The Firearm Blog

The ACU’RZR is an interesting tool. You put a .22 Long Rifle cartridge into the ACU’RZR and give the “forming rod” a whack with a hammer and then take out your .22 cartridge with a newly shaped bullet.

The idea behind the tool is threefold. It ensures consistency in bullet shape which will increase accuracy, allows you to select a bullet shape and allows you to choose a bullet diameter that suits your handgun or rifle.

I must admit I would be too scared to hit a a rimfire cartridge with a hammer. I would rather purchase match ammo.

Different models are available and range from $38 - $53 (+ $5 shipping).

This is a very clever idea. The rifle is a Mossberg 144LSB Target rifle that is currently listed on gunbroker.

The advantage of having the sight raised is that when shooting from a offhand/verticle position you can keep you head as close to upright as possible to achieve better balance.

Hat Tip: RFC

Shooting Times (UK) has reviewed the .22 Ruger 77/22 rifle

Priced towards the upper end of the rimfire scale, the M77/22 still gives excellent value for money. Build quality is good, as is the accuracy and reliability in the test.

With the options of stainless and synthetic designs, this rifle gives a genuinely good choice for any rimfire shooter - it has the feel of a centrefire rifle but the weight of a light sporter. Supplied with 1in dedicated scope mounts, it is a definite winner as is the pre-threaded barrel, essential on a sporting rimfire these days.

I briefly looked at getting the synthetic model. I decided it was not worth the price. In my opinion for the price it should include an adjustable trigger and free floating barrel.

Ruger 77/22-R

From GeorgiaPacking.org

The inventor of the Akins Accelerator, the replacement stock for a Ruger 10/22 that allows controlled bump firing, is suing the United States over the BATFE’s ruling that the Accelerator wasn’t a machine gun, but now is. Here’s the complaint.

If you have not been following the saga: the ATF initially approved the sale for the stock, then sometime later declared that it converted a rifle into a machine gun.

Hat Tip: SaysUncle.com

Eley have rebranded most of their .22 ammo and introduced a new produce called Team, an improved version of Club.

(Click to here to expand)

I think the branding was a good idea. The boxes look like and the names are better. For example “Tenex” is better than “Tenex Ultimate EPS”.

The press release

ELEY is proud to announce with effect from 1st January 2008, the new re-branded product range, which features a rationalized product choice and introduces “Team” a new .22 calibre cartridge.

The re-branded product range, coincides with Eley’s 180th year of manufacturing high quality ammunition and will strengthen the company’s position in the worldwide market place. All the ELEY products have been re-branded with a new design but the product colours will remain the same to ensure customers can clearly indentify their chosen ammunition.

Changes to product range:

The premium products, Tenex and Match, remain unchanged, apart from dropping the terms Ultimate and EPS from the name. These products feature the well known flat bullet profile, but are also available in round nose versions (Tenex Pistol and Match OSP) which are ideal for semi-automatic rifles.

The introduction of the new blue labeled “Team” product is an improved version of the Club ammunition using the same flat nose bullet as used for Tenex and Match. We believe this product will allow club shooters to use a quality of ammunition closer to that used by championship shooters, but at a much lower cost and therefore giving them the edge over what they are currently using with existing Club ammunition. This product will be available only in limited quantities!

The popular Club product will remain unchanged apart from the re-branded label. Target Rifle and Standard have been replaced by a new improved product launched as “Sport” and packaged with a new green label.

Managing Director Mike Semens-Flanagan commented:

“Eley strongly believe these changes will not only help to consolidate our position in the market but also give customers shooting with our ammunition a better product and clearer choice.”

More info at Eley.com

B.B. has written an interesting article on early target shooting with the Zimmerstutzen rifles.

The Zimmerstutzen was the ancestor of the 10-meter target [air] rifle and extends back to at least 1840. Zimmerstutzen is the rough translation of “parlor rifle” in German. The first zimmer was powered by a percussion cap that propelled a small lead ball through a short rifled barrel.

What I found fascinating was that there were 25 different Zimmerstutzen calibers!

A Zimmerstutzen comes in the nominal caliber 4mm, but in fact there are over 25 discrete calibers that range from 4mm to 5.55mm, in half-milimeter increments.

Zimmerstutzen vs .22LR

Read the article here.

There is an interesting discussion over at rec.guns about the best way to deal with a squirrel chewing on the roof. It is worth a read.

