Eileen and I had a great time at the big Saturday sale, meeting several Campfire members and buying too much stuff ourselves. I didn't really need any .22 rimfire, but they had bricks of Remington hollow-points for a very reasonable price, so I bought one in order to meet my responsibilities as a gun writer, since I keep hearing reports about how Remingtons do or don't shoot, and had to confirm them for myself.
Also picked up a Model 64 Winchester and some powder, as apparently Whittaker's also has the secret to obtaining powders--though even they don't have them all. Bought an 8-pounder of H110, among others.
Nice to know things are good in KY. I always thought that Rem 22 ammo dirtied up my action excessively in semi-autos. Wondering if anyone else had this opinion/experience. Tim
Curious to see how those Remington's shoot. Because my last two bricks have been flawless and that is in 4 different rimfires.
Travis
I haven't found any Remington Goldens for quite some time, but the ones that I have have never suffered for accuracy, but I have had more misfires with them than with Winchester or Federal.
I bought a bunch of H110 when Barry was new to the Whitehouse. Still have about 6 lbs last time I looked. 22LR is still rare as an honest politician around here.
Reading your report about Whittaker's bums me out even more than I already was that I wasn't able to stop by for a visit a month ago when I was down in KY visiting relatives.
I wonder if it was made in the new plant in Arkansas? And I also wonder if that matters. I don't remember a lot of problems with the Remington. Some ancient Federal Lightnings from the 70's and 80's was problematic.
Mule Deer, I used Remington .22 ammo over the years with no problems whatsoever, till 2009. It was during shortage #1, and I had picked up some .22 target ammo, standard velocity, in the square plastic boxes. It was not the bargain stuff, by price nor by labeling. I used it in a revolver, and the first cylinder shot well, the second began shooting into about 6" at 20 yards, and the third cylinder went into about 9"...with bullets keyholing. Took a look and I couldn't see rifling. It was gooped up with a strange mixture that seemed part bullet lube and part powder fouloing, and was very difficult to remove...needed a brush. My friend then tried the same ammo in his revolver, with the same results. Both revolvers had digested lots of .22 ammo over lots of years without problems. I had purchased a carton of that ammo, and there are still 400 rounds that I just keep for that possibility that it's all I might have someday.
The same Remington ammo in a 20" barreled rifle also fouled excessively, but didn't start keyholing bullets even after about 30 rounds. It was also difficult to clean.
Don't know if that was an anamoly or common with newer .22 Remington ammo, but I'll be interested in what you find with the newer stuff.
My son and I have shot a ton of the Rem. golden hp in several different pistols and rifles, accuracy has never been an issue but maybe 1 out of every 50-100 won't fire. They are a little dirtier than others, with little gold flakes of the jacketing material and powder residue but all and all good ammo for our everyday needs. I've got to go to Louisville in a couple weeks, I'll have to find out were the store is and make a stop. Thanks for the info, Will
I've explained Big Game elsewhere on the Campfire. The factory in Belgium that makes Ramshot rifle powder partly burned a couple years ago, and though they got it back up and running last year, they can only make one of the powders at a time.
Last year they started with TAC, because it's the most popular Ramshot rifle powder, and after they get enough TAC out there to satisfy part of the demand will start making the others. (TAC has now been selling in the U.S. for several months now.) It looks like Magnum will be next, and I am guessing Big Game will be third.
A lot of component companies are making the same sort of choices, because they can't make enough stuff to fill the demand from shooters who are trying to stock lifetime supplies of various items, whether powder, bullets, primers, .22 ammo or whatever. I would also guess, based on conversations with a bunch of manufacturers, that Green Tag is further down the list than a bunch of other CCI .22 rimfire ammo.
