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Vudoo V-22S Single Shot BR/F-Class Action

Very Nice!
We have 30 to 50 mph gusts here today in the midwest! Going to shoot inside tomorrow.
Hahaha! I hear you brother. I attempted to shoot aspirins with some friends at 100 yds on Sunday, and the winds were running a steady 20mph, and switching badly (for us). We were just lucky to hit some aspirins in those conditions. We would line up our aim, and use the holdoff we thought was appropriate, and bang, either the shot went exactly where we aimed, or it went wildly 2-4 inches the other way. Needless to say, that was a tough day to shoot, but we had to try... Mother nature won that match for sure....

Take care, calm winds are coming!

RFS99
 
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Well the stars have aligned and the new rifle is finally done. Now if Mother Nature will shut off her wind machine I can get serious.
I couldn’t have done it without the help of some very good friends
Nice looking setup. Why no rear rings only both up front?
 
Nice looking setup. Why no rear rings only both up front?
Matt,
I have read that the action could be torqued with the rings spanning the ejection port. So as one of the many side roads leading down the “Rabbit Hole”I tried it. After shooting and not liking the scope I put on another and it has the rings front and rear. Trigger Time is needed now.
As I am new to the rimfire game the VUDOO has impressed me shooting the mixed lots of ammo on hand.
DRACO
 
Matt,
I have read that the action could be torqued with the rings spanning the ejection port. So as one of the many side roads leading down the “Rabbit Hole”I tried it. After shooting and not liking the scope I put on another and it has the rings front and rear. Trigger Time is needed now.
As I am new to the rimfire game the VUDOO has impressed me shooting the mixed lots of ammo on hand.
DRACO
Draco, good on ya for trying it, but torquing/stressing a stainless steel receiver (that complies with strict heat treat standards) across such a short ejection port with an Aluminum scope base and Aluminum scope tube is a bit of a Mickey Mouse myth. Very easy to test and very easy to dispel. If anything, the rail and scope tube would be stressed which is why it's been a common practice to bed (steel) rails to the receiver and line lap rings. It would do you well to fill in that rabbit hole Dude.

MB
 
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Draco, good on ya for trying it, but torquing/stressing a stainless steel receiver (that complies with strict heat treat standards) across such a short ejection port with an Aluminum scope base and Aluminum scope tube is a bit of a Mickey Mouse myth. Very easy to test and very easy to dispel. If anything, the rail and scope tube would be stressed which is why it's been a common practice to bed (steel) rails to the receiver and line lap rings. It would do you well to fill in that rabbit hole Dude.

MB
Thanks Mike
I have always like the challenges of hunting Unicorns. 😉
This is the third Vudoo in my collection and by far the most fun.
You and the Vudoo group need to be congratulated on great products and outstanding customer support and thank you for you personal support DRACO
 
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Thanks Mike
I have always like the challenges of hunting Unicorns. 😉
This is the third Vudoo in my collection and by far the most fun.
You and the Vudoo group need to be congratulated on great products and outstanding customer support and thank you for you personal support DRACO
Thank you and anytime Draco. Reach out if you need anything....

MB
 
This is the third Vudoo in my collection and by far the most fun.
You and the Vudoo group need to be congratulated on great products and outstanding customer support and thank you for you personal support DRACO
So, what started you down this Rabbit Hole of Vudoo Rimfire fun?? ;)
 
So, what started you down this Rabbit Hole of Vudoo Rimfire fun?? ;)
It started one cold winter day with this guy. And I’m glad he did 🤣🤣🤣
 

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Must be an enabler. :) So I guess My Vudoo is now responsible for 5 new Vudoos sold.
You willingness to share and corrupt me plus Vudoo’s quality is responsible for my addiction 🤪
 

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Yes Sir
Left was Midas
Right was SK Biathlon
This thing shoot very well with everything I have squirreled away.
Haven't tried Midas + yet, only Center X, SK Standard + and Rifle Match. My 40X shot ELEY black box. The Vudoo seems to like LAPUA stuff better than ELEY. Still testing....
 
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V-22S .22LR Ammunition - The Importance of the “Ammo Chase” in the Age of Covid

[Disclaimer: this post is for shooters who are relatively new to the various precision 22LR disciplines, especially Rimfire Benchrest (RFBR). If you’re an experienced RFBR shooter most of what I’ve got to say you already know.]

Precision Equipment Requires Quality Ammunition - As a new owner of V-22S based rifle, whether you’ve bought a complete “target” build from Vudoo Gun Works in St. George or a “match” rifle built from components assembled by your favorite gunsmith, you’ll face the challenge of finding ammo that works with your rifle. Off-the-shelf ammo may impress you until you find that “killer ammo” that shifts your paradigm and opens your eyes to what’s possible. Lot testing to find the best ammo is absolutely necessary to get peak performance from your new V-22S.

Don’t underestimate this challenge - other than your skills this is, arguably, your most critical task!

When I bought my first Vudoo, a V-22 repeater, I was shooting CCI-Standard Velocity and SK Standard Plus. I quickly realized that the “go to” ammo for the V-22 was Lapua Center X. Then I began competing against unlimited rifles in local RFBR matches. Soon after that I bought my first custom rifle and all the necessary ancillary equipment. It took several “club” RFBR matches and a lot of sound advice from my mentors before I fully recognized the need to buy the very best ammo available and pair that ammo (by lot number) to my rifle.

Ammo Shortage - Ammunition shortages are nothing new but the shortage we’re currently experiencing may set the high-water mark for RFBR, F-Class and even casual shooters. An ammo shortage doesn’t mean you’ve got to compromise your expectation for locating and buying the very best ammo for your new V-22S. You may just have to work a little harder, broaden your search and be ready to pounce on an opportunity when it appears. Veteran shooters have learned to maintain sizable inventories of quality ammo but new-to-RFBR shooters may be caught short on ammo to feed their new V-22S rifle.

