The .22LR (Long Rifle) has been around for more than a century. With roots dating back to the mid-1850s, the .22LR was first officially introduced as a standardized rimfire cartridge in 1887 by the J. Stevens Company. Since then, the .22LR has become a staple of the American shooting diet among young, old, new, and experienced shooters alike. Rimfire cartridges are a fun plinking and target round with .22LR solid bullets (round nose, not hollow point) being the ideal loading for range days. However, few of us have sat down and dug through the semantics of .22LR solid bullet performance.
Anyone who’s shot .22LR for a minute knows some cartridges are more reliable than others. Since it’s not practical for most of us to spend a day comparing .22LR solid bullet brands and loads, I went ahead and did it for you. For our purposes, I evaluated accuracy, velocity (consistency of loading), and reliability as the main factors for comparing .22LR. For now, here’s some guidance in comparing .22LR solid bullet performance!
.22LR Solid Bullets — Brands and Loads
There’s a massive variety of .22LR available on today’s market. A quick internet search yields 37 different load options for .22LR on Winchester’s website. Meanwhile, CCI has 31 options, while Federal carries 19 different .22LR loadings. In the course of just three manufacturers, that’s nearly 100 cartridge loadings. The reality is comparing every possible .22LR solid or hollow point cartridge produced is beyond the realm of most financial and time commitments. However, that doesn’t mean a few can’t be selected and tested for evaluation. I tested seven common .22LR solid bullet offerings from three companies: CCI, Winchester, and Federal.
The tested .22LR solid bullets spanned several velocity ranges. .22 velocities are roughly categorized into four ranges: subsonic, standard velocity, high velocity, and hypervelocity. Subsonic cartridges operate below the speed of sound (1,125 feet per second) and tend to err on velocities below 1,000 feet per second (fps). Standard velocity cartridges overlap into the subsonic range, measuring between 900 to 1,110 fps. High-velocity .22LR cartridges normally exceed 1,200 fps. There are a few hyper velocity cartridges available, like CCI Stinger hollow point, that exceed 1,300 fps and push into 1,600 fps. In most cases, higher velocity cartridges are copper jacketed.
For most .22LR solid cartridges, velocities range between subsonic and high velocity. None of the cartridges reviewed here had an advertised velocity exceeding 1,300 fps. However, as you’ll soon learn, there isn’t always truth in advertising. Advertised ballistics occasionally don’t translate to real-world results due to a multitude of factors such as barrel length, weather conditions, and barrel twist rate.
Rifle and Testing Parameters
In a perfect world, I’d test several hundred rounds of each cartridge. While a lot of fun, time, finances, and logistics limit such tests (for now). Nevertheless, the chosen .22LR solid loads evaluated several parameters :
- Quality – appearance, frequency of failure to fire, quality control
- Cost – performance versus price
- Velocity – consistency (standard deviation) and obtained versus advertised velocity
- Accuracy – 10 shot groups obtained at 100 feet
The rifle chosen to evaluate this plethora of rimfire offerings was a Ruger 77/22 Target. This particular rifle featured a 24-inch medium profile tapered target barrel and runs on Ruger 10/22 magazines. The rifle is topped with a BSA Sweet 22 3-9x scope. Over the last few decades, this rifle has sniped its fair share of squirrels and other small-to-medium varmints and predators. It’s a proven tack driver and perfect for providing a level playing field. Now, with all of that out of the way, let’s get into how this array of .22LR solid cartridges performed.
.22LR Solid — Ammo Quality
What defines quality? Upon reflection, the answer is somewhat subjective. Nevertheless, when it comes to ammunition, quality is determined by consistency and reliable performance. It’s no secret that rimfire ammunition has its quirks — among those being a measure of unreliability. Rimfire primer ignition means occasional misfires. While the 77/22 is exceptionally reliable, some .22LR ammo just won’t go “bang.” Of the 20 rounds fired from each loading, I experienced only one failure to fire from Winchester Target & Plinking ammunition. Furthermore, the 50-round box included one cartridge with a dented case and another where the bullet had a chunk missing. This failure rate is not ideal.
The remaining ammunition had no obvious defects or issues. While a small sample size, the absence of obvious defects and inconsistencies in quality control was a net positive. Before denouncing Winchester Target & Plinking white box ammo, I should note quality control varies significantly with bulk rimfire ammunition. Cheap rimfire will have issues, and that’s an accepted norm among .22LR cartridges. Ammo can also vary depending on what lot (production run) it came from. Some lots are just better than others.
.22LR Solid Ammo Consistency
The seven loads were chronographed with 10 shots per type. The 10 shots evaluated how consistent each load’s velocities were, developed an average velocity across multiple shots, and provided a standard deviation across the velocities. The standard deviation is a measure of how consistent each individual cartridge is as a whole. The greater the standard deviation, the more inconsistent the powder charge, primer ignition, or case quality of the cartridge. Ideally, no standard deviation is an impossible but desirable goal.
