Question On Hollow Point vs Solid .22lr

[happyharold4]

For basic plinking and target practice with a 22 rifle and pistol---For example, the Federal 525 brick is hp, while the brick with 10/50 packs is solid---The MiniMag is solid and the MaxiMag is hp---Are most of the solid lead really as dirty and lead forming as so many posts indicate???----I'm just kinda confused---Like if a brick of 525 hp and one of 500 solid come up at the same time for approximately the same price---Which would be better to grab---Thanks

Happy

[DTom75]

For basic plinking and target practice with a 22 rifle and pistol---For example, the Federal 525 brick is hp, while the brick with 10/50 packs is solid---The MiniMag is solid and the MaxiMag is hp---Are most of the solid lead really as dirty and lead forming as so many posts indicate???----I'm just kinda confused---Like if a brick of 525 hp and one of 500 solid come up at the same time for approximately the same price---Which would be better to grab---Thanks

Happy

BOTH! All that they will sell you...

[as_rocketman]

Hollow point or solid really doesn't determine leading -- that's a factor of quality. Some bullets are made with harder lead and better lube than others.

In general solid bullets will outperform hollow points for target work. Partly because solid bullets tend to be heavier for a similar shape. Of course there's a lot of other factors that go into it...

Lead fouling can be cleaned out, don't worry. I've only run into a couple of boxes of ammo so bad that they fouled a barrel in a single long shooting session (Remington Thunderbolt, I'm looking at you). But I wouldn't be concerned about buying unplated ammunition, particularly if it's standard velocity (SV) ammo. Get what you can these days.

[kcheung2]

If you can find plated, those would be a better choice to reduce fouling. But in your hypothetical example of hp vs solid, the standard calguns answer applies.... Buy both!

[Izzy43]

For basic plinking and target practice with a 22 rifle and pistol---For example, the Federal 525 brick is hp, while the brick with 10/50 packs is solid---The MiniMag is solid and the MaxiMag is hp---Are most of the solid lead really as dirty and lead forming as so many posts indicate???----I'm just kinda confused---Like if a brick of 525 hp and one of 500 solid come up at the same time for approximately the same price---Which would be better to grab---Thanks

Happy

Your confusion is about ammo in general. Unless you buy Lead-Free ammo all other .22lr ammo is solid lead. The only difference is what is used as the bullet lube. Copper washed ammo is solid lead with a very, very thin layer of copper covering the bullet for lubrication purposes. Hollow point bullets were developed for hunting to create expansion but these days HPs are used for plinking and casual target practice. Round nose bullets feed better in semi-auto weapons and tend to be more accurate for precision shooting.

Maxi Mag ammo is .22 WMR and is available in hollow point, round nose, polymer tipped and semi-wadcutter, all with a metal jacket except one type from Winchester.