Vudoo Gun Works (VGW) Has Done Their Job - VGW has delivered on their promise to produce a quality action that will be competitive at the highest level. From concept to first shipment the V-22S development took less than two years. Vudoo’s Head Skunk led the effort but he had support from the company and plenty of outsider’s who provided insights and suggestions. Now that the dust has begun to settle and the first generation V-22S actions have been delivered it becomes the shooter’s job to wring the absolute best performance from their new rifle.

The Highest Quality RFBR Ammo is Manufactured in Europe - V-22S customers make a financial commitment with typical cost-to-build a complete rifle of $3K or more and that’s without a scope. To get the most accuracy and precision from your purchase you’ve got to shoot the very best ammo. I’m convinced there’s only two 22LR ammo manufacturers who should be considered: Eley, produced in Birmingham, England and Lapua, produced in Schönebeck, Germany. Eley and Lapua ammo will cost more than other brands but results in head-to-head competition will be worth the expense.

Eley produces two brands that are popular with RFBR shooters: Tenex (aka Red Box ~ $17.50/box) and Match (aka Black Box ~ $14/box). There’s a lot of trade secrets used to guard the proprietary aspects of both Eley and Lapua production but most shooters believe that Tenex is the top-of-the-line for Eley and Match is manufactured on the same machines by the same technicians … the only difference being the results of accuracy testing done using Anschutz rifles at a nearby Eley test facility. The best ammo goes in a red box and the rest goes into a black box.

In contrast to Eley, Lapua produces three brands of 22LR ammo suitable for RFBR: X-Act (~$23.50/box) is, by far the most expensive followed by Midas + (~ $15/box) and Center X (~ $11/box). The materials used in manufacture of Eley and Lapua are different as are specifications like rim thickness that may effect the head space between the bolt face and the chamber. There’s also a difference in the lubrication used by Eley compared to Lapua. Eley uses a bees wax based lubricant where Lapua uses more of an oil based lube.

In early 2017 a Lapua Sales Manager, verified that “every run of ammo, either Lapua or S-K, is accuracy tested in a series of five 10-shot groups.” Standard Deviation and Extreme Spread are measured in several different rifles and are required to fall within a strict set of parameters. If the ammo passes that testing at a certain level of accuracy it becomes X-Act, or is downgraded to Midas+ or Center-X, depending on where the measurements fall.

The Sales Manager concluded, “The bottom line is, you simply can't rate match grade rimfire ammo from best to worst strictly by the showing it makes in the test rifles. It's a start, but you ultimately HAVE to test the lot in your particular rifle to know.”

It’s noteworthy that during the recent 2021 ARA Indoor Nationals at least 90% of the ammo shot was Lapua and the majority of that ammo was Midas +.

Accuracy/Precision is the ability of the shooter to optimize every element of his/her “system”, i.e., rifle (action, barrel, trigger, stock, scope), rifle rest (one-piece or two), wind flags, cleaning supplies, cleaning protocol and ammunition. Once the system is optimized it’s on the shooter to post the best match scores.

Veteran RFBR shooter’s will agree that our sport requires attention to a lot of details if you are intent on winning competitive matches.

There’s a lot of good information contained in both Eley and Lapua lot numbers. Muzzle velocity, the machine number that produced the ammo, the year the ammo was produced and the actual tracking number for each lot. Generally, there’s not more than six cases (a case is ten bricks, a brick is ten boxes of fifty rounds for a total of five thousand rounds) of ammo comprising a lot.

To better understand variations in both Eley and Lapua ammo I’ve attached an explanation of what each manufacturer’s lot numbers mean. Other than insider information, muzzle velocities, machine number and year produced are the only data you can use to make buying decisions.

Sourcing and Selecting the Right Ammo - For discriminating V-22S owners, buying 22 ammo from Walmart, Brownell’s, Mid-Way and other major shooting sports outlets just doesn’t cut it. They may have the manufacturer and brand you’re looking for but they won’t sell test lots and hold larger volumes for a bulk purchase.

I’m not going to tell you where to buy quality ammo but I will tell you, that in normal times, the smaller, boutique suppliers will sell test lots of a couple boxes of several lot numbers and hold larger volumes until you shoot and choose the lot you like.

So how do you select and buy quality ammunition for your V-22S build?

Lot Testing - First, you’ve got to convince yourself that paying between $11 and $24 for a box of 50 rounds is something your budget will tolerate. Once over this hurdle you can move on to the next challenge … extensive LOT TESTING. The more you test the better the odds of finding great ammo become.

So, how do you Lot Test?

There’s two basic ways to do lot testing … either you do it yourself or you go to the manufacturer’s test facility.

If you test in the manufacturer’s “tunnel” your barreled action will be strapped into an appliance for test firing groups of several different lots. As the rifle owner you have the responsibility to evaluate the data and determine how much of a particular lot you care to purchase.

Eley’s testing facilities are located at Killough Shooting Sports in Winters, Texas. Lapua’s test centers are in Mesa, Arizona and Marengo, Ohio.

If you decide to do lot testing yourself you are responsible for obtaining however many lots you think it’ll take, shoot representative samples and then make your buying decision.

A lot testing regime I’ve used is to buy two boxes of five different lot numbers of a particular manufacturer/brand. I’ll pick a relatively calm (wind) day and shoot at 50 yards. I shoot sighters and at least five five-round groups of each lot. I measure the center-to-center (CTC) spread and compare the average group size of each lot. Five round groups should measure CTC below 0.20” and hopefully, down to 0.15” if you’re going to win at regional or national matches. I clean my barrel between shooting each lot number. If at all possible, I’ll shoot this same protocol on two days. Things change and for unknown reasons you, your “system” and your ammo may not shoot as well one day as the another. Remember, you’re looking for consistency!

