[Joshua M. Smith]

Hello,

I got to looking at the specs on these two cartridges. Both are 40gn @ 1235fps, and both are headstamped CCI.

I would like to use the Blazers to practice and the CCI to hunt. However, I don't want to be contaminating the CCI lube with Blazer lube or vice versa. Therefore, does anyone know if they use the same stuff? I don't want to sight in one only to find out that the POI has shifted and end up having to shoot 20 just to get the barrel re-seasoned.

The CCI Mini-Mags let me hit small game at 100yds; the Blazer is not 100% consistent beyond 50yds or so. In other words, given a 1" PB for the vitals, I'm confident of hitting it with the Mini-Mags, not so much the Blazers.

I do form both in D Rock's tool, but Blazers just have more variation from cartridge to cartridge when powder charges and bullet weights are concerned.

Thanks,

Josh

 

[Saskshooter]

I would like to use the Blazers to practice and the CCI to hunt. However, I don't want to be contaminating the CCI lube with Blazer lube or vice versa. Therefore, does anyone know if they use the same stuff? I don't want to sight in one only to find out that the POI has shifted and end up having to shoot 20 just to get the barrel re-seasoned.

Thanks,

Josh

I don't understand this concern. Have I been ignoring something important for 50 years?

I switch ammo all the time according to what I have or could find in the store the last time I went. I have my favorites, and the gun does too, but I have never worried about seasoning my barrel.

 

[Joshua M. Smith]

My rifle is a target-type, and it's just something it was suggested I do. I tried it, and the groups do settle down after 10 to 20 of whatever round is going to go through them.

Josh

 

[MikeG]

Hmmm. I have some of each, may have to try that in my CZ one of these days.

 

[Range Junkie]

The CCI Blazers are pretty good for the money. I am quite aware of the barrel seasoning argument and think some of it is hocus pocus. At least the part that you have to shoot 20 rounds to get the barrel back on track. I have shot many different bullets types in one outing at the range. I shot Eley with the super slick melt in the hot sun lube, right after shooting CCI Subsonic HPs and vice versa with do discernible difference in group size from the first group to the tenth group following the switch. I have noticed one going from some bullets to others accuracy does seem to tighten up after 3-5 rounds after the change but I've never needed twenty. I would just shoot a few groups with the Blazer and switch to the Mini-Mags and see if the groups tighten within the first couple of groups.

 

[SD Handgunner]

Generally when switching between brands & types of ammo I will pull a bore snake through the bore of my .22 LR Rimfires a couple times. It has been my experience that once I started doing this my groups for the next brand & type of ammo settle right down usually within 5 shots.

I have seen the reverse also. One day I was shooting some old Eley Standard Brown Box and followed it with some CCI Blazers. In this case my first groups with the Blazers were better while the Eley lube was still in the bore, before the bore got coated with the lube from the Blazers. However this was the exception to the rule so to speak.

Larry

 

[GBertolet]

I suspect that Blazers are factory seconds of the CCI ammo, as most big box store promotional ammo is, from the other manufactures. Seconds does not necessiarly mean junk, as it can mean the velocity spread is outside the mfg's standard, or one lot is a few fps slower or hotter than what the standard is also. Could be it shoots one inch groups at 50 yards instead of 1/2". Sometimes you can hear variations of the report when fired also when the variation of velocity is great. They don't want to sell this out of spec ammo under their premium label, so they repackage it, and sell it at a discounted price. That's my opinion anyway. I have been told that, often match ammo is selected lots of regular ammo, that displays exceptional accuracy and uniformity.

 

[cowpoke1955]

I think you got some pretty good answers. As for seasoning, that is just a myth. They stopped seasoning in the mid 1800s when they started making barrels out of modern steel. In fact, toy cannot season a barrel made out of modern steel. The old iron barrels had open pores and required seasoning. This also applies to modern muzzle loaders, unless you find a builder who makes his own barrels out of iron. So, don't give it a second thought.

 

[tuckerdog]

My rifle is a target-type, and it's just something it was suggested I do. I tried it, and the groups do settle down after 10 to 20 of whatever round is going to go through them.

Josh

every .22 i've ever owned does better after a few rounds(starting from a clean bore)I only clean my .22 rimfires after 150 or 200 rounds other people may have different opinions but i'm only worried about minute of tree rat(head shots) to about 50 yds

 

[jyo]

I bought a large amount of CCI Mini Mags way back when they were a lot cheaper than now---I got them because my SIG P210-2 9mm pistol would fuction with the CCI better than anything else when it was fitted with it's factory 22lr conversion unit. I still have plenty of the Mini Mags, but wondered if the CCI Blazer would also run in this super tightly fitted pistol. The answer is yes, but much to my surprise, they actually shot smaller groups than the higher priced stuff! Fortunately, I have a large supply of Blazers as well.
So are they the same with an unplated bullet or something completely different? I don't have a chrono, so can't check velocity...

 

[HarryS]

"I suspect that Blazers are factory seconds of the CCI ammo, as most big box store promotional ammo is, from the other manufactures. " this is often repeated on the internet, but is incorrect.

Think of this. WalMart and other BIG stores sell 10 times as many of so called " promotional brands" than they do the regular or premium brands. If the promo brands were "seconds" then that means the the companies are making a product that is 80% bad sconds. Just doesn't work that way in manufacturing.

You might also want to think of the issues of promo rounds being out of spec on velocity, the only way to check velocity I know of is to fire the round...to late to call that one a 'second'. ammo manufacturers get less than one cent a round for thier cartridge....how much checking can they do? Not much.

