John, I'm old enough to never be 100% certain of anything.
The .22 CCM is, in my opinion, a perfect illustration of ill conceived marketing strategy. I thought as much when it was introduced and apparently the Gods agreed. It goes to the point of what I have suggested here, but on a level where competition is fierce. That population starts on the low end with the .22 WMR and wanders up to the .222 Rem maybe. My emotional reflex when I first saw it was "I already got a Hornet, and can cover a broader range of performance." I note as well the CCM was in the market well before the recent debacle with RF ammo transpired.
If inclined, take another look at the info related to the .221 Askins. My read on that was the ammo matched .22 LR dims, functioned thru an existing platform (Woodsman?) and required they trim rim diameter on the brass and modify the bolt. Very straightforward proposition for a qualified 'smith. If you have a spare bolt in original condition and add that to the travel box, you have the option of CF or RF shooting with the same arm. There are a great many rimfire guns out there of varied action designs that have easily removed bolts. The bolt actions obviously, a number of autos, leverguns and then there is the Contender cross dressing hammer selector. My own gets exercised with some frequency. Such thoughts evolved in the course of this discussion, but were not on the table at outset.
I guess and speculate, and know a few things I rely upon in the decisions made daily. Some of my crutches have my steering wheel.
I can load ammo at my convenience
I can and do load ammo for my rifles that exceed the performance of factory production ammo insofar as precision is relevant. Seriously guilty of loading jacketed bullets too.
I can and do make so good bullets from day to day, cast and swagged. They have in the past perforated the X-ring at 200 yards.
I am not alone or unique in regards to the preceeding.
It is frustrating to see the "Not in stock" banner whilst ammo shopping
What I'd like to see develop is an alternative that provides redundancy and the ability to rise above the issues recently experienced by the shooting public. There be a reason that commercial aircraft have more than one engine. At present I see the idea as potentially very well received and a good marketing option. It won't cause a lot of top tier engineering, nor will the package be expensive on the front end.
By the way, I've seen some of your close cover out west and know you don't spend your days wandering in the open deserts. It is....God's country. We have places down here were you can see 200, 300, or even out to 500 yards sometimes. They are called golf courses.
Finally, I attacked my stash of 225438 bullets and gas checks this morning. Was dismayed to find that when that bullet was designed and the gas check geometry settled, they didn't have enough vision to realize that with very minor change in dimension the gas check shank diameter would have been a slam dunk for mating with .22 RF brass as a heeled bullet. Dang it....mics at .208" as I recall. It's close though...recalling the case wall of .22 brass being .010". I can accept a heeled bullet and the CCM (maybe) or Velodog case could serve as prototype stock.
You should see me go after 3 cups of coffee...
Dan
