I am getting ann Anschutz 1827F and want to determine the best ammo to use in it. I have never really run a rigidly designed ammo test for a 22. How does one go about this? Shoot from a rest out to 50 and 100 yards? How many rounds per ammo type? Clean the barrel after each test group? Is it ok to use a bore snake for cleaning? Do I need to fire some rounds prior to the test to "season" the barrel after the previous test? How much down time between each ammo group? How many ammo types should I use? Im assuming that the barrel doesn't heat up to the degree that say a 223 or 308 would. So many questions - but this will be my "accurate" 22LR gun, so I want to at least get a great test to help. Any info appreciated!
-
Having trouble using the site?
Contact support
Determining best ammo for my Annie 1827F
- Thread starter prairiefire
- Start date
Send it to Lapua or Eley testing center. Probably not the answer you want to hear, but all ammo will be tested in a controlled environment. You or I do not have this luxury. Then buy a case or two and you are good for a long time.
I shot 5-shot groups at 50 off a bench. Any Ammo that would shoot 1/4" at 50 I then tested at 100 on a day with little wind. Any Ammo that would shoot 1/2" at 100 I took and tested at 200.
At 200 I was Looking for ammo that would hold the most consistent elevation as it's hard not to have any wind here in CO and the slightest wind will blow .22LR around. The results were surprising some Ammo that shot 1/2" at 100 could not hold 2.5" of elevation @ 200. One type of Ammo held elevation consistently to 1/2" @ 200 yards - guess which one I picked to shoot matches with ...
Did not clean or patch between Ammo types however YMMV ...
Hope this helps
At 200 I was Looking for ammo that would hold the most consistent elevation as it's hard not to have any wind here in CO and the slightest wind will blow .22LR around. The results were surprising some Ammo that shot 1/2" at 100 could not hold 2.5" of elevation @ 200. One type of Ammo held elevation consistently to 1/2" @ 200 yards - guess which one I picked to shoot matches with ...
Did not clean or patch between Ammo types however YMMV ...
Hope this helps
This really is the easiest way.
If you decide to test for yourself, whichever ammo you choose to test, be sure there is plenty of that particular lot # in stock right then, other wise you'll have to retest if they sold out.
When I had my 1827F tested at the Lapua facility, I saw some lot #'s of the same ammo type shoot what I consider poorly/3/4". On the other hand their most expensive ammo, the Xact label, shot very consistently, it better aye! I chose one lot# of Polar Biathlon, the only one, that shot as well as the Xact and saved about $9 a box of 50 compared to the Xact. With this ammo I can put down .3" at 50Y most of the time which is good enough for me.
Just yesterday, with my 1827F and said ammo, it was easy to hit a 9" diamond shaped steel at 300Y and that was with 1.2-1.4 mils of wind hold, with vertical of 3-4". Earlier when checking zero at 50Y all five went into a nice round .3" hole and at 100Y I got a .6" fiver. It's not benchrest accuracy but I'm shooting a light barrel, in a light rifle, and off a Harris bypod using a Tab gear rear bag.
I bought a box from 7-8 different lots of eley match from killough shooting sports and saw which one was the best performer at 100 yards (where we compete). Found the one thats best and then bought a few bricks of it.
Ive heard that the lapua ammo is better than eley but I shot my first perfect score with this eley so Im not going out to find something else any time soon.
Ive heard that the lapua ammo is better than eley but I shot my first perfect score with this eley so Im not going out to find something else any time soon.
Gather your ammo and shoot the first round of tests all on the same day. Start at sunrise to get the lowest wind conditions unless you have a 50y indoor range. Shoot at 50y for first round. Shoot 5 shots to foul the bbl and then four groups of five. If you have Lapua/Wolf/SK group them together. Same for RWS and Norma and Eley samples. You can clean or run a dry patch between each sample or not but be consistent. I like to use a clean/dry patch only. I also like to limit test to no more than 250 rds. That is my limit of mental concentration and the rifles ability to hold groups without cleaning. But that will get you 10 samples. If you cannot find a good one out of those 10 well rinse and repeat. If you are going thru all this, you really need not test any other than those listed above. You hear about the freak rifle that shoots bug holes with Remington Thunderbolt ammo but I have never seen one. Federal Ultra Match is pretty good and worth a test but I have never seen it beat any of the others listed in a serious statistical test. Shoot from SOLID rest. Not a folding table, and not off the roof of your car. A Concrete bench is best. Eliminate all possible variables. Spend about 30min per sample. Do not rush. If the wind picks up, STOP.
After running your samples: Measure vertical & horizontal variation. Measure minimum c-c group size and average group size. The samples that have the least vertical and smallest average group size need to be tested again. At this stage you should be down to only about three or four lots of the best samples. Repeat the test on a new day with a clean bbl and start with the sample that was last on the previous test. Measure and choose one Brand. Now test 5-10 lots from the same brand* Lapua CX or Eley 10x for example. Chrono these if you can. Test at 50y, 100y and 200y. Choose one lot. Buy loads of this. *NOTE: If you did not buy your test ammo from a dealer who can supply at least 10 bricks of the same lot#, you failed. Start over with a reputable dealer. You can do the first phase of these tests with random samples from wherever but once you are down to one brand such as Eley, you really need to find a dealer of bulk ammo to get the best results and once you go thru all the time and effort of doing all this, you will have a feel for which muzzle velocity lot#'s provide the most consistent results. Doing all this testing and only buying ten boxes of the best lot is a waste of time. The next lot may or may not shoot as well even if it is from the same mfg.
Once you do find that magic lot#, and buy a truck load of it, be sure to properly store it in a cool, dry comfort conditioned space so it will not rapidly deteriorate over time. Even with all that, I have found that fresh 22lr ammo shoots the best and lots that are even 2yrs old usually have a few more flyers than they did when new. Unless your rifle shoots 1/4" groups at 50y, you will never notice this. The testing process is one of the fun things about rimfire and the reward is a rifle that shoots way better than it should. I attached a pic of one of my Annie's results for 5shots at 50y using Midas+ That is what you are looking for.
After running your samples: Measure vertical & horizontal variation. Measure minimum c-c group size and average group size. The samples that have the least vertical and smallest average group size need to be tested again. At this stage you should be down to only about three or four lots of the best samples. Repeat the test on a new day with a clean bbl and start with the sample that was last on the previous test. Measure and choose one Brand. Now test 5-10 lots from the same brand* Lapua CX or Eley 10x for example. Chrono these if you can. Test at 50y, 100y and 200y. Choose one lot. Buy loads of this. *NOTE: If you did not buy your test ammo from a dealer who can supply at least 10 bricks of the same lot#, you failed. Start over with a reputable dealer. You can do the first phase of these tests with random samples from wherever but once you are down to one brand such as Eley, you really need to find a dealer of bulk ammo to get the best results and once you go thru all the time and effort of doing all this, you will have a feel for which muzzle velocity lot#'s provide the most consistent results. Doing all this testing and only buying ten boxes of the best lot is a waste of time. The next lot may or may not shoot as well even if it is from the same mfg.
Once you do find that magic lot#, and buy a truck load of it, be sure to properly store it in a cool, dry comfort conditioned space so it will not rapidly deteriorate over time. Even with all that, I have found that fresh 22lr ammo shoots the best and lots that are even 2yrs old usually have a few more flyers than they did when new. Unless your rifle shoots 1/4" groups at 50y, you will never notice this. The testing process is one of the fun things about rimfire and the reward is a rifle that shoots way better than it should. I attached a pic of one of my Annie's results for 5shots at 50y using Midas+ That is what you are looking for.
