.22 Short
A living piece of cartridge history that's now harder to find and pricier per round than the .22 LR that replaced it.
Family
Rimfire
Introduced
1857
Origin
Smith & Wesson, USA
History
Introduced with the Smith & Wesson Model 1 revolver in 1857, the .22 Short was the first commercially successful American metallic cartridge. It served for over a century in pocket revolvers, gallery guns, and Olympic rapid-fire pistol competition. Today it survives mostly as a niche gallery and collector round.
What it's used for
Iconic platforms
Antique pocket revolvers, gallery pump rifles, and older Olympic rapid-fire pistols; a few modern rimfires still cycle it.
Common load types
Lead round nose and hollow point in standard and CB (reduced-charge) variants.
Reference only — not loading data, not ballistics advice, and KitID links to no ammunition sellers. Know your local law before you buy anything that goes bang.