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I have an 1890 that was originally a 22wrf and has been converted to 22lr. The conversion appears to be just a brass insert in the carrier. I want to remove it and shoot 22wrf. Could this be a problem? The bbl is marked 22wrf on the bottom and on the top is a new marking which says 22 L.RIFLE. Any information would be greatly appreciated. BTW the serial no. is 403974.
William,
In order to safely fire a 22 LR in a 22 WRF chamber, the barrel chamber had to be relined to accommodate the much smaller 22 LR cartridge. You cannot simply remove the brass insert in the carrier and then load 22 WRF cartridges in it. I suggest that you visit your local gun smith before proceeding.
Bert
WACA Historian & Board of Director Member #6571L
William Brown said
I want to remove it and shoot 22wrf. Could this be a problem?
If you care about accuracy, it will be–WRF, even in a top grade target gun such as I once had, is never as accurate as even economy Long Rifle; not to mention cost & availability of WRF.
And if the clown who did the lining job defaced the brl. with the new caliber marking, you can’t easily make it “like it never happened.”
Bert,
Thanks for your response. I agree that the barrel is a concern and just wanted someone else to confirm it. I believe I can ream the chamber to the right size for 22 WRF and that the barrel will accommodate the difference in bullet size. LR=.2230 and WRF=.2250, any thoughts on this?
Thanks, Bill Brown
Clarence,
Accuracy is not a big issue. I am trying to make the gun the way it was when it came from the factory. (And if the clown who did the lining job defaced the brl. with the new caliber marking, you can’t easily make it “like it never happened.”) I wish I could come up with a way to fix it.
Thanks for your reply
William Brown said
Bert,Thanks for your response. I agree that the barrel is a concern and just wanted someone else to confirm it. I believe I can ream the chamber to the right size for 22 WRF and that the barrel will accommodate the difference in bullet size. LR=.2230 and WRF=.2250, any thoughts on this?
Thanks, Bill Brown
Bill,
Was the entire barrel length relined, or just the chamber?
The 22 WRF bullet diameter is actually .224, and it can be safely shot through a barrel made for the 22 LR.
Bert
WACA Historian & Board of Director Member #6571L
Bert,
It appears the entire bbl was relined. The chamber will take a 22LR round, but not the 22WRF. I will order the proper reamer and I should be good to go.
Thanks
Bill
Bill,
A 22 Magnum reamer can be used. It just has to be run in short. Just like a 38 special-357 magnum scenario. Everything is the same except the length.
Erin
November 7, 2015
Offline
Tough call. With all I’ve read about the shortcomings of the WRF round I’d be more interested in how it shot as is. With the liner and re-marking it will be hard to put much collector value on this rifle but it has the makings of a great shooter, IMHO. Have you been able to check the chamber & bore with a bore scope or cerro-safe? If you’re set on shooting WRF’s in this rifle I’m wondering if you could find a correct un-molested replacement barrel.
Mike
Erin Grivicich said
A 22 Magnum reamer can be used.
Wonder if higher pressure of 22 Mag, combined with the undersize bore, would be excessive for a M.’90? If not, 22 Mag ammo is manufactured to higher standards of quality & accuracy than WRF.
clarence said
Wonder if higher pressure of 22 Mag, combined with the undersize bore, would be excessive for a M.’90? If not, 22 Mag ammo is manufactured to higher standards of quality & accuracy than WRF.
I don’t believe there is enough room in the cartridge lifter to elongate it enough to accommodate a 22 Magnum. I will have to Check things out a bit more Clarence. I wouldn’t be afraid to try taking a 3rd model chambered in 22 WRF and open it up to 22 mag providing the lifter can be made to accept the cartridge. Some how a single shot pump just wouldn’t appeal to me………
The 22 magnum reamer can be used to cut a 22 WRF chamber by running the reamer in short. The cartridge dimensions are identical except for the length.
Best,
Erin
I found a 22wrf reamer on Brownells and believe it will do the job. I’ll post the results. Thanks for all your inputs. BTW a 22 magnum does not fit in the lifter and there is not enough room to change it. While I’m here it does not appear that 22WRF is imprinted on the barrel. Is this correct?
Many Thanks’
Bill
Probably should be marked on the barrel. Also should be on the front of the receiver just below the barrel.
You are right it is on the receiver and the bottom of the barrel, but not seen on the barrel without disassembly.
Thanks
Bill,
That will work, make sure you have dial indicated center of the bore and not the shank of the barrel. (might be difficult as you don’t know if the existing chamber is cut concentric with the bore.) A floating reamer holder is best, it allows the reamer to self center. Sometimes it’s easiest to cut these small chambers by hand.
Erin
I finished the 1890 reaming this past weekend and it was not very difficult because everything centered well. Today I took it to the range to test it and it worked great. No failure to feed, no failure to load, no failure to fire, and no failure to eject. It was accurate from freehand at a bench at 25 yds.
Thanks all for your advice.
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