22LR and wind at 100yds

[FNGGlock]

Was trying to zero the scope with some CCI SV and after I dremelled the stock on my RAR to not touch the barrel. This combo seemed to help, especially if you have a light touch on the stock while shooting; don’t force it to the bipod.

Anyway it was ok at 50yds. The targets at USI Concord sit pretty high at 50 and any wind push the target around a bit. Had to wait for it to stop moving to get shots in, but could eek out some good groups. Then the wind got pretty bad, to the point it blew the target out of the posts.

Decided to move to a 100yds where the backstop blocks some of the wind. Wow, what a difference the extra 50 yds made. The wind was gusting and easily pushed it 6” at times off target, even elevation was shifting by up to 4” at times. Never had that much drift at 100yds with a 22. Even HV ammo didn’t help that much. Do other people also see a huge difference from 50 to 100 yds with some brisk wind, or was it just me shooting like crap???

Best part was a guy 2 benches over, taking his 338 Lapua for it’s first outing to get an initial zero at 100, looking at me as to ask “What is this wind you speak of?!?”

['ol shooter]

SV isn't much good past 50 yds. on a calm day even through a match barrel, and it's a very light pill.

[ocabj]

CCI SV is fine beyond 50. If your gun likes it, then there's no reason you can't take it out beyond 100.

As far as I know, most people still use subsonic match ammo for ELR 22LR. 300 yards with Lapua Center-X on an 8x8 is easy enough as long as you spot wind shifts. Beyond 300 is where you really need to be on the ball with wind changes.

[Wheellock]

I use standard velocity of different varieties and find that a light breeze will push me out about 12" at 200 yards. Moderate breeze and I switch to something bigger.

[kcheung2]

High velocity .22 generally slows to transonic around 75yds so even with no wind you’ll notice a degradation in accuracy at 100yds. For long range most people use standard velocity, which is counter intuitive. But the slower round stays subsonic the whole time so it never crosses the Mach threshold & thus there’s no shockwave catching up to it as it slows below the speed of sound. The compromise is that there’s a bit more arc to your trajectory.

[FNGGlock]

Sorry guys, had to edit my post, should stop posting new threads on my phone.

Sounds like windy days will be a mess past 50yds. Constant wind can be fun to adjust for, but gusts seem like a mess with a 22.

Will just go back another day to test out ammo for the RAR, still trying to see what it likes. Not really interested in expensive target ammo for this cheap setup. So far ruled out Aguila HV and CCI Mini mags for it, Federal range pack HV seems ok and the CCI SV was starting to look pretty good.

[slamfire1]

The wind is what makes Smallbore Prone a challenging sport. You can buy match ammunition that will reliably group from 0.5 to 0.75 inches at 100 yards, but you can't buy match ammunition that will magically buck the wind.

Smallbore prone matches have lots of flags, about one every third target, the bigger matches have flags at 25 yards, 50 yards, 75 (ish) yards.





Competitors need every flag they can see, and it is still not enough. Flags can go in one direction, the mirage in another, and it gets really confusing when the bullets follow the mirage. I consider myself a good shooter, consistent hold, can shoot well in dead calm winds, but the great shooters, they are still shooting cleans in weather that I can find no correlation between the wind conditions I see, and what happens on target.

Centerfire shooters don't see the bullet movement dedicated rimfire shooters see, so, they expect rimfires to shoot like 6.5 mm bullets. The 22lr bullet floats like a spit wad in the wind. Given that the ten ring at 50 yards is either dime sized, or nickel sized, it does not take much change in wind to move the bullet out. And, of course, it gets worse at 100 yards

I recently tested a lot of my CCI SV



and I was surprised how well it shot in my Anschutz rifle. The winds had died down, so the groups are rounder than normal. I will say, CCI SV is not a match ammunition and I would not use it in a match. Cheaper ammunition flings the occasional round, and then there are always the low velocity drop outs.

[FNGGlock]

The wind is what makes Smallbore Prone a challenging sport. You can buy match ammunition that will reliably group from 0.5 to 0.75 inches at 100 yards, but you can't buy match ammunition that will magically buck the wind.

Smallbore prone matches have lots of flags, about one every third target, the bigger matches have flags at 25 yards, 50 yards, 75 (ish) yards.