Buying Blind - During this ammo shortage a lot of shooters who would normally lot test are buying “blind” because normal buying methods are not available, i.e. the previous “buyers” market is clearly now a “sellers” market. Buying a case of Eley or Lapua means a $1,000 to $1,800 purchase which can be pretty risky if the ammo doesn’t shoot well in your rifle. If you’re part of the RFBR community you can generally recover your costs if the ammo doesn’t work in your gun ‘cause it’ll probably work in someone else’s. The manufacturers and brands we’re talking about are popular and are as good as currency, especially during an “ammo drought”.

Groups vs Lines - Shooting groups may be good for determining ammo lot consistency but shooting competitive RFBR means shooting twenty to twenty-five bulls, one at a time, moving from one bull to the next for five bulls and then moving down (or up) a row, shooting the second row and then the remaining rows in whatever order you chose. The point being that shooting groups is different from shooting “lines” or “rows” of bulls.

I believe that lot testing should include both group and line shooting. After all, the point of lot testing is to pick the very best ammo to use in competitive RFBR matches which all require shooting one round per bullseye.

Summary - This little primer is intended to introduce new V-22S owners and shooters new to RFBR to some of the intricacies of choosing ammo that will help you get the best performance from your rifle. Shooting any .22LR discipline well is challenging and can be rewarding when you overcome the hurdles and shoot better scores.

Good luck, enjoy shooting your V-22S and I hope this information will be helpful,

Norm Flynn, aka Ozark Shooter
 

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V-22S .22LR Ammunition - The Importance of the “Ammo Chase” in the Age of Covid

[Disclaimer: this post is for shooters who are relatively new to the various precision 22LR disciplines, especially Rimfire Benchrest (RFBR). If you’re an experienced RFBR shooter most of what I’ve got to say you already know.]

Precision Equipment Requires Quality Ammunition - As a new owner of V-22S based rifle, whether you’ve bought a complete “target” build from Vudoo Gun Works in St. George or a “match” rifle built from components assembled by your favorite gunsmith, you’ll face the challenge of finding ammo that works with your rifle. Off-the-shelf ammo may impress you until you find that “killer ammo” that shifts your paradigm and opens your eyes to what’s possible. Lot testing to find the best ammo is absolutely necessary to get peak performance from your new V-22S.

Don’t underestimate this challenge - other than your skills this is, arguably, your most critical task!

When I bought my first Vudoo, a V-22 repeater, I was shooting CCI-Standard Velocity and SK Standard Plus. I quickly realized that the “go to” ammo for the V-22 was Lapua Center X. Then I began competing against unlimited rifles in local RFBR matches. Soon after that I bought my first custom rifle and all the necessary ancillary equipment. It took several “club” RFBR matches and a lot of sound advice from my mentors before I fully recognized the need to buy the very best ammo available and pair that ammo (by lot number) to my rifle.

Ammo Shortage - Ammunition shortages are nothing new but the shortage we’re currently experiencing may set the high-water mark for RFBR, F-Class and even casual shooters. An ammo shortage doesn’t mean you’ve got to compromise your expectation for locating and buying the very best ammo for your new V-22S. You may just have to work a little harder, broaden your search and be ready to pounce on an opportunity when it appears. Veteran shooters have learned to maintain sizable inventories of quality ammo but new-to-RFBR shooters may be caught short on ammo to feed their new V-22S rifle.

Vudoo Gun Works (VGW) Has Done Their Job - VGW has delivered on their promise to produce a quality action that will be competitive at the highest level. From concept to first shipment the V-22S development took less than two years. Vudoo’s Head Skunk led the effort but he had support from the company and plenty of outsider’s who provided insights and suggestions. Now that the dust has begun to settle and the first generation V-22S actions have been delivered it becomes the shooter’s job to wring the absolute best performance from their new rifle.

The Highest Quality RFBR Ammo is Manufactured in Europe - V-22S customers make a financial commitment with typical cost-to-build a complete rifle of $3K or more and that’s without a scope. To get the most accuracy and precision from your purchase you’ve got to shoot the very best ammo. I’m convinced there’s only two 22LR ammo manufacturers who should be considered: Eley, produced in Birmingham, England and Lapua, produced in Schönebeck, Germany. Eley and Lapua ammo will cost more than other brands but results in head-to-head competition will be worth the expense.

Eley produces two brands that are popular with RFBR shooters: Tenex (aka Red Box ~ $17.50/box) and Match (aka Black Box ~ $14/box). There’s a lot of trade secrets used to guard the proprietary aspects of both Eley and Lapua production but most shooters believe that Tenex is the top-of-the-line for Eley and Match is manufactured on the same machines by the same technicians … the only difference being the results of accuracy testing done using Anschutz rifles at a nearby Eley test facility. The best ammo goes in a red box and the rest goes into a black box.

In contrast to Eley, Lapua produces three brands of 22LR ammo suitable for RFBR: X-Act (~$23.50/box) is, by far the most expensive followed by Midas + (~ $15/box) and Center X (~ $11/box). The materials used in manufacture of Eley and Lapua are different as are specifications like rim thickness that may effect the head space between the bolt face and the chamber. There’s also a difference in the lubrication used by Eley compared to Lapua. Eley uses a bees wax based lubricant where Lapua uses more of an oil based lube.

In early 2017 a Lapua Sales Manager, verified that “every run of ammo, either Lapua or S-K, is accuracy tested in a series of five 10-shot groups.” Standard Deviation and Extreme Spread are measured in several different rifles and are required to fall within a strict set of parameters. If the ammo passes that testing at a certain level of accuracy it becomes X-Act, or is downgraded to Midas+ or Center-X, depending on where the measurements fall.

The Sales Manager concluded, “The bottom line is, you simply can't rate match grade rimfire ammo from best to worst strictly by the showing it makes in the test rifles. It's a start, but you ultimately HAVE to test the lot in your particular rifle to know.”

It’s noteworthy that during the recent 2021 ARA Indoor Nationals at least 90% of the ammo shot was Lapua and the majority of that ammo was Midas +.

