The .22 mag doesn't boast the accuracy of the newer .17 cals but from my shooting of both calibers at groundhogs the .22 mag is better medicine for them as it delivers more "thump" (big ballisticalatious word I don't expect experts here to understand) when you hit them in the body, should you not be a head shooting sniper type like many claim to be. My main focus it to kill the animal so I aim center mass mostly shooting off hand, the .22 mag out performs the .17 in that respect and is cheaper to shoot. I shoot CCI Maxi-Mag +V rounds in mine and it is an amazing gun.
My heavier varmint rifle is the venerable .222 Remington, to me they never built a sweeter caliber for the handloading woodchuck hunter.
