Rimfire group size question

[joelkdouglas]

This is a 25-yard group from a new Rem 597. It measures just over a half inch, 5- shot group.

Is this pretty normal accuracy from a 22lr, or should I keep searching for an ammo it likes better?

Alright, I'm having issues with the photo,so you'll have to take my word on the group size.

 

[cloverleaf]

Joel,
Welcome to the fun! Just a guess here, but I think you could expect a little better than that at 25yds assuming some magnification. How may brand of ammo have you tried? .22's tend to have a preference and IMHO the differences can be significant. Hope things go well, let us know. CL

OOPS- I read your initial post incorrectly. You said half inch NOT inch and a half. Thats much better.... 22's can be scary accurate though...and experimenting can be fun! CL (again)

 

[DrMike]

Half an inch can be pretty good for some rifles. On the other hand, I shot an old, beat up Marlin 39A that shot 0.1 inch groups at 40 yards with Eley 10X ammunition. It was phenomenal. My Remington 572 Fieldmaster would shoot 0.25 inch groups at 40 yards fairly consistently with Remington Golden Sabre ammunition. My Browning T-Bolt shoots slightly better than that. On the other hand, my old fieldmaster did not like many other ammunition, some of which yielded one inch groups at 40 yards. My T-Bolt is less fussy. I'd probably try another box of ammunition or two.

 

[FOTIS]

I like to see 1/2" at 50 yards.

 

[JD338]

My Remington 541T-HB shoots under .5" at 50 yds with Yellow Jackets.

JD338

 

[Anonymous]

Just depends...I'd be happy with that out of my 10-22 but if my Kimber 22 did it I'd be trying to find the problem. Try several kinds of ammo...my Kimber liked CCI "Velocitors" but hated Eley. There's no rhyme or reason I'm afraid.

In general- a bolt gun in .22 with ammo it likes can be incredibly accurate- I've seen several that would shoot a near caliber 5 shot group. Autoloaders are somewhat less so. That's just a generality.

 

[gerry]

I'm with the rest of the guys wanting atleast 1/2" 5 shot groups at 50 yards. My CZ 452 American is very accurate and can go .25" or under at 50 yards with some ammo. For anyone in the market for a new 22 the CZ 22's are highly recommended.

 

[CatskillCrawler]

I like to see 1/2" at 50 yards.

Agreed. As long as I have grey squirrel "Head Shot" capability at 50 yds I'm satisfied.

I think that my offhand shooting at 50 yds with a 22LR is great practice for me and saves my $$ for more centerfire components.

 

[Polaris]

You should be able to do better. I have 2 Norinco JW15s (Norinco built CZ 452, parts interchange) that will do that easily at 50 yards with almost any ammo. Most quality bolt action .22s and a lot of semi autos will group to .5" 50 yards with the right ammo. Try some quality ammo such as CCI green tag or just about anything made by Lapua, Ely or RWS. For cheap ammo I've had very good luck with Rem T-bolt and Aquila subsonic 38gr LHP, and CCI blazer. Stay away from the 550 round bulk boxes from the big 3. good enough for bouncing cans around but I've found it quite inconsistent on paper and the chrono.

 

[RiverRider]

I have had a Winchester 52 in the safe for several years that initially showed signs of life, but just really didn't live up to expectations and sat in the back of the safe for a while. Upon close examination a couple of months ago, I discovered the bedding was all screwed up as the barreled action sat in the stock all wrong. With great care I corrected this, and have found that this rifle is helping me perfect my bench shooting technique.

I have fired dozens of 5-shot groups that measure 1/3" or less, some as small as .2 inch. I learned something about how I cradle a rifle on the rest last time out and intend to try out some of the premium ammo again using what I've learned. My last groups were fired with CCI Standard Velocity and Federal Auto Match, and I saw things happen that I had only done with Eley Tenex before. I'll probably try another box of Tenex just to see what I can do with it using what I've learned. I think I can shoot .1-inch 5-shot groups at 50 yards with it...but if I can get .3" or better with Auto Match and CCI S.V., guess what my shelves will get replenish!ed with!

 

[RiverRider]

My Remington 541T-HB shoots under .5" at 50 yds with Yellow Jackets.

JD338

Now THAT is phenomenal! Yellow Jackets are probably the meanest rimfire round on the block!

 

[Larry in SD]

In a nutshell you'll never know what the rifle is capable of unless you try every brand and type of .22 LR ammo you can get your hands on. I have been a range master at an indoor shooting range since 1991 that is mostly used for .22 LR Rimfire Shooting. I couldn't begin to tell you how many rimfires I have shot and or seen shot in the past 20 years at our club.

