Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of.....22LR Accuracy. An Experiment.
This is gonna be long...so if you're bored easily...
I'm obsessed with Savage Rifles. Surprisingly for me, I'm also obsessed with .22LR caliber. "Well blow me down..!" as Popeye said when Olive gave him a Savage MKII Classic for his 100th birthday.
My .22LR is a MKII Classic, sporter barrel. Currently topped with a Nikon Prostaff Rimfire BDC 150. Love the scope but it may change as I've just ordered a Mueller 8-32x44 Target fine crosshair.
Anyway, as we all know there are many variables relative to accuracy concerning any caliber. Regarding ammo. for the .22LR, and subsequently accuracy, there seem to be two...OK maybe three or more "camps". As I see it some say 1- Buy Match ammo., period. 2- Measure and sort by rim thickness. .22LR headspaces off the rim so...And 3- Uniform the bullet / head for superior results. More uniform= more accuracy; more bearing surface=more accuracy etc. ADDITIONALLY other measurable variables are weight, C.O.A.L. etc.
SO I bought a Hornady L&L rim thickness measuring device. Simply clamps on to your caliper, has two "collets" one for .22LR, another for >22Mag. and .17 HMR.
THEN, I looked at three bullet re-formers / uniformers, hereafter referred to as "modifiers".
One is made by Paco Kelly; another made by Neal Waltz and the third made by "D Rock. All three are ingenious in their design. In case you don't know, allow me to provide a brief review and observation concerning all three, as well as my choice of modifier device and why.
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.22LR Accuracy Quest Continued...
First looked at the Paco Kelley device. Consists of a "collet" made from round stock (brass I believe?) with a hole drilled through it. Inletted on one end to facilitate insertion of a live .22LR round. In the other end one of a few "rods", the latter shaped to form various bullet shapes by swaging, is inserted. The unit is placed on a hard flat surface, cartridge facing up, and the rod is "wacked" (tapped actually) to re-form the bullet. Shapes include things Paco calls "Nasti-nose" and the like are formed. There are also a "dished out nose" and a "federal Hydro Shock" style hollow point. The unit can reportedly be used with an arbor press too (seems safer and more uniform with a press, don't you think?) There are reportedly various diameter "collets available; .223, .224 etc.
Second unit is a "D-Rock". Similar to the Kelly unit, there are 1,762 different rods that can be purchased separately re-forming bullet heads into such configurations as the "Mt. Rushmore" head and one that imprints the "Lord's Prayer". Only kiddin'! An exaggeration...but only slightly.
Finally, I looked at the Neal Waltz unit. This is a sizing "die" that fits into a single stage press. There are two common head formers available; a "hollow pointer" and a "flat-nosed-nippler" (my terminology), the latter strikingly resembling an Eley match bullet. It is totally adjustable and comes with a .22LR cartridge holder. A third head former is reportedly available but I currently have no details.
I bought the Waltz device (OUCH$). Seems to me to be more controllable, is VERY well made, is adjustable for amount of swage and out of all 3, Waltz responded to e-mails within 24 hours, and spoke to me extensively on the phone once. I like they guy! His device is expensive but out of the three- the better for me.
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