new .22 cal pellet review

JaDub · September 21, 2010, 08:42:04 AM

Gotta tell ya........ I think I found a new favorite pellet for my trusty Gammo Whisper. Whenever something new comes on the market I always like to "give it a go". My weapon of choice is a Gammo Whisper in .22 cal. . That said I`ve run the gauntlet of pellets searching out the one pellet that my gun likes........ your gun may be different but for my Whisper I have a new winner.......... hands down.
Shooting in the 50 to 60 ft range, the new Gammo Rocket is a clear new winner. It is a rather unique two-piece design featuring a BB imbedded in the nose. Not only is it apparently very aerodynamic but upon impact the BB seperates from the lead base which leaves the base to deform very nicely. It is truly a 1-2 punch. How accurate is it? Shooting off my sled it will put the second shot in the the first pellets` hole . After three three shot tests all were within 1/4" of dead center. Keep in mind that this is also a pretty hefty load. Something I noticed right away while loading the very first pellet is that the pellet fit is `tight` in the barrel. You literally have to push , almost force it into the barrel. This reinforces my previous beliefs that pellets must have a snug fit for best accuracy. I noticed that the accuracy of my previous favorite ( Beeman Kodiak Heavy ) started to deteriorate with the last batch of pellets that I bought ......which were very inconsistant ( tight to loose fitting ) . This confirms my opinion that most well made airguns will shoot better with a tighter fitting projectile. Simply put, the stability of the pellet will be improved by the better bite in the rifling.
If you have a .177 I`d like to hear if it works as well for you in that caliber. Next time you have the need to experiment, try the new Gammo Rocket, it might just surprise you.

Cheers, Jeff

gitano · September 26, 2010, 09:50:56 PM

I've seen this pellet, and figured it was probably a good "hammer". Nice to see someone else interested in .22 cal pellet guns. For some reason, I prefer the .22 cal in PGs. I like .17 CFs, but the .22 pellets just seem to hit harder even if the MVs are considerably slower. I've been thinking about that new non-lead material "they've" been hawking. I forget what it's called. As far as I can tell, it's purely to get elevated MVs, and MVs sell.

Like to see pictures of dead critters when you get some.

Paul

JaDub · September 27, 2010, 08:24:12 AM

" pictures when you get some" ................

Have you ever seen the inside of a freezer??

I`ll try to get `artsy` one of these days.

Jeff

Paul Hoskins · October 02, 2010, 06:30:34 PM

I'm thinking the new "no lead" pellets are just a gimmick. I bought some for the 177 rifles but haven't tried them yet. As you can see in the pictures, they look like tin but I suspect they're something more like "cerrosafe" used for chamber casting. They're extremely light & the skirt is very thin. It's very easy to smash them flat in the skirt area just by pinching them between the finger & thumb. Even a child can do that. I suspect the air pressure on firing will destroy the skirt. The skirt measures about 0.180" & the point measures 0.176". I'll try to get around to firing a few in the Ruger tomorrow & letting you know the results. .....A warning on the box says "not for use in pellet traps. " It also says increased velocity & penetration. I'm wondering, over what? I just weighed one & it weighs 3.8grains. I don't think I'll be buying any more but I seem to be trying anything new once anyway. ......Paul H

Brithunter · October 03, 2010, 04:13:57 PM

This pellet fit is well known here. British .22 Air rifles were 5.6mm whilst the Europeans are mostly 5.5mm so you can get .22" pellets in both sizes. My .22" Feinwerkbau Sport 127 is of course German and so has a 5.5mm bore. The Haenal model 302 I ahd was 5.6mm and so marked. i let the guy at the gun club buy it off me as he collects air rifles and had not seen on in the nearly new condition that mine was.

I also have a .177" BSA meteor std as well. Will try to get some photos of them soon.

gitano · March 27, 2015, 11:45:34 AM

So, JaDub, when are we gonna see the "art"???

Paul

JaDub · March 27, 2015, 02:21:11 PM

Geez, Paul. I had to go back 5 years to figure out what you were talking about.:)

Havn`t been shooting the Gammo much lately. Seems I`ve finally persuaded the little buggers to live the next block down. If I see one in the back yard I can`t open the back door carefully enough without them scrambling. I think they`re on to me and which yard should be avoided at ALL cost. :laugh:

The freezer is full of Salmon, halibut, pike, sunfish, walleye, geese, duck, antelope, venison & elk. We havn`t bought meat in the store for 5 years! Was out to dinner the other night and actually had to use a KNIFE to cut the meat. My wife cooks everything so tender that knives have become obsolete at our house.

gitano · March 27, 2015, 03:33:33 PM

Yeah, I've been playing around with pellets in the new .22 Hornet and was perusing the site for stuff about pellets and pellet guns when I saw this thread. I figured that message was cryptic enough to get your attention. :)

Glad to hear your freezer is full! I'm doin' OK, but don't know where next 'meal' is going to come from. Didn't get drawn for anything this year. Neither did my daughter or my friends. However, my other daughter and her husband are moving to Utah between Salt Lake City and Ogden. SO... I should be seeing you Coloradoans more, and MAYBE I can finally get an elk.

Paul

JaDub · March 28, 2015, 09:56:55 AM

Right On !! That would be fantastic. Sorry to hear you zero`d out on tags this year. I put in for elk , antelope and deer. Won`t know till near the end of May if I got lucky. We`ll see. I`m forecasting a THL reunion this summer in Colorado. I`m doing my usual Minnesota trip in late May along with a trip to race at RoadAmerica in Wisconsin.......... that would be in mid July sometime.

No trip to Alaska this year.......just too much going on. Maybe we can get together next year. I`d really like to take in your part of the country and spend some serious time with you. I`m ready to switch up from my usual bunch of guys.

JaDub

gitano · March 28, 2015, 10:28:04 AM

That sounds great, JaDub! My son-in-law has to be at his new job by June 8th, and my wife says my daughter said mid-June would be "good" for a visit, so that's what we're planning. As things get more solidified, I'll let you know.

I just missed the drawing permit application deadlines in Utah, so I'm outta luck for this year. I'll have to find someplace to hunt up here. Looking at a fly-in/raft out trip to North Slope for caribou in the fall. Since that depends on other people, I have my doubts about it actually coming off. We'll see.

Paul