CCI Standard Velocity Ammunition

About the only shotgun ammunition I have is Green.  I have rarely found a reason to buy anything other than Remington Nitro Express or those premier buffered magnum turkey shells.  I think I have a box of Winchester #6 or #8 birdshot around just because it was cheap.  I use them mostly as noise-makers to chase off stray dogs and geese. 

On the other hand, I generally avoid Remington rimfire ammunition.  The truncated-cone Vipers and Yellow Jackets do not feed well in all autoloaders.  They are all right in my little Savage Mark II bolt-action, but they, along with Golden Bullets, are annoying.  Anytime I use Remingtons in the Savage, I have trouble with extractions.  The one exception I have made for Remington .22LR ammo is for Subsonics, which are generally accurate and effective as well as being low-noise.  The advertised velocity on Subsonics is 1049 fps for a 38-grain HP.  I have a brick of them on the shelf and a few loose boxes of 50 in the bullet box.  I have to keep the Savage clean which is not big inconvenience. 

My preferred .22LR ammo brand is, of course, CCI.  Bulk-pack Federal high-velocity HPs would get a mention as well, if I ever start finding them again.  I still have an unopened box of 550 stashed.  But all in all, I like CCI Mini-Mags, Stingers, and especially Velocitors.  I have a brick of Velocitors stashed, too.  I’m leaving them alone for now and using Aguila Interceptors instead.  The Aguilas are virtually identical in accuracy, weight and velocity to the Velocitors.  The difference is that the Velocitors have that wide, shallow HP profile as opposed to the Interceptors more standard-looking one.  I’m pretty sure that the Velocitors will give better penetration though the Interceptors have a certain appealing destructiveness on impact. 

I got a chance to buy a brick of “standard velocity” CCI lead round nose for a reasonable price.  The stated muzzle velocity is 1070 fps, which, depending on temperature, pressure and elevation, might still be subsonic.  It also depends on the weapon from which it is fired.   

The rounds are not copper-washed, and they are solid 40-grain projectiles, very similar to what we were shooting back in the '50s and '60s.  I fired a number of these CCIs through my Savage with no extraction issues.  Switching back and forth between these CCIs and the Aguila Interceptors also produced no problems with extraction, feeding or deterioration in accuracy.  These standard velocity rounds – not surprisingly, dropped noticeably beyond fifty yards but required no adjustment to the sights otherwise. 

 

I generally limit lower speed, non-hollow-points to target practice and plinking.  They are not going to be as damaging as high-velocity hollow-points.  Though I know from much past experience that a head-shot with one of these would humanely dispatch a squirrel, I have too many other, more effective choices for game, pests, or varmints.  

If you are looking for .22LR practice ammo that will feed reliably in a semi-auto handgun or rifle while being fairly clean and quiet, and you happen to run across some of these CCI rounds, I would say you might be wise to try them out.