whats the best 22lr target ammo

i bought a new volquartsen stainless match barrell w/comp and snake flutes for my 10/22 ruger i am building. i was wondering what ammo to use for target shooting. new to this sport and could use some input on the subject. thanks kenny

Blackbox Eley LPS, but it would be a waste of money in a 10/22.
Butch

Lots of guys think Ely Tenex is the "stuff".

I am not a target guy, so no first hand experience. All the stuff I have read, though, tells me that the best thing to do is o invest some serious time in trying as many of the match ammos available, to find the one that works best for you.

IIRC the the Volq barrel has a tight match chamber, and is going to limit your ammo selection to the more expensive stuff.

Cheers
Trevor Jones

Toolking

The best thing to do is buy a box of several different brands and start testing.
Five shot groups.

If you lucky you'll find a cheaper ammo that shoots well enough for most things and can save the Eley (around $10.00 a box of 50)for special occasions.

Hal

The good price on Black box Eley is about $16 now.
Butch

The barrel fastening system on a Ruger is asymetrical/Sloppy and NOT conducive to any sort of Match grade accuracy...

It is a plinker, and will remain a plinker, no matter how many $$ are spent...

Only advantage is average Joe can install a barrel..

You will never see a Ruger at an Olympics shoot, so why bother with Ultra Match grade ammo on a Plinker chassis????

abarnsley, Just like trying to make a Caddilac out a sow's ear.

I shoot a BSA Martini International Match rifle.I have tried every brand of ammo I could get my hands on. It shoots best with Eley Tenex.It will shoot Federal high velocity hollow points almost as well.Every rifle is different. You just have to experiment until you find the ammo it prefers. I have seen a few 10/22s that will put 10 shots into one ragged hole. If put together well they can be an accurate rifle.

"If put together well they can be accurate....."

They are not put together well, no matter how you look at them... Sloppy bedding, Sloppy barrel connection, sloppy bolt fit, sloppy trigger block to receiver fit, sloppy everything, not a paper punching competition rifle, never will be.

It was never designed to be. The crowd selling "Target" barrels and aftermaket receivers are raking in money... I am surprised I don't see the wonder word Billet used more on 10/22 stuff.....

Just the rapid cycling and feeding from the magazine of a semi auto is enough to distort the fragile individually packed soft lead bullet of expensive target ammo...thus knocking that last shot .010 out of place. Simple enough to observe, (follow proper safety procedures) and examine a chambered bullet tip fed from magazine into chamber. You can then measure runout of bullet to case....

One ragged hole vs 1 hole counts in competition..

Not that one won't shoot well, but think what the group of a purpose built target action can do....

10/22 + target barrel + trigger job + bedding +stock = Plinker that costs almost as much as a TARGET RIFLE.

Show me a trophy won at a major rifle match, (Accuracy dependant, not broad as a ram or other steel target) won by a 10/22....

Super expensive target ammo is just a waste of money in a 10/22. Shoot various brands of normal and mid range stuff, pick the best shooting, and be happy with your hotrod plinker.

Eley Tenex has a great reputation and is up there quality wise... Each rifle is different and only a lot of range time can settle the debate for any individual rifle... Of course after several thousand rounds, chamber throat erosion/wear will require you to search for a new best shooting load..

I don't know why I bother trying to help people out on this website.There is always someone eager to contradict what someone else says.

I am a Gunsmith, Made my living for 26 years so far working on all manner of firearms....

I just worked on a ~$10,000.00 10/22...
Yup I have the number of zeros right.. A Pre 86 transferable Full Auto with Integral suppressor..

Still not a Target rifle...

I built a 10/22 a few years back to shoot the Chevy truck Challenge stuff, (now the sportsmans team challenge). Volquartsen S.S. barrel, Turner stock, bedded action, etc.... I got then and it still shoots around 1/2" @ 100yds. Now this might not be as good as what other rifles can do, but it's not too shabby for a 10/22. At closer distance's it is extremely accurate.

