541s ammo recommendations

[mattlewis]

So far my 541s isn't loving the only two kinds of ammo I have on hand - eley sport and wmt. The wmt is clearly more accurate, but seems to be throwing some definite fliers. My rifle hasn't been shot much, and I only put about 30 rounds of wmt through it, so it may just need some more rounds to settle in, but does anybody have a tired and true 541s ammo brand?

 

[civil82]

Not knowing you familiarity with rimfires, I'll tell you that in my personal experience and opinion, only you will be able to find out what works best. If you put 10 separate 541s on the line, I'd be willing to bet that more than half will shoot a different brand and lot better than the rifle next to it.

I've had two frustrating experiences in te last few years. My Weatherby (Anschutz) shoots best with $15/box Federal. I put at least 10 different varieties through it, yet my Kimber SVT shoots CCI standard velocity almost as good as anything at 1/3rd the cost. You might get a lot of comments and find that you don't have the same luck as someone else.

Buy whatever variety you can find and have fun trying it all out.

 

[CJ6]

Wolf ME shoots pretty well in most of my 22's (including the 541) without going to Eley Black box or Tenex, but lot testing is what 22 are all about.

 

[mattlewis]

but lot testing is what 22 are all about.

Can you explain?

 

[bheadboy]

mine loves cci minimag

Bob

 

[salitydog]

mine shoots the cci blaser as good as the eley bless its heart. but there again i can not shoot with over half of you.just having fun. just my 2 cents worth

 

[Shynloco]

Not knowing you familiarity with rimfires, I'll tell you that in my personal experience and opinion, only you will be able to find out what works best. If you put 10 separate 541s on the line, I'd be willing to bet that more than half will shoot a different brand and lot better than the rifle next to it.

I've had two frustrating experiences in te last few years. My Weatherby (Anschutz) shoots best with $15/box Federal. I put at least 10 different varieties through it, yet my Kimber SVT shoots CCI standard velocity almost as good as anything at 1/3rd the cost. You might get a lot of comments and find that you don't have the same luck as someone else.

Buy whatever variety you can find and have fun trying it all out.

Mattlewis,
I don't know civil82 nor have I ever spoken with him, but I fully understand and agree with his comments. Allow me to answer your last question from my perspective, experiences and learning from some top notched folks in the know who are experts in the field of Rimfire Ammunition.

As you may know, Rimfire Rifles, no matter the make or model, are extremely sensitive to the ammunition they are fed. Each rimfire rifle is also UNIQUE and no two rifles necessarily will like the same ammos, even if the same model,make or bear similarities in terms of action construction, etc, etc. Let me explain, I have two Savage MKII's (both bought to be given to two of my grandsons who are almost of age to start shooting) one a BV model and one a TR model. They have the same actions, but different barrels and different stocks. Shortly after buying these rifles, I started reading and studying rimfire ammos and consulted with a various folks who have extensive backgrounds in competition rifles and rimfire ammunitions, including Steven Boelter, the author of, "Rifleman's Guide to Rimfire Ammunition." In his book, Steve compares a high number of rimfire ammunition sold worldwide and tested that ammo in high quality rimfire rifles loaned to him by high quality and competition rifle manufacturers. After reading his books, that led me to conduct my own tests using the aforementioned rifles as well as conducting ammo testing with my Anschutz 64mpr that I made some slight additions to and use it in local Benchrest competitions, some of which I won or placed well.

From the extensive testing with the Savages (and I bought a great deal of the higher quality rimfire ammos available on the market some 3.5 yrs ago), I learned that some of the best ammo made is liked by one and disliked by the other. And even "LOTS" made a difference, meaning you could have s particular brand of high quality rimfire ammo, and just changing lot numbers made a difference in accuracy downrange. That is one of the reasons why folks who compete or are "serious" about their score, test and buy large amount of ammo having the same lot number and buy a great deal of the ammo (cases) when they find one their particular rifle shoots it's best with. But I found it curious and interesting that my Savage BV shot best using Federal Ultra Match UM22 ($17.44 a box) while my Savage TR shot almost as well using Wolf Match Extra ($6.95 a box). Of course my Anschutz demanded the Federal Ultra Match UM22, while disliking Eley Black ($12.30 a box) and Eley Tenex ($16.00 a box). Several of the other ammos sold then and even today, wouldn't shoot nearly as well, even many that are now made in Germany by Lapua, some of which I still use today for practicing and they run anywhere from $12 to $16 a box).


