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View Full Version : How much ammo can you put in a 22 befor you need to replaince it


kirbymagnum
October 16, 2005, 10:24 PM
I have a 22lr i shot about 6500 rounds in a year and a half lets be realistic how much more life do i got out of it its a semmi its starting to wear and jam i have to clean it much more than i used to and it is very picky about ammo. after about 2000 rounds it shot the best. so how much longer than should i replace it i was thinking about a 17hmr are they good any info on one?

JohnKSa
October 16, 2005, 10:38 PM
Depends on the gun. A good one should last a lifetime with proper care.

If it's wearing out already you need to move up a step or two in quality for your next one.

The 17HMR is going to cost you a good bit more in ammunition than a .22LR. Might want to check the price difference out before buying given that you seem to shoot a good bit.

chemist308
October 16, 2005, 10:38 PM
While it sounds like you may be getting a small problem with the action, I doubt anything is, or ever will be, wrong with the barrel as long as you've done your part. My 22 is a Marlin bolt action that my dad gave me--previously it was his. Since then I've put several bricks of ammo through it, and that is in addition to what he did when he had it. I once read that you might not want to brush every time, just use patches for cleaning. This method takes considerably longer though but may or may not do anything for barrel life...

dfaugh
October 17, 2005, 09:00 AM
I think alot of barrel wear comes from cleaning, as much as shooting...I have a Marlin 60 that's a tack driver...Given to me by a friend before he passed, not sure how much he shot it...But, I've put 6000-7000 rounds through it in the last 18 months, with no loss of accuracy (trying different ammo to see what it likes...Plus it my most accurate gun so it always goes to the range with me, as I know I can always shoot a decent group with it!)...But, I rarely clean it, and then just 1 wet patch followed by one dry patch)...And after I do, it take 30-40 rounds before it starts shooting really good again...So I just leave it "dirty", keeping an eye out for rust, but since most .22 bullets have a wax coating, they usually protect the bore....

And...a friend of mine was just given a Model 1890 Winchester pump action "Gallery" gun...Been sitting her father closet for years, his father acquired it in the 30's...rust, gunk etc. everywhere...based on the serial # it was made in 1906-1907...And while the rest of the gun is little rough, the bore is mirror bright, and looks great...If it was truly used as a gallery gun (and based on the loading port, and the fact that it is chambered for .22 short, it probably was) who knows how many thousands of rounds went down the tube.

detrod
October 17, 2005, 09:46 AM
Seems to me that if your taking good care of it, u should get thousands more through it.I've heard old timers talk about "dirty" powder,dont know if thats an issue anymore. I was sold on wolf .223 FMJ,never had a problem w/it,as far as cleaning my mini-14,I've only run a brush down the barrel twice. other than that,its 2 wet patches and 2dry.seems to clean up good.

P-990
October 17, 2005, 03:08 PM
Little brother was at a smallbore clinic out at the National Matches one year. They talked about accurate barrel life on .22LRs in the MILLIONS of rounds. Something like 5-7 million IIRC, from what he said.

What will happen with a .22 autoloader is you will wear the action parts before you need to replace your barrel. I know of a few 10/22s with lots of abuse on them (100s of 1000s of rounds, maybe over a million) that reportedly had ovaled pin holes in the aluminum recievers, but were still ticking along fine. New springs, pins and other parts are all it should take to keep things working to that point though.

Now centerfire target rifles will eventually see accuracy deterioration from burned barrels. Depending upon shooter skill, range involved and the exact game being played. I know that Highpower shooters expect about 5000 out of an AR-15 between barrels, which sounds like a good average for a milder centerfire rifle. (Though I admit, they may last longer if used with lighter/shorter bullets and lighter loads.)

30Cal
October 17, 2005, 03:15 PM
The type of ammo you shoot makes an enormous difference. High velocity is much harder on the barrel than standard or target loads. You would have a very hard time shooting out a barrel with standard velocity ammo. It's definitely do-able with high vel though.

Ty

kirbymagnum
October 17, 2005, 04:36 PM
thanks for the info