Editor’s Note: Editor Jim Shepherd is on the road this week. The following feature first appeared in our companion service, The Shooting Wire (www.shootingwire.com)
In the summer time, an old man’s mind turns to the pursuits enjoyed in youth. And, barring that, seeking a pleasant time at the range. Earlier this summer, I received a release from Winchester Ammunition about their resurrected Wildcat 22 Long Rifle round. I recall the Winchester Wildcat of old, more value-priced promotional ammo than upscale.
With the advent of the Winchester Wildcat semi-auto rifle, the ammo company revitalized the Wildcat round with a copper-plated “Dynapoint” hollow-point bullet. Packaged in plastic 100-round containers, the round boasts “Super Speed” of 1,300 fps (from, no doubt, a rifle barrel). The round is supposed to be optimized for semi-automatic firearms like the Winchester Wildcat rifle.
My first trip with the ammo was handgun only. I selected the GLOCK 44, considered by some early users as being ‘somewhat’ reliable. The sample I have runs quite well, though I’ve failed to clean it so far. The other gun used was the super-lightweight S&W M43C – a concealed-hammer, 8-shot J-frame, weighing in at around 11 ½ ounces, empty.
That’s hardly a fair test and it’s the way I roll.
From a seated rest at 25 yards, I began shooting groups with the factory-stock G44. Groups averaged around three-inches, about standard for this gun, with the better groups clustering into around 1 ½” – not bad.
I set a pair of B-8 repair centers at ten yards and shot a snappy five-shot group with the GLOCK. Four of five rounds fired hit inside two-inches with a high flier – indicating the user fired that shot “unlocked.” – Maintaining your grip with a 22 pistol is important.
I put a cylinder full through the M43C at the same distance. The group tended left, a function of the small “boot-style” rubber stocks. There was a five-round cluster tending left in the “10” and the “9” rings. One wandered out into the “8.” Had I put the rounds center, there wouldn’t have been one outside the “10 ring,” with the “X” torn out. It was a very small group, one of the smallest 8-shot groups I ever fired from this gun.
The following day, I took the ammo out with a Ruger 10/22 – the “Vote 2020” collector’s edition and the Smith & Wesson SW22 Victory. That gun is outfitted with a C-More red dot sight and a Volquartsen barrel. The distance was 25 yards. Shooting from a seated rest, both guns shot quite well with the new ammo.
The 10/22 put five pills into 1 3/8” – this is with the receiver-mounted peep sight and front post arrangement. The best three of five went into ½” – not shabby for an old timer shooting with irons.
The SW22 with the ‘rooney’ sight and fancy barrel shot a 1 ¾” group. The trigger on the gun is fine enough, I contrived a flier. This gun- with this ammo, the C-More and Volquartsen barrel – shoots more like a rifle than a pistol.
Thus far, across four guns, the ammo has been consistently reliable and accurate. Winchester Wildcat Super Speed goes on my “buy it when you find it” list of 22 LR ammo.
-- Rich Grassi