.22 LR ammo choices

[alamo5000]

I have a Kidd 10/22 that shoots extremely good, however the ammo that my rifle liked the best was discontinued by Federal quite a while back. The Gold Medal Ultramatch was some really good stuff.

I haven't really shopped for .22 ammo for quite a while but I am wondering if you guys wouldn't mind chiming in and offering the dope on alternative options. Super accurate (and super expensive) rimfire ammo is a thing unto itself and honestly something I haven't pursued really. I see some various brands that (I think) are all basically imported from Europe but I know very little about those companies as I haven't really gone down that rabbit hole very much.

Ultramatch used to be all over the shelves so I could go grab some if I felt the need to really show how accurate my rifle could be but since it's gone I've just been shooting a lot of relatively cheap subsonic ammo designed for semi auto suppressed shooting.

Basically I don't really want to spend a shoe box full of $20's on just some random ammo. I figure it's fair to say I need some education on that niche area. Once I have a better idea in my mind of course I can easily buy a few boxes to see which one my rifle likes best. As for right now brands like SK, Eley, Lapua, Geco, and several others all have numerous lines within the same brands so I don't know what all the primary differences are and which ones are supposed to be the best or do different from the others.

If someone has the dirt and background info please help me learn what I am looking at.

 

[littlepod]

For me - time = money. Spending time re-doping, rezeoring, remeasuring groups everytime I bought a new brick of ammo was a big time and money sink.

Then I went to goodshootinginc.com bought dozens of lots of ammo, SK+, Pistol Match Special, Eley Target, Eley Contact, they will send 1 box each lot. You get 2 weeks to test them and they hold a case for you for each of the lots they send you. Then you buy a case on what shot best, and never have to recheck stuff again for a year.

I shoot a lot less now, since i know exactly how the ammo performs, and I'm only shooting to do practice for NRL22/PRS.

 

[alamo5000]

For me - time = money. Spending time re-doping, rezeoring, remeasuring groups everytime I bought a new brick of ammo was a big time and money sink.

Then I went to goodshootinginc.com bought dozens of lots of ammo, SK+, Pistol Match Special, Eley Target, Eley Contact, they will send 1 box each lot. You get 2 weeks to test them and they hold a case for you for each of the lots they send you. Then you buy a case on what shot best, and never have to recheck stuff again for a year.

I shoot a lot less now, since i know exactly how the ammo performs, and I'm only shooting to do practice for NRL22/PRS.

That is obviously a very good option for that specialized need and I definitely see the value in that. That said now that I am looking around for alternatives from Ultramatch, say I see Lapua, but they have Midas, Center X, Biathlon, X-Act, and others. Other brands also have a variety of 'options' leaving me too many choices to feasibly try them all, at least at first, especially when there are 5 to 10 options just within one given brand.

I am not really looking to get into competitive pistol or rimfire rifle competitions... what my end goal is, is to practice out to longer ranges with a rimfire. For that I need reasonably stable muzzle velocities and acceptable accuracy. If I can do that with the best (but cheapest among my options) ammo that will be good.

I will still shoot my relatively cheap suppressor ammo but when I want to 'for real' practice I don't want to get frustrated by my ammo. All of my shooting is strictly for fun and with literally every other caliber I can reload for them. With all the others I can make my own ammo suited for my needs. For example if friends are coming over I can load up 55 grain 223 ammo with some range brass and we can blast it out of a 10.5" SBR all day without spending a ton of time trying to get match accuracy.

With .22 though I am pretty much stuck with what's available on the streets--and with somewhere between 50 and 100 possible options I am kind of getting a little overload on the branding.

 

[jetjock07]

If your wanting good Ammo with good consistency I would focus on Lapua or SK. With Lapua, try Midas + and Center X and with SK try Rifle Match, Pistol Match Special and Standard Plus. From my test Lapua had better overall SD’s but I got better groups with SK Rifle Match and SK Standard Plus. I don’t think you could go wrong with any of those 5 but typically SK is about half the price.

 

[straightshooter1]

That is obviously a very good option for that specialized need and I definitely see the value in that. That said now that I am looking around for alternatives from Ultramatch, say I see Lapua, but they have Midas, Center X, Biathlon, X-Act, and others. Other brands also have a variety of 'options' leaving me too many choices to feasibly try them all, at least at first, especially when there are 5 to 10 options just within one given brand.

