Anyone else have this problem with .22 Remington Thunderbolts?

[BE Mike]

The idea of shooting a different bullet through your 22 to "clean" the lead out will cause more problems than good. The possibility of bulging is there, but something that is much more likely, the regular load that you are shooting through that gun will take a few rounds to "settle" back in to the original point of impact. When I went through several brands with my newest 22 LR, I noticed this to be very true, and depending on the round, groups could be very off of the original POI.

Shoot what your gun likes, clean it as needed, and dont worry about it. I have a 75C that I have owned for over 25 years that I only recently cleaned for the first time a few years ago. Accuracy was never an issue, I only cleaned it because it was having function issues, and I tried that as a starting point to fixing it. Ended up it had a broken spring, may or may not have been a result of lack of cleaning, but the accuracy has always been well within minute of squirrel.

You bring up a good point. I do use bronze brushes to clean the chambers of my .22's., but don't use them on the rifling. I usually use a .25 caliber or .243 caliber brush. I bend it just reaches the end of the chamber. When I use my pull throughs, I bring them from the muzzle end to the breech.

 

[6mm Shoot]

I have not had any problems out of them. My 10-22 likes them and my Weatherby likes the cci mini mags as does my mark 22. With the Thunderbolts out of my 10-22 I get a little over a half inch group at fifty yards.

 

[snafu21]

They shoot just fine for me through a Walther and a 10/22...

They also make good book ends for Blu-Rays

 

[T-DOGG]

Thunderbolts are the only thing I could get to run reliably in a GSG 1911-22 that I had a few years back. No idea why, but that gun liked them.

 

[IndyGlockMan]

My Ruger SR22 loves Thunderbolts. Accurate and cycles the slide with authority.

 

[GIJEW]

As far as leading goes in .22lr, I've found that they're lubed well enough that the lead cleans out--but with 'thunderbolt', it just involves more work. As far reliability goes, FTFire is the main problem with .22s and in my experience 'thunderturds' are the worst, but if it shoots accurately for you (or better yet, reliably) go for it. I don't have any experience hunting squirrels but something like a CCI 'mini-mag' would seem to be a better choice in terms of terminal-ballistics.

 

[One Shot One Kill]

As far as leading goes in .22lr, I've found that they're lubed well enough that the lead cleans out--but with 'thunderbolt', it just involves more work. As far reliability goes, FTFire is the main problem with .22s and in my experience 'thunderturds' are the worst, but if it shoots accurately for you (or better yet, reliably) go for it. I don't have any experience hunting squirrels but something like a CCI 'mini-mag' would seem to be a better choice in terms of terminal-ballistics.

Why is that? According to this site 22 Rimfire Ballistics Table the ballistics on 40gr Thunderbolts and Mini-mags are identical. I've used thunderbolts one squirrel hunt and shot 2, both chest shots, that were dead seconds after they hit the ground.