.22lr semi autos do they have less power than bolt actions

[Dodgemball]

I currently use a remmington 597 in .22lr for vermin control but wondered if the semi auto action reduces the performance of the rounds i'm using. I always shoot winchester 40gr subsonics which suit the rifle but have always thought the drop in trajectory was more than you'd expect from a .22lr. The zero is set at around 35 yards and according to some ballistic charts the bullet drop at 60 yards should be about 1.5 to 2 inches and it appears to be more like 6.

Can anyone shed any light on this for me?

 

Many Thanks

[Beretta28g]

Why zero at 35 yards? Try zeroing at 50-60 yards. Look up your point blank zero.

 

I dont own a .22 semi, but when using a 12 gauge semi i seem to need more lead, could just be me but........

[Vince Green]

With a .22 semi the bullet should have left the barrel before the action has a chance to cycle.

[bruno22rf]

How?surely the round has to be in the barrel to provide any form of back pressure-the action must start to move as soon as the bullet starts to move?

[Beretta28g]

How?surely the round has to be in the barrel to provide any form of back pressure-the action must start to move as soon as the bullet starts to move?

 

 

 

:stupid:

[1066]

Yes you will loose a little in a semi-auto .22. It's not really a problem power wise and once your rifle is zeroed and you shoot off a series of drop cards at different ranges you will soon get to know how much hold over you need.

 

I have to agree that your 35 yard zero is a bit unusual for a .22. A 50yd zero will give you about bang on at 15yds, half an inch high at 30 yds, bang on again at 50yds and about half an inch low at 55yds. All this depends bit on your scope height, length of barrel etc.

 

I have a Voere .22 that can be used as a bolt action or a semi-auto. I use Eley subs, the box says 1065fps my chrony says 1040fps with the bolt locked and about 1025fps as a semi-auto.

 

I also agree that none of the ballistic programs match my drop tables, they are several inches out once you start to get over the 100yd mark.

[bruno22rf]

When I'm wrong I put my hands up Mr Green-with a "simple" blowback action,such as that found on lower powered guns including the humble .22lr-the bullet does indeed leave the barrel before the action begins to cycle-thanks to you,sir,I have learned something new today

[bedwards1966]

I think I'd be extending your zero range, as said a 50 yard zero will get you flat shooting to 55/60 yards easily, saves all the problems. It's hard to compare the drop for your zero compared to other rifles as I shouldn't think many other people use that as a zero range, but yes semi's can reduce the velocity, but I couldn't say how much.

Edited May 18, 2012 by bedwards1966

[Dodgemball]

Thanks for all your replies I'm off out now to my permission with a reliable backstop and some targets to re zero @ 50 yards.

[Graham M]

If the Remington is the same as the Ruger 10-22 then it will be firing from a "Closed" bolt. This means that the bullet will have time to clear the barrel before the bolt begins to cycle and will have no discernible effect on velocity. Anyone know if it fires from a “Closed” or “Open” bolt?????

G.M.

[cant hit rabbits 123]

With almost every self loading mechanism that I know of, the bullet will have left the barrel well before the bolt moves. This is because of the spring tension, mass of the bolt itself and the unlocking process that needs to occur in most designs. Although some energy (therefore velocity) is lost, it is negligable.

Edited May 19, 2012 by cant hit rabbits 123

[Rimfireboy]

I read somewhere that it takes about ten percent of the energy to cycle the action. Don't know how accurate this is though. What I do know is that reduced loads such as cb's/zimmers etc of around 35-55 ft lbs don't have enough energy to cycle the action so it could well be correct.

[1066]

With almost every self loading mechanism that I know of, the bullet will have left the barrel well before the bolt moves. This is because of the spring tension, mass of the bolt itself and the unlocking process that needs to occur in most designs. Although some energy (therefore velocity) is lost, it is negligable.

 

I can't think of common .22 semi-auto rifles that use a locking system on the breech. Almost all SA .22 LR rifles and pistols use the simple blow-back system, relying on the strength of the recoil spring and the mass of the breech block to delay opening until the pressure in the barrel has dropped to an exceptable level.

 

Almost all SA centerfire rifles/pistols use some sort of locked breech because of the highter pressures involved. (a few small calibre, low power hand guns like the .32 pocket pistols are blowback) I guess the most common locked breech system is the tilting barrel Browning system as used in Colt and Browning auto-pistols and all the look-a-likes.

 

There are some very clever locked breech systems like the Luger 9mm pistol, gas operated, rotating cams etc.

[cant hit rabbits 123]

I can't think of common .22 semi-auto rifles that use a locking system on the breech. Almost all SA .22 LR rifles and pistols use the simple blow-back system, relying on the strength of the recoil spring and the mass of the breech block to delay opening until the pressure in the barrel has dropped to an exceptable level.

 

Almost all SA centerfire rifles/pistols use some sort of locked breech because of the highter pressures involved. (a few small calibre, low power hand guns like the .32 pocket pistols are blowback) I guess the most common locked breech system is the tilting barrel Browning system as used in Colt and Browning auto-pistols and all the look-a-likes.

 

There are some very clever locked breech systems like the Luger 9mm pistol, gas operated, rotating cams etc.

 

I agree that there are some incredible and very innovative designs about, especially the borchart (later used in the Luger) mechanism. I thought that some gas operated SA .22LRs had locking bolts simply because of the nature and working of gas powered cycling. However, as you say, most SA .22s are blowback rather than gas.

 

In pistols tilting barrel locking has pretty much excluded all other methods in modern hand guns such as Browning, Colt, Glock and Sig, and straight blowback seems to be rapidly becoming a thing of the past in most guns.

[jamiedenny]

really interesting topic.

I was just deciding between a AL and a bolt action 22lr. Decided on the bolt action for reliability reasons. Also local shop put me off an AL because in their oppinion it has a loss of power. Although he was very willing to sell me anything I wanted .