[racer88]

I've had quite good luck with good ol' Wallyworld Federal Champion 500 bulk pack ammo in my 22s. It runs flawlessly.

More recently, I decided to try some different brands of .22 ammo just for fun.

I tried Winchester's 555 bulk pack. Multiple malfunctions. I'm not used to malfunctions in my M&P 15-22 nor my Ruger SR22 Pistol. Not liking it.

I tried Winchester's M22 ammo. Also multiple malfunctions. Not as many as the 555 bulk, though. Not impressed.

Today I tried some CCI Tactical. It's a bit more expensive... about $20 for a pack of 375.



The first thing I noticed about it was that it felt better in my hands. I mean the actual cartridges felt better between my fingers as I loaded the magazines.

It sounds weird, but I could tell a difference in quality. The cartridges were smoother. And, they weren't as DIRTY. When I load Federal Champion into my M&P 15-22 mags, my hands get dirty and gritty. That ammo is covered with "ammo-schmutz," apparently. I always wash my hands after handling ammo. But, with Federal Champion, I WANT to wash my hands.

When I loaded 6 mags of CCI Tactical, my hands weren't dirty! I'm not suggesting that this is of any significance. It's just something I couldn't help noticing after having loaded thousands of Federal Champion.

Shooting the CCI Tactical was also flawless. OK... I only fired off 100 rounds. But not a single malfunction. I am not an expert ammo tester. I didn't do any comparisons of accuracy. It did seem to be less "smoky," though.

No doubt, CCI ammo is at another level. Is it worth the premium of 1.3 cents per round over Federal Champion? Maybe not for general plinking. But, I could definitely perceive a difference in quality.

I'd buy CCI tactical again. But, I won't be buying Winchester 555 or Winchester M22 again.

No matter which you choose, it's WAY cheaper than .223! I enjoy shooting .233 a lot. But, I just LOVE my M&P 15-22. In this economy, I've come to appreciate .22LR!

[bac1023]

Cool. Thanks for the info.

[GTS197]

I was looking at the same stuff last week. I was considering it, but talked myself out of it since I can get the Fed bulk for the same price as the CCI.

I probably should get a few bricks, just to have on hand.

[steve1911]

Thanks for the heads up.



1911club#410

[ChuteTheMall]

Why is it called tactical?

Specs seem similar to CCI Mini-mag .22lr (40g copper plated roundnose, 1200 vs 1235 fps).

[Jerry]

Originally Posted by ChuteTheMall

Why is it called tactical?

Specs seem similar to CCI Mini-mag .22lr (40g copper plated roundnose, 1200 vs 1235 fps).

Because it sounds cool and people are in Tack-T-Cool mode these days.

[wjv]

Of the non-exotic brands, I think CCI ammo is better than all the others in terms of reliability. I do realize that some peoples guns aren't as accurate with CCI as they are with other brands. But if you guns like CCI, then it's the way to go.

The cheap Federal and Winchester bulk .22 ammo I have, is so I can trade it for women, after the great pandemic wipes out 94% of the world's population later this year. . .

[ca survivor]

Thanks for the heads up, I'm having misfires with a S&W 617, I even installed the extra long firing pin and not a big improvement, going to try the CCIs thanks again.

[Bill Keith]

I like CCI Blazer ammo, and the Federal Gold Medal Target ammo, both in 40gr. Here is an interesting factoid about the company that owns them:
The Blount ammunition business manufactures small-caliber ammunition and other related products, and is one of the country's leading suppliers of law enforcement ammunition. The product portfolio includes such well-known brands as Federal®, Speer®, CCI®, RCBS®, Outers®, Ram-Line®, Weaver™, Simmons®, and Redfield®. The business has approximately 1,700 employees and operations in seven states. There really is often not much difference between Federal and CCI in my experience. In the value line, they each make similar ammo, it is when you get into specialty ammo, like the Stingers and Gold Medal Match do you see the difference.

[dkf]

Originally Posted by Jerry

Because it sounds cool and people are in Tack-T-Cool mode these days.

Pretty much. Along the same line as zombie ammo. Same stuff different wrapper.

[Keyhole]

It's good and cheap. Ignore the Tacticool...

[JasonC8301]

I would suggest possibly a box of 325 Federal auto match stuff. I have had gokd luck with it in a 10/22, mark iii, and mp 15-22. Not too bad, think approx 15 a box.

[grg3d]

Originally Posted by ChuteTheMall

Why is it called tactical?

Specs seem similar to CCI Mini-mag .22lr (40g copper plated roundnose, 1200 vs 1235 fps).

They actually made it for the M&P 15-22 as far as I have read about it.

[AKRover]

Shot an entire box of CCI AR Tactical through my Colt 22 tonight and didn't have a single problem. IMO its worth the little bit extra price. CCI Mini-Mag always works very well


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[Clem Eastwood]

i ran some of this stuff through my rechambered factory 10/22 and its accuracy seems more consistently than automatch at 25y. im pretty impressed with the stuff. i have found automatch (and fed 711b) to be fairly inconsistent from lot to lot.

