22lr Ammo Comparison
THE WHAT AND WHY
We, like many people, have a .22 rifle. We also, like many people, have a few different kinds of ammo for said rifle. Ever wonder which were the most accurate and which were the least? We did too. The plan is to shoot controlled groups of each type of ammo and gather some, admittedly anecdotal, evidence of accuracy (or consistency in this case) out of each.
THE HOW
We are shooting groups of 5 shots with each cartridge. Hopefully 10 or more groups over time to get a good average. This will be done by the same shooter each time, with the same rifle (Savage Mark II), at the same distance (50 yards), with as similar wind conditions as possible.
The same setup will be used each time, with the front of the rifle resting on a bag and the rear being shouldered by the shooter. This should lend some consistency to the results if nothing else. A rear rest would be desirable but we have an affinity for practical accuracy rather than 'best achievable' accuracy.
Any called fliers by the shooter are allowed a re-shoot and will be disregarded when measuring group size. This will help keep the influence of our poor marksmanship to a minimum. Groups are measured center to center of two farthest apart shots in the group via digital calipers.
THE EQUIPMENT
- Rifle: Savage Mark II TR w/ AccuTrigger, 22" fluted barrel and tactical stock
- Scope: Vortex Crossfire II 4-12x40 AO
RESULTS TO DATE
| Round | Weight | Groups | Avg Group (50 yd) | Best Group (50 yd) | Avg MOA | Best MOA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CCI Mini Mags | 36gr | 5 | 0.86" | 0.40" | 1.72 | 0.80 |
| Federal Bulk | 36gr | 6 | 1.58" | 1.10" | 3.16 | 2.20 |
| Winchester Bulk | 36gr | 6 | 0.79" | 0.82" | 1.59 | 1.64 |
| Federal Automatch | 40gr | 4 | 0.94" | 0.50" | 1.88 | 1.00 |
| Remington Golden Bullet | 36gr | 6 | 0.72" | 0.62" | 1.44 | 1.38 |
| Winchester Super-X | 36gr | 4 | 0.94" | 0.80" | 1.88 | 1.60 |
| Federal Champion | 40gr | 3 | 0.87" | 0.74" | 1.74 | 1.48 |
| CCI Standard Velocity | 40gr | 4 | 0.84" | 0.77" | 1.80 | 1.54 |
| Aguila Super Extra (subsonic) | 38gr | 6 | 0.68" | 0.32" | 1.37 | 0.64 |
CONCLUSIONS SO FAR
- The different rounds are showing a relatively predictable spread across the board with all of the higher quality ammo performing in the top 50%.
- The rifle used in the test showed no obvious preference for bullet weight. Ammo consistency is so far the determining factor in repeatable precise shots.
