thunderbolt 22 rounds

I picked up a brick from Cabelas in Wpg last year, I figured for $13 on sale why not?

Needless to say it sucked. The first 4 boxes produced tons of duds, the other 6 were almost perfect. All fired through the same rifle, that's quality control at its worst.
 
They have very weak casings. Many times the the firing pin would go right thru the case and send powder back in your face (or worse brass). I never had this happen with any other ammo.
 
I did some testing with my Savage Mako last weekend and they produced the best group.

At 20 yards (the indoor range) I had a group about the size of a tack head with 5 shots. I had no problems, the barrel and action were no dirtier than any other ammo I tried, including the Winchester Target stuff that I bought for twice the price. Will I buy more... maybe, but my rifle also likes the cheap stuff so maybe if I find it on sale.
 
You know I haven't bought a box of them in about 10 years, but I remember thinking that they were one of the more accurate loads in my 10/22.
The only reason I quit buying them is that they seemed to be very dirty in my pistol.

The 10/22 would run the same with them as everything else I fed it. Don't recall more or less duds than with any other brand.

My pistol would not fire after about 3 boxes of them. The action would be so dirty the slide would not fully close, or it would cycle so slowly due to being restricted by un-burned powder I had to break it down and clean it.

My rifle seemed to like it though...
 
Load up a full mag of Thundercraps in a semi and you can hear the inconsistency in the loads. The volume and pitch of the report is all over the place. Strangely, so are the holes in the target.
 
So far it seems that the majority is in agreement. They are inconsistent at best, unreliable in all. I will never buy them again after seeing everyone elses range reports match mine.
 
G P said:
They have very weak casings. Many times the the firing pin would go right thru the case and send powder back in your face (or worse brass). I never had this happen with any other ammo.
Click to expand...

Ive had this exact experience and only with remington thunderbolt
I avoid it now. Winchester dynapoints are my favorite cheap stuff
 
Mount Sweetness said:
Quick question regarding duds:

Is it always the cheap ammo.....or can it be the gun and firing pin?

Combination of both?
Click to expand...

It will usually be the ammo, but it can also be the result of your firing pin not striking with enough forces or in the correct spot of the rim.


As for the thunderbolt ammo, both my .22 handguns hate the stuff, and fail to fire, eject, or load at least every one in ten rounds.

On the other hand, my 10/22 loves them and gobbles them up like nobodys buisness. Have not had any signs of barrel wear or unusual damage.
 
Like most I am finding that the Thunderbolts have varying powder charges, but zero FTF and surprisingly they seem to extract the best.

Do the Thunderbolts have a better quality case, maybe a metal or design that expands less than others? I notice they have a "perferated ring" around the middle of the case...

Do Thunderbolts have a larger rim with better geometry for extractors to grab onto?

Can't figure out why these extract with perfection compared to others...
 
Weather cheap, or expensive, I have never had a 22lr that liked Remington ammo, and that covers a few guns by this point. I've had really good luck with Winchester and Federal bulk ammo. I couldn't see Remington producing ammo that harmed firearms though.
Mike
 
i got 5000 rd's of this stuff for $79.00 and they where good! and no FTF that i know of (they where used in one of my 597's) sure i had lots of jams , but that is the 25rd mags for you. but when i got a good homemade 200rd mag made , they worked real well
 
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