Sometimes they can save a few cents A BOX by bulk packaging and not supplying those plastic shell holders; but in reality there is little difference between promo rounds and standard.

Going back to the origial post, one of my rifles shoots the Blazer much more accurate than the Mini-Mag; groups are about half the size with the Blazer. I've heard losts of supposed reson why one ammo works in a 22 and another doesn't.......all i know is tht in 22 lead RF rifles some ammo works better than another in a given rifle.

 

[jbee]

For FTF or FTE I have had no problems with CCI mini mags copper coated or Blazers in the 50 round packs. I have only had the occasional problem with the Federal bulk. My shooting is not good enough to give an accuracy test because I rarely shoot farther then 75 feet with a rifle or pistol.

The Eley has proven to work well in the Bobcat and Mark I. Can't say I see much difference except the Eley really has the lube applied.

 

[huffmanite]

FWIW, many years ago, I basically shot only the CCI mini-mags in what was then my new Marlin 99-M1. Were accurate and functioned well and I dropped a lot of squirrels with them. LOL, yea many years ago.

Got back into shooting about 7 years ago after a very long absence. Needed some 22 ammo and bought a brick of CCI Blazer to shoot in my Marlin and a Ruger semi-auto pistol I'd bought. The Blazer did quite well for me, both in the Marlin and Ruger. As to accuracy of it, well, its not as consistently accurate as say some much pricier Wolf Match, Eley match and etc., but it shoots pretty darn good for me.

Gent showed up at range I'm a member with a nice target style, scoped, 22 rifle. He was going to shoot Wolf Match and CCI Blazer in the rifle. I admired his rifle and the pricey target scope on it and asked him...."you're not gonna shoot that cheapo Blazer in that fine rifle are you? The expression on his face at my question wasn't a good one.....but before he could reply, I kinda laughed and told him for cheap 22 ammo, it shot pretty accurate in my 22 rifles and used it all the time. He quickly agreed with me. He'd discovered the same thing as me about the Blazer 40 gr ammo. Not as consistently accurate as the high priced 22LR target ammo, but it performed very well for him.

 

[Crusty Ol'Coot]

CCI Mini-mag and CCI Blazer ARE NOT THE SAME!

The Blazer are lead and the Mini-mag are copper washed/plated.

As to shooting a bunch of a given ammo to season a bore, well if it makes a big difference I should go on the road and let my Clark Custom 77/22 start making me some bucks with winnings.

I have switched many times between off the shelf ammos and match/target ammos and between lead and copper plated and the rifle just keeps shooting nice little groups, group after group after group after group after g----------------!

The rifle has a .920 Walther barrel and just simply shoots very well.

Now, if I was in money shoots, possibly?????? I might gain something by seasoning but as said earlier if it makes that much difference this rifle would shoot fantastically well.

Crusty Deary Ol'Coot

 

[DogSong]

No, they're very different. They shoot different. I did a review on youtube with my Henry and the blazer shot an 1" bigger pattern than the Mini-Mags. Just food for thought

 

[Crusty Ol'Coot]

SongDog, Try "group" rather then "pattern" when referring to the center to center measurement of rounds fired from your rifles/handguns.

Typically "pattern" is a reference to the dispersion of shot when patterned from a shot gun, while from handguns and rifles, the term used is group.

When a person refers to his non-shotgun firearm shooting a pattern, it is usually a "tongue-in-cheek" reference to that firearm "grouping" VERY POORLY.

Like such and such rifle was shooting patterns rather then groups.

And, the group from CCI Blazers when compared to CCI Mini Mags. will greatly depend on the likes of a given firearm and the quality of the barrel.

Hard to tell just where things will shake out with all the current obamanations and with companies such as Federal Cartridge Company and CCI (Cascade cartridge Corporation) now being owned by the same company, ATK, but in the past the Blazers have been known for their good value and shootability.

To the point where CCI Blazers were used by a good number of shooters as a practice ammo in preparation for their more formal, shooting for score, target sessions.

I hope it remains at that level of quality and reasonable price!!!!!!

Crusty Deary Ol'Coot

 

[10spoterminator]

I spent most of a summer years ago shooting 3 seperate .22lr rifles with somewhwere in the neighborhood of 2 dozen different types of .22 ammo to include the CCI Blazer, Stinger, Mini Mag, Max V, Green Tag, SGB as well as Remington Thunderbolt, Golden Sabre, Viper, Yellow Jacket, Winchester Super X , Federal standard, Lightning, Gold Metal Match as well as some Aguila , Eley Tennex and others . Of note the CCI Blazers were at that time some of the first .22 bullets to use a Lube Aloy slick coating . In all 3 firearms they proved to be more accurate than most and as you fired more of them the groups tightened up some but most impressive was the lack of flyers . I actually settled on these as my standard cannon fodder ammo after that . I am nearly out of them now but have found the Federal Lightnings that are coated with the same lube to be even better yet . I can only attribute this to the same rule that applies to shooting cast bullets in centerfire handguns and rifles when it comes to lubes. One they must be soft enough to leave the lube grooves in the bullets by the time they exit the barrel and the other is to stay with one lube or expect the groups to open up when switching lubes until the new lube takes over and works it way into the bore .

This is leading me to experiment with adding lubes to .22 ammo and as I am just starting on this venture so it is too soon to give any insight on this . I will try to follow up in the spring as we are knee deep in snow at this time .

10 Spot