What .22lr Ammo Do You Actually Carry?

[gwbasley]

I know that the subject of .22lr ballistics has been rehashed many times, but, when all is said and done, what do you actually load in your mini for self defense carry?

[boone123]

gw--
Whatever hollow points I can buy that will go off the most.
I guess if somebody said, today your going to need good ammo in your mini to save your butt, probably, CCI Mini Mags, if for no other reason than because I already have some, and I have never had a FTF with one. By the same token because I shoot so much, I don't shoot a lot of them, due to cost..

[MR_22]

Stingers in .22LR, Gold Dots in .22Magnum. Haven't carried .22LR for awhile, tho.

[RogueTS1]

CCI Velocitors.

[Rapalyea]

I have been shooting .22 mags and LR rounds of all sorts and have come to the conclusion the 60gr Aquilla LR is not only better then other .22 rounds. But is as good or better then .22 Magnum rounds.

But the weather is warming up and I will try some other test. Lots of time. Lots of Ammo. Plenty of available Shooting Range!

[cfsharry]

gw,
CCI Velocitors.  But the Mini, when carried, is a backup to something more potent.
Rap,
You dropped out of the thread you started regarding the sub sonic Aquilla round. There is no way, in my humble opinion, that the numbers support your supposition. Physics is physics and I see no probability of getting better performance with a lesser energy expenditure.

[Dinadan]

Gwbasley - For LR I carry CCI Velocitors or Aguila Interceptors. I do not do gelatin tests, but I have shot some ammo into various mediums, mostly books or book/foam layers to test penetration and expansion. The Velocitors and Interceptors perform best of LR rounds that I have tested. That comports well with the muzzle velocity tests that I have seen. Next choice would be CCI 40gr Minimags. I always choose 40gr over lighter, faster, bullets.

I have tried Aguila SSS rounds and the soft 60gr bullets do expand when fired into a hard medium like a book at a range of a few feet. In my tests they did not penetrate as deep as some other rounds. They also tend to tumble out of most guns (I have read that) and they certainly do out of the Minis that I tried them in. That probably will not affect accuracy or velocity enough to matter at a range of less than ten feet, but if you live in a cold climate where bad guys are likely to wear thick clothing it could make them less effective.

Overall, I like CCI better than other brands, though I am willing to let Aguila persuade me. Velocitors and Minimags are just good rounds. 

[PRM]

In the age of "Barry O,"  I've been pretty happy with whatever I can find.

[gwbasley]

I used to use Stingers but got concerned with fragmentation, so I switched up to solid 40gr Ammo.

[tocsn40]

Cold be said the first box I grab

[Goatpacker]

Got lots of ammo but don't carry the LR!!! I carry one with 5 Gold Dots, one with first 2 CCI Shotshells and other three Maxi-Mag+V's, and the third with short hp's!!! If they made Short shotshells the third would have 2 of those up front!!!

[RogueTS1]

Tocsn40; I believe you may have a little bit more .22 than I do. I will have to do something about that if I can ever find any around here. I supposedly have a line on a crate of Remington Goldens; hopefully I can score it to bring my .22lr supply back up to acceptable levels.

[tocsn40]

Yaa I buy when I see it on the shelf. I do have few more that have not made it to the shelf

[boone123]

Its pretty bad when it takes a picture to remind people what boxs of 22s look like...

[OV-1D]

Its pretty bad when it takes a picture to remind people what boxs of 22s look like...

HaHaHaHaHa , nostalgia !!! 

[MadDogStafford]

It sucks to be me...all I have are some .22 shot shells. 

P.S. no .22 ammo around me here in MO.

[boone123]

I shoot a lot, but I hound Wal Mart pretty hard about 3 nights a week when there might be ammo on the trucks that come in.
I have been around so much that a couple of people in the sporting goods will go back and check to see if there is any 22s on the trucks. They know that I am not a hoarder, and that I shoot what I buy, and that helps my cause. When they do get 22s in, I buy the 3 packs that I am allowed, call my wife, pick her up and deposit her at Wal Marts door, stuff a bunch of money in her hand, and get 3 more packs. That makes 6 bulk packs that never make Gunbroker. About the only conversation we have on those little trips is, slow down, your gonna get a ticket.   So far, so good...
The 550 Federal bulk packs we got Mon. night were $23.97 plus tax. I can only hope that when this crappy time in history is over, that the price will come back down.  And the quality will go back up..

[RogueTS1]

Tocsn40; I believe you may have a little bit more .22 than I do. I will have to do something about that if I can ever find any around here. I supposedly have a line on a crate of Remington Goldens; hopefully I can score it to bring my .22lr supply back up to acceptable levels.

Correction; when I went to the closet yesterday I took a glance and then starting counting a bit. I have way more than I thought and probably a little bit more than you. Still not enough though.

[TwoGunJayne]

Never enough.

[tocsn40]

When you can shoot 500 rounds in one outing what I have is not that much.  Last year went out with 50 rounds and a old single shot took me back a little bit to shoot that many as a single shot

[OV-1D]

  That's probably the best shooting anyone can do , a whole lot of fun .

[gunfitrip]

My buddy and I did a lot of .22 shooting for many years.  We don't shoot as much but take more time on mechanics.  We talk a little more and rib each other more.  I have found that regular old lead .40 grain Federals are one of the most reliable and hot rounds around.  Remington Thunderbolts seem to misfire about 1-2 rounds per 50.  When I carry the LR cylinder in the BW, I carry Stingers or Aguila 60 grain subsonic. 