Mini Mags is WAY above GT in my view. Or how about some POWER POINTS, [bleep]? I think the lack of pow pow is a big reason we can actually find bullets and primers now --
Mule Deer, I bought a Model 64-A (the second run) at a gunshow of all places many years ago and found it had a REALLY nice trigger, the nicest I've ever pulled on a lever action. I put a Lyman peep on it and with the 24" inch barrel and longer sight radius I found it shot very well. That was before my eyes got some age on them.
The rounder forearm and the pistol grip make it a sweet handling rifle.
You bought that 64, eh? I looked pretty hard at it, and if I hadn't just bought a little 336SC a couple of months ago, I'd have bought that one. Aside from a few scratches, it looked pretty darned good, and I liked the sights (Lyman peep). The price wasn't awful, but I was pretty set on another CZ 527, so I passed it by.
When those CZs come in, I'll beat feet back down there. I'm glad you were able to find something you can use. I'll look forward to a good article on the thing. A new article on loading the .30/30 with the newer powders would be pretty interesting, too...... hint, hint..
Remington 22LR ammo to me is very dirty, have some still around Sub sonic and the golden bullet HV stuff. Neither my High Standard Citation nor my S&W 617 like it much. It is fairly accurate and few if any misfires, just dirty. The 617 starts to get sticky extraction after the second cylinder full. Haven't seen H110 for quite awhile now, and I'm almost empty. Rl-19 is a pipe dream..
When I was a young man I walked the fields all summer long hunting woodchucks,my go to bullet was the remington 36 grain hollow point golden bullet.Now the woodchucks are as scarce as the ammo!
I really have to wonder in all these "shortages" that some local dealers in various areas, have managed to have stuff on hand, limited of course, but available quite often and if not, generally had it within a month or so, assuming it was being made and sold( IE Big Game).
The sucky part for most of us, now folks understand the theory of buying a years worht or a lifes worth and lots more will be buying that way which will make the timeline to "catch" up even longer.
I never did really get the idea that anyone would buy less than a barrels life worth of powder once a load was settled on anyway... some folks learn the hard way about lot to lot variation and or shortages that appear from time to time.
Pappy,coyotes are a big part of it,in my opinion,but,though nobody ever proved as much,I think that some sort of illness may have had something to do with the woodchucks falling numbers.They are making a slow recovery but now there is so much posted land that hunting them is tough.As a youngster I put thousands of rounds of rimfire through my model 81DL Marlin as I hunted them almost daily during the summer.
Part of it may be as simple as some retailers paying their bills quickly, while others aren't as quick. I do know that our printer is very helpful when we need another 500 of one of our books, because they know the money will be on the way as soon as we receive the bill.
No doubt it works the same way in other businesses. When I started out as a freelance writer, magazines that didn't pay promptly didn't get any more of my articles.
I haven't hunted chucks in years, but used to chase them in PA from time to time. I'm thinking of giving it a go this summer as I can get a 7-day small game license for about $30. There's a public area I used to hunt that's perfect, with rolling hills and lots of cultivated fields. I'll be using a Hornet stoked with....you guessed it, H110.
The coyotes are really coming on here. Last week, I heard them howling as I lay in bed, and this place is really an extended suburb of D.C. Rabbits have largely disappeared, except in neighborhoods like mine with lots of cover and enough big dogs in the yards to discourage the 'yotes. Chucks seem to be pretty common still, but a hobbyist sheep farmer about 1 1/2 miles away gave it up due to coyote losses.
Cabela`s in Green Bay has had 22LR in stock every time I have been in there for the last 6 weeks.They limit you to one brick a day.It might be a 500 rounder one day and a 333 rounder the next day.Plenty bullets and powder around ,but new brass is scarce.
I haven't hunted chucks in years, but used to chase them in PA from time to time. I'm thinking of giving it a go this summer as I can get a 7-day small game license for about $30. There's a public area I used to hunt that's perfect, with rolling hills and lots of cultivated fields. I'll be using a Hornet stoked with....you guessed it, H110.
