Steel Challenge Rimfire Ammo Selection

[Corey]

Whats everyone using for rimfire ammo these days for various steel challenge divisions? Cheap stuff or springing for a little higher dollar ammo?

[zzt]

For RFPO I use CCI AR Tactical.  For Open I use handloads.

[revolver45]

Whatever works reliably in the gun. 

[jrdoran]

I use CCI standard velocity for RFPO;    Might move to the new 'clean' coated standard velocity.   

[hamiltonian]

I have been using CCI Standard Velocity - good accuracy and performance.  For practice, I use Federal Value Pack, but I usually get a few misfires every 200 rounds.

[ZackJones]

CCI Mini Mags. It runs in every Rimfire gun I own.

[old558]

I have had good luck with Federal Auto Match

[Matt1911]

Federal auto match

[RaylanGivens]

On 3/28/2019 at 11:55 AM, jrdoran said:

I use CCI standard velocity for RFPO;    Might move to the new 'clean' coated standard velocity.   

 

What is the clean coated Standard Velocity CCI ammo?

 

Wax removed maybe?

 

[jrdoran]

https://www.cci-ammunition.com/whatsnew/newproducts.aspx

The future of rimfire is here. CCI Clean-22™ uses an exclusive polymer bullet coating to greatly reduce copper and lead fouling in the barrel—without leaving a residue. It also cuts lead buildup in suppressors 60 to 80 percent. Both the Sub-Sonic and High Velocity loads feature a 40-grain round nose lead bullet with geometry that's been optimized for accuracy. With dependable CCI priming and consistent propellant, Clean-22 provides flawless cycling through semi-automatics and all 22 LR firearms.

FEATURES & BENEFITS
• Polymer bullet coating greatly reduces lead fouling in the barrel without leaving residue
• Cuts lead buildup in suppressors 60 to 80 percent
• 40-grain lead round nose bullets—red for High Velocity, blue for Sub-Sonic
• Optimized bullet geometry for improved accuracy
• Reliable function in semi-automatic firearms
• Great option both casual and competitive shooters

[hamiltonian]

The CCI Clean-22 Subsonic rounds are polymer coated , and they are listed as having the same velocity as CCI Standard Velocity ammo.  Has anyone seen these?  Are they available yet?

[jrdoran]

Yes, I have shot both the sub-sonic and the high velocity.  In my SW22 victory with volquartsen carbon fiber barrel the regular standard velocity non-coated lead were the most accurate at 50 feet, but the coated were reasonable groups.   The high velocity ( red ) shoot just fine in my 10/22 with less 'mess'

 

What I like most about the coated is in the colder weather they don't gum up the magazines or feed ramps given they have no wax.  They are a slightly different bullet shape BY THE WAY than the previous red/white/blue coated offering.  They are also packaged individually like typical mini mags.   

 

https://www.targetsportsusa.com/cci-clean-22-lr-hv-ammo-40-grain-red-polymer-coated-944cc-p-109069.aspx

https://www.targetsportsusa.com/cci-clean-22-long-rifle-subsonic-ammo-40-grain-poly-coated-blue-lrn-934cc-p-109092.aspx

 

Edited March 31, 2019 by jrdoran
typo

[Gregg K]

Blazer, bulk and boxed. Both have CCI priming and is cheap and reliable.

[Trigger71]

My First SC match is this Saturday.  I have been practicing informally with my Mkiv 22/45L with CCI 40gr Mini's.  I see now that many are using CCI Std Vel.  I have a ton of that as well as I shoot in my M41PC for BE.  Guessing it's not a huge change (maybe gets your sights back down quickly?), but thoughts on which I should bring with me?  I do know the gun runs both just fine...  As I'm new to this sport, I might as well just start using the right fps ammo the other guys are using. 

[zzt]

I have run both.  There is a slight advantage to shooting the high speed stuff.  The shot is louder so the timer picks it up better.  The ding is louder.  Standard velocity works fine, but if you are not using a comp the RO may have to hold the timer in front of you to pick up the shots.  That may or may not be distracting to you.

 

BTW, I use CCI AR Tactical.  I find them more consistent and more accurate than the MiniMags.  BTW, if you are using an effective comp, the higher speed bullets reduce muzzle rise more.  In fact, with your 22/45L you should see no muzzle rise at all with a good grip.