[Moderndayedison]

If I didn't know any better I'd think someone was getting
ready for a Zombie Squirrel Apocalypse or something.

I have found Remington Viper high velocity .22LR rounds
to be the most reliable and accurate ammo for my BW
conversion, they have a wax like coating on them, I guess
to aid in getting the bullet through the barrel making it
more stable in flight making it less likely to keyhole I guess.

TheY just seem to be the most accurate and reliable
through my Black Widow in my experience. And I shot
allot of different types of .22 ammo through it right
after I got it to see what it could do.

Quite a versatile little revolver.
I haven't been disappointed.


-MDE

[RogueTS1]

When the mood strikes us to go shooting we like to be able to just grab several boxes, load up and go. No running to the store to find what you need and then waiting in line before being able to head out and have some gun fun. Just head out and go shooting; so a well supplied ammo room is a necessity.

[OV-1D]

  Plus 1 on that . 

[TwoGunJayne]

Too bad the thread is called "What .22lr ammo," else I'd say .22 pellet!

During this whole shortage, I must have shot ten thousand times as many pellets as rimfire. A good .22 pellet rifle will work about as well as a .22 short from a long barrel.

We've had pellets this whole time. The panic buyers and the gougers never seemed to catch on to this. Shoot all you want!

I've had my eye on that new Air Force Condor SS suppressor gun in .25... and that Evanix GTK sniper in 9mm@850fps.

[MadDogStafford]

Heh! TwoGunJayne, I got .177 and .22 BBs and Pellet guns covered here! 

[ikoiko]

There's this guy in Hawaii that has the Evanix rainstorm 2 in 9mm that is very successful taking hogs with it. He has various other caliber evanix also. Likes them a lot. Powerful and accurate.

I shoot mainly pellets my self. Lot of fun.

[TwoGunJayne]

Never heard a bad word about Evanix. Apparently, they are the cat's meow as far as airguns. They don't just offer .177. They go up to 9mm, AFAIK.

I've wanted a 9mm or .50 pellet gun ever since I've heard of them. I'll get one someday.

[ikoiko]

Evanix is working on, or now has .45 & .50 cal too.

[cfsharry]

On their website they show .17, .22 and .25 caliber pellets. What is being used as the projectile in the larger calibers? What kind of muzzel velocities are being obtained?

[TwoGunJayne]

The MV on the .50 cal air pellet rifle is atrocious. It might represent an old old .50 black powder muzzle loader with a homemade charge at extreme range.

The key on these guns is to know the maximum range. I've read few range results from hunters that did not also reflector-tag a known distance from a hide.

From the "word around the campfire," I heard that "shot placement was king."

You've got to understand, to stay initially subsonic is really important for airguns in general. It is the variations of pellet weight, barrel length (to a degree,) and power plant that ultimately makes the difference. I recall a "story" about a steel BB gun that was "too good," yet it was of a single-stroke design.

Unless you can keep the projectile supersonic until point of impact, accuracy will suffer. I thought I heard someone somewhere say that "only accurate guns are interesting."

The problem with the "supersonic until impact" theory is that it imposes a maximum range limitation by destabilization.

PHEW!

Anyway, sorry about that.

I'm a big fan of steel and plastic sub caliber pellets at 300-950 fps, depending upon platform. To play this game can be surprisingly cheap. Most of what I'm talking about will shred soda cans at close range and is definitely NOT for amateur night, nor without proper gear. Some do close quarters, some pop paper or whatever.

.22? You mean like in my BOB? It is certainly easy to carry 100 rounds of shorts, isn't it?

The Italian military air rifle that inspired a treaty never broke supersonic. You know, the Lewis and Clark one? Anyway, The kinds of possibilities as far as muzzle velocity can vary in the extreme as far as barrel length. Air guns tend to need every advantage that they can scrape up.

Muzzle speed is one thing, but downrange retained energy and other projectile factors really come into play. Oh yeah, ever ran a search engine check for "shot placement" terms?

[ikoiko]

JSB makes .30 cal pellets. There are at least 3 major manufacturers for 9mm.

I don't understand what 2 gun is saying. AFAIK staying subsonic is important to pellet stability. Will defer to those using cast slugs for their optimal speed. Velocity of 950fps and a bit lower seem to be optimal for accuracy. A lot depends on barrel, pellet, and speed. Gurus on airgun forums do lots of testing.
I have no chrony. Am easily able to keep .5 inch groups in both .22 & .25 using a rest at 50 yards. Pellet passes thru both sides of steel can and lodges in wood.

You will likely need to join a forum to ask your ballistic questions.

http://www.network54.com/Forum/79537/

http://talonairgun.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=22

Other forums also. Shot placement, as always, is important.

[OV-1D]

You just used a whole bunch of words and managed to say almost nothing.  Ever thought about a career in politics?

  Harry you certainly cut through chase and give no quarter .    Your avatar should be a porcupine . HaHaHa.

[cfsharry]

Ikoiko,
As always, a thoughtful response, thank you.
The reason I ask is that I've been of the understanding that pigs die hard.  Have also heard that they can get mean and ornery when not killed outright.  As a result, I have been of the opinion that 9mm is under gunned when hunting them.
Your post resulted in the realization that air guns have apparently come a long way since I last owned one.  Need to learn more.
OV,
One of my many faults is impatience with verbosity passing itself off as wisdom.  I'll try to do better.