Having my Cicognani tuned Anschutz now for a few months I decided that I would post how things are going and what I have changed. The rifle is spot on....cant complain with anything. I added Cicognani scope mounts to my T36 and added a Cicognani bubble level to easily spot CANT but that has been it. So a few points on cleaning, ammo and set up....which is what i have concentrated on.

Cleaning...I moved over to the VFG cleaning system. (Those little nibs you add to a spike on the top of your cleaning rod). I also purchased an Anschutz bore guide. I have not looked back. When I think back to when I was using patches and trying to "Aim" the rod into the bore I think "what was I doing". I bought from Scotland...a company called Edinkillie. Graham up there was super. I would recommend. I no longer worry about damaging my rifle when cleaning (which some say is the number 1 reason for rifles loosing accuracy).

Ammo...we are really limited over here to the ammo available at our RFD's. I cannot import myself which means that Ammo selection at, let's say, Eley needs to be done in conjunction with an RFD. This makes the whole batch test thing expensive. So all I can do is take a velocity that works for me and try to block book it at my local dealers. I am ending up with odd's and ends from other batches but so be it. The key for me it to NEVER EVER MIX. I used to mix wholesale (not by design). Sticking with decent size batches does not weed out flyers...but it gets better. So for most, who do not have the luxury of testing at a manufacturer, I would recommend trying to cut a deal with your local RFD who will "hold" specific stock for you without expecting you to pay up front. This gives me in the region of 2k rounds before I have to change velocity (and i buy 500 a time).

Setup...I went back to an early article in BR22 that i think Andy wrote. Instead of holding your rifle, make contact with your thumb and index finger only. I changed over (very very weird at first) but believe that this method is the only way to go for Rimfire BR. So thanks for the data Andy. The other significant change I made was to buy a new back bag. For reference I use the Cicognani ADV front rest (yes, I am a Cicognani fan). I was using the Protektor Elite back bag. Which I thought was more than adequate. Until I saw a targetshooter advert for Seb back bags from Fox. I bought and this immediately added 3-4 points to my card. My first outdoor card with teh Seb back bag was 249 with 13 X (50m). The 1 point drop was on the last target when I syked myself out thinking that the 250 was in the bag (it would have been my first). But back to Seb....the experience on using this bag was very different to what I was used to. Firstly, it causes the front rest to ride low (you are not using the extensions to rise the front so you get to keep the rifle relatively flat. This is down to the height of the Seb being bigger than the Protektor. Secondly, you do not have your butt stock riding the ears in the same manner as you do the Protektor where the stock will sit on the ears. You get to use the base of the top of the bag and the stability that affords you. Tracking improved 100%. Changing between targets became easier. Shooting a card became less of a chore. It allows me to concentrate more on my shot then on all the stuff I had to do before I got ready for my shot in the old days. A superb buy and I will never look back.

Anyways, I hope that someone will find this information useful.

Hi Gavin,
thanks for the kind words, there are lots of things we can all learn from one another it's just those willing to share as they do on this forum.

AndyD

Hi Gavin.
Ammo is always going to create problems,as the costs keep rising.
Have you no access to other makes of ammo,there is some ammo out there that has a constant velocities,and that gives one less thing to worry about.
I have 4bench rifles and I shoot the same ammo out of em all,I wont name it on here cos Eley seems to be god,and UNLIKE ME I don't want to upset anyone.I know there will be posts on here in the next day or so telling me off.I have heard all the statments from members of my club,BUT JOHN IT WON'T SHOOT IN MY RIFLE, But when they get set up proper they find it does.
Sorry to say that for various reasons the club is'nt sending any shooters to the shoot in Fermoy this time, but we wish you a very successful competition John F.

that is a pity. Thanks John.

John although he majority are using Eley, I think we are allowed to mention the other two big makers. I used to use Lapua at one time when I shot 3P. It certainly has the potential to be as good as Tennex. I have never used any the the RWS match grade ammunition, although a couple of prove shooters at my club have been using it with some sucess. Also a friend of mine that I shot with in the Welsh national squad was a bit different from the norm as he had great sucess with a Walther and RWS ammo, so it seems that they can also do the job. John as you and others have said it is about finding a batch that will shoot well in your gun. In many places, unless you are able to go the one of the factories to batch test, your choice of ammunition will be mostly defined by what is avilable from your RFD/Club. In my case at the moment all I can get is whatever batch of Match my club has in stock. Otherwise Ihave to travel, porbably to Bedford to find a dealer that is likley to carry a large selection of different .22LR match quality ammunition.
One final thing is that I have been told that RWS also offer a factory batch testing service simillar to that offered by Eley.

