Long Range 22LR

imyourhuckleberry said:

I find aguila's 40 grain super extra high velocity rounds to be very accurate beyond to 200 yards on my rifle, more so than subsonic rounds.

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This is what I am VERY curious about (and interested in investigating). My CZ has shot very well with CCI Velocitors, though I have yet to stretch the range with them (availability has been problematic for some time). Conventional wisdom has it that subsonic match loads are more accurate and drift less at distance than the faster loads. I am interested in knowing to what distance this is true, if any.

I am also keen to learn what affect a tighter twist may have on LR/ELR Rimfire performance.

I looked at a Bushnell Engage but with a 30moa rail on my cz455 they don't have enough Moa to keep a 50yard zero.
Ive used the eley ammo with good success. The edge and match have a high bc 22bullet(relative to other bullets) I've also used federal hunter match ammo out to 300 and found no issue with stability from shooting through the transonic zone. Rpr rimfire are very good options, they seem to shoot well and with aftermarket Lilja barrels coming soon can be tack drivers. I was recently at a prs 22cal match, 1st was taken with a stock 455, 2nd with a stock rpr, and I took 3rd with my 455. For a 22lr elr scope I would look at the Nikon x1000 and sightron stac scopes, they don't break the bank and offer a lot of Moa elevation

I shot this at 200 with eley edge. Shot one then corrected for wind and put the two close together. This is with a stock 455 barrel. I know a guy who put a Lilja on and is shooting dimes at 100.

The 22lr is great practice and cheap to practice positional shooting and with subsonic ammo your shooting form and trigger squeeze has to be perfect or you'll pull them off your poa. I find my standard centerfire cartridges easier to shoot accurately then a subsonic 22

Accuracy to 300 yards with a 22 LR is very possible as long as conditions are good.

If you are into Long range rim fire the 22 WMR is worth looking at.

Using the 40 grain bullets, the average velocity of the 22 LR is around 1100 ft/sec and the muzzle energy is just barely over 100 ft/lbs at the muzzle.

The 22 Mag average velocity with a 40 grain bullet is 2,000 ft/sec and has over 300 ft/lbs energy at the muzzle. The 30 grain bullets exceed
2200 ft/sec.

200+ yard shots are not that big of a deal and should satisfy the thirst for more distance in a rim fire with out expensive ammo.

With today's tipped bullets, accuracy and ballistics are much better at longer ranges and wind effects are not as bad.

We hunt Squirrels with 22 Lr pistols and rifles in the more dense woods, but switch to the 22 Mag where shots will exceed 100 yards on average.

Just something to think about.

J E CUSTOM

I tested several types of non match ammunition with most groups falling into the 0.5 -- 0.7in @ 50 yards. 100 yards was about 1in groups, but plan to try better ammo and see what I can get.
Ammo tested
CCI Std .536
CCI Stinger .655
Federal Auto Match .834
Federal Bulk Copper Plated .796
Federal Gold Med Target, Not Ultra Match
.591
5 shot groups with warm - hot bbl
••• 3 shot grps were like .03-.05 @ 50yds

Canhunter35 said:

I looked at a Bushnell Engage but with a 30moa rail on my cz455 they don't have enough Moa to keep a 50yard zero.
Ive used the eley ammo with good success. The edge and match have a high bc 22bullet(relative to other bullets) I've also used federal hunter match ammo out to 300 and found no issue with stability from shooting through the transonic zone. Rpr rimfire are very good options, they seem to shoot well and with aftermarket Lilja barrels coming soon can be tack drivers. I was recently at a prs 22cal match, 1st was taken with a stock 455, 2nd with a stock rpr, and I took 3rd with my 455. For a 22lr elr scope I would look at the Nikon x1000 and sightron stac scopes, they don't break the bank and offer a lot of Moa elevation

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You're right, my Bushnell Engage had just enough MOA to zero at 50yds with 30 MOA rail, not one click more though.
So far it's been a great optic but I'd prefer it in mrad, that's preference though.
I ended up putting a 100yd zero on it for the ELR stuff.

I have played quite a but with my Savage 22 TR, MDT chassis, Vortex AMG, achieving 2 MOA accuracy out to 350 yards with my furthest first shot kill on a crow at 240 Yards. Great for wind practice, with a ballistic calculators working quite well for good 1st shot accuracy. While 500 yard hits are possible, I find 350 yards to be a fairly predictable max for me.

I know that 22lr bullets aren't designed for long range, however what do you guys use? Your thoughts on the best ammo selection for extended range 22lr.
CCI Velecitor
CCI Stinger/In non-match chambers
Federal Match High Velocity
Any others you all want to add?

I think I posted above: eley edge and federal hunter match is what I use. Buy 50 or each and see what works best in ur rifle

Vamike9 said:

I know that 22lr bullets aren't designed for long range, however what do you guys use? Your thoughts on the best ammo selection for extended range 22lr.
CCI Velecitor
CCI Stinger/In non-match chambers
Federal Match High Velocity
Any others you all want to add?

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Some general rules of thumb that I have found for LR rimfire(25-350 Yards)
-Match grade ammo at moderate velocity(<1200FPS) is more consistent, and typically performs better(more accurately) then high velocity(+1200FPS)ammo.
-Chronographing to determine loads with low SD/ES is necessary....I will get good results at SD's of 5-7. Lower is better! Different lots of ammo must be checked for consistency.
-Ballistic calculators/RF's work very well for elevation/windage given an accurate velocity and BC is determined.
-Ammo needs to be tested for "cold bore" performance in addition to precision(groups) in a given rifle if used for hunting.
-Different rifles give best results with a particular load(s). You may have to test several different loads/brands to find the best for your particular rifle.
-For 300 yard shooting, you will require 20-30MOA bases. My 1170FPS Fed HV load requires 13.3MILS elevation. I use a 20 MOA scope bases with a Vortex AMG.
Just some of my experiences.

Great info Greyfox!

Shooting past 300 with most scopes a 30 moa base is needed.

I have a Don Smith full bore custom 455 that is a consistent .2 with R50 ammo. Just starting to play with a ruger rpr to see what it will do. IMO xmas tree type reticle is very useful.

When using a Ballistic calculator or RF, attention has to be paid primarily to BC adjustment. The Magnetospeed velocities tend to be very accurate as does the Lab Radar. I have cross checked them and they are generally within a couple of FPS. Bryan Littz's Second Edition has a chapter that lists a very large number of ammo types with his measured velocity, SD, and BC. However, while they may work nicely with your rifle, it's more likely you will have to measure velocity, ES, and BC for your specific rifle. I wil measure velocity/ES with my Magnetospeed and enter this data and the published BC. I will then the fine tune the BC to POI at 300 Yards. With this setting, my calculators are usually dead on from 25-350 Yards.

I second the Magnetospeed and Brian Litz's Applied Ballistics app.Both have served me well.