22 Mag Ammo

[TXGunNut]

First of all I'd like to skip right over the "shortage" debate....unless you know where I can find some reasonable, of course.
I was scouring the internet during some slow intervals at work today (don't ask:() and I was taken aback by the huge variety that is catalogued for this cartridge. Bullets from 25 to 50 grns, velocities from 1550 to well over 2000 fps and a wide array of bullet types. My only prior experience with 22 mag is with tiny hideout derringers and revolvers more than a few years ago and I don't recall such a variety being available then.
I know the rule with 22 LR but not sure how picky the 22 mag can be. My re-barreled 597 seems to like the Winchester Super X 40 gr JHP but I don't know what the velocity is and since this particular box is probably over 20 yrs old I doubt it will be an accurate indicator of how recent production ammo will perform. Since I'll be tasking this rifle with short range pest control and some of the pests will be larger feral dogs I'd like to stay with a heavier JHP and towards the upper end of the velocity spectrum.
So, any recommendations? Anything I should stay away from?

[oldred]

With the shortage being what it is I have felt lucky just to get anything labeled 22 Magnum! Weidners has some right now at about $15+ per box but when I checked yesterday all they had in stock at the time was the short barrel loads, not at all sure how they perform in rifle barrels but at least it would be better than nothing. About a week ago they had a pretty good selection, a couple of different brands and several different loadings, don't know if you have checked with them but for whatever reason they seem to get 22 Mag in more often than most. Good luck finding any particular load, l have had a hard enough time finding anything at all!

[TXGunNut]

Thanks, haven't tried them.

[Mytmousemalibu]

My Marlin .22 Mag bolt gun did ok with the Win Super X loads but was a tack driver with the Remington ballistic tipped varmint loads. They were pricey though. That was probably about 10yrs ago though and I would be skeptical with Remington's quality control these days, that they would be as good. I sold the gun to my uncle years ago, wished I hadn't, it was a shooter and the offer stands to buy it back if he decides to sell it.

[kenyerian]

http://www.cabelas.com/product/shooting/ammunition/rimfire-ammunition%7C/pc/104792580/c/104691780/sc/104536080/winchester-reg-22-rimfire-ammunition/705405.uts?destination=%2Fcatalog%2Fbrowse%2Frimfi re-ammunition%2F_%2FN-1100192%2B4294752619%2FNe-4294752619%2FNs-CATEGORY_SEQ_104536080%3FWTz_st%3DGuidedNav%26WTz_ stype%3DGNU
Cabelas was the only place I could find any for sale. They have the Super-X 40gr. JHP which does ok in my contender and groups excellent in my Marlin. I really like the Hornadys but they are really hard to find .

[Hannibal]

I have a Savage .22 Mag bolt action and tested several different bullets about 7 or 8 years ago. Spent a bunch of time and quite a bit of money only to find that the high velocity polymer tipped stuff shot worse in mine. 40 grain FMJ were second best and the CCI Maxi-Mag hollow points shot the best of any. And that was around 1 1/4" @100 yds.

Good luck in your quest.

[bubba.50]

don't know if they still make'em but, I really like the Federal 50 grain load. obviously not quite as fast as the lighter loadings but should seal the deal for yer pest control needs.

[waltherboy4040]

I really like hornady poly tipped ammo with cci hp coming in second. I stay away from Winchester since the last two boxes of dynapoints had dented cases in each box.

[Jack Stanley]

I can't help with current quality control or offerings sorry , but four or five years ago I fired a lot of magnums for accuracy . Tops for that in a Marlin and a Browning T-bolt was the Federal FMJ and the CCI hollow point both weighing forty grains . While some of the lighter weight bullets were faster and grouped ok . They were not as reliable for group as the forty grain which can get boring with no flyers to wonder about .

As I remember the lighter CCI offerings were better than the others with Remington and Winchester bringing up the worst of the lot . The lighter bullets also had a significant difference in point of impact in a rifle sighted for the forty grain bullets . That's not a problem if you want to sight your rifle to that . I use my rifle for both plinking with the cheaper ammo ( Federal FMJ ) and pests ( CCI HP ) and they both hit to the same spot .

I have seen rifles that shoot the Remington plastic tips well , but only if the bullets were made by Nosler . When Remington started making the bullets accuracy went down .

I was real disappointed with the Winchester plastic tipped offering . I have older Winchester forty grain HP ammo that shot better than that .... and many of the newer offerings of other makers .

For what it's worth , my 597 magnum likes the same diet as the Browning and the Marlin .

Jack

[NSB]

I have a Savage .22 Mag bolt action and tested several different bullets about 7 or 8 years ago. Spent a bunch of time and quite a bit of money only to find that the high velocity polymer tipped stuff shot worse in mine. 40 grain FMJ were second best and the CCI Maxi-Mag hollow points shot the best of any. And that was around 1 1/4" @100 yds.