Alan

Hi Alan.
It was a bit tongue in cheek my earlier statment,but I do use R50 and that is because so far I have found that it shoots the same from one 1000 to the next for me and many of my club mates.

You are correct, Ruag do batch testing and I will talk about that at a later date
Lapau have had a change about and have some ammo at over £300 per thousand,I have tried it and it is good but did'nt perform any better for me than my usual R50.They also have some called CENTREFIRE At about£130 per 1000,this performed as well as the £300 ammo,now I do admit that I have not[because of the cost]used enough of the EXACT to say aye or nay about the new Lapau. It would need a lot more testing but because of the cost it's not for me.This is strickly my opinion and as I see it,WHATS GOOD FOR THE GOOSE,IS NOT ALWAYS GOOD FOR THE GANDER . REGARDS jOHN F.

Alan,

The RWS test range is just a taxi ride from Nuremburg airport and you could fly in and out on the same day with Air Berlin. But it’s not as hi-tech as the Eley or Lapua test ranges. Depending how deep you pockets are, if you buy 3 cases or more there is a big discount and its closer to wholesale price. But at the RWS and Lapua test ranges you can test lower grades (practice ammo) too.


John,
Unlike Eley, R50 seems to all be in the 1090-1095fps range in my guns and most down here find if your gun shoots it, it will shoot most lots. But at times you do find a lot that is a standout in the wind.

Peter

Hi Peter.
I have been lucky so far and have not come accross any R50 that shoots different for me but thats not to say I won't at some stage,I have been shooting 22 bench for 4 or 5 years so I don't have the experience you guy's have with different Makes of ammo, so I 'm not trying to say any particular ammo is best ,just saying R50 has so far been best for me.

Thanks for the information ,I will know it's not me if I get some R50 that behaves differently.
Regards John F.

John,
If the R50 is working try some of the Special Match, it’s the equivalent of Eley match and at 25m you might not see any difference and it’s cheaper.

Peter

Peter I had heard that the RWS test range was situated right next to an airport so that we in the UK could do the one day trip.Didn't know it was Nuremburg though. Only problem is that most of the cheap airlines that operate that route don't like / won't let you carry firearms. I have a friend who is an RFD and he actually has a very good relationship with the UK Distributor, so has actually told me about the avilablity of the service. I quite like the idea that you can test some of the "lower" versions was well.

Alan

Alan,

I can remember RWS having a promotion in the UK and they were saying fly Air Berlin, but German airlines and customs are a lot more gun friendly than other countries.

Like I said, at RWS and Lapua can test their full range of ammo, but under German law you can’t take any with you, they need to ship it to you. But for those going to the Euro thing, Nuremburg is only a 2 hour drive away. Lapua is about 2 hours south of Berlin.

Peter

Hi Peter.
Peter just before the world champs in milan I had the chance to go batch test in Germany. the flights were with AIR Berlin and the cost was £100. RWS picked you up from the airport,gave you Lunch,and returned you to the airport for your flight home. I went to ELEY instead

I will give the match a test as soon as I get some.
Regards John F.

You are all very lucky in the U.K. In Ireland there is no lapua Center x or RWS R50 left.. Everyone is using Eley match.........

not saying Eley match is bad.

As a beginner I scored 248 with RWS R50 and 248 with Eley Match,last week on a 25 meter LV competition

We are all promised..next week....next week...

hi ollie.
Yes we are lucky here in the uk,2 weeks ago we had RWS at our club
batch testing their ammo,all for free, .You should maybe get in touch with them and ask if they would come to you, {nothing lost by asking}

The UK team members are also going to the Eley Factory to batch test on the run up to the Europeans,so perhaps you could contact them as well.

You could get in touch with the guy's at fermoy and see if they can help you,Beg ,Beg ,and Beg again thats my motto when your having a bit of a struggle.
Regards John F.

Hey Olie

I dropped a shot and got luckly with 2 more that plugged in using Match at that same event. What we are seeing down south is the velocity of Match is steadily increasing (we are now at 1064) and the variation inside that 1064 range is getting bigger. Eley are not interested in the Irish market for some reason (I asked them to participate in the April event) but getting no where. So we have put effort into arranging a steady stream of R50. 10k rounds are currently available to us and can easily be replenished. We are also investigating if we can get a higher holding capacity in Fermoy to we can stock more.

Hope this helps and see you in April. (Mail me if you need further details)