Accuracy/Precision is the ability of the shooter to optimize every element of his/her “system”, i.e., rifle (action, barrel, trigger, stock, scope), rifle rest (one-piece or two), wind flags, cleaning supplies, cleaning protocol and ammunition. Once the system is optimized it’s on the shooter to post the best match scores.

Veteran RFBR shooter’s will agree that our sport requires attention to a lot of details if you are intent on winning competitive matches.

There’s a lot of good information contained in both Eley and Lapua lot numbers. Muzzle velocity, the machine number that produced the ammo, the year the ammo was produced and the actual tracking number for each lot. Generally, there’s not more than six cases (a case is ten bricks, a brick is ten boxes of fifty rounds for a total of five thousand rounds) of ammo comprising a lot.

To better understand variations in both Eley and Lapua ammo I’ve attached an explanation of what each manufacturer’s lot numbers mean. Other than insider information, muzzle velocities, machine number and year produced are the only data you can use to make buying decisions.

Sourcing and Selecting the Right Ammo - For discriminating V-22S owners, buying 22 ammo from Walmart, Brownell’s, Mid-Way and other major shooting sports outlets just doesn’t cut it. They may have the manufacturer and brand you’re looking for but they won’t sell test lots and hold larger volumes for a bulk purchase.

I’m not going to tell you where to buy quality ammo but I will tell you, that in normal times, the smaller, boutique suppliers will sell test lots of a couple boxes of several lot numbers and hold larger volumes until you shoot and choose the lot you like.

So how do you select and buy quality ammunition for your V-22S build?

Lot Testing - First, you’ve got to convince yourself that paying between $11 and $24 for a box of 50 rounds is something your budget will tolerate. Once over this hurdle you can move on to the next challenge … extensive LOT TESTING. The more you test the better the odds of finding great ammo become.

So, how do you Lot Test?

There’s two basic ways to do lot testing … either you do it yourself or you go to the manufacturer’s test facility.

If you test in the manufacturer’s “tunnel” your barreled action will be strapped into an appliance for test firing groups of several different lots. As the rifle owner you have the responsibility to evaluate the data and determine how much of a particular lot you care to purchase.

Eley’s testing facilities are located at Killough Shooting Sports in Winters, Texas. Lapua’s test centers are in Mesa, Arizona and Marengo, Ohio.

If you decide to do lot testing yourself you are responsible for obtaining however many lots you think it’ll take, shoot representative samples and then make your buying decision.

A lot testing regime I’ve used is to buy two boxes of five different lot numbers of a particular manufacturer/brand. I’ll pick a relatively calm (wind) day and shoot at 50 yards. I shoot sighters and at least five five-round groups of each lot. I measure the center-to-center (CTC) spread and compare the average group size of each lot. Five round groups should measure CTC below 0.20” and hopefully, down to 0.15” if you’re going to win at regional or national matches. I clean my barrel between shooting each lot number. If at all possible, I’ll shoot this same protocol on two days. Things change and for unknown reasons you, your “system” and your ammo may not shoot as well one day as the another. Remember, you’re looking for consistency!

Buying Blind - During this ammo shortage a lot of shooters who would normally lot test are buying “blind” because normal buying methods are not available, i.e. the previous “buyers” market is clearly now a “sellers” market. Buying a case of Eley or Lapua means a $1,000 to $1,800 purchase which can be pretty risky if the ammo doesn’t shoot well in your rifle. If you’re part of the RFBR community you can generally recover your costs if the ammo doesn’t work in your gun ‘cause it’ll probably work in someone else’s. The manufacturers and brands we’re talking about are popular and are as good as currency, especially during an “ammo drought”.

Groups vs Lines - Shooting groups may be good for determining ammo lot consistency but shooting competitive RFBR means shooting twenty to twenty-five bulls, one at a time, moving from one bull to the next for five bulls and then moving down (or up) a row, shooting the second row and then the remaining rows in whatever order you chose. The point being that shooting groups is different from shooting “lines” or “rows” of bulls.

I believe that lot testing should include both group and line shooting. After all, the point of lot testing is to pick the very best ammo to use in competitive RFBR matches which all require shooting one round per bullseye.

Summary - This little primer is intended to introduce new V-22S owners and shooters new to RFBR to some of the intricacies of choosing ammo that will help you get the best performance from your rifle. Shooting any .22LR discipline well is challenging and can be rewarding when you overcome the hurdles and shoot better scores.

Good luck, enjoy shooting your V-22S and I hope this information will be helpful,

Norm Flynn, aka Ozark Shooter
Ozark Shooter
Thank you sir. Your insight helps a new rimfire shooter.
DRACO
 
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V-22S .22LR Ammunition - The Importance of the “Ammo Chase” in the Age of Covid

[Disclaimer: this post is for shooters who are relatively new to the various precision 22LR disciplines, especially Rimfire Benchrest (RFBR). If you’re an experienced RFBR shooter most of what I’ve got to say you already know.]

Precision Equipment Requires Quality Ammunition - As a new owner of V-22S based rifle, whether you’ve bought a complete “target” build from Vudoo Gun Works in St. George or a “match” rifle built from components assembled by your favorite gunsmith, you’ll face the challenge of finding ammo that works with your rifle. Off-the-shelf ammo may impress you until you find that “killer ammo” that shifts your paradigm and opens your eyes to what’s possible. Lot testing to find the best ammo is absolutely necessary to get peak performance from your new V-22S.

Don’t underestimate this challenge - other than your skills this is, arguably, your most critical task!

When I bought my first Vudoo, a V-22 repeater, I was shooting CCI-Standard Velocity and SK Standard Plus. I quickly realized that the “go to” ammo for the V-22 was Lapua Center X. Then I began competing against unlimited rifles in local RFBR matches. Soon after that I bought my first custom rifle and all the necessary ancillary equipment. It took several “club” RFBR matches and a lot of sound advice from my mentors before I fully recognized the need to buy the very best ammo available and pair that ammo (by lot number) to my rifle.

