[Bosvarkie]

Good day everyone!

I recently picked up a bull barrel 880SQ however I am not a specialist and this is my first .22lr. Could anyone advice me on the best ammo to use please. I bought lots of different ammo to test the micro grove barrel but got very different results and groupings especially with the lower velocity bullets. I want to use the rifle for light hunting as well as target practise and would really love to get the most out of it in terms of accuracy, distance etc.

Thank you in advance for any help or tips.

Regards from South Africa

 

[papa vid]

Bosvarkie.. Welcome to Marlin Owners from Pennsylvania, USA!!! general rule is that the best ammo for any 22LR is the ammo it likes the best.. I am not a hunter, so can't say what is best for the task, but start with the ammo that groups best with your rifle at the range you will be shooting... I have read that many folks use 50 yards or 50 meters as zero for small game hunting so maybe start with the ammo that groups best at that range and work from there... I have an 881 that is a lot of fun at the range.. glad you joined us here.. happy shooting!

 

[39d scott]

I havent met a Marlin yet that didnt like CCI Mini Mags.

 

[P-bass]

You will probably see an inverse relationship between accuracy and distance, even in terms of moa accuracy. The accuracy seems to decrease with increased veloctiy required for long shots when it comes to .22lr. Without getting into the really spendy stuff, I've found the most accurate rounds to be CCI subsonics/SV and Gemtech subsonic, all at around 1050fps. They drop off sharply after 50 yds though, and wouldn't be much use beyond that for hunting. For regular "high velocity" (1200+ fps) rounds, I've had good luck with CCI minimags and Remington Golden Bullets. I just recently tried some Remington Vipers and got decent accuracy on first and second shots, with subsequent shots falling off the mark. I suspect they were heating up the barrel and I wasn't waiting long enough between shots. Your heavy barrel should be less susceptible to such issues. I will do a comparison soon between them and the CCI velocitors, their main competition in the 1400+ fps class, which is about the minimum if you want to reach out to 100 yds. I haven't tried the really fast sutff like Stingers and Yellow Jackets because they are just too hard to find these days.

Though my Model 25 has a very similar action to your 880sq, our barrels are completely different, so it 's not entirely relevant to make a recommendation based on my experience. Your 880sq may have entirely different preferences. Finding what those are is half the fun. Go buy a small box of everything available and try them out!

 

[puma guy]

To find out which ammo my rifle digests the best I always start with a clean barrel for each test and fire a round or two to "lead" the barrel. The advice given here echos data for target shooting. Lower velocity is usually more accurate. Sounds like you may want to test higher velocity rounds for hunting and maybe lower velocity for target shooting. I have several Marlin bolt actions and they are all very accurate.

 

[Bosvarkie]

Thank you for the feedback!

I got hold of just about all the ammo I can find in SA. Going to head to the range in next week and start testing again.

Regards,

 

[puma guy]

Thank you for the feedback!

I got hold of just about all the ammo I can find in SA. Going to head to the range in next week and start testing again.

Regards,

Welcome to the forum. I didn't notice your local. I have an acquaintance here in Texas whom I met through another forum who is from SA. He spent some time in the military and also the police I think. He is quite a knowledgeable fellow regarding firearms and a good skeet shooter. He's about 250 miles from me, but I visit my daughter near him so we've had the opportunity to shoot together a couple of times. He introduced me to boerewors or farmer's sausage and I introduced him to smoked Texas Hill Country venison sausage at our last get together. Best of luck in your tests. Good Shooting.

 

[Nasri]

Good day everyone!

I recently picked up a bull barrel 880SQ however I am not a specialist and this is my first .22lr. Could anyone advice me on the best ammo to use please. I bought lots of different ammo to test the micro grove barrel but got very different results and groupings especially with the lower velocity bullets. I want to use the rifle for light hunting as well as target practise and would really love to get the most out of it in terms of accuracy, distance etc.

Thank you in advance for any help or tips.

Regards from South Africa

 

[Nasri]

Hi I have a Marlin .22 880ss stainless steel microgroove rifle with rosewood custom stock since 1997. you can try Winchester super x 40 grain high velocity or Eagle claw Federal 40 grain high velocity both brands shoot with remarkable, results basically tack driving one unto the other,,,,I have tried Eley/ swartklip old local brand/ and few others but BUT NO LUCK WITH THEM. Use a good rifle rest when you doing bullet group test and a good scope with parallax adjuster for good results. Note your gun is later version of mine so it might not like the same ammo you can only but try.

Good luck and let us know

Nasri

 

[Old Creek]

Bosvarkie,
I can only speak of what I like to use in my 1996 880SQ....scoped with a Zeiss 3x9x40mm 2nd Focal Plane.
I zero at 25 Yards... I also use a single shot adapter I purchased from Gun Parts Corporation here in the U.S. under the Marlin Biathlon Rifle when I'm using .22 CB/Short as it doesn't feed properly in the standard 7rd. Magazine.

For Target shooting and Small Game hunting:
*.22LR. Federal Champion 36Gr. Copper plated hollow point, 1260 Feet per second at the muzzle (125ft. Pounds). At 100 yards 1000 FPS and (80 Ft. pounds) The 100 yard bullet drop is -5.6"

For Quiet small game hunting without a suppressor (silencer):
*.22 CB Short from CCI 29 Gr. lead round nose at 710 Feet per second the zero on that is 2 inches low at the 25 yards (Keeping the zero with The Federal Champion above.) For up close shots without disturbing the neighbors, if you live around others. Just be sure to clean the chamber really well after you use it because of the powder build up from the short case. it could cause the use of .22LR. cases to get slightly stuck. So clean the Chamber also after use.

For shooting Rodents and other Pests:
*.22LR Federal Game-Shok 25Gr. Lead Bird Shot acts like a shotgun with #12 bird shot 716 between 10-15 yards maximum distance.

For shooting fun:Take your empty .22 cases and place them on tooth picks and shoot them at 25 yards (it also helps you practice and when you can hit the empty cases regularly (which is very attainable with your 88SQ) Then your ready for the Hunt or to the target range.

I carry my loose .22 ammunition and what type/brand in empty 35mm camera film cases- very convenient in the pocket. a double 7 Rd. magazine pouch attached to the sling for spare magazines in the field.

Cheers,

Old Creek