/16/the-special-application-22lr-for-home-defense-part-2-the-setup/

 

 

Edited April 24, 2021 by Jamie Jackson
added link

[ReeferMac]

12 hours ago, Raoul said:

It's better than nothing. But just.

I agree... and for some folks I think thats important: my wife has trouble shooting 9mm or .38s out of smaller guns b/c her wrists are in bad shape from work. She never carries anymore, has a small knife in her purse. At the grocery store, or in a parkinglot, nobody is going to measure your barrel diameter when you whip that thing out and point it at them. And while tiny, I'd still rather not get peppered with something moving 1000 fps. And a little .22, you could do a mag dump in seconds.... thats a deterrent. 

I had looked at the Glock .22s when they came out for her, but couldn't bring myself to pay that for a toy (not to say tupperware guns are bad, just that one glock is terrible). Now with ammo designed for the task, I might look at some other pistols in that caliber for her to use.... and I'm sure I'll find a use for her Ruger, somehow.

Thanks for sharing @Jamie Jackson, I know your experience in the medical realm is hands on. Often wondered how those news stories on the gang bangers always say "non-life threatening injuries". 

[10-Ring]

4 hours ago, ReeferMac said:

I agree... and for some folks I think thats important: my wife has trouble shooting 9mm or .38s out of smaller guns b/c her wrists are in bad shape from work. She never carries anymore, has a small knife in her purse. At the grocery store, or in a parkinglot, nobody is going to measure your barrel diameter when you whip that thing out and point it at them. And while tiny, I'd still rather not get peppered with something moving 1000 fps. And a little .22, you could do a mag dump in seconds.... thats a deterrent. 

I had looked at the Glock .22s when they came out for her, but couldn't bring myself to pay that for a toy (not to say tupperware guns are bad, just that one glock is terrible). Now with ammo designed for the task, I might look at some other pistols in that caliber for her to use.... and I'm sure I'll find a use for her Ruger, somehow.

Thanks for sharing @Jamie Jackson, I know your experience in the medical realm is hands on. Often wondered how those news stories on the gang bangers always say "non-life threatening injuries". 

Great example of why it wouldn't be my first choice, but I welcome it as an option. 

[gregintenn]

I always thought the 22lr would be superior to the 25 acp everybody used to carry in their pocket.

[leroy]

10 minutes ago, gregintenn said:

I always thought the 22lr would be superior to the 25 acp everybody used to carry in their pocket.

Amen...

The great rhing about a 22 is that it will most always go off.  I like the itty bitty 22 thing for a second pistola for us older curmudgeons...

leroy...

[Patton]

It’s nice to have options.  I do like the nickel case. It’s only 10% faster than the 40 grain CCI Velocitor though. 

[Quavodus]

I remember seeing a video where a guy was shooting various .22lr ammo in a little 2" gun. He was shooting in ballistic gelatin at about 7 feet. None of it expanded at all. Good penetration on some though. He even tried CCI Stingers too. It's definitley better than nothing though. Seems better than a .25 ACP too.

[Raoul]

So think about this. Shoot a guy 8 or 10 times in the face and upper chest with a .22 I'm pretty sure you're gonna slow him down...

[Garufa]

.25 ACP might not be any more than .22 lr but it’s centerfire.  Rimfire is notoriously unreliable, centerfire not so much.

A good .22 pistol/ammo combination can be devastating with the proper ammo.  That caliber has quite a history, statistics prove it.  Imagine 400 grs (or 290 grs for this round) of projectiles hitting a target in 10 different places in the same amount of time it takes to fire a couple of any other caliber.

Edited April 25, 2021 by Garufa

[Raoul]

Agreed. Reliable .22 ammo is hard to find. But if you're gonna use it as a carry weapon, by all means invest in something like Eley ammo.

[Grayfox54]

Those of you who are familiar with my posts know I sorta have a thing for "mouse guns".  I own quite a few of them and have posted about them in the past. I've also always preferred the .25 acp over the .22 LR for the mentioned reliability issues of centerfire over rimfire.  However, regardless of which caliber, mouse guns do and always will have a place.

I'm glad to see Federal recognizing that some people do indeed depend on the lowly .22LR for self defense and addressing the issue. If you watched .22 Plinkster's video, the new nickle plated 29gr flat point bullet not only gave good penetration, but actually did open up a small bit of a temporary wound cavity where other .22s don't. That in itself is a notable improvement. 

As mentioned before, the .22 ain't much, but when you send a flurry of 'em in the BG's direction in a matter of seconds, they will re-evaluate their choices. 

I only own one .22LR mouse gun. A Walther TPH. If possible I will try some of this new Punch ammo in it. On a mouse gun day will I carry it instead of my favorite .25acp? Probably not. But I like having a new option.  

 

[billmeek]

On mouse guns... I have a couple of the NAA revolvers that I use as backups or around the house.  Both of them were purchased with 22LR and 22 Mag cylinders.  In the thousands of rounds I've fired though them, I've only had a couple of 22LR not go "bang" and not a single 22 Mag fail to fire.  Admittedly, I've fired significantly more 22LR than 22 Mag because of cost.

By the way, Speer Gold Dot - Short Barrel 22 Mag ammo out of a 1-inch barrel NAA Pug revolver is LOUD.

Some numbers on a NAA Pug from a LabRadar with Speer Gold Dot - Short barrel 22 WMR:

Stats - Average        924.67  fps
Stats - Highest        939.95  fps
Stats - Lowest         915.51  fps
Stats - Ext. Spread     24.44  fps
Stats - Std. Dev         9.48  fps

The kinetic energy at the muzzle for the Pug averaged 75.4 ft-lbf. 

But if I'm going to carry a mouse gun as a primary for some reason (very rare), I always pick the Keltec P-32.  Fully loaded it only weighs 10.7 ounces compared to the Pugs 9.7 ounces and that's with 3 additional rounds weighing about .28 ounces each.  If you're going to carry a P-32, I highly suggest using Fiocchi FMJ ammo for reliability.

But to get back to the point I intended to make, using quality rimfire ammo, failure to fire is very rare.  I suspect that a large portion of the failure to fire with 22LR is firearm related (i.e. light strike) rather than ammo.

[chances R]

Not my 1st choice, but I have no comfort problems with my S&W compact in .22.  In fact I highly recommend it to new shooters until they  make the choice to go bigger.

[Quavodus]

I had a uncle that didn't go anywhere without his H&R 9 shot .22 revolver.