22 sub sonic ammo for rabbits

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Feb 9, 2008
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I have acquired a Remington Pump .22 caliber rifle .I'm going to use it for small game . What would be a good subsonic round . I'm looking to protect my hearing and not have to wear hearing protection .
 
I've used the CCI "Quiet 22" with good results. It's a LR round so should work in your pump -- as quiet as a CB cap and gives good accuracy.
 
I have RWS sub-sonic which from a rifle is very quiet. Sometimes it will not exit a 'chuck ! 22LR HP , 40 gr
 
I would probably get the CCI Quiet, but just about any standard velocity (sub sonic) 22LR round will be pretty quiet from your Remie pump 22. It has a pretty long barrel and that's the difference.
 
I've used Remington sub-sonic hollow points, and they are decent.

Only problem I've had is with the S&W AR-22... Sometimes not enough "oomph" to cycle the action. Quiet as hell with the silencer though.

But that problem goes out the window with a manual action like a pump.
 
I'll look for the CCI's . I think i have a box of Winchester T22's somewhere . Thanks for the replies
 
Shoot them and see what the sound level is like and if you are comfortable shooting without ear protection in the field. Regular CCI standard velocity rounds are pretty quiet too. There are quieter ones, but I'm comfortable with them. Accuracy is also important, but it's relative and you don't need 1/2" groups at 50 yds to be successful with small game. It's nice though if the rifle shoots well with the chosen ammo. I'd say, anything less than about 1.5" groups at 50 yds will be okay. That is the kind of groups I get with Remington Golden Bullets typically or a bit better... just a little 1" and mostly because of a flyer.
 
I prefer Wolf Match Extra and SK Rifle match. Great accuracy at a reasonable price. I can average 1/2" @ 50yds with my CZ and 1" groups with my 10/22 takedown. I only take head shots on rabbits and squirrels so accuracy is very important.
 
When I was a kid I shot a lot of standard velocity .22lr out of my grandpa's Marlin bolt gun without ear protection and it wasn't even uncomfortable, let alone make my ears ring. I believe that rifle has a 22" barrel. I seem to remember reading somewhere that most .22lr is loaded for 16"-18" barrels and I speak from both theory and experience when I say that barrels over about 20" cut down on the noise drastically. Having a closed/manual action (ie, not a revolver or semi-auto) also helps a lot.

I've even shot .22 mag with no hearing protection from a 21" barrel bolt gun and it was slightly uncomfortable, just enough to make me think "I probably shouldn't do this often" but not enough to make my ears ring.

But as far as hunting ammo goes, I like CCI. Partly because I have to use non-lead here in California and CCI lead the charge in non-lead rimfire, but also because CCI in general seems to be the most consistent of the commonly available stuff.
 
Yeah. Never wore ear protection when shooting a 22. But I've only shot them outdoors and never around more powerful offerings.
 
Aquila Super Extra Standard Velocity. Eley primed. 40 grain bullet. 1130 ft/sec muzzle velocity. It's a great cartridge and inexpensive.

Their .22LR subsonic is the same but at 1025 ft/sec.
 
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Winchester makes a heavier (42gr) subsonic now which I like. I think the shoulder on the truncated bullet helps to make a larger wound channel than most other .22s.

The Quiets are also good and are quieter/hearing safe.

Being a sub won't make it quiet like the Quiets, nor would I bet the subs are hearing safe. Buy a few different types, you may find that some will go super sonic from your rifle.
 
I always wear hearing protection and shooting glasses.
Here is another sub sonic I'm having great results with. Cheaper than the two I mentioned earlier.
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I've always used CCI CB caps, but they are only a short range option, as they shoot a 29 gr bullet at about 730 fps. They are VERY quiet, though, for urban pest control. Their biggest drawback is that they won't feed in a semi-auto. A tube fed pump or lever action works great.
 
The long barrel and manual action of that rifle should tend to make any .22 ammo sound pretty quiet, since the muzzle is further away from your ears. Even supersonic stuff shouldn't be an issue, especially for only shooting a handful of rounds while hunting. Sure, if you plan to go through hundreds of rounds in an afternoon plinking, go ahead an put in ear plugs. But I'd think the main concern would be figuring out what kind of ammo your gun shoots most accurately, and still provides adequate killing power on game. Let the chips fall where they may after that.
 
I've shot about 500 rounds of different ammo through it at the range . Most of them shot poorly. I didnt shoot any sub sonics . I bought a 300 round box of hollow point Mini Mags that has the guy from the gator hunting show on them . They shoot great through this rifle . I sighted it in at 25 yards with a scope and had really good groups . I put 15 small post-it notes up I think they are 1.5 inches and drilled each one near the center with one shot each . I then moved to the 50 yard range . I put up 9 post-its to make one large square because I didnt know where I would be hitting . I drew a black circle about 1.5 inches in the middle one with a Sharpie to make it easier to see . I shot 15 rounds and thought I missed them all . Couldnt see 1 hole through the scope . When I walked out to check , all 15 rounds were in the circle . So I'm hunting with the Mini mags and picked up another box of those "Choot em " bullets .

I didnt buy any sub sonics because I have three semis I wanted to shoot . Also I moved to 100 yards and the entire group of fifteen fell about 6 inches and opened up about 3 to 4 inches . I'm happy with that .
 
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I've killed a lot of bunnies with .22 shorts and CB caps. They aren't hard to kill at all. I was looking for quiet as well. I used the Remington auto rifle that took shorts, longs and long rifles. I just had to manually function the bolt for the CB caps. They fed fine through the tubular feed system.
 
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