federal .22 junk?
- Thread starter spuscg
- Start date
- Status
Nugilum
Member
How old were these rounds? What type of Federals?
alsaqr
Member
Bet that the firing pin was all gummed up. Over the past 15 years I have fired about 40,000 rounds of Federal .22 rimfire ammo and never had a FTF.
.38 Special
Member
- Joined
- Sep 15, 2006
- Messages
- 7,369
With all due respect, doesn't "Hey, my gun was really dirty, jammed a lot, and didn't always fire. Must've been the ammo" sound a bit silly to you?
Dirt in and around the chamber can prevent a round from seating fully. Some of the energy from the firing pin blow is then used to fully seat the round, meaning the actual blow from the pin against the rim is significantly lighter. In a truly dirty gun, the firing pin movement can itself be retarded by gum, grit, etc.
You might have bad ammo, though I am unaware of Federal having a reputation for unreliability. What you do know is that your gun is dirty. Clean the gun to rule out (or in) the obvious problem, then worry about the ammo.
Dirt in and around the chamber can prevent a round from seating fully. Some of the energy from the firing pin blow is then used to fully seat the round, meaning the actual blow from the pin against the rim is significantly lighter. In a truly dirty gun, the firing pin movement can itself be retarded by gum, grit, etc.
You might have bad ammo, though I am unaware of Federal having a reputation for unreliability. What you do know is that your gun is dirty. Clean the gun to rule out (or in) the obvious problem, then worry about the ammo.
MinnMooney
Member
I haven't bought Federal in a while 'cause my Grandma, 2 aunts and cousin all worked at Fed. Cart. in Anoka, MN and gave me boxes and boxes of 'seconds' for my B-Days and X-mas. I would probably receive 2000-3000 .22LRs (along with a multitude of 12ga. 'seconds' every year. That was in 1958-1966. I lived in the cities so I couldn't shoot as often as I'd like so I never came close to using up my stash.
Fast Forward - 2008 :
I still have several thousand and just started shooting them again last year. Absolutely NO FTF dudes!
Are they producing inferior .22s now or is your firing pin/striker weak or gummed up?
Stating the obvious (& the truth).
Fast Forward - 2008 :
I still have several thousand and just started shooting them again last year. Absolutely NO FTF dudes!
Are they producing inferior .22s now or is your firing pin/striker weak or gummed up?
Stating the obvious (& the truth).
.38 Special
Member
- Joined
- Sep 15, 2006
- Messages
- 7,369
"I've had bad luck with Remington .22 ammo..."
You ain't the only one, brother. If there's a brand with a bad reputation, it's Remington.
Countdown until someone angrily defends Remington...
You ain't the only one, brother. If there's a brand with a bad reputation, it's Remington.
Countdown until someone angrily defends Remington...
41magsnub
Member
In this type of thread you guys need to be as SPECIFIC as possible as to what brand/ammo you are referring to. Each MFG has one or more value and premium lines with all points in between covered. Otherwise it is a waste of bandwidth.
CH47gunner
Member
Very rarely have ftf's - And I use the Federal American Eagle 38gn HP's in every .22 I own. They do happen but, not often like some of the other bulk stuff I've tried.
Bruce
Bruce
gidaeon
Member
I've noticed differences between different batches personally. My latest Federal Champion value box was really, really bad, worse for my Ruger .22 than the much maligned Remington golden stuff.
Funderb
Member
I shoot a lot of federal, it seems to do okay, but I run into a few dislodged primers in the batch.
edit - sorry, federal value pack, 550 ct. walmart stuff.
edit - sorry, federal value pack, 550 ct. walmart stuff.
Last edited:
HM2PAC
Member
Fed Bulk Pack is just fine for my 10/22 and S&W 22A1.
I have found that 22LR's that have feed problems are either dirty or have too much oil that becomes sludge in the chamber.
I have found that 22LR's that have feed problems are either dirty or have too much oil that becomes sludge in the chamber.
41magsnub
Member
Federal what? That is like saying I drive a Ford.
22-rimfire
Member
The Federal load number is on the box. Please be specific.
In general, I have fewer problems with Federal ammo than I do with everything other general preformance brand other than CCI. I really don't shoot CCI ammo much myself. But it usually works.
I suggest you give you Marlin a thorough cleaning (and I mean thorough) and then try it out again. Then get back to us.
In general, I have fewer problems with Federal ammo than I do with everything other general preformance brand other than CCI. I really don't shoot CCI ammo much myself. But it usually works.
