Reliable .22lr ammo

[joecichlid]

Every .22 LR auto pistol is a law unto itself regarding which ammo it will and won't work with reliably. Having said that, I've had very good luck with CCI Mini-Mags and the 325 round bulk pack Federal Auto Match in a variety of guns.

You beat me to it. .22 guns are VERY picky at times. I usually grab a few hundred rounds of every .22 I can get my hands on and test them all out of the gun whenever I get a .22.

To the original post, one thing not mentioned is the temp. .22 ammo is somewhat temp sensitive, found that out years ago while shooting bowling pins with a club that meets outdoors all year long, in Kansas. When the ammo gets really cold, below 40 degrees, the primer compound becomes much less sensitive causing failure to fire issues and it can also cause the powder to not burn as cleanly. This can cause the gun to foul badly creating other issues such as stove pipes and assorted other failure to extract troubles. While shooting in the pin club we quickly found a way around the temp issue, keeping the ammo close to our bodies (under our coats, those hand warmer packets help too) to keep it warmer and that cut down on the misfire issues quite a bit.

To help with the fouling I took a .243 bore brush in rifle length and bent it so that it just fits in the ejection port and put it on a little bit of a cleaning rod for a handle. Being slightly larger than the .22 chamber it works great on clearing the chamber of wax build up which is a huge help when shooting CCI and other wax lubed bullets. My guns really like the Federal bulk pack and since they are copper washed instead of wax lubed it cuts down on the need to clean the chamber and magazines as often.

One last tip, when I clean my .22 guns and it is time to put the thing back together I put a little oil on a patch and wipe down the bolt/inside of reciever instead of putting the oil directly on them. Too much oil, in the cold, can really effect the reliability of .22s by slowing down the bolt enough to cause ejection and feeding issues. I run my gun almost totally dry but I do oil the pivit points (hammer, trigger and such). A good, ultra light weight oil is your .22s friend.

Joe W.

Edited January 13, 2010 by joecichlid

[kevin c]

MiniMags always work for me (MkII/45 and an AA conversion).

American Eagle bulk packs also work, with the occasional dud.

Rem Golden bullets are cheap, and for a reason. Lots of duds/underpowered rounds.

Ely Std Pistol Match was the most accurate, but too pricey.

Haven't tried the Federal Auto Match, since I mainly shoot the AA, and it doesn't run well (extraction wise) with them.

Best all around for me are the MiniMags.

[Ohioguy]

My Mark III has had almost 1000 rounds of Winchester Wildcat through it without a problem. Also fired a couple hundred bulk Federal and a 20 year old box of remington that was cruddy enough for me to consider throwing it away than shooting it. All without a problem.

I have only fired 50 rounds of Wolf Target through it, but no problems.

[Team Amish 1]

MiniMags always work for me (MkII/45 and an AA conversion).

Rem Golden bullets are cheap, and for a reason. Lots of duds/underpowered rounds.

Mini Mags: I can second that. They are great and very reliable, work great in conversion kits. I have experience with AR and Glock conversions. If you burn through a lot of ammo, they are a little pricey, though.

Remington Golden Bullets: My "converted" G34 calls for them but the dud rate is very disheartening. I would not trust Rem GB enough to shoot a Steel Challenge match with them.

Federal Bulk: (36grain; red brick; 550 count) I do shoot them a lot and hardly ever have a dud in my revolver. One or two per brick. At least for me that is good enough to shoot steel with. 6" SW617 => approx. 1,050fps ave.