Good luck in your quest.

I've been shooting 22mags in a lot of guns for over forty years. Your results are an exact match for my own. I've NEVER gotten any of the light hyper velocity stuff to shoot well and I've never seen any that has. I've owned at least a dozen 22mag guns from S&W 48s and 648s to Marlin lever guns, Savage bolt guns, and Contender pistols and it's always the same. CCI is the best. The CCI 50g shot the actual best but my woodchuck stats show about 50% getting down the hole....just too slow to open properly.

[CHeatermk3]

I've had good luck with the 45gn PMC both HP and FMJ as far as accuracy goes--this in a Marlin bolt gun.

JMHO but 22mag seems a bit light for larger feral dogs. Have a problem with them myself, off and on. Seems flatlanders like to move out to the country and get the biggest dog they can find and then allow the poor critturs to roam around at will.

Next thing you know they're running deer and once they get blood on their snout it's all over--they may be pets to their owners but .. well, you know. Nothin' like a hungry Dane growling at you out behind the shed where I keep my lidded garbage cans.

Hornet's light too. I've found that my BEE with the Hornady 45gn HP is the power floor for putting them down in their tracks.

Lucky for me I have access to a backhoe.

[Hannibal]

I've found that a 58 grain Hornady V-max with a stout load of Varget in a .243 is stunning on coyotes.

FWIW.

[TXGunNut]

Wow, 58 grn? I've heard good stuff about CCI around here, will keep an eye out for some. Never heard of PMC 22 Mag, have had good luck with other offerings. I missed the 22M ammo at Cabelas, I guess. They had the wrong pic and description on the Winchester Super X ammo I'd like to try. Thanks, will keep an eye out now that I know what to look for.
Yes, I live in a somewhat rural subdivision and we do have issues with the folks who move here from the city and think that since the county does not provide animal control services they can get a big dog and let it run loose. They don't know that their dog, other neighborhood dogs and feral dogs form packs. They develop a pack mentality with little or no fear of humans. They killed a neighbor's miniature horse and a local rancher had to put donkeys in with his cattle, eventually had to move the cattle to another pasture. I killed one huge black mutt by putting a 17hmr round in his ear at an incredible distance (aiming for his chest!) and I certainly wish I'd had a backhoe that day, or at least a front end loader. Fine looking young pit squared off with me while I was mowing one day and I was certainly glad to have my EDC 380 in my pocket.
As a dog lover it really ticks me off to have to kill them but we have kids, livestock and well-behaved pets that mean more to me and my neighbors than some feral dog that no one cares enough to impart manners to.

[M-Tecs]

I've found that a 58 grain Hornady V-max with a stout load of Varget is stunning on coyotes.

FWIW.

Apples and oranges here. The 58 grain Hornady V-max is a 6mm bullet and Varget is great in centerfires but the OP is asking about 22 Mag rimfire. If I can find them I like the 30 grain V-Max. http://www.ammomenllc.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=56&cPath=11#xml

http://ammoseek.com/ammo/22-magnum

[Hannibal]

Apples and oranges here. The 58 grain Hornady V-max is a 6mm bullet and Varget is great in centerfires but the OP is asking about 22 Mag rimfire. If I can find them I like the 30 grain V-Max. http://www.ammomenllc.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=56&cPath=11#xml

http://ammoseek.com/ammo/22-magnum

You are correct, forgot to mention .243. CHeatermk3 was commenting on the .22 mag being light for canines.
Fixed it now.

I apologize for the confusion.

[TXGunNut]

Thanks for the links, M-Tecs. Never heard of most of those folks or even some of the ammo.

[Pigboat]

I just checked my ammo and the Winchester Super X 40 gr JHP, current production, is 1910 FPS.

[Hooker53]

TXGUNNUT, google Ammo Fairy. He's in Chaplehill NC. I bought some Armscore from him and was very surprised how well they did in my Mossburg 640 Chuckster. I paid 16.00 a box and was glad to get them. He also has the V-Max as well. A ytime he showed out of stock, he has it back in stock with in a week.

Roy
Hooker53

[CHeatermk3]

"...You are correct, forgot to mention .243. CHeatermk3 was commenting on the .22 mag being light for canines."

I, too, apologize for posting a centerfire comment in this thread. The OP posted about 22mag and I should have limited my response to my experience with the PMC 22 mag ammo without pontificating on his choice of ammo/weapon.

[TXGunNut]

No apologies needed, guys. I'm guilty of a bit of thread drift from time to time. Useful info in both posts, it's all good!

[TXGunNut]

I just checked my ammo and the Winchester Super X 40 gr JHP, current production, is 1910 FPS.

Thanks!