I am not really looking to get into competitive pistol or rimfire rifle competitions... what my end goal is, is to practice out to longer ranges with a rimfire. For that I need reasonably stable muzzle velocities and acceptable accuracy. If I can do that with the best (but cheapest among my options) ammo that will be good.

I will still shoot my relatively cheap suppressor ammo but when I want to 'for real' practice I don't want to get frustrated by my ammo. All of my shooting is strictly for fun and with literally every other caliber I can reload for them. With all the others I can make my own ammo suited for my needs. For example if friends are coming over I can load up 55 grain 223 ammo with some range brass and we can blast it out of a 10.5" SBR all day without spending a ton of time trying to get match accuracy.

With .22 though I am pretty much stuck with what's available on the streets--and with somewhere between 50 and 100 possible options I am kind of getting a little overload on the branding.

The Ultramatch that I have, which I bought just a couple years back, was really just rebranded RWS R50 for Federal. So, for you're Ultramatch replacement . . . look to the R50.

For something a little less expensive, I'd highly recommend Center-X or for a little less expense something like Eley Club or SK Match. But generally, I'd say look to Lapua, RWS, Eley or SK for the ammo that might work best in you particular gun.

 

[walldog]

My Kidd rifle likes Eley Contact about the best and SK "anything" right behind it. Normally, Creedmore Sports is where I buy my SK ($ 5.00 Shipping) and Goodshooting everything else.

 

[BugIn762]

I have had excellent results in my Annie 54 Match and CZ 455 varmint with the CMP Eley standard. 7 cents a round.

 

[Jadams]

I’ve done extensive Ammo testing with my Kidd Super Grade over the last three years. SK Long Range and SK rifle match offer the best accuracy/ value especially at 100 yards plus. Eley Match and Club are equally accurate but the thick wax lube gums up the action quickly requiring the action be disassembled and cleaned frequently. A good lot of SK long range will consistently hold .2 to .3” 5 shot groups at 50yards and .7 to .8 at 100 yards In my Kidd SG plus it’s the flattest shooting round ideal for NRL.22.

 

[isofahunter]

Center X

 

[justin amateur]

Almost everything I do is shot a 200 yards.

I document the results, including mv's.
Every flavor of rimfire I can get my hands on.

Compare results for yourself.
Then make a decision.

50 at 200

I think I've come up with a useful scenario...maybe. :rolleyes: 50 shots at 200 yards, rimfire, whatever setup makes you happy. 22lr, 17 hmr, 22wmr, 17hm2, 17wsm, all brands, all types. Full benchrest setup, bipod, bags or one-piece test rest, it doesn't matter. Grab a chunk of cardboard, about...

www.rimfirecentral.com

 

[ggladck]

I've found SK match to work as well as CCI SV for me (T1x). Cost was a big reason for rimfire, so I'm ok with giving up marginal gains to stick with CCI SV.

 

[alamo5000]

Thanks for all the responses so far. Please keep em coming. When I get a minute I will look up the details on each suggestion. I particularly like the listing of sources of ammo as well. That definitely helps.

Like I was saying above...there are a TON of different types of ammo (even under the same brand name) thus making it more difficult to narrow down on my own.

 

[Mr. Wolf]

My 10/22 TD likes Aguilla Rifle Match and loves the Fed Premium Match. (Photo 1, 5 shot groups at 25 yds)
My bolt action Savage 22 likes CCI SV but they are not as consistent lot to lot. (Photo 2, 5 shots at 25 yds)
As with anything rimfire, YMMV but I suppose that’s 1/2 the fun of shooting rimfires.

 

[st1650]

I've found SK match to work as well as CCI SV for me (T1x). Cost was a big reason for rimfire, so I'm ok with giving up marginal gains to stick with CCI SV.

I'm a big big fan of CCI SV for the cost ... it's unbeatable and in my RimX, I have very good consistency with the velocity.

 

[littlepod]

That is obviously a very good option for that specialized need and I definitely see the value in that. That said now that I am looking around for alternatives from Ultramatch, say I see Lapua, but they have Midas, Center X, Biathlon, X-Act, and others. Other brands also have a variety of 'options' leaving me too many choices to feasibly try them all, at least at first, especially when there are 5 to 10 options just within one given brand.

I am not really looking to get into competitive pistol or rimfire rifle competitions... what my end goal is, is to practice out to longer ranges with a rimfire. For that I need reasonably stable muzzle velocities and acceptable accuracy. If I can do that with the best (but cheapest among my options) ammo that will be good.