Ammo Shortage - Ammunition shortages are nothing new but the shortage we’re currently experiencing may set the high-water mark for RFBR, F-Class and even casual shooters. An ammo shortage doesn’t mean you’ve got to compromise your expectation for locating and buying the very best ammo for your new V-22S. You may just have to work a little harder, broaden your search and be ready to pounce on an opportunity when it appears. Veteran shooters have learned to maintain sizable inventories of quality ammo but new-to-RFBR shooters may be caught short on ammo to feed their new V-22S rifle.

Vudoo Gun Works (VGW) Has Done Their Job - VGW has delivered on their promise to produce a quality action that will be competitive at the highest level. From concept to first shipment the V-22S development took less than two years. Vudoo’s Head Skunk led the effort but he had support from the company and plenty of outsider’s who provided insights and suggestions. Now that the dust has begun to settle and the first generation V-22S actions have been delivered it becomes the shooter’s job to wring the absolute best performance from their new rifle.

The Highest Quality RFBR Ammo is Manufactured in Europe - V-22S customers make a financial commitment with typical cost-to-build a complete rifle of $3K or more and that’s without a scope. To get the most accuracy and precision from your purchase you’ve got to shoot the very best ammo. I’m convinced there’s only two 22LR ammo manufacturers who should be considered: Eley, produced in Birmingham, England and Lapua, produced in Schönebeck, Germany. Eley and Lapua ammo will cost more than other brands but results in head-to-head competition will be worth the expense.

Eley produces two brands that are popular with RFBR shooters: Tenex (aka Red Box ~ $17.50/box) and Match (aka Black Box ~ $14/box). There’s a lot of trade secrets used to guard the proprietary aspects of both Eley and Lapua production but most shooters believe that Tenex is the top-of-the-line for Eley and Match is manufactured on the same machines by the same technicians … the only difference being the results of accuracy testing done using Anschutz rifles at a nearby Eley test facility. The best ammo goes in a red box and the rest goes into a black box.

In contrast to Eley, Lapua produces three brands of 22LR ammo suitable for RFBR: X-Act (~$23.50/box) is, by far the most expensive followed by Midas + (~ $15/box) and Center X (~ $11/box). The materials used in manufacture of Eley and Lapua are different as are specifications like rim thickness that may effect the head space between the bolt face and the chamber. There’s also a difference in the lubrication used by Eley compared to Lapua. Eley uses a bees wax based lubricant where Lapua uses more of an oil based lube.

In early 2017 a Lapua Sales Manager, verified that “every run of ammo, either Lapua or S-K, is accuracy tested in a series of five 10-shot groups.” Standard Deviation and Extreme Spread are measured in several different rifles and are required to fall within a strict set of parameters. If the ammo passes that testing at a certain level of accuracy it becomes X-Act, or is downgraded to Midas+ or Center-X, depending on where the measurements fall.

The Sales Manager concluded, “The bottom line is, you simply can't rate match grade rimfire ammo from best to worst strictly by the showing it makes in the test rifles. It's a start, but you ultimately HAVE to test the lot in your particular rifle to know.”

It’s noteworthy that during the recent 2021 ARA Indoor Nationals at least 90% of the ammo shot was Lapua and the majority of that ammo was Midas +.

Accuracy/Precision is the ability of the shooter to optimize every element of his/her “system”, i.e., rifle (action, barrel, trigger, stock, scope), rifle rest (one-piece or two), wind flags, cleaning supplies, cleaning protocol and ammunition. Once the system is optimized it’s on the shooter to post the best match scores.

Veteran RFBR shooter’s will agree that our sport requires attention to a lot of details if you are intent on winning competitive matches.

There’s a lot of good information contained in both Eley and Lapua lot numbers. Muzzle velocity, the machine number that produced the ammo, the year the ammo was produced and the actual tracking number for each lot. Generally, there’s not more than six cases (a case is ten bricks, a brick is ten boxes of fifty rounds for a total of five thousand rounds) of ammo comprising a lot.

To better understand variations in both Eley and Lapua ammo I’ve attached an explanation of what each manufacturer’s lot numbers mean. Other than insider information, muzzle velocities, machine number and year produced are the only data you can use to make buying decisions.

Sourcing and Selecting the Right Ammo - For discriminating V-22S owners, buying 22 ammo from Walmart, Brownell’s, Mid-Way and other major shooting sports outlets just doesn’t cut it. They may have the manufacturer and brand you’re looking for but they won’t sell test lots and hold larger volumes for a bulk purchase.

I’m not going to tell you where to buy quality ammo but I will tell you, that in normal times, the smaller, boutique suppliers will sell test lots of a couple boxes of several lot numbers and hold larger volumes until you shoot and choose the lot you like.

So how do you select and buy quality ammunition for your V-22S build?

Lot Testing - First, you’ve got to convince yourself that paying between $11 and $24 for a box of 50 rounds is something your budget will tolerate. Once over this hurdle you can move on to the next challenge … extensive LOT TESTING. The more you test the better the odds of finding great ammo become.

So, how do you Lot Test?

There’s two basic ways to do lot testing … either you do it yourself or you go to the manufacturer’s test facility.

If you test in the manufacturer’s “tunnel” your barreled action will be strapped into an appliance for test firing groups of several different lots. As the rifle owner you have the responsibility to evaluate the data and determine how much of a particular lot you care to purchase.

Eley’s testing facilities are located at Killough Shooting Sports in Winters, Texas. Lapua’s test centers are in Mesa, Arizona and Marengo, Ohio.

If you decide to do lot testing yourself you are responsible for obtaining however many lots you think it’ll take, shoot representative samples and then make your buying decision.

A lot testing regime I’ve used is to buy two boxes of five different lot numbers of a particular manufacturer/brand. I’ll pick a relatively calm (wind) day and shoot at 50 yards. I shoot sighters and at least five five-round groups of each lot. I measure the center-to-center (CTC) spread and compare the average group size of each lot. Five round groups should measure CTC below 0.20” and hopefully, down to 0.15” if you’re going to win at regional or national matches. I clean my barrel between shooting each lot number. If at all possible, I’ll shoot this same protocol on two days. Things change and for unknown reasons you, your “system” and your ammo may not shoot as well one day as the another. Remember, you’re looking for consistency!

