Brendan Atkinson enjoyed a range session on Eley ammo
Back in June, the SSAA Monarto shooting complex in South Australia played host to the Eley PRS22 Australian Championships, which were part of the Precision Rifle Series. Both local and interstate competitors arrived to lock horns with some of the best-looking rimfire equipment around, yet this event had an added attraction: Batch-testing Eley Tenex, Match and Ultra rimfire ammunition.
In attendance was Martyn Buttery, a 53-year-old Englishman who’s the International Accounts Manager for Eley. He explained to me that back in 2007 he was shooting at the Bisley Range in England and won his event. Eley subsequently offered him a job at their Birmingham factory which, of course, he accepted. Martyn’s now Eley’s Test Range manager and he outlined how each batch is subjected to some 850 electronic online checks during production, then batch-tested by firing four groups of 10 shots at 50m. Test barrels show accuracy, pressure and consistency, with the tightest-grouping batches becoming Tenex, slightly larger groupings becoming Black Match and so on. This test range is also available for the public to evaluate their rifles.
Martyn explained how the Eley e-prime method is done by a custom-made machine which won a Queen’s Award for Technical Innovation. Last year they produced 195 million rounds of rimfire ammunition, with this year’s target being 220 million. He went on to say he’d ideally like a test facility in Australia where shooters can attend and try batches, something he intends to investigate further.
The UK brand Eley is known worldwide for producing excellent rimfire ammunition, so here was a chance for Aussie shooters to test various batches of their favourite rounds. To this end Eley, through local distributor Nioa and assisted by Adelaide Gun Shop, provided test samples of batches of both Tenex and Match rimfire ammo in 10-round lots. The new Eley Ultra was also available for those looking to compete at longer distances. Also on hand were Doug Giura (regional sales SA/WA/NT for Nioa), Lachlan Bruce (Nioa/Leupold) and Alan Maddern (Adelaide Gun Shop manager) to answer questions.
The whole notion of batching ammunition is to find that elusive batch number which just seems to work like magic in your own rifle. So the idea of being able to batch-test small amounts of rimfire ammo is an excellent one as, in previous times, you’d to buy a packet of 50 rounds and if your rifle didn’t like it, too bad. Target ammo isn’t cheap so the batch method can be both a time and money saver.
Having competed in rimfire benchrest and IRB over the years I was keen to be involved, so the opportunity to try batches through my own competition rifle was gratefully received. Anyone who shoots rimfires will know what works in one rifle may perform poorly in another. This can be highly frustrating at times but, when a compatible batch is found, a rimfire can be a delight to shoot.
Ten-shot groups soon revealed what worked as we were blessed with good conditions and a set of borrowed wind indicators. What could go wrong? Well, I can report several batches produced satisfactory results through my Lilja barrel, though one batch of Tenex was outstanding (number 1024 06158 1071), those last four digits being the claimed velocity. My Garmin C2 showed slightly higher velocity than what was claimed, though the extreme spread over 10 rounds was 11fps which is remarkable. This batch also shot well in other target rifles to hand.
I was also able to find a batch of Eley Match (1025 02375 1068) which shot very well and had an extreme spread of only 12fps over 10 rounds, undeniably impressive. Eley Ultra is relatively new on the scene and, for those longer shots, seems to be the right stuff. The best batch I tried (2425 03405) had a velocity of 1087fps with an extreme spread of 17fps. Those wishing to compete in the 200m Fly Shoot or some of the longer PRS events might want to give this one some thought.
To sum up, match grade rimfire ammunition isn’t cheap, so buying 50-round boxes in the search for accuracy can be an expensive exercise. If you have the chance to attend one of these batching exercises I strongly recommend it and, when you find that magic batch number, buy as much of it as you can afford! Thanks to Eley, Nioa and Adelaide Gun Shop for an excellent day on the range.