Here we take a quick look at the tiny yet mighty .22 Creedmoor cartridge.
Likely, the development of the 22 Creedmoor began as far back as 2007, when the 6.5 Creedmoor was introduced, and shooters simultaneously had the notion to neck-down the 6.5 Creedmoor case to accept .224-diameter bullets.
Horizon Firearms of College Station, Texas, claims to have been the first rifle commercial maker to chamber the 22 Creedmoor in early 2014. The company has promoted the wildcat cartridge ever since.
Indeed, the development of the 22 Creedmoor sped up in early 2017, when Hornady introduced 6mm Creedmoor factory ammo, making the step down from .243- to .224-diameter bullets in those cases much more manageable. Getting to 22 Creedmoor from 6 Creedmoor is a straightforward pass through a full-length die.
Also, Alpha Munitions and Peterson Cartridge produce factory 22 Creedmoor brass, and Copper Creek Cartridge Co. and Spark Munitions make loaded rounds. The 22 Creedmoor is excellent medicine for predators, and several of the long, heavy bullets are suitable for deer and antelope, where that caliber is legal. A 75-grain 22 Creedmoor, fired in a rifle with a 1:8 twist 24-inch barrel, can achieve an average velocity of 3,450 fps and nearly 1,000 ft-lb of delivered energy at 500 yards.
.22 Creedmoor Loading Data
| BULLET (GRAINS/TYPE) | POWDER | GRAINS | VELOCITY | ENERGY | SOURCE |
| 55 V-Max | H4350 | 41.7 | 3,817 | 1,779 | Peterson Cartridge |
| 75 Hornady ELD-M | FL | – | 3,470 | 2,039 | Copper Creek |
| 80.5 Berger VLD | RL26 | 41.9 | 3,323 | 1,973 | Peterson Cartridge |
| 90 Sierra MK | FL | – | 3,210 | 2,071 | Copper Creek |
| 95 Sierra HPBT | H1000 | 40.0 | 3,012 | 1,913 | Peterson Cartridge |
When starting with 6mm Creedmoor brass, you will need to neck it down to produce 22 Creedmoor. The 6 Creedmoor starts out at a neck diameter of approximately 0.271 inch, and a loaded 22 Creedmoor will end up at about 0.254-0.255 inch with Hornady brass. Neck-turning will make it closer to 0.252 inch. You can use a full-length sizing die to go from 6mm to .22 caliber in one step. If you use bushings, you will want to neck down in two steps, starting with a 0.260-inch bushing on the first pass and finishing with a 0.250-inch die.
Editor’s Note: This article is an excerpt of Gun Digest’s Cartridge’s Of The World.
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