I also decided to remove the Weaver V22 scope from my Marlin 783 .22 Magnum and replace it with a Simmons .22 Mag scope, which seemed appropriate. It is a definite improvement over the old Weaver. The Savage is wearing one as well.
As some may remember from my last report, I forgot my benchrest setup, so the shooting was less than it could be. The benchrest certainly makes it easier to concentrate on the shooting. Another difference, the temperature started in the 90's and kept climbing. While I was surprised by the ammo remaining consistant, it was a bit annoying spending time waiting for the barrel to cool off in such heated air.
Since it was new the Savage got first try on the bench. Man that Accu-Trigger sure makes for a great trigger. I tried out Hornady's .17 gr V-Max followed by CCI 20gr Gamepoint. As you can see from the following pictures, they both performed great.
This ammo's velocity read like this.
2581, 2681, 2600, 2605, 2523 for 2586 avg and a 33.99 S.D.
This ammo's velocity read like this.
2482, 2493, 2475, 2442, 2483 for 2475 avg and a 17.47 S.D. (Best Standard of Deviation)
After shooting the Savage, I realized that the 5mm Remington and the .22 Mag Marlin were going to have their work cut out for them. Despite the terrible heat they didn't disappoint me at all.
The first target with 5mm Centurion ammo, left me a bit wanting. I even fired a sixth shot in hopes of getting a better group. Those four that are together at least show me it can be good.
This ammo's velocity read like this.
2337, 2254, 2315, 2338, 2353 for 2319.4 avg and a 34.87 S.D. (I did not record the sixth shot)
Remington' 5mm ammo still shoots the best in my 591M!!!
Here is a closer look at the group.
The shot in the upper left is a stray.
This ammo's velocity read like this.
2114, 2027, 2011, 2033, 2027 for 2042.4 avg and a 36.54 S.D. (Throw out the first shot and we see it is a bit slow)
The lower left hand target features Hornady's new 30gr V-Max .22 Magnum ammo. As you can see my Marlin wasn't doing too well with it.
This ammo's velocity read like this.
2210, 2154, 2190, 2079, 2092 for 2145 avg and a 51.95 S.D. (Comparing this ammo to the Centurion 5mm we see a 174 fps difference)
The lower right shows Remington's 33gr .22 Magnum ammo and that my Marlin definitely prefers it. This is a different box of ammo from my previous test, and yet it still seems to be slow in my rifle. The accuracy makes up for the loss...
This ammo's velocity read like this.
1924, 1903, 1901, 2006, 1863 for 1919.4 avg and a 47.56 S.D.
As a final treat, I decided to do some experimenting. I weighed all of the ammo in a box of Centurion 5mm ammo and I found nine rounds that matched in weight. Then I searched through my drill bits and found one that matched the hole in the bullet as close as possible, and began drilling out the lead. I removed one grain. Getting the ammo weight identical I hoped would tighten the group, while the lighter weight might give us some boost in velocity. I got both.
This ammo's velocity read like this.
2377, 2386, 2347, 2337, 2391, 2415 for 2375.5 avg and a 26.48 S.D. (Yes, Six Shots)(Improved velocity and Standard of Deviation)
That gives the Remington 38gr ammo 352 ft/lbs of energy, the Centurion 30gr 358 ft/lbs of energy and my modified 29 gr ammo 364 ft/lbs of energy. For a little bit of work, I got a nice little boost. I'm sure that weighing helped the S.D. and the accuracy improvement, but the velocity boost from the weight drop certainly gives you something to think about. 28 grains should put us over 2400 fps easily, and 27 grains could easily match the 20 gr .17 HMR load.
Shooting these three rifles at the same time certainly made their differences standout. The Savage trigger is outstanding, the Remington is stff, but had a definite breaking point. The Marlin is mushy, but as you can see useable. The Savage action is smooth at everything but closing. The Remington is stiff in openning and closing the action. The Marlin is the smoothest in both ways. The Savage and Marlin are very hard to load single rounds into. The Remington took single rounds with ease. The Remington is my choice for a carrying rifle. It is light, easy to point and it is accurate. The Savage barrel cleaned up easily, mainly I suspect due to the ammo. The first patch was very light grey in color. The second showed almost nothing. This .17 HMR ammo must be clean burning stuff.
The Simmons scopes, were more a less just a test for me. I wasn't sure I would like them. After getting the first one, I decided to order a second. They seem to be a bit hard to get. Places advertising them couldn't sell me one. They are less than $55 on the Internet. After getting two of them I noticed small differences between the two, nothing major. The parallax adjust to less than 10 yards which is nice. I like the fast focus feature of the scope, although one of the scopes, it seems to be a bit loose and easily moved. Considering their price they certainly delivered their moneys worth, but they aren't even close to a Burris or Leupold in optics, but neither is their price.
If you are wondering about the scope mounts on the Savage they are S&K SKulptured Bases and rings. You can learn more here.
http://www.scopemounts.com/index.html?main.html