I suggest you give you Marlin a thorough cleaning (and I mean thorough) and then try it out again. Then get back to us.
6 years ago I bought my last Federal Rimfire. Gold Medal target, about $30 for a brick, had at least 2 failures to fire per 50. I had that experience with other Federal too. Their priming is not what I care for. CCI, PMC seem to have the most reliable rimfire priming for the cheap stuff.
EricTheBarbarian
Member
the federal bulk pack from wal mart is great ammo. Ive found the remington thunderbolt and american eagle .22 to be crap, at least in my marlin-60 or any ruger 10/22 ive shot.
Yes, it seems to be fairly important to keep my marlin model 60 clean or you get failure to feeds(ftf) or were you saying failure to fire? The feed ramp I clean up with some hoppes q tips and a brass brush, while the action I spray down with breakfree CLP and then blow off with compressed air. It is not necessary to take all of the little springs and pieces parts apart. You'll be surprised how much better it works when its actually clean.
Everyone who shot rifleman (210 or better) on the AQT with a .22 at the appleseed shoot last weekend was using the federal bulk pack
Yes, it seems to be fairly important to keep my marlin model 60 clean or you get failure to feeds(ftf) or were you saying failure to fire? The feed ramp I clean up with some hoppes q tips and a brass brush, while the action I spray down with breakfree CLP and then blow off with compressed air. It is not necessary to take all of the little springs and pieces parts apart. You'll be surprised how much better it works when its actually clean.
Everyone who shot rifleman (210 or better) on the AQT with a .22 at the appleseed shoot last weekend was using the federal bulk pack
JImbothefiveth
Member
The federal value pack is my favorite plinking ammo, and yeah, it does fail to fire a lot. But at least it's more reliable than remington thunderbolts, and where I live, you can get 500 thunderbolts or 525 federals for the same price.
It should be avoided for hunting, self-defense, and benchrest work, as well as match shooting.
It should be avoided for hunting, self-defense, and benchrest work, as well as match shooting.
aka108
Member
For bulk ammo, the Federal product seems pretty good. I've had no problems. Remington bulk has been problematic. Many FTF. I don't buy it any more. In this area Federal is the lesser priced of the two.
Rokman
Member
I have shot a lot of the Federal bulk ammo without problems. I like better that the bulk Remington Golden bullets. It seems to be pretty good plinking ammo for the money.
Mike U.
Member
My .22 guns include a late '70's Marlin Model 60, a Winchester Model 150 Lever action and a Ruger Mark II bull barrel. I also have access to a Remington Nylon 66(nice rifle).
My experience with the major .22 LR ammo manufacturers:
Remington Golden bullets=no joy!
Remington bulk packs are a last resort for me. Very shoddy consistency from round to round. For example, rounds sound like BANG! BANG! pop! bang! PFFT! pop! bang! pop! Pfft...
Federal has been decent overall...bulk packs are pretty decent too. Good consistency from round to round and good accuracy overall.
Winchester has been better than the above two makers in my guns in the areas of consistency and accuracy.
CCI is consistently the best out of my guns. Great overall quality control and results are consistent. The best of the big makers that can be found at the big box Walmart type stores.
My experience with the major .22 LR ammo manufacturers:
Remington Golden bullets=no joy!
Remington bulk packs are a last resort for me. Very shoddy consistency from round to round. For example, rounds sound like BANG! BANG! pop! bang! PFFT! pop! bang! pop! Pfft...
Federal has been decent overall...bulk packs are pretty decent too. Good consistency from round to round and good accuracy overall.
Winchester has been better than the above two makers in my guns in the areas of consistency and accuracy.
CCI is consistently the best out of my guns. Great overall quality control and results are consistent. The best of the big makers that can be found at the big box Walmart type stores.
MIL-DOT
member
I've been shooting a few hundred rounds a week ( of wally world Fed. bulk ) for several weeks now in my stainless model 60, and had my first FTF last Sunday. Overall, I guess it's OK, but from what I read here and on other forums ( mostly here) the Fed stuff was great in a model 60, but we see lots of light or hot loaded rounds, screwing up otherwise nice patterns. If this stuff cost $5 a pack, I wouldn't bitch, but now at $14+, I think it's borderline crap. I'm bummed to keep hearing that it's the best of the decently priced stuff.
Bartkowski
Member
I know that no one else thinks this but I have found remington thunderbolts to be the best of the cheap bulk ammo. It was always consistent for me.
The federal 550 packs are good too, but aren't as consistent for me.
The federal 550 packs are good too, but aren't as consistent for me.
- Status
