TargetTalk

A while back (well over a year ago) I had bought a couple of bricks of Wolf Target .22 ammo (at $54.00 a brick). I was impressed with the accuracy of it out of my S&W Model 41. However, it didn’t seem like it was worth twice the price of the CCI SV (at $27.00 a brick) I had been using. It certainly wasn’t twice as accurate. Not in that gun, anyway. After the current ammo shortage got underway, I found, like everyone else, that ANY .22 ammo was hard to come by. I got very tired of shopping internet sites that advertised something only to find out when I tried to add it to my “cart” that it wasn’t in stock. My internet and phone searches led me back to Champions Choice where I discovered that “some” of the items they list as “out of stock” could be backordered. That, in and of itself, is rare these days. Granted none of the normally bargain priced ammo was included in that group, but some that I considered “reasonably priced” was. The Wolf Target was in that category. The way I figured, I might as well order it. The worst that could happen is it doesn’t come in. I would be no worse off than I was.
I took the plunge and placed the backorder for a case of the Wolf. With shipping it works out to about $51.00 a brick. I justified it to myself by saying “Hey, if I don’t order this, I may not be able to compete at all this summer”. $51.00 a brick is expensive, I know, but that is the normal price. Not an inflated price driven up by this crazy market drought. So, I didn’t feel like I was being raped. I was pleasantly surprised when the UPS guy dropped the box off about 3-4 weeks later.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, I had replaced the S&W with a Walther GSP. Nice gun, but that’s for a different post. Used the new Walther for several weeks, including a State match, and my results were not hugely better than with the Smith. Well, I had gotten down to my last 50 rd box of the CCI, so, when loading to go to a practice session at the range, I threw in a box of the Wolf. Once at the range, I started off with a string of Slow Fire with the CCI. The result was about usual for me. Then I shot another string of Slow Fire with the Wolf. All I can say is “Wow!” What a difference. I still managed to throw one 7 and one 8 (cause that’s the way I roll, unfortunately), but everything else was nearly one very ragged hole. All 10s with two tight 9s. This gun really likes this ammo, and I’m really liking the possibilities. I suspect it has something to do with the European specs on the chamber. I like it so much, I backordered another case.

Moral of the story: You gotta find the ammo your gun likes. I have read that for years, but this was the most dramatic example I have personally experienced.

My Walther GSP digested every brand of ammo without any hiccups.
My Pardini SP prfers the imports and functions equally reliably with Wolf MT /SKJagd ammo.

Generally Wolf is a very accurate round and it seems to be accurate in most guns whereas most of the others might be accurate in one and not the other. That being said, unless you are shooting a rifle in competition, the accuracy difference between most standard velocity bullets is not enough to get excited about. If the typical 22 pistol is put in a Ransom Rest, people would be quite surprised how accurate they are with any of these rounds.

I've had good experiences with Champions Choice too. Having just cleaned up a Ruger Mark III Target I wasn't sure what it would work with (had only fed it Mini-Mags before), so I ordered (back ordered) a brick of SK and a brick of Wolf with the expectation that it could take about six weeks. The SK was delivered in a week. Keeping the prices normal with all the silliness going on was a huge plus too.

Good company to do business with.

I talked to them the other day and they had several brands of 22 in stock including SK rifle match

I agree with Oldcaster.

Accuracy wise, I am generally quite happy with CCI SV plastic box. However, there is always this nagging little doubt in my mind until I have been through a brick in any new case, that I might have an issue with duds. I have had a couple of different lots that were not all I had expected.

For matches, it gives me more confidence to just go with the Lapua ammo, as the slight difference in cost is an insurance policy of sorts for peace of mind.