Competitors need every flag they can see, and it is still not enough. Flags can go in one direction, the mirage in another, and it gets really confusing when the bullets follow the mirage. I consider myself a good shooter, consistent hold, can shoot well in dead calm winds, but the great shooters, they are still shooting cleans in weather that I can find no correlation between the wind conditions I see, and what happens on target.

Centerfire shooters don't see the bullet movement dedicated rimfire shooters see, so, they expect rimfires to shoot like 6.5 mm bullets. The 22lr bullet floats like a spit wad in the wind. Given that the ten ring at 50 yards is either dime sized, or nickel sized, it does not take much change in wind to move the bullet out. And, of course, it gets worse at 100 yards

I recently tested a lot of my CCI SV

and I was surprised how well it shot in my Anschutz rifle. The winds had died down, so the groups are rounder than normal. I will say, CCI SV is not a match ammunition and I would not use it in a match. Cheaper ammunition flings the occasional round, and then there are always the low velocity drop outs.

My goal for this setup is definitely not match grade performance. I'm using a Ruger American Rimfire Compact with a longer stock, it is not even the bull barrel. It is fitted with a Econo BSA Sweet scope. Not the most accurate setup and definitely not worth expensive match ammo.

Trying to find common ammo (know there will be some flyers due to ammo) that will run well out of it. My goal is sub 1" groups at 50yds and 3" groups at 100yds, which I think is doable with the setup and the right non match ammo.

Before the wind picked up it looked like I was easily getting sub 1" groups with the CCI SV, close to 0.5" groups, couldn't verify as the wind started and target actually started moving At 100 yds the target was much more stable, but it was a bit of a crap shoot with the wind at the time.

Was just surprised how much the wind pushed it around at 100 yds vs 50 yds, as the difference was definitely exponential.

[bigbossman]

Federal used to make an "Ultra Match" .22 load, I used to buy it by the brick from the CMP. That stuff was standard velocity, and worked very well, even at USI when they used to have their .22 100 yard BR matches there at the multi-purpose range. John Labash used to run them..... may he rest in peace.

You can see the effect of the left to right wind on my target at USI. As Slamfire noted, there are wind flags at several intervals, and even with them calling the wind was always a challenge at USI.

[JackEllis]

If you want to get a sense for what the wind will do, find a ballistic calculator like the one at http://gundata.org/ballistic-calculator/. It's probably not going to tell you exactly what your gun will do with a given load but it will give you a sense of how different ammunition reacts to wind. For example, Aguila Standard Velocity 40 grain rounds will move about 4 inches in a 10 MPH direct crosswind at 100 yards. A 55 grain VMAX round will move about an inch.

[Mustang]

I shoot in a weekly .22 bench match. We alternate between 50 and 100 yards. Last Tuesday was the 100 yard match. The wind was not too bad, but it was definitely noticeable on target.

I usually do "Kentucky windage" corrections for the wind, sometimes that works...sometimes not so much.

20 round match--10 per target.

[GM4spd]

22 LR+wind+100yds= prayer

[mattt]

Hey we are running 22lr benchrest matches now at multi purpose range at USI one every month. There is also one every month at Richmond RGC .

[Peahi2]

CCI SV is definitely ok for 100 yards. Its good stuff generally (recently have found some quirky defective rounds tho - come on CCI), and it should work well in your rifle. It does well when I shoot it through my cz 457 and regular stock 10/22 at 100. Don't be afraid to try out some good target ammo. Its not "expensive" in the grand scheme of things during these weird times (of $1 a shot centerfire ammo). I really like Eley ammo in my guns. If you can find out what ammo works well, and you start getting some tight groups at 100y, it gets addicting and the smile on your face will ensure you keep the ammo coming. Ditch the high velocity stuff like the mini-mags.


BTW, USI is out on the near the delta, near one of the windsurfing/kiteboarding hotspots. The geography of the Bay Area sets it up for howling winds in the summer afternoons, with cool air from the pacific rushing into the Central Valley, and you are in a choke point where the winds accelerate. The winds can be howling in the am (for the dawn patrol) and the evenings. Mid day doldrums in the heat might be your best times for shooting your 22 at 100y.