Long(ish) range .22 shooting expectations?

[awp_101]

I don’t have easy access to any ranges over 200 yards so I’m thinking about scratching the long range shooting itch with some .22 rifles at 100 and 200 yards. What should be a reasonable accuracy expectation for a production rifle/slightly tweaked production rifle with decent (but not match) ammo? 4”@100? 6”@200?

I really have no idea what a reasonable expectation should be in this area.

Thanks!

[farscott]

Assuming no wind, a match .22 LR rifle can shoot into less than two inches at 200 yards with match ammo. Add wind and use less than stellar ammo, I struggle to hold eight inches consistently. I use a Winchester 52D with a Leupold M8-12X with the adjustable objective, so any poor groups are caused by me. I use match ammo in the 52D. I am fond of SK and Geco loads.

Reading the wind is critical with a .22 LR. Always use standard velocity ammo as supersonic .22 groups are always larger. CCI Standard Velocity used to be a great ammo to use when match ammo was not available or too pricey for the work. I have also had good luck with Geco Bolt and Semi-Auto ammo, which is less expensive than the match offerings from the same brand. I used to buy it for $205 delivered for a case. Now, good luck finding any. Try some to see what your rifle likes.

Getting enough ammo to shoot groups is the issue, especially as rimfire are sensitive to different ammo lots. Humid days are better for consistency than drier days. I am not sure why, but air with some moisture in it leads to smaller groups with the same ammo.

ETA: Prepare to invest in a good bench rest. I use a Randolph front rest; a good rest helps a lot when shooting ten-shot groups at distance. Ten shots is also more challenging than five shots. I have blown more groups at rounds eight through ten than I care to remember.

[Zincwarrior]

What rifle are you shooting AWP?

[BN]

It depends a lot on the rifle, scope and ammo. I've been shooting out to 350 yards with a Vudoo, Anschutz and a 10-22.

With the Vudoo I get slightly under MOA at 100 or 1" groups and slightly over (2" groups) at 200 yards. I'm the weak link there.

I posted a 3.280" average of six 5 shot groups at 200 yards with my 10-22 over at the Snipers Hide 6x5 thread. https://www.snipershide.com/shooting...-1-21.6253073/ This ongoing thread should help you with what to expect.

What are you shooting?

[awp_101]

Rifles will be a stock Ruger Precision Rimfire and a stock (for now) 10/22 (model 31139) that's going into a KRG stock. Fodder will be CCI SV, old Wolf Match and some really old Rex if I can remember where I put it. Plus any other non-bulk I run across in my ammo cans.

Besides the stock, I plan on eventually upgrading the 10/22 trigger group and maybe replacing the factory 18" barrel with something like a 16" TacSol. Not real sure what I can do to/do with the RPRR. I haven't dug very deep to see what upgrades are possible. I know Lilja makes a replacement barrel but I'm not that serious about this. I'd REALLY like to upgrade the cheek piece, it just feels really flimsy to me.

Would being able to keep 5-10 shots on a B-8 at 100 be a reasonable starting goal to shoot for (so to speak)?

[oregon45]

For .22lr at 100, and especially 200, yards I've found that wind flags at 50, 100, 150 and 200 make life much easier. A wind reading at the gun is all well and good, but it doesn't take much wind to move a .22lr bullet, so knowing what the wind is doing downrange is critical.

If you're holding 5 shots in the black of a B8 at 100 yards with the guns and ammunition you describe, I'd say you're on the right track and that should be well within the limits of the hardware. What would tell the story (and give you an indication of what to work on) is the dispersion of the shots on the target; vertical vs. horizontal stringing, clustering vs. fliers, etc.

Long range .22 is a lot of fun. Good luck with your endeavor.

[BN]

Would being able to keep 5-10 shots on a B-8 at 100 be a reasonable starting goal to shoot for (so to speak)?

Yes, that's a good starting goal. This is a deep, deep, $$$ rabbit hole you're going down. But the journey is so much fun.

Both Rugers are good to start. What scopes do you have? You will probably want a scope with enough internal elevation that you can dial for longer shots. I think the RPRR already has a 30 MOA scope base, so that will help a lot.

Bi-pod, rear bag or front rest with rear bag?

The old Wolf will probably give you a little better results than the CCI from my experience. I shoot a lot of SK.

I started long range rimfire about 5 years ago and I'm having a lot of fun.

[farscott]

EGW offers 10 MOA, 20 MOA, 30 MOA, and 40 MOA bases for the 10/22. My Winchester 52D has an EGW 20 MOA base. Well machined part.

https://www.egwguns.com/scope-mounts...r/ruger-10-22/

[Wheeler]

I played around with a Ruger American .22, CZ 455, and a TC/R22 at 100 yards off a bench. The best I could get out of any of them was a 1" group using CCI SV or Blazer. Those groups were what I'd consider outliers and I'd usually run 1.75" groups. Using supersonic ammo will open those groups up a fair bit as .33 usually goes transsonic around 60 yards.

[awp_101]

Thanks, I hadn’t thought about running out of elevation so I’ll add one of those bases to my 10/22 upgrade list. I’ve already got some kind of Tasco varmint scope on the RPRR (6-24 IIRC) and I’m pretty sure I’ve got a second that will probably go on the 10/22.

I’m going to use what I have on hand until I decide I *really* want to go down this rabbit hole so I’ll be starting with a set of San Angelo bags and unknown/unremembered Cabela’s grade front rest. If I get hooked I’ll upgrade the front rest and might even check out the tripod and head assembly mentioned in LL’s money pit thread.

And unless I get ahold of myself, I might be adding a BSA 12/15 with a Freeland stock and forearm to the safe. The downside is I’ll have to d&t it for modern mounts because I don’t want to go down the vintage scope trail.