Sig 522 Ammo Recommendations

[Mr. Jones]

Yesterday I crossed off my 3000th round after a little over a month with the Sig 522 and thought I would share my findings regarding ammunition.  While I have heard many accounts that this rifle will chow down any ammo it is fed, I seemed to have issues with some; but also great successes with others.  I tried to keep accurate notes throughout the month to help me choose an ideal ammunition that I can feel confident buying in bulk.

Testbed:

Rifle- Sig 522 Classic

Magazine- Black Dog machine 30 and 50(drum)

Optic- Center Point Red/Green dot and auxiliary laser of the same brand

Target/distance- Border Patrol Bad Guy w/.38spl 25 and 50 yards

Ammunition Manufacturers- Remington, Federal, CCI, and wolf

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First off, this rifle requires a good firm grip and stance.  I initially had the adjustable stock set too short and had a large number of FTF.  This also occurs when the stock is folded and the rifle is fired like an SBR.

I learned that the design of the recoil buffer and rod required the operator provide a very firm base (aka a strong, steady shoulder).  Once I adjusted the stock properly and learned to hold this style of rifle properly, the rate of FTF dropped across the entire ammunition range.  Higher velocity ammo also solved this issue, but one should not rely on this, and instead develop a proper grip.  Once it became an extension of my arm, it fails only due to ammunition.

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Remington Golden Bullet- This ammo is a solid no-go for this rifle.  Generally poor performance across the board with FTL rate of 5:30 rounds and FTF of 3:30.  I even bought a second box from a different lot after I learned about the recoil/shouldering issue and the ammo still failed to perform.  It also feeds like junk from the black dog drum, which performs flawlessly with every other ammo I tested.  The remington seems to have a larger casing and the knurling on the bullet is more pronounced than any other brand I tested, so that may bear some weight to the issue.  On the other hand, this ammo fires perfectly from any bolt action rifle I own (which are mostly older Savage models).  I only tested 100 golden bullets before I gave up on them.

Wolf Match target (Round Nose)- The 40 grain round with a round nose was super accurate and tore a massive hole in the target backing.  Unfortunately, however, it also experienced feed issues of about 3:30 rounds;  It far exceeded the golden bullets in 50rd drum performance though.  The ammo is also very dirty and i frequently had blinding smoke wafting from the rear of the receiver.  Teardown later that night looked like I put 1000 rounds through it, whereas I only fired 200.  Still, these feel like the most powerful rounds I ran through the rifle, and it almost felt like maybe a 9mm.  Sure tore up some targets- the fun factor may be worth the problems on occasion.  On a sidenote, I used to fire wolf through an SKS I had; it was like shooting a damned .45 and would shear the wood in a target stand if I wasn't careful.

CCI Stinger- these 32 grain hollowpoints made the rifle feel like a BB gun.  The recoil was so slight I could feel the buffer tap the rear of the receiver;  and so quiet I could hear the spring squeaking.  I had no FTL and only three FTF in 500 rounds which may have been my fault for getting comfortable and limp wristed after many shots.  The CCI also seemed to be the cleanest firing ammo, with very little residue and only a light dusting required. All in all this was very satisfactory ammo and would take first place if it where a little cheaper and more readily available in my area.  It's almost like CCI is viewed as luxury ammo around here, where remington, winchester, and federal seem to rule the roost.

Federal 36gr hollowpoints- For me this is ideal ammo for this rifle.  I have yet to have any FTL and one FTF in 800 rounds.  They function perfectly with the 30 and 50 rounders from Black Dog, and they seem to burn relatively clean.  Also, they just feel better to me than the CCI; I like a little recoil to remind me I'm not shooting a pellet gun, and the federal just felt good in this rifle. The accuracy was not the best however, and my grouping did spread out a little bit, but I am not shooting tournaments, so fun is the only requirement.  The federal is more obtainable and cheaper by a couple dollars, so I stuck with it after my ammo testing and have put almost 1500 rounds downrange.  Very happy with the choice and while I will be testing other brands and weights as time goes by, I think this can be considered "standard issue" for this rifle.

[imschur]

Great review. Your findings are similar to what we are seeing in other brands of rifle. Most of them dislike the Remington and most prefer the Federal.

[asmurff]

Nice detailed review. Suprisingly or maybe not it fits with what I feel is true with my 10/22, I've never kept that detailed a record. I like CCI Mini-Mags, which are cheaper than Stingers, I almost never have any feed issues and don't remember the last time I had one fail to fire. I do keep the original 10 round magazine from my rifle loaded with Stingers for coyotes, I live less than a 1/4 mile from open high country desert.

It does seem to be the same preferences again and again throughout the .22 community.

[Jkowis]

I agree that the golden bullet is horrible to feed in this rifle. Mine has eaten a couple thousand rounds of Winchester and Federal bulk without a single ftf but absolutely hated the Remington golden boys with ftf after ftf. It was basically a bolt action with the golden bullets. Never again.

Would like to say that my 522 is super accurate with cheap accessories. Have a Simmons 3-9x40 scope, UTG bipod and can consistently knock over spent 12 gauge shells at 100 yards. Going back to range soon to see how it does with head shots at 200.