Bottom line of what I'm trying to relay, is don't depend on or try to make a correlation between any rifle make and a particular brand of rimfire ammo. You may want to "TEST" what other suggest, but until you try it in your particular rifle, you simply cannot rely completely on how other folks' rifles shoot using a specific brands of ammo. And one thing I should mention and recommend, there are lubed and non lubed rimfire ammos sold. After hours of testing and cleaning barrel whenever changing brands of ammos, my best results with any of my rifles was with lubed ammo, although I admit, I was trying to shoot not for group size, but for best accuracy, chasing the infamous one hole/5 shot group.

Hope that gives some ideas of what you may want to try doing with your particular rifle. If shooting 1/2" groups @ 50 yds satisfies your needs, then there are several less expensive ammos that might fit the bill. But if you want to shoot in the 1's, 2's 3's, it'll take better ammo to get there. And if you want to score well and even win shooting an ARA (American Rimfire Association) course of 2500 pts, where the points drop very quickly, then you must use quality ammos, but also ammo your rifle REALLY shoots well with. Good luck and have fun no matter which way you decide to go.

Alex

 

[CJ6]

The above sums it up nicely...

 

[mattlewis]

In other words, quality control if .22lr ammo is poor, or non existent?

My 541s is the same action and barrel as anybody else's 541s, right?

 

[1Merlin]

Yes Matt. The barrel and action are the same but. What Shynloco says is true. Every gun is different and you can only obtain the TRULY best results by trying various ammos and picking the best one.

 

[mattlewis]

First off, I'd like to thank everyone here for their advice. It is much appreciated.

I'm continuing to question this just for the sake of argument, and I want to make sure I don't seem ungrateful, I just want to make sure I have my facts straight.

How is it possible, if my barrel is identical to any other 541s barrel, for my 541s to perform best with a different brand of ammo than another 541s?

Humidity? Elevation? Temperature? Rifle tweaking?

To put it another way, shynloco and others have said "no 2 rimfires are alike"

Well, what is different between my 541 and anybody else's bone stock 541? It's the exact same barrel?

 

[civil82]

"How is it possible, if my barrel is identical to any other 541s barrel, for my 541s to perform best with a different brand of ammo than another 541s?"

It's simple, your barrel isn't identical to any other 541S barrel...

Headspace, chamber dimensions, bore and groove depth/width/wear (along with tight spots at various point in the barrel), variations in the barrel installation in comparison to the centerline of the action, variations in the crown, action screw tension, slight variations in metallurgy, contact points of the stock to barrel, contact points of the stock to action. That's all I can think of at the moment.

Nothing in this world is "exactly" the same. If that were the case, major manufacturers would produce centerfire ammunition that could obtain the same accuracy from a set of factory rifles as a handloader could.

ETA: I'd guess that firing pin strength and size of firing pin might have some influence also (stronger or weaker strike, narrower or wider strike), since the priming compound is in the rim. I might be digging too deep for differences now, though.

 

[CJ6]

Let's put it this way, Rem. Thunderbolt or Winchester Wildcats or any other CHEAP bulk ammo 99.9 % of the time WILL NOT shoot as well as Lapua Midas + or Eley Tenex or the lower grades of MATCH ammo. BUT there's ALWAYS that .1% and even with MATCH ammo certain lots (even from the same machine) shoot better than the others in an individual rifle. If your looking for that last bit of accuracy testing is your only option. Standard velocity and slower ammo (about 1080fps and less) will generally shoot better than High Velocity ammo. But their is always the exception...

 

[MarkS]

mattlewis,

Every gun, rimfire or centerfire, is like that. You have to find the ammo, the gun likes. All rimfire ammo will have flies, even the best. The better ammo, will have less. I have had 2 541's, they shot better with the high end ammo, Eley, and Fed benchrest gold. I have a 10-22 with custom barrel, it will shoot very well with CI Mini mags, Win HV, but shoots the best with Lapua M and Eley tennx. Alot of the target and match ammo on the low end shots very well, SK, Wolf, Fed, Rem, and Win. Good luck with finding any 22 rimfire ammo.

Mark Schronce

 

[mattlewis]

Thanks for the recommendations, I appreciate the help.

 

[snert]

FWIW, my 541T shoots Remington subsonic VERY well. It does ok with old T22 and seems to like any SuperX hollow point I ever bought, but none as well as the Remington Subsonic.

Your results may vary.

Snert

 

[Ohio1]

Mine LOVE'S the Wolf match or target, and the SK brands the best!

Steve