“Pumper Hinkle” sums up the options:

Hmmm. I understand your problem better now. For the squirrel to be
chewing on your roof, though, he must be sitting still for at least a
little bit.

I believe that if it were happening to me, I’d get a night vision scope for
the bolt-action .22 and sight it in using BB caps. I’d then set up a
sniper position and be patient. Once it stands still, bang.

Or, well, you could get a .410 shotgun and some light loads, and figguring
on patching the roof maybe.

Or, I believe you can fire .45 colt cartridges in a .410 shotgun, and I
believe you can get .45 snake loads.

As you’ve observed, the .22 snakeloads don’t cycle in autos, and the rifling
disperses the shot too much. I believe I once heard of a smoothbore .22,
which would give better range.

But I assume you don’t want to buy another gun, especially some sort of
specialty gun. So, back to first suggestion, night vision scope on the
.22.

CCI have renamed Quik-Shot as SHP (Segmented Hollow Point) and are now offering it as a subsonic round!

It will drive a 40 gr bullet at 1050 ft/s with 98 ft/lbs of energy! This is great news for me. I have been using Quik-Shot but since I use a suppressor subsonic is preferable.

CCI’s unique Segmented Hollow-Point (SHP) bullet is now available in 22 Win Mag and a 22 Long Rifle subsonic load. This offering is ideal for bigger targets that require a larger wound area and makes perfect sense in the 22 WMR. The flat-shooting SHP is designed to break up into three sections on impact for even more stopping power. These three segments diverge from the main path for unique terminal performance on game. The subsonic 22 LR offering is great when hunting around a populated area and a quiet, effective round is needed.

More here.

The 5mm Remington Rimfire Magnum is back!

The 5mm Rem Magnum was originally produced from 1970 to 1974. Only a few firearms where chambered in it. The bolt action Remington Model 591 and Model 592 where chambered in it and Thompson Center Arms offered it for a brief period of time.

In comparison the 30 gr .22 Magnum (WMR) traveling at 2,200 ft/s generates 322 ft/lb of energy.

More about the Centurion 5mm Remington Rimfire Magnum @ varminter.com

For those who held onto their Remington 5mm Rimfire rifles in hopes that someone, someday, would revive this fine cartridge, their prayers have been answered in the Centurion made 5mm Remington. For those of you who wished for a new generation of 5mm rifles and handguns, your day is at hand. There can be little doubt that the reintroduction of this cartridge will produce a new line of firearms to augment the original Remington rifles that might be in a shooter’s rack. And with current powder technology, better bullets and a better understanding of internal ballistics, there is yet, more to come! Future development of newer, higher performance Centurion 5mm Remington ammunition is already underway! The future indeed looks bright for this old veteran cartridge…

UPDATE:

THe ammo should be available after SHOT Show. According to an bayouboy @ RFC Aguila said:

OUR WEB SITE IS DOWN FOR UPDATING, THE AMMUNITION IS BEING SHIPPED THIS WEEK
AND WILL BE AVAILABLE AFTER THE SHOT SHOW, PLEASE CHECK BACK WITH US, THANKS
FOR YOUR INTEREST.

UPDATE: More info at GunPundit

This Ruger 10/22 was heavily customized by JBLee. Click to expand the image.

Very cool. I love the magazine release.

Hat Tip: RFC

This page has a printable template and instructions on making a paper brass catcher for a rimfire autoloader. All you need is a printer, glue and fridge magnet.

More here (scroll down the page)

This should interest varminters looking for a harder-hitting rimfire round with better ballistics and accuracy. The most common .22 Winchester Magnum Rimfire (WMR) ammunition features a 40gr round nose or flat point bullet with a Muzzle Velocity of about 1910 fps. All the major makers — CCI, Federal, Remington, and Winchester — sell 40gr ammo loaded to this specification.

Hornady’s new 22 WMR offers a more accurate bullet traveling faster — roughly 300 fps faster to be precise. The new Hornady round features a 30gr V-MAX™ bullet leaving the muzzle at 2,200 fps. The new 30gr Hornady 22 WMR ammo should be available in “early February” according to Hornady.

More here @ AccurateShooter

I came across these photos by bcr308 @ RFC. I think the stock makes it kind of look like an M1 Carbine…? Maybe its my imagination!

Very nice photos.

From RFC