Best cost effective 22LR for Range Training?

[Tank]

Hey guys!

I have a Ruger SR-22 (22LR) I am outfitting for Range practice. I've been researching for the best cost effective ammo and am coming up with a large plethora of brands that claim they are the best.

Anyone have any experience with a brand/model ammunition that may be effective for my project? I want to be able to shoot effectively 22LR 100-200 yards (if possible) with little to no drop. I know this may be a pipe dream but you never know!

I have been using some Thundebolt 22 in my sig Mosquito, but am finding a few misfires and does not seem reliable for ejection of the shell.

Here is the set up. I have an eotech on the side for closer range.

 

[RankAmateur]

Every .22LR rifle I've ever used has a "preference" for different brands/bullets of .22 LR ammo. One question you'll have to clarify for yourself is what is the specific objective. You state "shoot effectively" at 100-200 yds with little to no drop. By effectively, are you shooting for small groups or just hitting 12" steels, or hunting? Obviously different ammo for the different needs. Some people will tell you the "best" ammo is something like Eley Tenex, which costs what you'd expect to pay for good 9mm Luger. I've had rifles that shoot ordinary Federal standard velocity 40gr lead round nose and CCI SV more accurately/consistently than Tenex, so you will likely have to try a variety of ammo to find what your rifle "likes".

Re: 100 to 200 yds without drop, nope. Here's a representative ballistics chart (M-CARBO site) for a variety of .22LR ammo, including 26 to 40 grain bullets and subsonic to magnum velocities. Drop at 200 yds ranges from 36 to almost 120 inches (with optic zeroed at 50 yds). 22LR-Ballistics-for-your-Rifle-webopt.jpg

The "Positive" here is that you may not have to rely on the most expensive/difficult to obtain ammo (on the other hand you might ) to get good performance out of your specific setup. I'm pretty sure, however, that you won't find that the Thunderbolts are what you seek (grin).

 

[EZ-E]

This ^^^^^


ETA....

Buy 10 boxes of your preferred preference & go from there.

 

[Tank]

Every .22LR rifle I've ever used has a "preference" for different brands/bullets of .22 LR ammo. One question you'll have to clarify for yourself is what is the specific objective. You state "shoot effectively" at 100-200 yds with little to no drop. By effectively, are you shooting for small groups or just hitting 12" steels, or hunting? Obviously different ammo for the different needs. Some people will tell you the "best" ammo is something like Eley Tenex, which costs what you'd expect to pay for good 9mm Luger. I've had rifles that shoot ordinary Federal standard velocity 40gr lead round nose and CCI SV more accurately/consistently than Tenex, so you will likely have to try a variety of ammo to find what your rifle "likes".

Re: 100 to 200 yds without drop, nope. Here's a representative ballistics chart (M-CARBO site) for a variety of .22LR ammo, including 26 to 40 grain bullets and subsonic to magnum velocities. Drop at 200 yds ranges from 36 to almost 120 inches (with optic zeroed at 50 yds). 22LR-Ballistics-for-your-Rifle-webopt.jpg

The "Positive" here is that you may not have to rely on the most expensive/difficult to obtain ammo (on the other hand you might ) to get good performance out of your specific setup. I'm pretty sure, however, that you won't find that the Thunderbolts are what you seek (grin).

Thank you RA, this is exactly what I was looking for. I may not get exactly what I am hoping to achieve, but it looks like there are workable options!

My objective is to learn effective rifle shooting using this as a practice method. Then graduate to higher calibers without spending a fortune on ammo.

 

[scattergun6]

You might want to do some reading at Rimfirecentral.com. Lot of rimfire fanatics talking about guns, ammo and performance of all the rimfires, but .22LR is prominent.
As stated by RankAmateur, every rimfire rifle has a mind of its own and a preference or two - though it is quite unusual for anything Remington, Winchester or Federal has to offer to be most accurate or dependable. They just aren't made to a high enough standard to compete with the more expensive brands. With rimfire ammo you truly get what you pay for.
I'm in the process of doing a similar rimfire search but looking for the most accurate ammo in my rifles to be used in rimfire benchrest matches. In my opinion and based on shooting a lot of different brands of rimfire ammo recently I would suggest you use CCI SV as your minimum and go up in price from there. Lots of folks on RimfireCentral have been singing the praise of Norma TAC recently, for its performance and its reasonable price. I've been playing with some Norma Match and it is pretty good. Some folks are having good results with Federal Automatch also. From there you go up to brands like SK, RWS, Eley and Lapua. Just open your wallet! Only you can decide what level of accuracy and dependability you desire and what you are willing to pay for.
Good luck in your search.

 

[V-Tach]

Thunderbolts work best in bolt or pump 22's is my experience...........when they actually fire....