I use CCI Blue tag standard velocity. I would recommend trying this ammo, if it works for you you'll save a ton of $$ over the eley.

I'm like jcarter, this is my opinion and my experience. I'm not starting a pissing contest.

I don't know why I bother trying to help people out on this website.There is always someone eager to contradict what someone else says.

Click to expand...

Actually that's what I like about this forum. You get everything from the "professional" opinion with the pro standards and pro analysis to the "shade tree" mechanic/gunsmith who would be more than happy with a ragged hole.


Hey toolking - post some test results from your new barrel. I have an old 10/22 and was thinking of getting an after-market barrel for it.

Tom

to all that responded i thank you for your input. looks like i am building a trick looking hot rod for plinking. i will try the different ammo makers and see how she shoots with each one. i would love to shoot 1/2" groups at 100yds thats all i really wanted to do. when i am done with her i will put a couple of photos here. kenny

I think Champion's Chioce will sell small lots of different 22 ammo to try in your gun. When you find one the gun likes note the lot number and buy all you can afford,each lot will shoot differently.

I am a 30 year smallbore competitor, have shot on international teams and camp perry nationals at least 15 times,
ELEY TENEX HANDS DOWN. if price is no object.
You might have to test different lots to see which one shoots best in your rifle. Of course you have to be a good enough shooter to test it properly.
Old lots of Federals top of the line Match, Remington Match and
Dominator ammo has some great results,

The current (as of '03 ?) agregate score record in NBRSA rimfire competition is .7415" at 100 yards. That is 5 x 5 shot groups. It's .262 for a single 5 shot group. Maybe those records have since been broken, but realistically nobody you know or meet is likely to match or exceed them. So if you have a 10-22 that shoots .5" groups at 100 yds, in semi mode, it's probably a keeper...

Eley and other "supreme" brands did terrible in my 10/22. I've tried a lot of brands and lots.
Fiocci Super Match 320 shot very well.
We shoot Dum-Dum lolipops (3/4") at 50 yd
and golfballs at (1 1/2") at 100 yd.
Fun for everyone who doesn't have "Olympic" grade rifle.

i have 2 brno rifles a no.1 and a no.4 the 4 likes the cheap russen stuff. the 1 likes federal. they mite both do better with other but i don't know if i can hold that good to tell the differance.

I am working from brain damaged memory here; so I will not have every "i" doted or "t" crossed; but you should get the general idea.

Mostly interesting and valid comments here, with the occasional bovine scat claim.

The Russians and other Eastern Bloc shooters dominated 22RF competition during much of the "cold war" because they had better (more consistient, almost hand made) ammo than anything loaded commercially in the "West" (Eley, RWS, Lapua, etc.).

FEDERAL at the uruging of many groups developed the 900 series round that made our shooters competitive. I do not believe they still produce it (for economic reasons) and some rifles (especially light weight sporters) do not perform well with it.

Several years ago a junior (high school) team won the overall team championship at the US natl. matches. They all shot, basicly, the same model rifle (A54) but all used different ammo brands, grades or lots.

The point here is that 22 rifles are often very finicky about what the like to eat. A rifle (especially sporters) may perform better with one ammo (brand, grade, even lot #) on a hot summer day; and another ammo on a cold winter day.

As to the Ruger 10-22, I think Eley still makes a round especially for semi auto target rifles; but it is expensive.

The last case of WOLF I purchased was made in LAPUA's Schul, Germany plant; costs much less than any Lapua; and is often excellent ammo, if it will cycle your semi auto action.

Some lots of CCI regular grade ammo are as good as their premimum grade, and the same is true of Wolf above.

A 22 that is usually an exceptional value for the money is AGUILA Golden Eagle Target rifle ammo. Its not as consistient as ELEY Tenex (Red Box)but it is usually better than most of its price point competitors.