I will still shoot my relatively cheap suppressor ammo but when I want to 'for real' practice I don't want to get frustrated by my ammo. All of my shooting is strictly for fun and with literally every other caliber I can reload for them. With all the others I can make my own ammo suited for my needs. For example if friends are coming over I can load up 55 grain 223 ammo with some range brass and we can blast it out of a 10.5" SBR all day without spending a ton of time trying to get match accuracy.

With .22 though I am pretty much stuck with what's available on the streets--and with somewhere between 50 and 100 possible options I am kind of getting a little overload on the branding.

You will end up buying the ammo one way or another. So I would say do the lot testing, and buy the ammo. You're not really losing much except a $50 upfront investment in some different things to try out. goodshootinginc.com has different lots to try out, you can give them a call.

I generally like to focus on the $5-8 price range per box.
SK Standard Plus - $5.50
SK Pistol Match Special - $6.50
SK Rifle Club - $7.50
Eley Target - $5.50
Eley Contact - $5.50
Eley Force - $5.50

I tested 4 lots of SK Standard Plus, one shot 20% better in my rifle, and I ordered a case of it. My SK+ has an SD of 8-9, which puts it better than most of my other ammo.

You said you were coming from Ultra Match which if it's RWS 50 is $17 a box putting it up there with things like Eley Match, Tenex, and Midas+ I don't like paying that much for ammo if you're not really doing competitions.

 

[DownhillFromHere]

First, pick a price point -

• Dirt cheap bulk ammo - whatever. Or get a slingshot and bucket o' ball bearings.
• $3 per 50: CCI SV. More than $3 a box is too much. I use it for positional practice out to 100 yards on 2-MOA targets, but never for anything serious.
• $4-6: SK Standard Plus. I know a few people who run it in matches. Get a lot that your rifle likes, it can be amazing for the $$.
• $6-8 - SK Rifle Match, Long Range Match, Pistol Match, etc.
• $10-11: Lapua Center-X. Good Shooting Inc. has it for $10.50 last time I checked. Lots of places sell it for MUCH more.
• $12-16: Lapua Midas+. Again, Good Shooting Inc. has best pricing day in / day out.
• > $16: I've never shot any of those labels.

I've played with Eley Edge and Eley Match (pretty much analogous to Center-X and Midas+ in Lapua). My Vudoo liked the Match pretty well in terms of accuracy but the flat-point bullets were too prone to jam in the magazines when running the bolt fast. It didn't like Edge (same bullet, different "level" of consistency) at all - at least my lot of it - but a buddy's CZ-455 shoots it like lasers.

Then, call Good Shooting Inc. and get a box or two of the brands at your price point, and test away, then order a case or two of the lot that speaks to you.

Another option you have is to send (or take) your rifle to Lapua's test center in Arizona, or take it to the one in Ohio. See this SH article for why how and wherefore. My personal experience is recounted here. If you want your rifle tested with anything other than Lapua labels, you have to provide it. I had my rifle tested with Center-X and Midas+ because the Vudoo V-22 chamber was designed around that bullet. While Midas+ performed "better" than Center-X, the average difference of a couple millimeters at 100 meters wasn't worth a 40% price premium. Much more info via the links shown. Lapua testing is a screaming deal for the $$.

 

[alamo5000]

Thanks again for the many worthy suggestions. Cost of ammo isn't an absolute deal breaker for me. I just want to get something that is basically 'good enough' for my purposes. Once I find a couple of options that test well more likely than not I will buy 5,000 to 10,000 rounds of it and have that set aside ONLY for specific purposes.

I definitely will do testing for sure. That's always been in the cards. That said once I got to looking there were so many choices it's a bit overwhelming. I will most likely get maybe an assortment of say 10 boxes of stuff and keep notes on what was good and bad about each and go from there.

 

[hlee]

Center X is the best bang/dollar value in my rifle. I Haven’t lot tested it, but every lot I’ve bought has been sub moa from my rifle (Kidd super grade). That is sufficiently precise to make misses my problem and not a gun/ammo issue in PRS/nrl22 style comps.

 

[alamo5000]

Center X is the best bang/dollar value in my rifle. I Haven’t lot tested it, but every lot I’ve bought has been sub moa from my rifle (Kidd super grade). That is sufficiently precise to make misses my problem and not a gun/ammo issue in PRS/nrl22 style comps.

