Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Rimfires Finally found ammo my 10-22 likes

Alright, a few months ago I tried about 7 different types of ammo to see which one my 10-22 target rifle liked the most. The yellow box S/K standard plus was at the top of the heap for consistency and accuracy. I tried some aguila pistol match, Remington/eley target ammo, Federal automatch, American eagle 36gr. hp's, CCI AR tactical, RWS special match, cheap bulk federals, and Lapua match. Let's just say, everything was sub par (+ 1" groups at 50 yards). The yellow box of SK standard plus printed a few groups of around .7-.8" which seemed reasonable enough for me. Then I was at the LGS and saw some Eley target ammo (not the damn Remington/eley ammo) and shot a box of that though the rifle. Damn if it didn't shoot alright too. So I went back and bought 3 boxes at a time (store limit), until I had about a brick. I also bought a few boxes of the SK match ammo, which I thought would really drive tacks since it was $4.00 more than the regular ol SK standard plus. Boy was I wrong. My rifle shoots to a tune of it's own. I was just about ready to list it on gunbroker until my buddy let me try some of the SK standards. Here's how it did today. Sorry there's only 3 groups here, but you get the idea:



If you guys get a chance to try this ammo out, I wouldn't be surprised if it shot exceedingly well in your rifles too. The local Cabela's had tons of it the other day, so I bought a brick.

Here's the rifle:


I glass bed it, installed a Volquartsen match hammer and bushing kit (dropped the pull wt. down to a consistent 1 7/8 pounds, added an extended charging handle, Kidd bolt buffer, modified the bolt release so it releases as it should when you pull back on the bolt, extended magazine release, glass bed the scope base to the receiver, and threw a cheap Nikon 4-12x40 rimfire scope on it. All in all, it's working pretty good now and it probably won't get sent down the road too soon now that I found some ammo it likes... . Have any of you ever had a picky Ruger 10-22

Try SK pistol match. Great ammo!
You will not be disappointed.

Thanks for the tip. If I can find some, I'll try that out too. Cabela's may have had some the other day. I believe it was in a green box?

Aguila Rifle Match and RWS SSHPs have tied for first place in my last two rifles, a CZ453 and my current 77/22 RSI (groups from the CZ being about half the size of ones from the Ruger). They also have the same POI. I haven't tried the really high end target ammo like top-grade Eley as it would just be a waste in my sporters. The RWS HPs are good killers too.

RWS Subsonic HP's are my favorite hunting rimfire ammo also. SK Standard (Wolf MT is the same load) is great target ammo and normally shoots excellent in many rimfires.
The lube on the SK ammo eventually will clog up the action in a semi auto.
A more inexpensive bullet to try is the Win. Dynapoint. This one also shoots very good in most rimfires.

That's pretty danged good, BSA. I'm having really nice results with SK Rifle Match, and even SK Magazine .22 in my 52 repro. I think Magazine .22 is the same as SK Standard, only bulk-packed.

Have you considered putting an AO scope on the rifle? It might shave a little off those groups.

When I first got the rifle, I didn't know what scope to go with so I figured I'd try a rimfire scope for the first time. I was shooting at 50 yards yesterday and I believe the parallax is adjusted to that yardage. If I were shooting the rifle a lot at different ranges, I'd probably consider an AO. This rifle is mainly a fun gun for shooting golf ball shoots and other friendly rimfire comps. We generally shoot at 50 yards on the nose for these rimfire events. Could you suggest a good/great rimfire type AO rifle scope? My only complaint with this Nikon scope, is the reticle is a bit too thick for my liking. Glass isn't too bad and it's pretty easy to get behind.

I guess you've got it covered, really. I zoomed in on that photo to see exactly what the scope is, and I think you're right. I believe Nikon specs all their rimfire scopes to be parallax-free at 50 yards.

I shoot my rimfires off the bench at 50 quite a bit, but that's because I've been in ammo-testing mode for quite a while now. I'd like to take my 52 out to 100 yards sometime soon based on what I saw it do with SK Rifle Match and Magazine .22 in recent weeks. AO will be an asset if/when I get time to do that. I also like to shoot jackrabbits at night when I get a chance. I'll usually set the AO to about 80 yards for that job.

Personally, I've been satisfied with a VX-II 4-12x40mm AO with strandard duplex reticle, but I upgraded to a VX-III 4.5-14x40mm AO with standard duplex reticle a while back. Definitely better glass. If you like Leupold scopes like I do, I think you'd be happy with either one.

Thanks RiverRider. Shoot some jacks for me!! I miss those days.

I had one of those rifles, and it was very picky on ammo. My favorite 10/22 in the looks dept, but I didn't like how picky it was. I sold it a few months ago.

Great that you found something that works. Until I did tests myself, I had no idea that 22LR's were so picky. Find good ammo, and one suddenly discovers he's a better shot than originally thought.

Not something one can afford to use in the squirrel fields. But it's good to know what to use when one really wants to tuck them in.

Picked up a "new to me" Ruger Single Six convertible back in May. Don't have much 22 mag and it's still hard to get so I'm just playing around with it using the 22LR cylinder. Picked up some of the SK yellow box stuff (first time I ever bought any SK) and discovered that the gun may just prefer this stuff over anything else that I've fed it so far. It shoots real good with just about anything but that SK stuff was great. I was gonna try some of the SK in my 10/22 but now it's reserved for the single six.

Good shooting, bsa. And glad you found your huckleberry with the ammo. Looks like you were barking up the right tree with the SK and Eley.

That is a nice looking rifle. All you need now is to thread the barrel for a can.


I'm still buying a box or 2 a day of the Federal Auto Match at Basspro while the sale is still on. I'll back off when they up the price again.