The testing day was a bit chilly, so I moved the chronograph and shooting bench into the garage to minimize temperature variation (and my discomfort). Ammunition was stored at room temperature before testing. With a longer rifle barrel, I hoped to maximize testing velocities. Overall, the vast majority of the ammunition was performed within proximity to advertised velocities. These velocities decrease significantly when fired from shorter-barreled rifles and handguns. CCI MiniMag, Winchester Super X, and Federal Auto Match significantly overperformed advertised velocities. Surprisingly, CCI AR Tactical was the most consistent loading in both standard deviation and loyalty to advertised velocity. In an even greater shock, Winchester Target & Plinking performed well — on paper — in those same categories.
The small case capacity and rimfire ignition source of .22LR doesn’t lend to consistency. This is largely why most modern cartridges for defense, hunting, and target shooting are centerfire. The small case size of a .22LR only allows about two to three grains of powder. A variation of a tenth of a grain has a far greater impact on the cartridge’s velocity than something like 5.56 NATO, which averages around 25 grains of powder. Minimal variation in powder charge is critical to consistent performance from a cartridge.
Accuracy
Before delving into the accuracy data, remember your results may vary. Twist rate, barrel profile (e.g. thickness), chamber tolerances, and action type affect the achieved accuracy from a cartridge. As with any firearm, one gun may shoot a particular cartridge better than one produced right in line with it. Accordingly, the provided accuracy measurements are a guide for assessing what is acceptable performance and why a particular cartridge may perform better than another.
The .22LR solid ammunition was tested alongside several hollow point offerings that I’ll discuss in another writing. The 10-shot groups were fired from a bipod and sandbag on a bench rest at 100 feet. .22LR is certainly capable of surprising accuracy at distances out to and exceeding 100 yards. However, most shooting involving .22LR takes place at 50 yards and closer. 100 feet was also convenient for shooting into the berm from the comfortable warmth of my garage.
Accuracy is a relative assessment depending on the involved firearm, its intended use, and caliber. For .22LR, I’ve accepted that sub-inch performance at 100 yards is unrealistic most of the time. The tested ammo produced groups as big as 1.65 inches (CCI Quiet-22) down to clusters in the half-inch range (CCI Standard Velocity and CCI AR Tactical).
CCI AR Tactical, the most consistent and reliable performer tested, produced a beautiful 0.56-inch group, while CCI Standard Velocity won the accuracy portion with a 0.54-inch group. Federal Auto Match performed well with a sub-inch group. The only subsonic cartridge tested, CCI Quiet-22, produced the largest group at 1.65 inches. This result isn’t necessarily a byproduct of poor quality as much as it’s the ammunition’s design.
CCI Quiet-22 had an average velocity of 700 fps while the others measured 1,000 to 1,300 fps. The lower velocity of Quiet-22 requires a faster twist rate to properly stabilize the bullet. Unfortunately, most .22 pistols and rifles have barrel twist rates designed around velocities over 1,000 fps. The slower speed reduces the “spin” on the bullet and hampers its stability over distance. For sports fans, this is akin to little to no spin on a thrown baseball or football.
Cost Versus Benefit
For those of us on a budget, we want our dollar to go as far as possible while keeping as much, if not more, in our pocket. However, cheap doesn’t always lend itself to quality. For the reviewed ammunition, I compared group size to individual cost per round. When ranked, the cost didn’t necessarily translate to performance. The highest-cost cartridge performed less than stellar in accuracy testing. Meanwhile, some of the cheapest cartridges performed the best in all categories — especially with accuracy.
Ultimately, when looking for the best .22LR solid ammo for your rimfire rifle or pistol, I recommend expending the upfront cost to see what loadings your firearm(s) prefers. While it may be a bit of a headache to collect a bunch of different cartridges, the payoff comes in finding the best possible fit for your firearm. If anything, this evaluation opens your options to more than one load that performs within your firearm and budget.
The Final Verdict on .22LR Solid Options
Of the seven loads tested, the best-performing .22LR solid was CCI AR Tactical. While CCI Standard Velocity grouped a little tighter, CCI AR Tactical is originally for reliable semi-auto rimfire operation. For range time, it’s a solid performer. However, this doesn’t take anything away from the other cartridges tested.
This testing isn’t comprehensive by any means. As I discussed earlier, there are hundreds of available options. I plan to revisit this same testing — and then some — in the near future with .22LR hollow points. While it may be a lot of work, testing rimfire ammunition to see how it fairs and what performs best is an eye-opening and intriguing experiment. Either way, who doesn’t enjoy a day plinking America’s favorite cartridge?
