UNTANGLING .22 LR PERFORMANCE MYSTERIES

It could be argued that the 125-plus-year-old .22 Long Rifle is America’s most beloved cartridge. It is, after all, most shooters’ first powder-driven rifle. And nearly any household with even a modicum of firearm interest harbors one, if not several. Further evidence is revealed by the fact that Americans annually burn through upward of three billion .22 LR rounds. Whether poking holes in paper, plinking cans, collecting small-game table fare or eliminating pests, most reach for a .22 LR.

Western burrowing-rodent shooting has spawned an intense interest in .22 LR performance; ground squirrel arenas, in particular, are witnessing ammo consumption measured in bulk packs. Ground squirrels are tenacious critters, and although they’re universally reviled by landowners due to property destruction, they nonetheless deserve a quick death. And honestly, it’s much more satisfying to assemble visible body counts than have burrowing rodents reach their expiration date underground. Velocity, bullet design and associated energy delivery become pivotal in choosing ground squirrel loads.

DETERMINING LOAD CLASSES

Not all .22 LR ammo is the same; even labels like “subsonic,” “standard,”