which Winchester 22 long rifle for target

[John G C 1]

I am looking to buy a case of winchester 22 long rifle for target shooting. The place I buy ammo from locally is a place i want to support so I buy occasionally and get whatever they have in stock. They have Wildcat 22, 222, super X, power point, HV 40 grain lead...

I realize these are different weights. some are plated, some hollow point, some lead etc.....

Is there one that those of you who use winchester 22lr find more consistent for target shooting for small groups, or is it just one of those "try em all and see which one works" situations?

Thanks

 

[243winxb]

T22 https://ammoseek.com

 

[George Dickel]

If you are into serious target shooting you need to be looking at SK, Wolf, Eley or Lapua. I shot rimfire benchrest for a number of years and cheap ammo performs like cheap ammo and I tried them all. You can get a decent group going and then a round will make that group a pattern. I have since quit serious competition benchrest but do shoot a fun match at the local club level. The people winning the matches are shooting Eley red box ammo but I use Eley black box because it a bit cheaper. If I was shooting seriously it would be red box. I have gotten good results with Norma TAC-22 and Norma Match-22 in other fun matches but the Eley black box shoots smaller groups and consistently. Nothing is more frustrating than shooting 4 rounds and then the 5th hitting an inch away from the group because that is what cheap ammo does. You will probably hear claims from some saying that they use Thunderbolts and are able to shoot a 5 shot group smaller than a dime. A blind hog also finds an acorn occasionally and consistently shooting that dime sized 5 shot group is what cheap ammo won't do.

 

[George Dickel]

I forgot to address your question on trying different brands of ammo. Yes you need to try as many different brands as you can get and different lot numbers in those brands. Back in my early benchrest shooting days Federal ammo was the bid dog that was winning all the matches, the high end stuff not the plinking grade. There was a lot number of Federal UM1 that shot fantastic in my friends rifle but did patterns in mine. Rimfire rifles are picky about the brand and lot numbers in the brand being shot. There is no rifle that shoots all brands of ammo into tiny one hole groups.

 

[ColtPythonElite]

I get the feeling the OP isn't looking for benchrest ammo, nor intends to shoot what he buys in a benchrest gun.

If he is like the average guy that I see at the range with the average plinker, he is happy with ammo that will shoot anything under 1" at 50 yards. Nothing wrong with that.

 

[Captcurt]

Few guns like the same ammo. I had a 52 Winchester that liked most match ammo but was awesome with Federal Gold Medal Match. A CZ 452 shot it well also. My new CZ 455 likes cheap Federal GameShoks. I tried some high end ammo like Eley, Federal Match, Green Tag and Lapua. It doesn't shoot as well as my Winchester but then few rifles do.

You just need to put several different brands through it and then buy a few bricks of what "IT" likes.

 

[Skylerbone]

Apparently I am that blind hog. I have shot dozens upon dozens of groups like these at 50 yards with Aguila Subsonic (which used to be $20/500) and my old Marlin 25N. The rifle was less than $90 with tax brand new, the TPS rings cost more than the rifle, and it's topped with a Nikon 2-7 X.

Most of my dozen plus rimfires will shoot a few brands of ammo with decent accuracy, not benchrest accuracy, but squirrel’s head accuracy, and don’t require Eley or Lapua to do so. Will expensive ammo shoot better? Probably, and in the right rifle you’d likely see the difference. As CPE pointed out, that’s not likely the OP’s goal.

OP, I’d look for a target velocity or subsonic, that’s probably the T22. If it doesn’t work well, move on.

 

[John G C 1]

Thanks all. I will start with T22 and go from there.

 

[George Dickel]

The OP said he wanted to target shoot and be able to shoot small groups. He didn't state that an inch group was his goal. Maybe that is what he meant but that isn't what he stated. My reply was based on what he wrote. Small groups with cheap ammo doesn't happen. To me a group is all bullet holes touching. I've shot a lot of cheap ammo through some very well built custom rifles with none giving consistent 1 inch groups. As far as the two groups posted, I didn't see them shot so I will take the claim with a grain of salt. When I can see scores posted online from an officially sanctioned competition then I'll forget the grain of salt.

 

[ford8nr]

I shoot A LOT of rimfire competition through a bench of different guns depending on the game. NO ONE is gonna convince me that cheap ammo which you can HEAR the difference in report is gonna shoot small groups. I've shot some cheap bulk ammo really well, right up to the inevitable FLIER.

 

[ford8nr]

If you want to go inexpensive CCI Std Vel is a decent reliable ammo.

What type of gun are you planning on shooting it through ? That may be as big of the part of the equation as the ammo.

 

[Don McDowell]

T22 is the best of the Winchester ammunition. If your local dealer has any Aquila Rifle Match, Norma TAC, or Norma Match give those a try. All 3 of those shoot well to 200 meters, IF your rifle likes it. Federal 711b can be a good ammunition as well.
But again, if you're looking for serious tight groups, then it takes some time and a good bit of testing to see which brand your rifle will shoot the best.

 

[ford8nr]

T22 is the best of the Winchester ammunition.

Back in the day (early / mid 70's) we ran a ton of that through Winchester 52D's.

 

[243winxb]

This works and its fun.

"try em all and see which one works"

Clean the barrel when going to a different bullet type or shoot fouling shots till accuracy settles down. Lead vs copper bullets , conditions the barrel differently.

Buy a small box of each to test. When you find the best one, go buy more of the same lot number.

 

[cp1969]

Give some consideration to CCI Standard Velocity.

 

[Skylerbone]

Ah, so now my posting of 5-shot dime size groups were not witnessed by you and they must now be officially sanctioned and scored. Got it Chief. Thank heavens I didn’t post a picture of my fancy $20 Hoppe’s rest I shot those with.

As for what the OP is wanting, he specified wanting to support his LGS who carries Winchester.

 

[ford8nr]

Ah, so now my posting of 5-shot dime size groups were not witnessed by you and they must now be officially sanctioned and scored.

I don't see why those groups aren't possible. Show me 10 consecutive groups on the same target and we can talk about consistency.

 

[Picher]

I also shot Rimfire Benchrest for several years, but that doesn't have much relevance, except for all the ammo testing necessary to find what your rifle likes best. The best advice I got early-on was to test as many different brands/types as possible and when you find one brand and LOT NUMBER that works best, buy as much of that lot as you can afford, then buy more!

One guy I knew bought several cases of a particular cheap brand of target ammo and used it in informal benchrest matches for over 10 years! Try the T22, but good luck finding the best lot#. It's not likely that you'll be able to get more than one from your buddy.

From my evaluations in the past, Winchester ammo tends to have slightly narrower rims, so it works well when headspace is tight, but CCI SV tends to have slightly thicker rims and usually shoots better in my rifles, whether that's related to rim thickness or not.

 

[Sav .250]

If I were you, I just look up the various brands/loads my self. learn a lot more. Then decided.

 

[John G C 1]

Yes, again, thanks to all.

 

[LUCKYDAWG13]

I have had good luck with Blazer

 

[bannockburn]

Most accurate Winchester .22LR ammo I found was their T22. Most consistently accurate and reliable .22LR ammo in my guns is Wolf Match Target followed by CCI MiniMags and CCI Standard Velocity.