Buying Blind - During this ammo shortage a lot of shooters who would normally lot test are buying “blind” because normal buying methods are not available, i.e. the previous “buyers” market is clearly now a “sellers” market. Buying a case of Eley or Lapua means a $1,000 to $1,800 purchase which can be pretty risky if the ammo doesn’t shoot well in your rifle. If you’re part of the RFBR community you can generally recover your costs if the ammo doesn’t work in your gun ‘cause it’ll probably work in someone else’s. The manufacturers and brands we’re talking about are popular and are as good as currency, especially during an “ammo drought”.

Groups vs Lines - Shooting groups may be good for determining ammo lot consistency but shooting competitive RFBR means shooting twenty to twenty-five bulls, one at a time, moving from one bull to the next for five bulls and then moving down (or up) a row, shooting the second row and then the remaining rows in whatever order you chose. The point being that shooting groups is different from shooting “lines” or “rows” of bulls.

I believe that lot testing should include both group and line shooting. After all, the point of lot testing is to pick the very best ammo to use in competitive RFBR matches which all require shooting one round per bullseye.

Summary - This little primer is intended to introduce new V-22S owners and shooters new to RFBR to some of the intricacies of choosing ammo that will help you get the best performance from your rifle. Shooting any .22LR discipline well is challenging and can be rewarding when you overcome the hurdles and shoot better scores.

Good luck, enjoy shooting your V-22S and I hope this information will be helpful,

Norm Flynn, aka Ozark Shooter
Great write up Norm... I have some Eley black the shoots lights out on groups but the Eley Tenex that shoots slightly worse groups actually shoots a card better..go figure
 
V-22S .22LR Ammunition - The Importance of the “Ammo Chase” in the Age of Covid

[Disclaimer: this post is for shooters who are relatively new to the various precision 22LR disciplines, especially Rimfire Benchrest (RFBR). If you’re an experienced RFBR shooter most of what I’ve got to say you already know.]

Precision Equipment Requires Quality Ammunition - As a new owner of V-22S based rifle, whether you’ve bought a complete “target” build from Vudoo Gun Works in St. George or a “match” rifle built from components assembled by your favorite gunsmith, you’ll face the challenge of finding ammo that works with your rifle. Off-the-shelf ammo may impress you until you find that “killer ammo” that shifts your paradigm and opens your eyes to what’s possible. Lot testing to find the best ammo is absolutely necessary to get peak performance from your new V-22S.

Don’t underestimate this challenge - other than your skills this is, arguably, your most critical task!

When I bought my first Vudoo, a V-22 repeater, I was shooting CCI-Standard Velocity and SK Standard Plus. I quickly realized that the “go to” ammo for the V-22 was Lapua Center X. Then I began competing against unlimited rifles in local RFBR matches. Soon after that I bought my first custom rifle and all the necessary ancillary equipment. It took several “club” RFBR matches and a lot of sound advice from my mentors before I fully recognized the need to buy the very best ammo available and pair that ammo (by lot number) to my rifle.

Ammo Shortage - Ammunition shortages are nothing new but the shortage we’re currently experiencing may set the high-water mark for RFBR, F-Class and even casual shooters. An ammo shortage doesn’t mean you’ve got to compromise your expectation for locating and buying the very best ammo for your new V-22S. You may just have to work a little harder, broaden your search and be ready to pounce on an opportunity when it appears. Veteran shooters have learned to maintain sizable inventories of quality ammo but new-to-RFBR shooters may be caught short on ammo to feed their new V-22S rifle.

Vudoo Gun Works (VGW) Has Done Their Job - VGW has delivered on their promise to produce a quality action that will be competitive at the highest level. From concept to first shipment the V-22S development took less than two years. Vudoo’s Head Skunk led the effort but he had support from the company and plenty of outsider’s who provided insights and suggestions. Now that the dust has begun to settle and the first generation V-22S actions have been delivered it becomes the shooter’s job to wring the absolute best performance from their new rifle.

The Highest Quality RFBR Ammo is Manufactured in Europe - V-22S customers make a financial commitment with typical cost-to-build a complete rifle of $3K or more and that’s without a scope. To get the most accuracy and precision from your purchase you’ve got to shoot the very best ammo. I’m convinced there’s only two 22LR ammo manufacturers who should be considered: Eley, produced in Birmingham, England and Lapua, produced in Schönebeck, Germany. Eley and Lapua ammo will cost more than other brands but results in head-to-head competition will be worth the expense.

Eley produces two brands that are popular with RFBR shooters: Tenex (aka Red Box ~ $17.50/box) and Match (aka Black Box ~ $14/box). There’s a lot of trade secrets used to guard the proprietary aspects of both Eley and Lapua production but most shooters believe that Tenex is the top-of-the-line for Eley and Match is manufactured on the same machines by the same technicians … the only difference being the results of accuracy testing done using Anschutz rifles at a nearby Eley test facility. The best ammo goes in a red box and the rest goes into a black box.

In contrast to Eley, Lapua produces three brands of 22LR ammo suitable for RFBR: X-Act (~$23.50/box) is, by far the most expensive followed by Midas + (~ $15/box) and Center X (~ $11/box). The materials used in manufacture of Eley and Lapua are different as are specifications like rim thickness that may effect the head space between the bolt face and the chamber. There’s also a difference in the lubrication used by Eley compared to Lapua. Eley uses a bees wax based lubricant where Lapua uses more of an oil based lube.

In early 2017 a Lapua Sales Manager, verified that “every run of ammo, either Lapua or S-K, is accuracy tested in a series of five 10-shot groups.” Standard Deviation and Extreme Spread are measured in several different rifles and are required to fall within a strict set of parameters. If the ammo passes that testing at a certain level of accuracy it becomes X-Act, or is downgraded to Midas+ or Center-X, depending on where the measurements fall.