This is the ultimate goal...ie to leave me nothing (or no one) else to blame. LOL!

 

[DownhillFromHere]

This is the ultimate goal...ie to leave me nothing (or no one) else to blame. LOL!

Heh. Not hap'nin with .22. I've got Lapua-tested-in-my-rifle Center-X as well as boxes of a couple other previous lots. I was collecting dope at 150 yards on paper target, calm day... nine rounds land in a round sub-two-inch group... fire #10... whereizzit... oh. Three inches under the first nine, three inches under the ten to follow.

Because it's .22.

 

[fencewire]

SK variations are what I use. I ran quite a few through just to test initially, then settled on the SK line for best value when figuring accuracy/cost.

 

[Yoteman2]

Like most have said brand lot testing a giving
My Annie like center x, loves Midas+
However bought 2boxes of Geco auto match (just because I never shot it)
My sons Kidd 10/22 shot it great at 50 yards
My Bergara b14r shot it outstanding, 10 shot groups at 50 yards all stayed inside 1/2 dot for all 6 groups
Not a lot of testing I know, but bought 3 bricks of same lot#
Best advice I can give find which ammo you an rifle can shoot
Then buy all of that lot# you can
Trust me it will save you money and headaches in the long run
Yote

 

[st1650]

Anyone chronoed CenterX ? Not too impressed with the SD, was actually quite worst than CCI SV.

 

[straightshooter1]

Anyone chronoed CenterX ? Not too impressed with the SD, was actually quite worst than CCI SV.

The lot of Center-X that I have does quite well and gives me very good results on paper from my RPRR with a Shaw match barrel. 15 10shots and average SD is 7.2 with an ES's averaging 24 fps. I don't expect to get that out of other lots as I can't imagine getting much better from rimfires.

 

[chevy_man]

I didn't realize ultramatch was done again. Our local store has cases of it they can't sell for $18/box.

If federal would just make it consistently available I'd try it. I think most people are like me thinking why pay $180/brick for ammo I can't lot test or get in the future.

 

[straightshooter1]

I didn't realize ultramatch was done again. Our local store has cases of it they can't sell for $18/box.

If federal would just make it consistently available I'd try it. I think most people are like me thinking why pay $180/brick for ammo I can't lot test or get in the future.

The Ultramatch that I still have was produced in Germany by RWS and it's essentially RWS's R50 that was rebranded in recent years for Federal to be sold in the U.S. So, if you really like Ultramatch, then look to RWS R50. . . and the price is pretty much the same too.

 

[chevy_man]

The Ultramatch that I still have was produced in Germany by RWS and it's essentially RWS's R50 that was rebranded in recent years for Federal to be sold in the U.S. So, if you really like Ultramatch, then look to RWS R50. . . and the price is pretty much the same too.

RWS didn't shoot well at all for me.

I was hoping Federal would bring back their original ultramatch. I have plenty of SK/Lapua to choose from though.

 

[gkgeiger]

I’m shooting SK Rifle Match in my BR gun and it’s doing well. Waiting to hear back from Lapua on a test session.

 

[acudaowner]

my 22lr seems to really like the sk red box we got sd's in the 6.9's and they have been true to that over two years of buying them for us and the sk yellow box we got sd's of 7.9 love both of them so far have not tried the laupa 22's yet though i have see and heard good things about them . If we are just plinking at steel I love the cci for the cost we got sd's of 9.3 for the mini mag and 13.7 for the standards but at 6 cents per round when we got them I did not expect them to be great just fun to shoot . Good luck finding which 22lr brand works best out of your gun .

 

[TheGoatMumbler]

I have a Kidd 10/22 that shoots extremely good, however the ammo that my rifle liked the best was discontinued by Federal quite a while back. The Gold Medal Ultramatch was some really good stuff.

I haven't really shopped for .22 ammo for quite a while but I am wondering if you guys wouldn't mind chiming in and offering the dope on alternative options. Super accurate (and super expensive) rimfire ammo is a thing unto itself and honestly something I haven't pursued really. I see some various brands that (I think) are all basically imported from Europe but I know very little about those companies as I haven't really gone down that rabbit hole very much.

Ultramatch used to be all over the shelves so I could go grab some if I felt the need to really show how accurate my rifle could be but since it's gone I've just been shooting a lot of relatively cheap subsonic ammo designed for semi auto suppressed shooting.

