Finding the Right Center X Lot?

[AR10T308]

Hoping some of the hardcore rimfire folks on the forum can help me with this. I was lucky enough to find a lot of Center X (lot # 27554/600087) a couple of years ago that worked great in my rifle, including several cards over the last two years of 23 or 24 X (never quite able to achieve the perfect 25X card). However, once I shot the last of those bricks, the other Center X ammo I have found still shot well, but not as well as that lot I purchased a couple of years ago.

Does anybody have any ideas on how I try to find another lot that has similar ballistic characteristics to the magical lot I somehow luckily stumbled into purchasing before? I know about the testing centers, but I was hoping that there are some records for lot characteristics (fps) that the serious competitors use to buy their new ammo.

I did spend some time searching threads on here for this answer, but I could have missed it, so sorry if this is discussed in another thread.

Thank you

 

[CJ6]

Buying different lots and shooting them OR send it to the test centers.
Rimfire isn't it GREAT.......

 

[AR10T308]

Buying different lots and shooting them OR send it to the test centers.
Rimfire isn't it GREAT.......

Darn, I was hoping that wasn't the answer, haha.

I came across this on the internet that says the first two numbers on the rimfire ammo box is the speed for that lot:

https://www.ocabj.net/knowledge-base/lapua-rimfire-lot-numbers/

Does anybody have any experience using that as a way to try to find a similar lot?

 

[GAnderson]

Other than just matching the velocity...which yours is 1073fps, you will have to just shoot what you can get and hope it performs as others have stated.

With the "27" (or 327)being the velocity in meters per second...take the 327 and multiply it by 3.280 and this will give you feet per second...which in your case comes to 1072.56 ft per second...usually rounded to 1073fps.

 

[jpx2rk]

You can post a WTB ad with the lot #, etc., and see if anyone will sell you some if they have any to spare/sell. Finding some newer ammo with the same speed could shoot just as good, almost as good, etc., but one never knows until you try it in your gun. If it doesn't shoot as well, you can always sell it for little to no loss.

 

[grauhanen]

Does anybody have any ideas on how I try to find another lot that has similar ballistic characteristics to the magical lot I somehow luckily stumbled into purchasing before? I know about the testing centers, but I was hoping that there are some records for lot characteristics (fps) that the serious competitors use to buy their new ammo.

The lot of CX that performed well for you was made in 2019. It's long gone.

The only way to find another good shooting lot is to test different lots with the rifle in question. A particular lot that shoots very well in one rifle, may not perform equally well in another.

One way is to send the rifle to an ammo testing center and hope that they will be able to test a good number of lots of ammo.

The other way is the "old fashioned" way, which is to find a dealer with a number of lots of match ammo available and buying a quantity to test yourself. Shooters must test enough ammo to have reliable data. When a good shooting lot is identified, it may then be purchased in quantity.

There are no shortcuts, such as finding an ammo with a certain muzzle velocity. While the factory may include MV information, either printed on the box or included in the lot number, these are the average MV's obtained in the factory test barrels, not necessarily the actual velocity in your barrel.

In any case,match ammo that shoots well will do so regardless of the factory suggested MV from the lot number or printed elsewhere.

 

[Bob3700]

Hope u saved enough of the old “Good” lot to test new ammo against.

 

[VLNBYR]

Hope u saved enough of the old “Good” lot to test new ammo against.

Very rare bird if he did. I would guess not one shooter out of a hundred actually does this.

 

[AR10T308]

Very rare bird if he did. I would guess not one shooter out of a hundred actually does this.

Haha, yep. It's all gone.

Thanks for all the good advice and knowledge shared here. This forum is awesome due to the great shooters who are willing to share their knowledge to help others avoid making unnecessary mistakes or wasting time trying to reinvent the wheel. Much appreciated.

 

[GAnderson]

Haha, yep. It's all gone.

Thanks for all the good advice and knowledge shared here. This forum is awesome due to the great shooters who are willing to share their knowledge to help others avoid making unnecessary mistakes or wasting time trying to reinvent the wheel. Much appreciated.

Sent you a PM

 

[flatlander]

I used to be able to buy a couple of boxes of lot samples for testing, but even back before the current SK/Lapua drought, if you bought samples to test very long after the shipment that those samples were a part of had arrived stateside, there was a very good chance that even if you did find a really good lot#, there was likely to be very little - if any - of it left in stock anywhere. Other knowledgeable RF shooters would've found that same lot shot well in their rifles, and would've bought it all up.

I don't know which factor has had the biggest impact in creating the current ammo drought, but between the covid pandemic, surge in popularity/availability of precision 22RF rifles (and venues to shoot them in), and the fact that forums like this one have educated a large number of 22RF shooters and made them aware that testing is the only way to find ammo that shoots close to the potential their rifles - all have had an impact. Unless/until either SK/Lapua expands their production capacity, or another maker or makers start making ammo of comparable quality, we're likely to be stuck in a perpetual shortage of really good quality 22RF ammo. It's kind of depressing actually, but even before the internet came along and had such an impact, there's never really been - at least in my experience - a surplus of exceptional, easy to find quality ammo.

 

[Todd Earhart]

In 2019 we tested 56 lots of lapua\eley. We were constantly testing and I'm sure others tested double that. Of the 56 we bought 3 lots. One very good and the other two just a little behind it. Those were the good old days.
Todd

 

[tangocharlie]

“I remember when…” seems to be the most repeated phrase I hear at rimfire matches and on threads. No American manufacturer considers competitive shooters anything but a niche market. Federal did, and did it successfully for a short period of time. I would assume that the bean counters advised against continued production. As long as the rimfire accuracy community has to rely on imported ammunition for best results, we will be subject to the whims of global economics. Real - or perceived - component shortages, supply chain issues, transportation difficulties of all imaginable sorts. I hate it. I shoot a bunch of RWS R50, so I am in the same boat. Dadgummit.

 

[flatlander]

All the above posts make me wish that the guy from Illinois who won the 1.3 billion MegaMillions lottery a couple of weeks ago had been a 22RF fanatic, and had decided to build & operate a company somewhere here in the States to make exceptionally fine match quality 22RF ammo....if you're going to dream, dream big - right?

 

[dutch14]

“I remember when…” seems to be the most repeated phrase I hear at rimfire matches and on threads. No American manufacturer considers competitive shooters anything but a niche market. Federal did, and did it successfully for a short period of time. I would assume that the bean counters advised against continued production. As long as the rimfire accuracy community has to rely on imported ammunition for best results, we will be subject to the whims of global economics. Real - or perceived - component shortages, supply chain issues, transportation difficulties of all imaginable sorts. I hate it. I shoot a bunch of RWS R50, so I am in the same boat. Dadgummit.

The bean counters may have helped but if I remember correctly the Russians sued for patent infringement over the dimpled cases.

 

[CJ6]

You mean like Paul Mauser and the O3-A3 Springfield.....

 

[1813benny]

The reason why the Ultramatch program was cancelled was due to Federal being purchased by Blount. Bean counters disliked the “low” margin vs pray and spray ammo.

 

[longrange1000]

Lapua has 2 test centers: Mesa, AZ and Marengo, OH. Google Lapua Test Center to get all the info you'll need. Apparently they'll spend a couple of hours testing lots at 50m and 100m with full documentation.