 

[vmax]

Not sure what your idea of cost effective is
But I started using Eley on my better rimfire pistols and rifles and the accuracy is amazing if your gun is up to it.
I never had so much fun plinking after I could shoot 10 in one ragged hole

That's all I want to shoot anymore

 

[BBL]

There is no such thing as "cost effective" with ammo anymore, especially with .22LR.
A box of 500 used to cost me $9.99. Now it's $50. WTH? Thank you, Brandon!
If you find .22LR cheaper anywhere, please do share. We're running low for silhouette practice.

 

[jrbfishn]

Every .22LR rifle I've ever used has a "preference" for different brands/bullets of .22 LR ammo. One question you'll have to clarify for yourself is what is the specific objective. You state "shoot effectively" at 100-200 yds with little to no drop. By effectively, are you shooting for small groups or just hitting 12" steels, or hunting? Obviously different ammo for the different needs. Some people will tell you the "best" ammo is something like Eley Tenex, which costs what you'd expect to pay for good 9mm Luger. I've had rifles that shoot ordinary Federal standard velocity 40gr lead round nose and CCI SV more accurately/consistently than Tenex, so you will likely have to try a variety of ammo to find what your rifle "likes".

Re: 100 to 200 yds without drop, nope. Here's a representative ballistics chart (M-CARBO site) for a variety of .22LR ammo, including 26 to 40 grain bullets and subsonic to magnum velocities. Drop at 200 yds ranges from 36 to almost 120 inches (with optic zeroed at 50 yds). 22LR-Ballistics-for-your-Rifle-webopt.jpg

The "Positive" here is that you may not have to rely on the most expensive/difficult to obtain ammo (on the other hand you might ) to get good performance out of your specific setup. I'm pretty sure, however, that you won't find that the Thunderbolts are what you seek (grin).

This right here pretty much.
Find an ammo that groups well in your gun at 100 yds and zero it. It should do well at 200-300 yards. I routinely shoot mine at 200yds and have gone out to 300.
If you have a 1 inch group at 100yds, glass is more important after that.
Zeroed at 100 with CCI Varmint HPs, I get a drop of about 36" at 200yds and about 125" at 300yds. You will need a lot of adjustment or a wide field of view at 300yds.
For past 200yds, you might consider a 17 HMR. Not quite as low cost but you can get out to 400-500yds with it. And still get some challenge.


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[Axxe55]

Every .22LR rifle I've ever used has a "preference" for different brands/bullets of .22 LR ammo. One question you'll have to clarify for yourself is what is the specific objective. You state "shoot effectively" at 100-200 yds with little to no drop. By effectively, are you shooting for small groups or just hitting 12" steels, or hunting? Obviously different ammo for the different needs. Some people will tell you the "best" ammo is something like Eley Tenex, which costs what you'd expect to pay for good 9mm Luger. I've had rifles that shoot ordinary Federal standard velocity 40gr lead round nose and CCI SV more accurately/consistently than Tenex, so you will likely have to try a variety of ammo to find what your rifle "likes".

Re: 100 to 200 yds without drop, nope. Here's a representative ballistics chart (M-CARBO site) for a variety of .22LR ammo, including 26 to 40 grain bullets and subsonic to magnum velocities. Drop at 200 yds ranges from 36 to almost 120 inches (with optic zeroed at 50 yds). 22LR-Ballistics-for-your-Rifle-webopt.jpg

The "Positive" here is that you may not have to rely on the most expensive/difficult to obtain ammo (on the other hand you might ) to get good performance out of your specific setup. I'm pretty sure, however, that you won't find that the Thunderbolts are what you seek (grin).

^^^^^THIS!^^^^^

 

[jrbfishn]

So far, one of the best things I have found for a ballistic chart for rimfires is the Nikon spot On app. Doesn't matter what reticle you use, just use the chart. It's been pretty accurate for me.

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[PDiddy]

There is no such thing as "cost effective" with ammo anymore, especially with .22LR.
A box of 500 used to cost me $9.99. Now it's $50. WTH? Thank you, Brandon!
If you find .22LR cheaper anywhere, please do share. We're running low for silhouette practice.

A brick for 10 bucks? When was this, 1978?

 

[Tank]

As I suspected, you guys have already done the research I am attempting to do. I sincerely appreciate the input, advice and resources! I spent a few hours on rimfirecentral.com last night as suggested. Downloaded the Nikon app too.

Find the right ammo through trials.
Zero in at 50yrd, learn it
Zero in at 100 yds, learn it
Try for further

Funny thing about ammo, I was doing my own search on 22LR ammo and read somewhere that 22LR Thunderbolt was great ammo. I didn't find this to be a fact.

Goal is to use the SR-22 as a training tool to shoot this effectively lessening the expense of ONLY learning with the cost of .308 ammo. I think I will move the bipod from the M1A to the SR-22 to to get used to it.

 

[deemus]

Good info. I would offer the following.