Basically I don't really want to spend a shoe box full of $20's on just some random ammo. I figure it's fair to say I need some education on that niche area. Once I have a better idea in my mind of course I can easily buy a few boxes to see which one my rifle likes best. As for right now brands like SK, Eley, Lapua, Geco, and several others all have numerous lines within the same brands so I don't know what all the primary differences are and which ones are supposed to be the best or do different from the others.

If someone has the dirt and background info please help me learn what I am looking at.

Several shoot well in mine. You can check out mt tests here.

 

[fencewire]

Several shoot well in mine. You can check out mt tests here.

Add the SK Standard, it's 2$ cheaper than the rifle match and the 10/22 I have likes it better than the Rifle Match... good video !

 

[justin amateur]

That was fun.
Reading about all those likes and dislikes.
Kinda makes ya' wonder just what the heck is going on?
Why are the results all over the place from the same brand?
Isn't ammo quality supposed to be a constant? It ain't?
Ya' mean to tell me that one box of rimfire isn't the same as the next from the same brand?
Is it possible that all those likes and dislikes are due to cartridge quality variations,
caused by differences in components and tolerance differences on the assembly line?
Can't be! That would mean that if ya' got a good batch of CCI SV ya' would end up with decent results,
and if'n ya' got a batch from late Friday afternoon before a holiday weekend, there's a good chance
that that same rifle would hate it. Noooooooooo! Tell me ain't so!
That would mean "find the brand y'er rifle likes is a lie!

Wize-adze? Who? Me?

 

[Yoteman2]

That was fun.
Reading about all those likes and dislikes.
Kinda makes ya' wonder just what the heck is going on?
Why are the results all over the place from the same brand?
Isn't ammo quality supposed to be a constant? It ain't?
Ya' mean to tell me that one box of rimfire isn't the same as the next from the same brand?
Is it possible that all those likes and dislikes are due to cartridge quality variations,
caused by differences in components and tolerance differences on the assembly line?
Can't be! That would mean that if ya' got a good batch of CCI SV ya' would end up with decent results,
and if'n ya' got a batch from late Friday afternoon before a holiday weekend, there's a good chance
that that same rifle would hate it. Noooooooooo! Tell me ain't so!
That would mean "find the brand y'er rifle likes is a lie!

Wize-adze? Who? Me?

Damm Justin just laugh my @$$ off
Why is it so hard for shooters understand
It frigging 22lr, nothing consistency about it.
Yea I hate to spend all that money lot testing, but if you want the most out of your rig ya got to
Or just shoot at 8”to 10” steel
Out to say 150 yards an use what ever
Sorry for the rant, but it too makes me laugh

 

[alamo5000]

Rather than starting a new thread I am reviving a bit of an older thread. Now that I have my new optic I have so far taken my 10/22 out to 300 yards. I was able to connect with a 6 inch plate fairly regularly at that distance. Now that I just got more steel I might put some hangars out there on a regular basis. One thing I have noticed is that velocity spreads matter big time.

Way back before the pandemic I bought like 10 or 12 boxes of bulk pack thunderbolt ammo that was originally intended to be run exclusively out of a 22lr pistol but I can't resist shooting longer distances so I have been going through it pretty regularly. It is definitely not the most accurate ammunition out there by any means.

I don't have a decent chronograph at the moment (will pick up a labradar soon) but I can tell simply by the sound and point of impact that velocity is all over the map.

That said once I start getting low on ammo and at the same time get some more cash in the bank (recent unforeseen expenses) I will do more testing on various ammo, hopefully with a chrono to back it up.

Of those of you that have done testing, what kind(s) of ammo have the absolute lowest SD numbers? Rather than shooting just simply for groups I am now thinking SD is a bigger deal. I am basically working through (in my head) how I should conduct an exhaustive test once I get my new chrono. It would be nice to have some idea of a pecking order to start with...

Just based on that one criteria alone which ammo choices have the best SD in your experience(s)? Of course the cheaper the ammo the better...but I am hoping to kick start my tests with a little more data.

 

[justin amateur]

I tried the Eley Outlaw and the Eley Semi-Auto Benchrest, decent ES from both.
SK Rifle/Pistol/Long Range Match and Biathlon Sport weren't bad either.
Top grades from Eley, Lapua and RWS did well also.

As usual, batch quality varies, what shoots well this brick could sling strays the next.