What Ammo do you shoot?

First issue: Standard Velocity versus High Velocity

All US googled items point out to using standard velocity ammo (match ammo being also standard velocity). The matches in the US for Tactical Precision Rimfire have been won with Wolf standard velocity or its equivalent. The idea behind std. vel. versus High Vel. is that the standard velocity travelling at 1050 -1070 feet per second remains below the sonic sound barrier, while high velocity has to cross this barrier when the target is further out going from high velocity (1,200 and above) to low velocity ( you can hear the sonic crack with high velocity). This transition supposedly creates a slight aberration in the bullets flight or a slight wobble leading to a bit of inaccuracy or larger groups for the high velocity versus the std. velocity or subsonic bullets. I use Std velocity ammo and so far at 50 meters I group between .25 to .5 inches for 5 shots (still zeroing and will go for 100 and 200 this coming month - weather permitting). The Southern Philippine shooters who have been at this (long range rimfire shooting) since 2003 use high velocity hollow points (Armscor) to shoot 200 meters with a 4 inch grouping (remember out targets at 200 yards are either 6 or 8 inch plates) They of course sort their bullets to get consistent hits - that is another topic by itself which I hope to address later on. The reason for the high velocity is to get a flatter trajectory so you keep yourself within the limits of a regular scope arrangement - otherwise with std. velocity ammo you may have to offset your scope by 20 moa using shims or Burris offset rings to be able to get the large bullet drop for 200 yards. - both make sense - you choose.

Point here is what works with your rifle given the shooting parameters - aside from what is available in the Philippines (unlike other countries where a lot of brands and types of rimfire ammo are available). So bottom line is shoot and get your dope (meaning learn how your rifle reacts to certain ammo types in terms of drop and grouping).

Second issue: Match grade ammo versus regular ammo

First of all match grade ammo is expensive - like 23 pesos for Lapua Match types versus CCI or Armscor of 4 to 5 pesos. Question is, is it worth it? US conventional wisdo (via google) says that the match types are good and expensive. They are designed for 50 meter shooting supposedly. The consensus we are getting is that for 50 meters and below - they are fantastic specially for the standard traditional rifle shoots with all the jackets, etc. Once the range goes over 50 like 75 to 200 meters the match bullets start to act like standard velocity rounds. In effect for long range shots using regular ammo will equal the performance of the expensive match grade ammuntion provided they are sorted if you get the cheapest ammo available. This is the same comment we are getting from the US and from our favorite Southern Philippine shooters. The more expensive the ammo - the less prep you need for sorting. The cheaper the ammo the more sorting or inspection you need to get consistent hits. So those that want to use local ammo or std. vel. ammo of any brand and you do not want to buy the expensive but super accurate match ammo -all you have to do is spend more time sorting and keep your ranges long...

Bottom line again - Choose what fits the rifle and the course - that's why it's called Tactical...

By the way currently I use CCI std. vel... thinking of going to Armscor high vel hollow points once i finish my stock and learn the nuances of sorting. But that is another topic.