IMO the hornet is a great rifle. I have one, and have owned several. I was never much on the .223 Remington, but boy was I wrong. I will share with you what I have learned. I shoot 50 grain V-Max in my .223 Remington at 3350 fps.

I suggest you buy a .223 Reminton if you handload. You can load a 40 grain V-max at 2800-3000 fps with 11-13 grains of Blue Dot(no filler needed). I also suggest you get a 26 or even a 28 inch barrel. The length of barrel is not a concern for velocity, the longer barrel will make less noise-or crack. In a heavy barrel configuration the 40 grain pill will hit within an inch of the 50 grain pill out to 150 yards.

Now you have two rifles in one by carrying different ammo. Mark your ammo any way you want to, just be consistent. Your 50 grain pill is effective to 400 yards with no problem. Your 40 grain pill is effective to 175 yards with no problem. I do this all the time in the ground hog field's. Low report on your close shots with the ability to reach out and touch them. The only thing better is a suppressor, I just sent my $200 in for my permit to buy one of them.

The .22 Hornet has the reputation of being tempermental to reload.I had a beautiful sako 72 that would shoot 1/2 MOA one day and all over the paper the next time out.It was .223 dia. bore and I matched the bullets.W 296,H-110 ,IMR 4227.H-4227 or LIL Gun work in this cartridge.Some won't shoot unless you use pistol primers and others need SR Mag primers.Too big a P in the A.I shot one coyote at 125 yards with a 40gr load and he bit himself and flipped over dead.Liked the cartridge hated the inconsistancies and sold the gun.It was properly glass bedded and free floated as well..............Harold

I'm not a reloader. If i went with the best factory loads what could i expect for range of shots on coyotes. I've got a good Nikkon scope.

I have been using the Rem. 45 gr Hollow points with good success on deer and hogs, and they shoot great out of my NEF. I would start there.
I put one straight through a 4x4 at 10 yds, it went through a phone book at 10 yds also, so you wont have any penetration issues with the hollow point and they kill nicely. I would keep my shots to 200 yds for yotes, mainly because of the drop, at 200 I believe its like 7 inches with a 100 yd sight in.

Over the years i have ownedmany .22 Hornets.One of the best ones is a BSA Martini with a 26 inchbarrel.That gun will make dime sized groups at 100 yards with just about any 45 grain bullet. My Encore .22 Hornet is a work in progress-load development is not complete. The .22 barrel of my Savage O/U will make one inch groups on a good day.

i use 45 grain bullets almost exclusively. Also use IMR 4227 and Alliant 2400 powders. Like zrexpilot, i have killed hogs with my .22 Hornets. Just put the bullet between the ear and the eye or in the ear.

During WW2 the Airforce issued a folding stocked BA .22 Hornet survival rifle for the European theatre.Rational to kill available wild game ie:boar,roe deer and if needed silence a Hun.I think they were made by Armalite?Here in Northern Canada the Inuit use Hornets and .222's to wack walrus ,seals ,caribou and even heaven forbid polar bears!Usually headshot swimming....................Harold[ just wish I could find a stable hornet]

pioneer2, I have two hornets and the both are great out to 150yds. One is a Win. Mod. 43 and the other is on a Martini Cadet reciever.

Current factory available guns ,can't afford a custom job right now.A utility gun like an H+R SS or New England Firearms would work but both have sloppy triggers.A new BRNO/CZ is another option.Liked the idea of 700 shots per lb of powder at 10gr loads.Had an ignorant 23D Savage in Hornet .223 bore as well............Harold

My cousin has the Ruger 77 in Hornet that he purchased about a year an half ago, and after a Timney trigger, its shooting some nice tiny groups.