The coyotes are really coming on here. Last week, I heard them howling as I lay in bed, and this place is really an extended suburb of D.C. Rabbits have largely disappeared, except in neighborhoods like mine with lots of cover and enough big dogs in the yards to discourage the 'yotes. Chucks seem to be pretty common still, but a hobbyist sheep farmer about 1 1/2 miles away gave it up due to coyote losses.
In central and southern Ontario, the woodchuck numbers plummeted after coyotes expanded their range and their own numbers increased. As a youngster and into my 20s, you could spend the day thinning the woodchuck numbers. My first rifle for that was a 22 as well.
You rarely see any these days. I am quite sure there must be pockets of them around, but since the late 1970s, their numbers have dropped dramatically.
Glad to hear you and Eileen had a good visit. I knew you would with Darrick in charge. We enjoyed the conversations and appreciate the time time that each of you shared with us.
I am sure the coyotes have had some impact but I think at least around here the mowing and subdividing of property is a bigger impact. Road kill would be next on my list. The amount of idle land continues to diminish.
I am sure the coyotes have had some impact but I think at least around here the mowing and subdividing of property is a bigger impact. Road kill would be next on my list. The amount of idle land continues to diminish.
I can't speak for Kentucky, but the areas of which I speak are all rural. The farms haven't changed or been subdivided.
We had oats and barley. The groundhogs lived in and around that. We used to spend almost every Saturday in the spring and fall in the fields after them. Now, it's hard to find their holes.
Thats about the time that I began to notice the drop in chuck numbers,when I began to run into coyotes when hunting.Ive seen several coyotes lying near woodchuck holes waiting for them.Of course the hunter then became the hunted!
Eileen and I had a great time at the big Saturday sale, meeting several Campfire members and buying too much stuff ourselves. I didn't really need any .22 rimfire, but they had bricks of Remington hollow-points for a very reasonable price, so I bought one in order to meet my responsibilities as a gun writer, since I keep hearing reports about how Remingtons do or don't shoot, and had to confirm them for myself.
Also picked up a Model 64 Winchester and some powder, as apparently Whittaker's also has the secret to obtaining powders--though even they don't have them all. Bought an 8-pounder of H110, among others.
Sounds great John. I don't really care for the new Remington 22lr ammo, but if you run across some old 22 yellow jackets let me know...
Steve, Have you ever seen a knowledgeable scientific report explaining the demise of the southern Ontario woodchuck population? There seems to be lots of theories thrown around but I have never seen the Ministry or anyone else provide sound reasons for the decline.
It's out there, just maybe not exactly what you want and surely not for what you want to pay.
I never was one for spraying a bunch of .22s downrange; probably have repressed memories of little cardboard boxes with one or two rounds rattling around inside. As a result, I never was one to buy a bunch of cheap bulk ammo. During Panic One, I did buy a few boxes of WW Expert and (Ugh!) Federal, because I worked nights and passed right by Walmart on my way home. I still have most of that, although I've shot some in my handguns and given some away. Mostly, I shoot good to semi-premium stuff and only a couple hundred per range visit. For hunting, I use RWS SS HPs, but have enough for the forseeable future. Since I'm still trying to determine what shoots best in my new rifle, I'm not likely to make any huge purchases any time soon.
If you know what you want, go to an online supplier and place a backorder or in-stock notification request. It absolutely has worked for me for the stuff I use. Just keep an eye on your email and you'll score.
Steve, Have you ever seen a knowledgeable scientific report explaining the demise of the southern Ontario woodchuck population? There seems to be lots of theories thrown around but I have never seen the Ministry or anyone else provide sound reasons for the decline.
Jim
As far as I'm aware, no studies have ever been done. You and I know there's no money in the budget for studies. Same as the ministry denying the existance of cougars in Onterrible. The cancellation of the spring bear hunt, etc.
No money for any definitive examinations of things like this.
Money collected by the MNR is supposed to stay within the ministry. I do not believe this is so.
