Winchester Varmint FTF FTE FTL

[rubiconag]

New member, new gun. Have a friend that has had one for a while that I have shot. I've been plinking all my life and have never owned a temperamental gun. My Browning Belgium loves to eat up Thunderbolts.

Shot the 15-22 this weekend for the first time and was plinking cans and clays. The load was Winchester 22lr 36gr 1280fpsVarmit plinking, target and small game 222 box (got it for .06 at Bass Pro, actually 2 boxes) out of the 3 magazines I went through I probably had 4 fail to loads, 3 fail to fires and 5 fail to ejects couple with FTL's. This is crazy. Did I get a box, is the ammo just that bad or do I have a bad gun?

 

[Fury]

I've had my 15-22 for roughly 3 months and when I first used it I had all sorts of problems with ftf, etc.. After 4 trips to the range and 4 cleanings, I've had almost 0 problems. My guess is the rifle just needs to be broken in just as mine did. I'm certainly no pro when it comes to the 15-22, so I'm sure a seasoned owner may have other suggestions. Good luck!

 

[Bigkilla]

It is the ammo. The Winchester white box 222,333,555 bulk packs are largely considered some of the worst 22LR ammo on the market. I have numerous FTF's out of my bolt guns with bulk Winchester ammo.

Do a google search and you will find numerous topics and videos about the subject.

 

[GhostMutt]

Problems are primarily with ammo....trick is find ammo that your 15-22 likes and stick with it.
Way to prevent FTF, FTE, FTL. Firstly make sure they are loaded into the magazine correctly, by pulling down on the button making sure they are all seated correctly.
Cleaning = clean the feed ramp, the bolt/chamber face and the recess on the bolt face where the firing pin is, this is where lots of gunk deposits. Be very careful to only use a tiny bit of gun oil on the rails, nothing else on the bolt needs that much lubrication if any. So go real easy with any lube. This attracts dirt, which can cause issues.
FTE - can be related to the ejector (connected to the chamber face) not being seated correctly, a slight bend can rectify this and there is a thread and You tube vid if this is your problem but i believe it would occur on every round if it was.

You may also have a loose barrel nut, which generally results in bad accuracy, but if it is really loose it may affect function as well....for that purchase or make a barrel nut tool and ensure that your barrel nut is tight. This tool is useful for a 15-22 owner anyway.

However before you try anything else i would grab a few different types of ammo and find one that is readily available and that is reliable with your 15-22, once you find an ammo that works stick with it. If no ammo is reliable then address some of the issues listed above.

Stay safe and have fun The 15-22 is an enigma of a rifle, but once you get it running to your liking you really will struggle to find a more fun 22lr.

 

[old&slow]

I have some .22's that will eat anything. Others that only like certain brands. .22's sometimes can be really picky about ammo.

Most, but not all, of my .22's will usually run on CCI mini-mags.