The Sales Manager concluded, “The bottom line is, you simply can't rate match grade rimfire ammo from best to worst strictly by the showing it makes in the test rifles. It's a start, but you ultimately HAVE to test the lot in your particular rifle to know.”

It’s noteworthy that during the recent 2021 ARA Indoor Nationals at least 90% of the ammo shot was Lapua and the majority of that ammo was Midas +.

Accuracy/Precision is the ability of the shooter to optimize every element of his/her “system”, i.e., rifle (action, barrel, trigger, stock, scope), rifle rest (one-piece or two), wind flags, cleaning supplies, cleaning protocol and ammunition. Once the system is optimized it’s on the shooter to post the best match scores.

Veteran RFBR shooter’s will agree that our sport requires attention to a lot of details if you are intent on winning competitive matches.

There’s a lot of good information contained in both Eley and Lapua lot numbers. Muzzle velocity, the machine number that produced the ammo, the year the ammo was produced and the actual tracking number for each lot. Generally, there’s not more than six cases (a case is ten bricks, a brick is ten boxes of fifty rounds for a total of five thousand rounds) of ammo comprising a lot.

To better understand variations in both Eley and Lapua ammo I’ve attached an explanation of what each manufacturer’s lot numbers mean. Other than insider information, muzzle velocities, machine number and year produced are the only data you can use to make buying decisions.

Sourcing and Selecting the Right Ammo - For discriminating V-22S owners, buying 22 ammo from Walmart, Brownell’s, Mid-Way and other major shooting sports outlets just doesn’t cut it. They may have the manufacturer and brand you’re looking for but they won’t sell test lots and hold larger volumes for a bulk purchase.

I’m not going to tell you where to buy quality ammo but I will tell you, that in normal times, the smaller, boutique suppliers will sell test lots of a couple boxes of several lot numbers and hold larger volumes until you shoot and choose the lot you like.

So how do you select and buy quality ammunition for your V-22S build?

Lot Testing - First, you’ve got to convince yourself that paying between $11 and $24 for a box of 50 rounds is something your budget will tolerate. Once over this hurdle you can move on to the next challenge … extensive LOT TESTING. The more you test the better the odds of finding great ammo become.

So, how do you Lot Test?

There’s two basic ways to do lot testing … either you do it yourself or you go to the manufacturer’s test facility.

If you test in the manufacturer’s “tunnel” your barreled action will be strapped into an appliance for test firing groups of several different lots. As the rifle owner you have the responsibility to evaluate the data and determine how much of a particular lot you care to purchase.

Eley’s testing facilities are located at Killough Shooting Sports in Winters, Texas. Lapua’s test centers are in Mesa, Arizona and Marengo, Ohio.

If you decide to do lot testing yourself you are responsible for obtaining however many lots you think it’ll take, shoot representative samples and then make your buying decision.

A lot testing regime I’ve used is to buy two boxes of five different lot numbers of a particular manufacturer/brand. I’ll pick a relatively calm (wind) day and shoot at 50 yards. I shoot sighters and at least five five-round groups of each lot. I measure the center-to-center (CTC) spread and compare the average group size of each lot. Five round groups should measure CTC below 0.20” and hopefully, down to 0.15” if you’re going to win at regional or national matches. I clean my barrel between shooting each lot number. If at all possible, I’ll shoot this same protocol on two days. Things change and for unknown reasons you, your “system” and your ammo may not shoot as well one day as the another. Remember, you’re looking for consistency!

Buying Blind - During this ammo shortage a lot of shooters who would normally lot test are buying “blind” because normal buying methods are not available, i.e. the previous “buyers” market is clearly now a “sellers” market. Buying a case of Eley or Lapua means a $1,000 to $1,800 purchase which can be pretty risky if the ammo doesn’t shoot well in your rifle. If you’re part of the RFBR community you can generally recover your costs if the ammo doesn’t work in your gun ‘cause it’ll probably work in someone else’s. The manufacturers and brands we’re talking about are popular and are as good as currency, especially during an “ammo drought”.

Groups vs Lines - Shooting groups may be good for determining ammo lot consistency but shooting competitive RFBR means shooting twenty to twenty-five bulls, one at a time, moving from one bull to the next for five bulls and then moving down (or up) a row, shooting the second row and then the remaining rows in whatever order you chose. The point being that shooting groups is different from shooting “lines” or “rows” of bulls.

I believe that lot testing should include both group and line shooting. After all, the point of lot testing is to pick the very best ammo to use in competitive RFBR matches which all require shooting one round per bullseye.

Summary - This little primer is intended to introduce new V-22S owners and shooters new to RFBR to some of the intricacies of choosing ammo that will help you get the best performance from your rifle. Shooting any .22LR discipline well is challenging and can be rewarding when you overcome the hurdles and shoot better scores.

Good luck, enjoy shooting your V-22S and I hope this information will be helpful,

Norm Flynn, aka Ozark Shooter
Norm, great summary. One note on Eley Match (Black Box) they are no longer including the velocity on the labels on the boxes, so we don't know what velocity we're shooting. I suppose it does not matter if it shoots well though...

RFS99
 
Norm, great summary. One note on Eley Match (Black Box) they are no longer including the velocity on the labels on the boxes, so we don't know what velocity we're shooting. I suppose it does not matter if it shoots well though...

RFS99
First we lose the analyzer now the avg. velocity. How do we pick lots to try? What's next no product availability from ELEY? OH WAIT WE CANT GET ANY NOW. What the H**l Eley do we have to switch to Laupa?
 
I just heard from a fellow shooter that their appointment for next week at Lapua in Marengo, OH was cancelled ... no ammo to test.

Apparently, ammo will not be available until JUNE!!!
 