In those 20 years the ONE thing I have learned is each and every .22 LR Rimfire is a law unto itself as to what it may or may not shoot the best. The first couple years at our club everyone kept asking me what was the best .22 LR Ammo to shoot in their guns. Each and every time I would give them the same answer "collect as many different brands and types of .22 LR ammo, accuracy test it in YOUR .22 and you will know". Well no one believed me so one year during the off season I acquired a half dozen different .22's. I had collected a brick of ammo (I was working part time at gun shows with a dealer buddy of mine at the time) of 23 different brands and types of .22 LR ammo.

To make a long story short no two guns shot any one brand and type of .22 LR ammo the best. Yes there was a couple different brands and types of .22 LR ammo that was in the top 5 for each gun but that was as close as it got.

In a nutshell my Custom Ruger 77/22, and the Custom Ruger 10/22's I have built (the only thing left Ruger is the Receiver) will do just under MOA at 100 yards with no wind.

No offfense but if my Rimfire would only do 1/2" at 25 yards I'd be searching for better ammo to start with.

Larry

 

[RiverRider]

Joel, what Larry says is true. I don't have any personal experience with the 597 and don't what what their typical capabilities are, but if I was you I would buy a box of as many different loads as I could find. Don't shy away from the stuff that costs over $5 per box either---the object is to find out what the rifle is capable of doing. If you need suggestions as to what to try, I'd suggest Wolf Match Target, Federal Auto Match, CCI Standard Velocity, American Eagle hollow points, Remington Subsonic, and maybe a box of Eley Tenex or Eley Target Rifle for starters. Amongst that bunch tou may find something the rifle really likes, but there are many other options if it does not respond.

One thing to keep in mind when trying out rimfire ammo: the lube on the bullets matters a lot! If you shoot up a box of one type then start on a box of another type, you probably need to waste about ten rounds to get the lube from the previous ammo out of the bore. Wolf Match Target has a very greasy lube on it and I have found that most any promotional .22 rimfire load will shoot like a house afire for a dozen shots or so after shooting Wolf MT---at least until all the Wolf lube is shot out of the bore. Some say it takes about one round per inch of barrel length to season a bore with the current ammo...I don't know how precisely true that is, but I know there's something to it.

 

[tddeangelo]

I have a Mossberg M44US that will keep 5 shots tight enough at 25 yards, with no scope and a horrid trigger, that you can cover them with a 30-06 case head. At 100 it will hold an honest inch, and I've shot <2" groups offhand with it at 100 with no scope.

BUT...It wants Federal Champion No. 510 ammo. Nothing else.

 

[cloverleaf]

Goodness.... and here Joel thought he asked a simple question...?!?!? Keep at it Joel the process is compaitively cheap. I wish I would have bought a bunch More veloctors when I could find them. My Marlin Model 70 likes them best. CL

 

[RiverRider]

BUT...It wants Federal Champion No. 510 ammo. Nothing else.

Happiness is an accurate rimfire rifle. Nirvana is one that likes cheap ammo!

 

[BeeTee]

Some idle thoughts...

Mach I is about 1100-fps or thereabouts, depending on altitude and other factors. Accuracy suffers to one degree or another as the 22-cal bullets transition from supersonic to subsonic on their way to the target. This is why the different brands of 22 target ammo I'm familiar with are all subsonic (about 1050-fps) at the muzzle. Target ammo doesn't go through the supersonic/subsonic transition downrange.

My Browning T-bolt shoots into <.5" at 50 yards with CCI Green Tag target ammo. High speed commercial ammo shoots into about 3/4-1" at 50.

Jim

 

[Wincheringen]

I'm pretty happy with this. Ruger 77/22 VBZ, CCI Velocitor, 100 yards.

 

[DrMike]

That is a great group at 100 yards. Hang onto that rifle; it's good to go for grouse.

 

[joelkdouglas]

I'm pretty happy with this. Ruger 77/22 VBZ, CCI Velocitor, 100 yards.

I would be pretty happy with that out of my .30-06 even.

I think I'll be making a trip to another local big box store today looking for more 22lr ammo. It's easy to find bulk, big name stuff, but not easy to find Wolf, Fed GM, etc.

And I've gotta go and get some 1/0 hooks and slip bobbers anyway. I might just try and see if some crappies are interested in some minnows with my kids this weekend.