Cowgirl Corner: Backyard range experiment

[North Country Gal]

Thanks, Marine.

Yes, even CBs have their place. Just not sure if we can use them in our backyard range to good effect. While they do give me the opportunity to use some of my favorite rimfire guns, instead of the air guns, they are still woefully inaccurate by my air gun standards. plus, as Sir Henry notes, still not to crazy about the distance they can travel.

Folks, it was a good experiment. I learned a lot and was happy to share it with everyone. My conclusion is that rimfire guns need quality SV or HV ammo to be at their best, but that ammo raises safety and noise issues. Bottom line for us is that it's back to air guns, only, on our range. For our situation, air guns are the easy winner in terms of noise, safety and accuracy.

[BrokenolMarine]

Reading the posts of the folks that have to be concerned about noise, the neighbors close by, and (gasp) HOAs... makes Tina and I so grateful I put up with the hour back and forth each way to work for all those years. We have our little slice of heaven and now that I'm retired, WE only leave the ridge if we have to. Having the 50 yard range in the back yard all those years made practicing for competition so much easier, and on more than one occasion when the Department range wasn't available, I brought officers to my home range for special training, practice for requalification, and on two occasions, I brought small groups to the range here and re-qualified them. Of course the Chief couldn't pay me for the use of my range, like he would the Department of Corrections or the Airport Police when we used their ranges for special training. I wasn't an approved vendor... but he was very appreciative.

I often got compensated in other ways down the line. The department got caught between a rock and a hard place, and my formal range saved the day. I wasn't worried about compensation... it was great to roll out of bed, sit down to a nice quiet breakfast, and take my time with it. When the gang rolled up, I'd walk out onto the range and conduct the training, the quals, then wave goodbye, and never have to step into MY vehicle. MY day was officially over.

[North Country Gal]

Wonderful story, marine. Thanks.

Oh, yeah, I will never take what we do have for a range for granted. We are blessed. I've lived in places where it was a long drive to a range or in places where there was no range at all.

[Teecat]

Hi NCG -

Thank you for the report (no pun intended!). I have experimented in the backyard with the CCI Quiet .22 LR. I’ve found that the round is pretty quiet in my 24” barrel Remington 510 - about the same as my gas spring air gun - but pretty loud in my 6” barrel revolver. In my 20” barrel H001T, they are noticeably louder than the longer barrel Remington, but not nearly as loud as the revolver. It seems like the 24” barrel expends most of the sound energy getting the bullet out of the muzzle, and the less barrel length there is to expend energy, the more is left for sound.

Have you made this observation by trying the round through different guns? What’s the barrel length on your CZ? Based on this experience I was even considering getting the 24” long barrel H001 TLB Frontier because the 20” is a tad on the uncomfortable side to be neighborly for me.

I haven’t choronographed the round to test any effect that barrel length may have on the CCI Quiet, but I have compared accuracy to the CCI Mini Mags and CCI standard 40 gr and the Quiets seem just as accurate at 25 yds.

[North Country Gal]

Good point, teecat.

The barrel on that particular CZ (455 American) is 20.5", but having shot many of these same rounds in a longer 24" barrel in the past, yes, I can report that they're even quieter in the longer barrel. My theory is the same as yours as to why. A CB Short out of a 24" barrel is in the same ball park for quiet as one of our very quiet PCP air rifles.

Again, I remind everyone of the danger of using some quiet rounds that use only the primer for propulsion in very long barrels, as per the the Colibri bullet that didn't even make it out of the 20.5" inch barrel. That one round could have been a faulty round, of course, and I have had no issues with other CB rounds of other makes. Just be aware.

[Teecat]

Thanks NCG. I’ve tried the Aguila Colibri primer-only in my 20” H001T and one will occasionally fall short, so I don’t like them for that reason as well as the inaccuracy you mentioned. Never thought about the chance of a squib so appreciate that awareness. Going to try the CCI 29 gr Short Targets that are listed at 830 fps to see if they are more sociable than the CCI LR Quiets and will report back (there I go again). I’m after something no louder than my .25 cal gas springer. I may just get the 24” Frontier anyway, just because I want it!

[North Country Gal]

Please do. It's been awhile since I shot the CCI 22 Short Targets. I'm hoping I can get some decent accuracy with them. Have even been thinking of getting a gun chambered, specifically, for 22 Shorts, only.

[Sir Henry]

Please do. It's been awhile since I shot the CCI 22 Short Targets. I'm hoping I can get some decent accuracy with them. Have even been thinking of getting a gun chambered, specifically, for 22 Shorts, only.

No one has made them in decades have they?

[CT_Shooter]

I’ve tried the Aguila Colibri primer-only in my 20” H001T and one will occasionally fall short, so I don’t like them for that reason

I bought a box of Aquila Colibri and fired one out of a bolt action, single shot rifle. The target was mounted on a pine board set about 20 feet away. It bounced off.

[North Country Gal]

No wonder they're so quiet.