Tikka t1x range report

W

Webley No.5

CGN Regular
Rating - 100%
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Location
Rural Alberta/Calgary
So I recently decided to try my hand at shooting a 22lr accurately.

The rifle:
A Tikka T1x 20in barrel, bought new. Still in its factory synthetic stock. Topped with 20MOA rail and a vortex strike eagle 5-25x56. I also have an Amazon cheek riser. This rifle has only been shot to be sighted in.

For shooting, I use an old outdoor table, a bipod on the front of a rifle and sweater as a rear bag. My range is setup at 100m right now but once the cows are moved I’m planning to extend to 200m.

The ammo: choices based mostly on availability in my area prices what I paid for reference
Lapua polar biathlon bought for 21+gst/50
Eley tenex $180/500 (from fellow CGN)
S&B Canadian match $7+gst/50
CCI standard velocity $70+gst/500

Notes on groups and procedure.
All shot in one sitting without cleaning between. Order shot was Eley, lapua, CCI, and S&B and then on more final group with Eley because the first group was cold bore. All groups were 10shots. Groups were measured to edges of the shots and then 0.22 was subtracted to approximate distance between centres. MOA was then calculated by dividing distance between centres by 1.146 (1MOA at 100m =1.146).

So starting with best is shooting is the lapua polar biathlon. 0.87MOA
52189249956_6feb4a1dc1_b.jpg


Next best is the Eley, two groups on this target, first one was the top group shot with a cold bore, second group was shot last after all the other ammo by holding 1MRAD low. 1.02MOA
52189261053_c764e54417_b.jpg


Third is S&B 1.23MOA
52188231512_6facc1511d_b.jpg


Finally CCI 1.75MOA
52189502314_d54d6e9a58_b.jpg


Summary
I’m impressed that a $750 22lr is capable of submoa accuracy. At normal store prices polar biathlon is cheaper then Eley tenex so that’s nice my gun likes it. The S&B also shoots very well for the price, it often sells for the same as the CCI both of which are about a 1/3 the price of the lapua.
 
Very nice shooting. I'm shocked at the S&B groups. I've used it twice now shooting 10 5 shot groups out of my CZ At-One and my CIL Anschutz 190 and the best I got was around 2.5" outside spread. My guns like Eley Team, SK Standard Plus and of course Center X. Neither shoots CCI Standard very well. TC
 
I wonder if S&B is having a few teething problems getting into rimfire because I seem to hear people either really like their Canadian match or think is bad. Same with their standard ammo. But like I said it’s the same price as the CCI SV and that’s not even the green tag. Can I ask about your S&B groups, was it usually a flier ruining the group or a relatively even distribution? My first box of S&B when aiming in there was one round that made a supersonic crack and shot an inch or so higher than the rest. But hey if it will average 1.23MOA for $7/50 that’s good plinking.
I would like to try some SK and more lapua offerings
 
No "seasoning" shots between ammo changes? In my experience it takes about 7 rounds of a new ammo, or a freshly cleaned barrel, or a cold barrel, to begin shooting to final settled result.
 
My cleaning procedure is to run on felt plug through the bore immediately after shooting . . . pushing smoke out the muzzle.
It is noteworthy where the first shot goes, whether changing brands or varieties within a brand.
When I eventually get around to scrubbing the bore, it takes considerably more rounds to re-coat the bore.
Rarely will that first shot be within the group.
Even with the 22, a bore guide is a wise investment as well as a quality cleaning rod.
Wind flags will also improve your groups and reading slight changes in wind direction and velocity will show improvements.
Good shooting . . . until the cows come home!
 
The results with the Polar Biathlon are very promising, indeed. It shows that the rifle has very good potential to be a good shooter. Keep up the comparison of results. You'll no doubt get a great deal of satisfaction with this well-shooting rifle.

_________________________

For readers in general, it should noted that when taking shooting skills and wind out of the equation, a rifle with a good barrel will produce results dependent on the ammo itself. What this means is that very good ammo will produce very good results (sub-MOA at 100). Poorer results are due to poorer performing ammo. The results here from the non-match .22LR ammo -- CCI and S&B -- can't be expected to produce good results, except irregularly.

In addition, match ammo results will vary from one lot to the next. Some are better or worse than others.

In the case of any particular ammo, for example the Polar Biathlon, a more fuller assessment will always require many more groups to be compared. A single group is always only a snapshot of the performance of those ten (or five) rounds. Subsequent groups will almost certainly be of a different size, so the question can become which single group size to use? It's usually better to use an average of a number of groups.

With regard to cleaning between different ammos, consistent bore lubrication is critical to consistent ammo performance. It becomes more relevant when shooting .22LR ammo with different bullet lubrication. For example, Lapua Polar Biathlon and Eley Tenex use very different bullet lube. It's worth noting when shooting most Lapua and SK .22LR ammo it isn't always necessary to clean and reseason the bore between different varieties (e.g. SK+, SK RM, CX, M+) since they use the same or almost identical bullet lubrication.

In the OP's case, if he was shooting ten shot groups with each ammo, he might find it impractical and costly in ammo to clean and season between each group shot for record.
 
I have heard of “seasoning the bore” but I was interested to see how the rifle shoots without it. Had my groups been terrible I would’ve tried few things. Given that the lapua shot sub moa without seasoning (well the bore was seasoned with Eley) I was not concerned. I don’t really want ammo that I have to put 10 shots through before it will shoot to point of aim if I can avoid it. Seems wasteful especially with match ammo and increased barrel wear (yes I know it’s a drop in bucket for a 22lr). There are a lot of little tweaks one cold use to increase accuracy, that’s not what I was looking for I was looking for how my combination performs with minimal tweaks. For example I could also tune the trigger down, buy a chassis that’s stiffer and fits the action tighter, bed the action etc.
 
Webley No.5 said:
I wonder if S&B is having a few teething problems getting into rimfire because I seem to hear people either really like their Canadian match or think is bad. Same with their standard ammo. But like I said it’s the same price as the CCI SV and that’s not even the green tag. Can I ask about your S&B groups, was it usually a flier ruining the group or a relatively even distribution? My first box of S&B when aiming in there was one round that made a supersonic crack and shot an inch or so higher than the rest. But hey if it will average 1.23MOA for $7/50 that’s good plinking.
I would like to try some SK and more lapua offerings
Click to expand...

My groups with the S&B were evenly spread, like a shotgun pattern : ), no flyers. One ammo that did drive me crazy that way was Eley Sport. It would shoot the best groups of all the other ammo (at 50yds) with the exception of one flyer. Every time from both guns. TC
 
Nice shooting!

I have a number of boxes of S&B ammo that are about 2/3 full, as I've load tested them on a number of 22s in recent years and have yet to see anything promising. I keep buying/trying, with little change in the outcome. I've had far better luck with Eley, with SK being about the best. I never leave the house without a few varieties of CCI, some Federal, etc.

The T1x is probably the best-shooting factory 22 I've ever used.
 
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