[Scamp]

I love it, I have never had a malfunction with it in my 15-22 or my 10/22. It just works!

[whauburger]

I had great results with the Winchester M22 in my P22 and m&p15-22, I always have a bunch of CCI mini mags on hand and figured i'd try the M22 last time I was ordering ammo just out of curiosity. I am now planning on stocking up on the M22 when I find it on sale.

[Armchair Commando]

Just goes to show that if they make it people will buy it, just like that zombie ammo crap! Federal bulk gives me 1/2 moa for a lot cheaper price, 17 bucks for 525 rounds compared to 25 bucks for 375 rounds!

[Armchair Commando]

Originally Posted by ChuteTheMall

Why is it called tactical?

Specs seem similar to CCI Mini-mag .22lr (40g copper plated roundnose, 1200 vs 1235 fps).

Their probably the same exact round in different packaging! Someone needs to take a Dial caliper and compare the 2!

[X-ray 4N6]

I tried the CCI AR tactical in two rifles: my SIG522 and my Thompson Center R55 Benchmark. In terms of performance I could find no reason to switch from CCI Mini-Mag to the AR tactical. I gained nothing in accuracy, in fact the Minimag was a bit better. For reliability I have only fired one box of the Tactical, so it is hard to compare to the Minimag.
In my SIG522 I have fired 4915 CCI Minimags and had 15 failures, of which 10 were failures to eject. There were two failures to ignite, which could be the ammo.
Fired 265 tactical in the SIG522 and had one failure which was a failure to feed. To be fair I doubt that was due to the ammunition.
If the failure rate was high with the Minimags, I would switch to RWS target before I switch to AR Tactical. I've fired 400 RWS target rounds through the SIG522 and had zero issues. It is accurate also.

[Clem Eastwood]

Originally Posted by TheStreetKing

Just goes to show that if they make it people will buy it, just like that zombie ammo crap! Federal bulk gives me 1/2 moa for a lot cheaper price, 17 bucks for 525 rounds compared to 25 bucks for 375 rounds!

Their probably the same exact round in different packaging! Someone needs to take a Dial caliper and compare the 2!

either way, its a little cheaper in the tactical box. at my local cabelas the tac stuff is $3.30 for 50 rounds and 40gr mini mags are $3.80 for 50.

at what distance and what rifle are you getting 1/2 MOA out of fed bulk? because i have some very nice rifles that hold around 3/4-7/8 MOA outdoors at 100y with lapua and eley, and the groups are 3 to 4 times larger with bulk junk.

[Armchair Commando]

Originally Posted by Clem Eastwood

either way, its a little cheaper in the tactical box. at my local cabelas the tac stuff is $3.30 for 50 rounds and 40gr mini mags are $3.80 for 50.

at what distance and what rifle are you getting 1/2 MOA out of fed bulk? because i have some very nice rifles that hold around 3/4-7/8 MOA outdoors at 100y with lapua and eley, and the groups are 3 to 4 times larger with bulk junk.

Out of my Savage Mark II BTVS at 50 yards i've shota 0.24 inch 5 shot group before, its not a normal occurence but it does tell me that my rifle with that ammo is capable of 1/2 moa or better. No wind whatsoever when i was shooting regardless the Federal Bulk ammo shoots more accurately out of my savage than any cci,remington,winchester ammo i have tried. I used to buy cci minimag 36gr by the truckload until i bought a box of federal bulk ammo! the cabelas in dundee has the ammo for 25 bucks a box which is the only local place i can find that has it, Since i don't order any ammo online anymore or with credit cards that cuts my options to where i can buy it, My local wally world has the federal bulk for 17 bucks a box of 525, pretty hard to beat for me!

[Clem Eastwood]

if your walmart is like mine then the pickin's are pretty slim. sub 1/4" is pretty damn impressive. my best with my CZ at 50 was a .17". wish i could do it on a regular basis.

here is a pretty good sample of what my CZ does at 100y



pretty windy that day.





ive never come close to 1/2 MOA though. my best 100y group with the cz was .63" if i recall correctly.

[Armchair Commando]

Originally Posted by Clem Eastwood

if your walmart is like mine then the pickin's are pretty slim. sub 1/4" is pretty damn impressive. my best with my CZ at 50 was a .17". wish i could do it on a regular basis.

here is a pretty good sample of what my CZ does at 100y



pretty windy that day.





ive never come close to 1/2 MOA though. my best 100y group with the cz was .63" if i recall correctly.

Nice shooting clem, the biggest problem for me with all of my 22s is the wind, If there's no wind at all next time i go to the range i'm going to see what types of groups i can manage at 200 yards! should be interesting!

[stroker]

I bought 1200 rnds of CCI LR this morning in Houston.