.22 Super Jet

Loads for an Old Wildcat

- Jim Matthews

Wildcats usually arise when a varmint hunter or shooter identifies a need not met by a factory loading. For most wildcats – especially all the “improved” versions of existing rounds – the goal is to wring out more velocity from the parent case without exceeding equivalent pressures. The other “wildcat line” is to neck down or neck up cartridge cases to a caliber different from the original chambering.

Most factory chamberings actually began life in this way, and sometimes the wildcats gain more fame than their parent cases – think of all the wildcats on the .284 Winchester case or the .22-250. Beyond these two schools of thought, however, the “need” for a wildcat can become a bit more esoteric.

Friend Paul Neidermann is a consummate tinkerer, inventor, gunsmith, stockmaker and ground squirrel shooter. He is also a fan of single-shot Martini Cadet actions for their compactness and simplicity. When he decided to build up a varmint rifle just for his regular trips to a large California ranch to shoot ground squirrels, the small Martini single shot was to be the heart of the rifle.