Perhaps someone else can shed some light on this...but I doubt it.
Steve - Further to your comment about cougars. My optician has a riding horse which he stables about 20-25 miles from where I live. He told me about his horse being mauled by a cougar as stated by his vet after examining the wounds on the horse.
Then a short time later his brother-in-law saw one in the loft of his barn. They are here, no question about it!
Pappy,coyotes are a big part of it,in my opinion,but,though nobody ever proved as much,I think that some sort of illness may have had something to do with the woodchucks falling numbers.They are making a slow recovery but now there is so much posted land that hunting them is tough.As a youngster I put thousands of rounds of rimfire through my model 81DL Marlin as I hunted them almost daily during the summer.
Woodchucks are scarce in Delaware, Chenango and Otsego counties where I shot hundreds of them in the 70's. There are still good numbers of them further north in Cortland and Madison Counties yet there alot of coyotes there too.
It is rather odd that the government denied the existence of cougars for years and years. I don't know if they were concerned with tourism or they genuinely did not believe all the people that were reporting them. It sure makes you wonder who's steering the ship.
In this area they generally DAK of cougars. My son and his mom both them while driving, and my cousin has twice seen one near La Plata, Maryland while bowhunting. The first time, it came near his stand and acted very agressively. La Plata is in Southern Maryland, nor far from D.C.
They are seen occasionally on Skyline Drive, but again the authorities always deny it and say it was a bobcat or something. How many bobcats have long, ropey tails?
Yep, they see them in Pa also. Funny thing is no one ever gets a pic. No one ever can take a GC officer and show them prints. No one ever sees cubs, always adults. 800,000 deer hunters out the first day and no one shoots one or again gets a pic.
Yet some see them on a regular basis while taking a hike.
It's in very good condition, the only "flaw" a Pachmayr ventilated pad that was added at some point, though quite professionally. I suspect, however, that the stock wasn't cut when adding the pad, but won't know for sure until the rifle shows up here, as I had it shipped from Kentucky.
Changing farming practices, and actually the cessation of farming in many areas, is the leading cause of woodchuck decline IMO. They could easily outproduce their predators given good habitat.
Farmer down the road used to ask us to shoot Groundhogs and carried a rifle along when on his tractor. Years ago it wouldn't be uncommon for him to shoot around 100 in a year. Nothing has changed on his place that he can put his finger on other than Coyotes.
Asked to shoot them last year and he said go ahead, but there just are not that many.
I've noticed 22 ammo showing up all over the Northwest the last couple of weeks. One store had 30+ boxes of 500 on the shelf and told me buy as many as I want because they had a lot more on the way. I think the Govt. Contract is filled and the shortage is over.
A friend asked an independent seller of ammo and guns why he always seemed to have .22RF among other hard to get items. He responded that he payed his bills. Eg: he phones the supplier and asked for 40,000 of this or that and gives the credit card number and it is shipped to him. Some of the big outfits, chains etc hold the supplier out to 90 or even 120 days for payment. So as a supplier who are you going to sell to first?
There's a shop in my area that does well to get stuff in: guns, ammo, components. There are even some good deals to be found. Mostly because I know him and ask. He is a talker. I'm guessing that he doesn't just place orders with companies and then sits around waiting. I believe he talks to people, including distributors, all the time, and makes sure he will get a bit of whatever is coming through. When all is said and done, the whole economy runs because of millions of people making decisions all day long. People who understand the meaning and worth of personal relationships get treated accordingly.
Yearned for a M64 over many years, but most at gunshows were overpriced for their condition. Got (really) lucky several years ago and glommed onto one (30-30) locally in a newspaper ad, for a mere $600.
Mint condition, unmolested except for a sling swivel in the butt. Also has the magazine cap swivel and the ol' boy even gave me the original mag cap.
A member here favored me with a period correct Lyman for a good price (actually came off'n another M64). Now my favorite lever rifle.
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