Caliber of the Month: 22 ARC

What's the Hype About 22 ARC?

At face value, the .22 ARC doesn't exactly sound revolutionary. It's a .22-caliber centerfire rifle cartridge, and we've been making those for a while.

So why is everyone suddenly getting so amped up about this one?

Well, because the .22 ARC isn't particularly interested in playing the same game as the .22-caliber cartridges that came before it.

I've heard (and read) it called one of the most impressive new .22-caliber cartridges of the decade, and once you start looking at what it's actually doing downrange, the enthusiasm behind it starts to make a lot more sense.

The secret isn't simply increased velocity. If speed were the only thing that mattered, we'd just keep adding powder until the barrel became a suggestion, right?

The real magic is in the bullet design itself. The .22 ARC was built around modern, high-ballistic-coefficient bullets with long, relatively heavy projectiles designed to move efficiently through the air and retain their velocity as the distance increases.

And that matters.

The second a bullet leaves the barrel, gravity starts doing its thing, and environmental factors such as barometric pressure, wind, and humidity also affect performance. And the farther the bullet travels, the more those things matter.

A high-BC projectile can retain velocity better and experience less wind drift than a less aerodynamic bullet. Combine that with the velocities the .22 ARC is capable of producing, and you've got a cartridge that can remain remarkably useful as the distance starts stretching out.

All this while remaining compatible with the AR-15.

That's the .22 ARC in a nutshell, I suppose. A small rifle cartridge with big ambitions.

What Is the .22 ARC Actually Good For?

So what the hell do you actually do with a .22 ARC?

Well, I'd say that depends on what you're trying to accomplish and whether your definition of a good time involves ringing steel at 600 yards or creating a very bad afternoon for a prairie dog or pack of coyotes.

The .22 ARC makes a lot of sense for varmints and predators (where legal). It's incredibly flat shooting, soft on the shoulder, and more than capable of delivering an accurate shot on target at extended range.

However, I'd caution against treating the .22 ARC like a universal hunting cartridge.

It's still a .22-caliber projectile, and that matters.

There are plenty of animals for which it can be an appropriate choice, and plenty for which it isn't. State regulations need to be taken into account, as do bullet construction, shot placement, and knowing your own limitations.

Just sayin'.

Is the 22 ARC Worth the Hype?

Do you need a .22 ARC?

Probably not.

But I'm not sure "need" has ever been a particularly useful standard for buying guns.

You don't need a precision AR-15. You don't need three different barrel lengths. You certainly don't need an optic that costs more than the rifle you put it on.

We buy them because they're fun, because they're interesting, and because sometimes it's just so damn satisfying to push the envelope a bit.

The .22 ARC checks all three boxes.

If you're happy with your 5.56 and have no interest in stretching your shooting farther, keep shooting 5.56. It's cheap, capable, and about as easy to find as ammunition gets.

But if you're the kind of shooter who looks at a 500-yard steel plate and thinks, "I wonder...", the .22 ARC is worth a hard look.

It gives you a way to push the AR-15 considerably farther without turning it into something completely different. That's the appeal.

Just don't forget you've got to keep it fed.

Nobody is going to panic if you walk into a gun store looking for 5.56. There are approximately seven billion boxes of it floating around the country.

The .22 ARC isn't quite there yet.

That's not necessarily a dealbreaker, obviously. As more rifles hit the market and more manufacturers produce ammunition, availability should continue to improve. But if you've invested in a rifle because you want to shoot it, having ammunition before you need it is generally a solid strategy.

Fortunately for us, the AmmoSquared platform exists to fill that ever-present gap.

Rather than waiting until the ammunition shelves start looking a little too bare and trying to anticipate the next price hike (we've already seen a ~5% increase across the market this year alone), you can automate your supply and have .22 ARC ammunition replenished according to how much you're actually shooting.

Because buying a precision rifle and then realizing you have enough ammunition for one range trip is, typically, ill-advised. Ask me how I know.

The Bottom Line

The .22 ARC isn't here to replace every other .22-caliber round or the 5.56x45mm NATO cartridge, nor is it something every AR-15 owner needs.

It's simply a fun intermediate rifle cartridge that Hornady found a way to combine modern bullet design, impressive downrange performance, low recoil, and the familiar AR-15 platform into something that can reach considerably farther than most people expect from a .22-caliber rifle.

And that's enough for me, Maynard.

If you want to run the 22 ARC, you probably already know why. And if you don't, that's okay, too.

But the next time somebody tells you we've already reached the pinnacle of what a .22 caliber cartridge can do, you might want to show them a .22 ARC.

Then put a target way out there.

Really, really far out there.

And see what happens.

Either way, if you're thinking about adding a .22 ARC to your rotation, now is a pretty good time to start building your ammunition supply. Add .22 ARC to your Ammo Squared account and start stockpiling today because if the .22 ARC continues catching on the way it has, ammunition demand is only going one direction.

And I'd rather have a few boxes waiting for me than be standing at the gun counter wondering where the hell they all went when I need it most.

Be sure to sign in to your AmmoSquared account today, as it will only be here for the month of September.