While the .17 fires a cute little round and the .22 is inexpensive to shoot and fine for plinking at short range, both have limitations that prompted me to exclude both as a farm rifle. I had to accept the noise and now use the .223 almost exclusively. The trajectory is flat, the bullet fast, reasonable energy downrange and a wide variety of ammo is readily available. I've read about the .204 that CJBS mentioned and don't really have first-hand knowledge to share with you, but serious consideration of that caliber is certainly justified.
