I'm picking up my first K-22, Serial # 103xxx (circa 1950), later this morning and thought maybe I oughta check in with some of the more educated forum members here that have been feeding their K-22s. Given that its 60 years plus old, is there anything I should avoid in ammo choice?

Thanks to all who respond and share their infinite wisdom on this matter. I'll post pics as soon as I have a chance.

Hog

Mine likes Super-X standard velocity. Some of the bargain box .22 won't chamber easily; you just have to try it and see. Mine also shoots the plain lead Blazer reaonably accurately, but I can't get a group with bulk Remington.

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Science plus Art

Thanks neighbor. Do you ever shoot at H&H? I was also wondering how the CCI ammo performs. I know I'll have to see what it digests best, but is there any I should avoid?

I have a K22 from 1948 and I asked the same question a few weeks ago. I was told by some of the fine members of this forum that I could use CCI Mini Mags without a problem. They were right and the revolver shoots like a dream. Good luck and have fun with it.

Ash

Ash... in anticipation of getting my K-22 I've kinda been following the K-22 threads and don't know how I missed yours. Thanks for your reply. I'll have to go look it up and see what other forum members posted.

Blessings,
Hog

Back in the 70's I had an brick of Peters match ammo I hoarded because I felt I couldn't miss using it. My K-22, 17-2 was a farm special, used for everything from hogs, to ground squirrels and feral dogs. It's retired to suburban life now, as am I, but it still shoots exactly where I point it with just about any good ammo.
10/22.

Enjoy that revolver it's a goodn. I have 3 at this time and they all prefer standard velocity like CCI Blazer....I've found mine like of all things Federal Auto Match, and shoot good groups with it.

Make sure you clean the charge holes real well and wipe all the oil out of them when you shoot. They are notoriously tight. Other than that you will like that gun and shoot it much.

Mine from 1957 seems to like PMC subsonic. It also shoots Federal Auto Match pretty good. I had one years ago that shot Remington Target very well, but this one doesn't like them.

I have a Model 18. It shoots best with Wolf Match Target ammo.

My experience with rim-fire .22's seems to indicate that you never know what it will like until you try it. My revolver likes the standard high velocity better than any other. I have fired hyper velocity without problems with the gun, but it does not group well. The subsonic stuff dosen't group in my revolver either.

Thanks to all who posted. Time to check my ammo cache and see what I have and then go to the store. Then I can start shooting. Ah it's a tough life but somebody's gotta do it!

Yup...best plan for most any .22 is to grab a box of each that you can get your hands on (either from the store or your stash) and shoot some to see what it likes best. Find a couple that seem to shoot well and try more of them to see what it REALLY likes. Then buy lots of that! It is a happy day when it will drive tacks with 99 cent promo ammo (which now costs $3), but doesn't happen that often.

Rob

I have a total of five S&W K-22's and one Colt OP.

My two pre-M17's shoot whatever I can get a bargain on. Same with the pre-M18 and M18-2. But, the M18-3 is a tad fussy on what I use. Federal and Winchester seem to work the best, but it's a must to keep the charge holes clean. When I take the M18-3 to the range I take along a cleaning rod and when the empties begin to get sticky, I clean out the charge holes. The early K-22 models keep on going, round after round with no range cleaning required.

I've been meaning to polish the charge holes in the M18-3 as they have more visible machining marks to hold on to the powder residue. The holes seem to be a tad tighter as well.

Most of my revolvers are S&W, but I do have some Colts, as well, and one being a 1954 Official Police in 22 LR. Gotta say that it's one very nice shooting revolver. It's as smooth as glass and ejects them empties like you never saw before. But, I still prefer my S&W K-22's. The only complaint is; I can never own enough of them. .

After reading all these posts and thinking about shooting... I may have to agree with wraco... looks like I may have to pick up at least on more just so the first one will have company in the safe!

I like high grade target ammunition like Eley, RWS and Lapua for a few reasons, it's very accurate, and it's low velocity which is quiter, the biggest reason I like it is the lube, it's very well lubed especially Eley, and clean up is a breeze.

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Regards,
Guy-Harold Smith II

Hmmm, must be something about that year and mini-mags, I also have a K-22 from 1948 that prefers 'em.

Smith357... I like the idea of using ammo that's well lubed for the reason you stated. I'll definitely include some of that ammo when I try my K-22 out. This all brings up another question, what distance do I set my target at to see how my particular K-22 shoots with different ammo?

It is just my experience with MY guns. I did extensive testing on .22 ammo for accuracy in two different .22's I had at the time. A T/C Contender .22 Match Grade 14" barrel and a Remington 541-T.

Out of 12 different loads from as cheap as it gets up to a box of low end Ely, 550 pack bulk Federal came in 2nd only to CCI Greentag. It wasn't hard making my decision. And, it seems to work great in all my .22's I have aquired since that time as well. My K22 love's em'.

Murphy2000

I've got a lot of 22's. For general shooting/squirrel hunting/so on, I've found that Federal bulk pack, either the blue box, or the brown to shoot as well as anything. It may not be the best in any of my guns, but it's good enough in all of them.

American Eagle, with the plain lead bullet has always been good too.

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John 3:16 .

I was playing around with some Winchester T22 target ammo and my 1948 vintage K22. I want to shoot some different types of ammo to get the gun dialed in exactly.

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Vaya con Dios

Argh!!!!! I'm gonna need a mule to carry all the different ammo I wanna try. Well, given it's .22, maybe I can rig a travois for one of the labs. What's a good distance to dial it in? 25 yards? Shoot using a bench rest and bags?

...and a big thanks to all who have contributed. I can already see that shooting this is gonna be a blast.

Blessings,
Hog

25 yds & 50 yds are sorta the "standard" ranges for pistol shooting. You may find that there's not a lot of difference in your POI, though your groups will probably open up a bit. Not likely you'll be taking a lot of shots beyond 50 yds, but if you regulate for 50 yds, you'll pretty much be in the "sweet spot" out to around 70 or so with HV ammo.
You'll love that K22 !

Larry

lebomm... thanks. I figured 25 yds at least. I'll add targets at 50 yds and keep records and targets. This project may have to wait until this fall, though. The ambient air temps here in Oklahoma have been ranging from 103 to 110, with the Heat Index running higher. I may have to adjust my range at the farm to a location where the shooting bench is in the shade! Argh....

Picked up some Ely Aguila 60 gr SSS from a buddy. Anyone have any experience with this round?