New Ruger American .22 WMR

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Riomouse911

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Well, I got bit by the Ruger bug again...I went out and bought a Ruger American Rimfire in .22 WMR. I have a Henry lever in .22 Mag, but I wanted a bolt in that caliber. I like the CZ rimfires a LOT, but I couldn't find one within my (VERY) limited budget.

I put a Simmons .22 Mag 3x9 x 32 scope on it (Also within my budget!) and went to the indoor range with some CCI 40 gr Maxi-Mag FMJ, Winchester 40 gr JHP, and Armscor 40 gr JHP.

I also took my old Remington 581 that also wears a Simmons .22 Mag scope, a 4 x 32. This gun has always been very accurate, so I thought it would be a good test against the Ruger at the 27-yard maximum distance that my local indoor range has. For the 581 I brought Magtech 40 gr standard velocity LRN, Remington Golden Bullet high velocity RN, and Aguila Velocitor 40 gr Plated RN.

It took me 6 shots to get the Ruger to put it's shots about 1" high at 27 yards, that should put it about an inch and a half low at 100 according to the WMR info I plugged in to http://www.shooterscalculator.com/ballistic-trajectory-chart.php .

As I sat on a folding chair, the three five-shot groups were shot with the forestock resting on a Foam Action Sports shooting block while the rear was unsupported. It's certainly not bench-rest steady, but I figure it was a a decent representation of a good resting position while hunting squirrels, chucks or other smaller game in the field. I started with two 5-shot groups, then decided to shoot one more each after the first ones were done (This is why the target-numbering is goofy).

581: (Targets listed in order of firing).

Magtech: 5/8", 1/2" 1/2" (targets 1,2 and 7)
Remington: 3/8", 3/8", 7/16" (targets 3,4 and 8)
Aguila: 1/2", 9/16", 3/4" (targets 5,6 and 9)


Ruger:

Winchester: 1" (BAAAAD flyer, all my fault. First 4 were in 3/8"!!), 1/4", 1/2". (Targets 20,19,14)
Armscor: 7/8", 1/2" 7/8" (targets 18, 17, 13)
CCI: 3/8", 7/16" 5/8" (targets 16, 15 and 12). Target 12 also has a 9mm hole in the scoring box from the guy shooting next to me!

The 581 has a preference for the Remington Golden Bullet loads, and kept the groups pretty consistently in the black of the 25 yard targets.

The Ruger shot groups that on average were just a bit larger (minus my error), with the Winchester JHP seeming to be the round of preference.

The only issues with either rifle was a FTF with one .22 Magnum Winchester round, but this round fired when put through the magazine a second time. There was also one FTE with the Ruger American and the Winchester ammo. I have no idea what caused the case to stick in the chamber and the extractor to slip over the rim, because it shot with 100% feeding/extraction reliability before and after this one FTE.

In closing, the Ruger American looked, handled and shot about as well as I could hope for. Obviously the rather sterile conditions were an extremely limited test of the gun and these rounds, and my inability to have a front and rear support isn't a true display of the accuracy potential, but I did the best I could with the hand I was dealt. I am pleased with the American; the magazines are 10-22 bullet-proof reliable, the synthetic stock appears to be tough, it fit me well so it allowed for a decent shooting hold and the bluing and metalwork was perfect from muzzle to action. I really like the fiber optic front sight and 10-22 ish folding rear, but with the scope these sights are more of a back up in case the scope croaks.

Now if I can just get out into the field and give it a go where it counts!

Stay safe! .22s 9-21-18.jpg .22 at range.jpg
 
I sure hope so. All the CZ rimfire talk in the other threads is making me want to start looking for a full-stock rifle to pair up with the M-77 RSI I have in .243...;)

Stay safe!
 
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