[TXGunNut]

TXGUNNUT, google Ammo Fairy. He's in Chaplehill NC. I bought some Armscore from him and was very surprised how well they did in my Mossburg 640 Chuckster. I paid 16.00 a box and was glad to get them. He also has the V-Max as well. A ytime he showed out of stock, he has it back in stock with in a week.

Roy
Hooker53

Thanks, been a little curious about the Armscor ammo. Not at all familiar with them.

[Jack Stanley]

My last experience with Armscorp in the 22LR version was more duds than Remington thunderbolt ammo .

Jack

[TXGunNut]

My shooting buddy texted me earlier today. His son, a vet in Burnet, ran across a couple of boxes of 22 mag ammo. A member here sent me a PM about a trusted vendor that had some ammo available. I ordered a few boxes and a few fragile 17 caliber jags for my supply box. It's good to have friends!

[kopperl]

22 WRF works well in most of my 22 mags, Browning pump and PMR30 won't take it.

[oldred]

Has anyone tried the CCI short barrel ammo? How might it perform in a long barrel? I have a 6" Colt New Frontier that I could use it in but 99% of the time I prefer the 22LR cylinder and rarely shoot mags in that pistol so these would be mostly for my 21" barrel rifle. The reason I was considering them is that they are available!

[cajun shooter]

It's my understanding that the CCI 22 Mag short bbl ammo is loaded for the likes of the small 22 mini mag revolvers that are made by NAA. They are loaded at a lower velocity for more control in these type guns. I would not use them in any rifle that I intended to kill something with. I prefer as much power as possible for humane kills for anything that breathes. Later David

[cajun shooter]

Where is the Armscor ammo made? We have a dealer in baton Rouge that sells it and always has plenty in stock. I've been a little on the Don't Buy Side of the fence as I like to know a little about the type of ammo I'm putting in my guns and also what I'm shooting with it. Later David

[TXGunNut]

Dunno, David. Pretty sure it's made overseas but haven't actually handled much less shot any of it. I prefer to stick with vendors and manufacturers I have experience with so haven't ventured down the Armscor path. Jack Stanley clearly made his opinions known a few posts up, at today's prices that moved Armscor way down my "try" list.
OTOH I had some early Thunderbolt ammo and my 10-22 sporter thought it was target ammo, lol. Later lots were quite disappointing in the FTF department but when they did fire the accuracy wasn't bad. I used them for off-hand rifle practice with business card targets @ 25 yds so accuracy wasn't an issue.

[CHeatermk3]

I think that this ammo could have been made an any of several locations, world-wide. I've seen PMC ammo that was made in Korea and the Philippines. The box I have in front of me now says "PMC ammunition, Eldorado corporation, Boulder City, NV 89005" and "Made in RP". (RP is, I believe, Republic of the Philippines".

After searching a bit on the web, I think PMC no longer produces 22WMR ammunition.

The armscor 22mag stuff could be made in just about any factory that produces rimfire ammo. The varying reviews of the armscor 22mag I've read report mostly good quality with only 1 bad review.

Once you find out what your rifle will shoot well with (mine absolutely hates the light bullet stuff and the 50gn stuff also; likes just about any 40-45 gn ammo including WW white box "dynapoint" ammo) get a bunch of it.

Here's a link to a thread on RFC (lots of info here):

http://www.rimfirecentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=585287


I would give armscor ammo a try-- also, palmetto stste armory has 3 22mag offerings in stock, I just checked.

[TXGunNut]

I got some Winchester 30gr "Varmint HV" ammo in today. Has the V-Max bullet that starts out @ around 2250fps. I don't know what the twist rate is in this new bbl but it's worth a try. Hope it works, ordered four boxes, lol. I don't think it will do well on feral dogs but it could be a fun plinker load.

[TXGunNut]

Thanks for the research and link, CHeatermk3. Dynapoint looks good indeed, think it may be the successor to the ammo this rifle seems to like. Wow, another forum. With my time here, an occasional foray to TFL and one work-related forum I'm pretty much forumed out. I have some fascinating books I'm trying to read as well. Won't hurt to take a look, I guess. Seems I'm pretty much clueless on the modern rimfire scene.

[TXGunNut]

Dropped by my LGS and he had THREE types of CCI 22 mag ammo. :drinks: Not wild about the $15.95 price tag but can't really complain, either. Got the hp and sp variety to see what my rifle likes. Also had four pounds of BE for under $23/lb so it was well worth stopping in to see what he had.
Manager is the tacticool type but other than that we get along OK. ;-)

[303Guy]

Where is the Armscor ammo made? Philippines. South Africa has an Armscorp too, unrelated I would think and they don't make ammunition. Well not for the civilian market.

[TXGunNut]

Wow, seems I'm pretty well stocked up now. Shooting buddy's son's friend scored six boxes of ammo for me @ $12.99 each. should give me enough to see what this little rifle likes. Good to have friends like these guys, they even spend my money well, lol.