Sorting by rim thickness, is Pbike257's gauge it worth it?

[dellet]

Looking for a way to maximize accuracy in one of my old target rifles. This is a Stevens 44 1/2 from around 1915 chambered in 22 short. Not a lot of choices in ammo these days so maximizing what is available is the project. Pbike257 offers a rim thickness gauge and that seemed like a good place to start.

Ammo is CCI 22 Short, Target.






28" barrel, set up for off hand shooting. The sight insert chosen for testing. All targets at 50 yards, front rest, rear bag.



Two inch dot for reference. Left target shot straight out of the box, right target sorted.



Five more added to each group, sadly the wind picked up just a bit.



I sorted the rounds into 5 groups, the group on the left is one each, on the right is a different sorting than the first two targets.

A limited sample, but it seems to clearly show a reduction in vertical. I hope as I refine the sorting process that the vertical will close up a bit and I can improve the horizontal.

All things considered, age of the rifle, sights, lack of ammo choice, I am happy with the improvement of the sorted ammo. Off the bench a 1 1/2" spinner has become boring. Off hand the 3" is still a challenge.

A big thanks to Pbike257 and Uthink Uknow getting me into the gauge.

 

[Uthink Uknow]

That is impressive shooting with .22 shorts and glad you chose to try our gauge. I’m happy for you. That rifle is an impressive item.

 

[pbike257]

we've had similar results with LR cartridges in older rifles. I'm glad you gave ours a try and I'm glad it is working for you. I'd like to see how it does on a less windy day, and with the use of wind flags...

by the way, that's a beautiful rifle

 

[ebb]

According to Wikipedia, Aguila, Eley, RWS, and Fiocchi all make 22 short match ammo. Go to Wiki and read what they have on 22 shorts and maybe some of these are still manufactured and cold be of use to you in this fine rifle.

 

[dellet]

I am very encouraged by the results. Unfortunately a clear target picture is also an issue, so I’m not sure I will be able to squeeze the most out of the rifle until I can come up with a proper scope. It’s drilled for a near full length tube so about 30”. For reference it has a 28” barrel.

It seems rare to have products work “as advertised” and this gauge seems to. Match ammo in short appears to be non existent. The big buyers were for the Olympic shooters and a rule change in 2004 ended that demand. I haven’t been able to find a reliable source, but haven’t exhausted all possibilities. Being able to sort by rim size, as also done in rimmed center fire makes sense.

Controlling headspace is such a big part of precision centerfire, there is no reason not to apply it in rimfire. The problem here is the lack of choice, quality control by culling is a poor substitute, but works. The thread on match ammo is timely to this project.

Any suggestions are certainly welcome.

 

[foxguy]

Any Pictures of the rim sorting gauge?

 

[dellet]

Sorry for the poor photos.

I sorted 200 rounds, they were all within +/- .001". After about 20 rounds there was a clear most common thickness and that became my "0". The dial is large enough to split the marks and sort by .005.

Out of 200 rounds there were about 10 each at the extreme of +/- .001", 126 "0" and a fairly even split of +/- .0005"

No photo of a LR round, but the slot is about as long as the brass and allows you to spin the case to check all the way around the rim.

 

[Uthink Uknow]

They come in sizes for 22RF or 17 cal

 

[Uthink Uknow]

Loaded and gauging.

 

[Lesloan]

If you have a caliper and a piece of trimmed .243 brass you have a rim thickness gauge. Just measure the brass, insert .22 cartridge and measure the combination. Subtract. The difference is rim thickness.

 

[tominboise]

I've done the measuring using a .223 case and a set of calipers. Works pretty well.

 

[pbike257]

If you have a caliper and a piece of trimmed .243 brass you have a rim thickness gauge. Just measure the brass, insert .22 cartridge and measure the combination. Subtract. The difference is rim thickness.

you could also use 2 .243 cases as ear plugs, but like using them as a guage they aren't very good ones. Calipers are really a poor way to get consistent accurate measurements. Below is the ad for my guages.

We make 3 sizes. the most common is .22LR and .17HM2, the second size is .22WMR and .17 HMR, and the third and least requested is the mighty .17WSM.

http://forum.accurateshooter.com/th...hickness-gauges-for-sale-new-product.3932169/

 

[Dryfly24]

I've done the measuring using a .223 case and a set of calipers. Works pretty well.

Same here.

 

[dellet]

A Hornady comparator works pretty well.

A Redding instant indicator works a bit better.

 

[Outrider27]

A note that may be of interest to you as you sort the ammo; based on a number of years sorting 22 ammo by rim thickness, the thicker the rim, the better the accuracy, so group by thickness range, keeping the thickest for your most serious work. Never sorted shorts, but in long rifle that would be anything over about .039"-.0395".

I didn't get the idea for improving accuracy by rim thickness sorting on my own, I read about it in a book on building Ruger 10/22s and verified their experiments on my own. In LR, when you get into the match grade ammos, I don't bother sorting, as they already are on the thick side, but bulk ammos start out with some thinner than .035", and I've had as few as 25 out of a 500 round brick over .040" with stuff like the dreaded Rem Thunderbolt.

 

[USMCDOC]

A note that may be of interest to you as you sort the ammo; based on a number of years sorting 22 ammo by rim thickness, the thicker the rim, the better the accuracy, so group by thickness range, keeping the thickest for your most serious work. Never sorted shorts, but in long rifle that would be anything over about .039"-.0395".

I didn't get the idea for improving accuracy by rim thickness sorting on my own, I read about it in a book on building Ruger 10/22s and verified their experiments on my own. In LR, when you get into the match grade ammos, I don't bother sorting, as they already are on the thick side, but bulk ammos start out with some thinner than .035", and I've had as few as 25 out of a 500 round brick over .040" with stuff like the dreaded Rem Thunderbolt.

i have found in my research that Eley Black and Red box are very consistent in their rim thickness, in fact the last box i checked, (Black box) every single one of them were .035, whereas, Lapua varies. though the Bell is steep, Midas+ being like 0.0385 to 0.0395, Center-X being a tad wider than that.. i have not ever checked Exacta.

 

[epc308]

I love your old rifle, as I'm a fan of the old single shots. You truly have a jewel there. I tried to get one very similar to yours at an auction several years back. It was a model 44 that locked up tight, had the best sights that Stevens made, and double set triggers. In other words, a serious rifle. At the end it was only me and one other guy bidding, but he had deeper pockets than I did.

 

[dellet]

I love your old rifle, as I'm a fan of the old single shots. You truly have a jewel there. I tried to get one very similar to yours at an auction several years back. It was a model 44 that locked up tight, had the best sights that Stevens made, and double set triggers. In other words, a serious rifle. At the end it was only me and one other guy bidding, but he had deeper pockets than I did.

The rear sight was the cheapest vernier that had windage and elevation, but it slides instead of having a screw adjustment. That makes sight adjustment a pain, but is easily resolved.

Someone was serious about shooting this at one time. The stock was drilled and lead added for balance. It is pretty fun to shoot tho.



Balanced and standing on the palm rest only.

 

[justinp61]

While on the subject of rim thickness, how are you guys sorting yours? by the .001" or by .0005"?

Thanks, Justin

 

[USMCDOC]

While on the subject of rim thickness, how are you guys sorting yours? by the .001" or by .0005"?

Thanks, Justin

i go 3 out