Every gun shoots different ammo differently. Buy 2-4 boxes of about 6-10 different ones. The only way to know what your rifle shoots best is to try a few out.

I have three 22’s. And they all like different ammo. My 10-22 likes Win Black which is fairly inexpensive. My Buckmark likes an expensive ELEY round. My old Marlin bolt action will shoot most ammo well. Even the cheapest of the cheap Rem Thunderbolts.

Good luck. Figuring out which one it likes is half the fun.

 

[no2gates]

Thunderbolts work best in bolt or pump 22's is my experience...........when they actually fire....

Friends don't let friends shoot THunderbolts.

I think Thunderbolts are the product of Democrats to limit shooting.

 

[Charlie]

Exactly! Every gun does shoot differently. You might want to consider another 22 caliber but not a rim fire. That way you could hand load your ammo and reduce your group sizes easily.

 

[Ausländer]

Like everyone else said, you will quickly find out that every .22lr you have prefers something different than the others. Your choice then is to thin your .22lr firearms down or to build a cache consisting of various .22lr ammo.

When you find something that works really, really well for <insert rimfire firearm>, buy lots of that ammo... That <insert rimfire ammo> that works great today might have it's recipe tweaked in the future and then you are back to the drawing board to find out what works best..

 

[jrbfishn]

.22LR ammo can be quirky. I have a couple rifles that shoot Thunderbolts most accurately, and 1 that shoots Fed Lightnings, at 25 yrds. But not accurate or consistant at 100 yards.
If you are using .22s to learn long range, find ammo that shoots CONSISTANT groups at ranges past 50 yards. The size of the group is relativey, within reason, irrelevant as long as you can put it where you want it. Once you have the consistant part down and understand how drop and wind deflection affect the bullet, absolute accuracy with larger centerfires can be tweaked by careful reloading. Shooting a .22 LR at 300 yards is not much different than shooting a center fire going 3 times as fast and 3 or more times as heavy at 900 yards.
If you can not put a consistant group on a target, regardless if it is a 2"or 6" group with a rimfire, you probably won't be able to put a consistant group on target with a center fire rifle.

It is all about being CONSISTANT and understanding how outside forces affect shooting. Nothing else matters if YOU can not make you equipment function consistantly.
And .22 rimfires can allow you to achieve that a lot cheaper than centerfires can.
I will say this though. The best glass you can afford will be one of your best investments in this persuit. Almost all of my accuracy rifles have first focal plane scopes with adjustable paralax on them,$350-$500, and are in mils marked to 5-8 mils on the reticle.
I learned this the hard way.

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[RankAmateur]

Goal is to use the SR-22 as a training tool to shoot this effectively lessening the expense of ONLY learning with the cost of .308 ammo. I think I will move the bipod from the M1A to the SR-22 to to get used to it.

OP: If this is known to you, please forgive me, I have no intention of patronizing. Also, sorry for the thread hijack.

I spend a LOT of time behind my .22LR bolt, semi-auto rifle, and pistols. I find them invaluable training tools for technique AND as you say, they are less expensive to shoot (unless you end up needing to run Tenex - grin). The obvious difference is recoil or lack thereof. This will permit you to train muscle memory for hold, breathing, natural POA, and TRIGGER PRESS. For me, the rimfire training is primarily to reinforce trigger technique without having to think about recoil management which DOES make you shoot differently. This may be obvious, but IF you use a .22LR to train trigger technique, it will be MUCH less effective if the trigger(s) on your centerfire weapon(s) are very different to what you are practicing with.

Isolate what you are training from as much else as possible. If you need to work on natural POA, then take as many other variables out of the training as you can (recoil, wind, trigger, ammo, etc.). Same for training trigger technique or wind calling, etc. I.E., if you are training trigger technique, doing so on days with variable, quartering winds, with a bipod, on a wooden bench, with 6 different kinds of ammo (all silly, but as examples of variables), you will be managing so many "other" things that you'll get much less from your trigger training. Again, this may be obvious, but for example, if you are working on trigger, use ONE type of ammo, shoot SHORT range, put your rifle on a good bag or rest, use a solid rear bag or rest, train on calm days, etc.

This is not always really practical, but in building physical/mental skills, training technique is important. You will also obviously want to train ALL of the variables in play EVENTUALLY. I've found that doing the more meticulous training up front yields better and quicker progress than trying to get it all "right" at the same time.

Again, please forgive me if this is all already known to you. Hope some of it helps.

 

[RankAmateur]

There is no such thing as "cost effective" with ammo anymore, especially with .22LR.
A box of 500 used to cost me $9.99. Now it's $50. WTH? Thank you, Brandon!
If you find .22LR cheaper anywhere, please do share. We're running low for silhouette practice.

Target Sports USA has CCI SV or Blazer bricks at $37 with free shipping for prime members.

Midsouth Shooters has several options available at 8 or 9 cpr.