Edited April 1, 2019 by zzt

[Trigger71]

Thanks Z,  its does wear a Volq. Comp., and I think that does make it loud enough for the timer.  Good point about the HV making the comp work better. I thought the CCI Tac was designed for the longer barrel of a rifle.   I'll pick some up and try that as well; I'm beginning to think reliability is more important in SC, and Eley TenX isn't needed.

 

I see some of the guys here are trying the poly CCI in both SV and HV.  Hopefully we will get some feedback after continued use.

[zzt]

The AR Tactical nose shape was designed specifically for the M&P 15-22.  It works well for everything.  I was using it for outlaw steel matches because of its consistency.  So I just stayed with it for SCSA.

 

I RO at all the Steel matches I go to, so I get to see it all.  At least in Area 8, the most popular 22 round that works is the AR Tactical.  MiniMags are next.  A lot of shooters use the new Eley black ammo. CCI standard works as close to 100% as any 22 ammo, but I don't see it used as much.  The shooters having misfires are those using cheap junk ammo.  I include Federal Automatch in that category.  Yes, some pistols run the trash just fine.  All I can say is when there is a problem, it is almost always with someone shooting trashy ammo.

 

I don't get it.  You drive two hours to the match, pay $60 for each gun, and you want to save $1 on each box of 22 ammo?  

 

I mostly shoot my custom CWA upper on a 1911 frame and use AR Tactical, because standard will not cycle the slide.  When I use my Marvel Unit One conversion, I use Eley Target.  It goes bang 100% and that's what they used for the .423" group size they sent with the gun.

[lgh]

16 hours ago, zzt said:

The shooters having misfires are those using cheap junk ammo.  I include Federal Automatch in that category. 

When Automatch functions in my guns, it is usually quite accurate.  Some of the small bore guys at the club use it for competitions and they demand very high accuracy. Just sayin' ...

[zzt]

I'm not questioning the accuracy, only the reliability.  I went through two cases of Automatch during the shortage and I consistently had problems in all three 22 LR guns.  Mostly it was a failure to extract properly, resulting in stovepipe jams.  Ignition was not as reliable as Eley and CCI, or SK Standard +.  The first part of your first sentence says it all.  "When Automatch functions in my guns.....".  If it is not 100% it is worthless.

[Steve RA]

Function first, accuracy close second !!!

[lgh]

3 hours ago, zzt said:

If it is not 100% it is worthless.

Just sayin' if it functions it's not junk ammo. It's pretty darn good!

[cferree]

I use CCI Mini Mag solids in both my RFPO and RFRO (Ruger MKIII with some Volks stuff & a Ruger 10/22 Target Lite w/Aviom stock).

The rifle won't run CCI SV consistently, but my pistol will.  I actually like SV better, but I've had QC issues with the first case I purchased.

They all fire, but from the sound only, not chrono data, some rounds have less powder.  The typically will fail to extract.  This mainly happens on cold days.

 

I'm about to try a couple of the Eley SV loads for functionality.  I know the accuracy will be more than good enough.

FYI, I have comps on both guns, so I'm not worried about timers picking up the report.

 

[zzt]

The Eley SVs are slower than the CCI SVs, so you'll likely have the same problem, unless it's the heavy wax on the CCIs that is causing the problem.

[Thomas H]

I've had horrible luck with Federal Auto Match in two pistols and two rifles----feeding issues everywhere.  (And yes, I clean both my firearms and my magazines.  )  Rem Golden Bullet was great for a several years, then when .22 was scarce the quality went WAY down, far as I could tell.

 

I use CCI AR-Tactical for everything SC related---consistent and reliable in every .22 I have.  Not bullseye match precise, but that's not what I need, and DO I need something that feeds correctly every time in an auto.  AR-Tactical is probably the most-common .22 SC ammo in this area.  PSA had some sales awhile back (and continues to do so periodically), and you can pick up cases on GunBroker on occasion for ridiculously low prices. 

 

 

[firewood]

I am by no means a steel rimfire honcho but do some RFPO in wildcat matches and a few RFRO in rimfire challenge. I shot just under 5000 rounds of Federal Auto-match in 2018, most of it in a S&W Victory the rest in an S&W M&P AR15-22. 

 

I had 3 jams total in the Victory and no jams in the AR. I think that is acceptable. The only complaint is the ammo is a bit dirty. Last year was my first year dabbling in rimfire. It took me a while to get both of my rimfires to behave, especially the AR but once I got past that the Auto-match worked fine. This is however not an endorsement of the product. Now that I have a better understanding of how things work I'm going to see if I can find something a little bit cleaner.