I have Match and Tenex from 2021 and both have the velocity back on the box. All that being said, I NEVER pay attention to it or correlate it to any accuracy. That applies for Lapua too. I have had ammo from both that faster marked ammo was slower than some slower marked ammo when chronographed. I really don't think it matters.
 
I have Match and Tenex from 2021 and both have the velocity back on the box. All that being said, I NEVER pay attention to it or correlate it to any accuracy. That applies for Lapua too. I have had ammo from both that faster marked ammo was slower than some slower marked ammo when chronographed. I really don't think it matters.
I agree with Jerry. Plus, as he has told me before, get the ammo and go shoot. In today's world with availability issues, if you can get it, buy it, and then do some testing. If it does not shoot well, post it for sale on RFA and someone will buy it from you. Nothing lost in that approach...

RFS99
 
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If just going to the range, a good soft case works fine. Light and easy. When going to matches I use the SKB Single Rifle cases. I have Pelicans as well, but they are bulky and heavy.
 
The planets have aligned got an email from vudoo that my rifle will ship soon. Have everything ready for it scope ,rest ,tuner going to use a holland till I order a new Ezell and some good tenx I have been saving. Cant wait
Congrats mattt!
 
Contemplating a new front rest. I'm using a DR Greenlaw at the present and it's been good to me but thinking about a co-axial. Anyone have any suggestions?
I'm not looking to break the bank, get a second mortgage or sell one of my grandkids.
Any suggestions??
 
Can anyone help me with finding the date the first V22 S single shot complete rifle was delivered to it's owner?

Thanks!
 
Contemplating a new front rest. I'm using a DR Greenlaw at the present and it's been good to me but thinking about a co-axial. Anyone have any suggestions?
I'm not looking to break the bank, get a second mortgage or sell one of my grandkids.
Any suggestions??
Take a look at the Shadetree Engineering rest. Best for the money if you want a coaxial.
 
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Take a look at the Shadetree Engineering rest. Best for the money if you want a coaxial.
Thanks for the quick reply!
I wrote Butch Lambert asking about his top and this is what he wrote back:

"Bill, I used to do a RF rest top, but no more. Without out making adjustments during the match, it will not cover the target. At 50yds it has 11" of travel."

Not quite sure if he means he stopped making the top or it's just not suitable for RF....
 
I don't know what he means either. I used it for RFBR before I got my Arnold roller top one piece rest. I use a Randolph with my CZ factory class rifle, not a co-ax but perfectly adjustable. I have owned a Neo which is the best co-ax out there.
 
I think I'll give him a call and find out exactly what he means....
What do you think of the Farley??
 
Can anyone help me with finding the date the first V22 S single shot complete rifle was delivered to it's owner?

Thanks!


Tony,
I was not the first, but was one of the early ones my ser# is 6. I put my name on their list in late September of 2019 and it shipped to me October 21st of 2020 and I received it October 25th. I've really been enjoying this rifle. It's set up to shoot F-class and I'm looking forward to shooting and competing with it this year.

Shane
 
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Thanks for the quick reply!
I wrote Butch Lambert asking about his top and this is what he wrote back:

"Bill, I used to do a RF rest top, but no more. Without out making adjustments during the match, it will not cover the target. At 50yds it has 11" of travel."

Not quite sure if he means he stopped making the top or it's just not suitable for RF....
Think he means enough travel to cover an ir 50/50 or similar target side to side and completely top to bottom at 50. I had a bald eagle rest that wouldnt cover a 50 yards without making adjustments at some point . Common thing with front rests at 50 . My new one piece rest covers all points of target at 50 with a foot our 2 to spare huge difference
 
Think he means enough travel to cover an ir 50/50 or similar target side to side and completely top to bottom at 50. I had a bald eagle rest that wouldnt cover a 50 yards without making adjustments at some point . Common thing with front rests at 50 . My new one piece rest covers all points of target at 50 with a foot our 2 to spare huge difference
Mind if I ask which one-piece you have??
 
I used a BE front rest and ARA mechanical rear rest for a yr or so, plenty of travel, no trouble covering the ARA/ABRA/BP150 targets if set up correctly. I now have a PQP joy stick 1pc with Greenlaw top.
 
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I used a BE front rest and ARA mechanical rear rest for a yr or so, plenty of travel, no trouble covering the ARA/ABRA/BP150 targets if set up correctly. I now have a PQP joy stick 1pc with Greenlaw top.
It's nice to know that my Greenlaw top will work with the PQP
 
If you have the joy stick model, you will need a longer screw to be able to tighten the top down to the post due to the piece of metal that supports the front stop. Ace hardware is your friend. ;)
 
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It's nice to know that my Greenlaw top will work with the PQP
Only the Joystick model with the fulghum top plate. It won't fit a standard PQP Lite. You can order the PQP lite with the Fulghum plate for extra though.
 
Can anyone help me with finding the date the first V22 S single shot complete rifle was delivered to it's owner?

Thanks!
I can help. I was No 1. See post #885. I started that list with George in Sept. and got 003 in Oct of following year.
If I can help further let me know.

Pat
 
one piece lite from killough 599 with top. only need sure feet if shooting from concrete bench. Make sure you are allowed a one piece rest where you shoot. Ir50/50 its allowed dont know all the rest.
FYI, if you own the PQP lite, I ran into an issue with mine. The screw hole for the stop bolt entered the area under the cutout where the delrin roller sits (see pic below). It only affected the left side, and only when the stop bolt was fully threaded into the hole. Basically, the threads from the bolt push up on the roller, causing a slight cant to the right while the rifle sits on the rest. I modified the top of the rest, removing the delrin roller, adding a flat piece of UHMW Poly (1in. x 3.5 in. x 1/4 in. thick), double-sided tape to install on the flat area under the black spring mounted "nibs" that hold the side of the rifle stock. Added a piece of super slippery tape on top of the flat UHMW Poly to allow free recoil. This will keep the contact area under the rifle stock absolutely flat to eliminate any canting from the original design/manufacturing. A finished pic is attached for your review.

Good luck!

RFS99
 

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