My phone's been telling me that my storage is full for a few weeks and I've been slowly going through it, trying to clean up old images. In that process I found some images that reminded me that I never shared much about my experience with the Monster Grands last summer.
With most event's scheduling, I don't get many chances to play in the 100 yard benchrest game. BUT, @Martin3528's EFT/EBR event near Williams, AZ last summer gave me that opportunity. In the weeks leading up to that match I spent a bunch of time practicing and comparing set-ups to optimize my chances of doing well. Ultimately I landed on the .22/28.55 Grands as my best option for the benchrest portion of his events.
With the .22/28.55s at 960-965fps I was averaging EBR scores of 225-235 at 100 yards, over the course of 6 or so weeks when I was really shooting a lot. I had a couple cards in the high 230s, but most were in that 225-235 range. This was of course on home court advantage in my backyard, where I feel like I've got a good handle on the wind.
Gun used was a BRK Ghost with the LW 1:30, 5 groove polygonal barrel.
In the competition I was practicing for, the Ghost and the .22/28.55s combined to shoot a 211 and a 218. The 218 from the Grands was the 4th highest of 33 overall cards (all were shot at 100 yards).
www.airgunnation.com
In multiple instances of measuring the BCs of the Grands I found them to be in the 0.056-0.062 range, from this particular barrel and at these speeds. So, pretty similar to the 25.4gr Monster RDs.
I also tried them from an RTI 1:32, 6 groove polygonal rifled barrel (RTI's "LR" designation), in the 925-935range. They were good here, but not quite as good as they were from the 1:30 @ 960ish.
With the Grands I did not deal with the prevalent flyer issue seen from most batches of the .22/25.4gr Monster RDs.
The Grands seemed to do best in this particular barrel when lubed with Gunzilla.
Here the images I found on my phone that prompted this post, the 237 is one of the better examples, the other two were pretty typical.
So why DIDN'T the .22/28.55 Grands take off and become a commonly used pellet in the 100 yard product showcase/EBR/RMAC/PA type bench-rest matches?
In my opinion the answer is two fold:
With my personal hard line in the sand of the power wars not exceeding .22, they offer a slight advantage over the MRDs, mostly in the reduced incidence of flyers. I've been wanting to try the Grands in the pellet class/full monty of one of Ben's Ultimate Field Target matches. It just hasn't happened yet (too many guns, not enough time).
If you're a staunch .22 guy, have a gun with the oomph necessary for 28.44grains, and aren't scared away by the price/shot, the 28.55grain Grands are worth looking into.
With most event's scheduling, I don't get many chances to play in the 100 yard benchrest game. BUT, @Martin3528's EFT/EBR event near Williams, AZ last summer gave me that opportunity. In the weeks leading up to that match I spent a bunch of time practicing and comparing set-ups to optimize my chances of doing well. Ultimately I landed on the .22/28.55 Grands as my best option for the benchrest portion of his events.
With the .22/28.55s at 960-965fps I was averaging EBR scores of 225-235 at 100 yards, over the course of 6 or so weeks when I was really shooting a lot. I had a couple cards in the high 230s, but most were in that 225-235 range. This was of course on home court advantage in my backyard, where I feel like I've got a good handle on the wind.
Gun used was a BRK Ghost with the LW 1:30, 5 groove polygonal barrel.
In the competition I was practicing for, the Ghost and the .22/28.55s combined to shoot a 211 and a 218. The 218 from the Grands was the 4th highest of 33 overall cards (all were shot at 100 yards).
EFT (GP) BR and Silhouette - Williams, AZ -More Pics
OK, Let's try this again. I have attached the registration form again. In order to make sure I order enough food and T-shirts, email registration will close June 30th. We may be able to take registrations after that date, but probably not get a shirt. I would appreciate if you would...
www.airgunnation.com In multiple instances of measuring the BCs of the Grands I found them to be in the 0.056-0.062 range, from this particular barrel and at these speeds. So, pretty similar to the 25.4gr Monster RDs.
I also tried them from an RTI 1:32, 6 groove polygonal rifled barrel (RTI's "LR" designation), in the 925-935range. They were good here, but not quite as good as they were from the 1:30 @ 960ish.
With the Grands I did not deal with the prevalent flyer issue seen from most batches of the .22/25.4gr Monster RDs.
The Grands seemed to do best in this particular barrel when lubed with Gunzilla.
Here the images I found on my phone that prompted this post, the 237 is one of the better examples, the other two were pretty typical.
So why DIDN'T the .22/28.55 Grands take off and become a commonly used pellet in the 100 yard product showcase/EBR/RMAC/PA type bench-rest matches?
In my opinion the answer is two fold:
- The .30 options from the Chinese companies hit shortly thereafter, with BCs in the 0.07+ range, and the ever forward march of progress stepped right past the JSB .22/28.55 Grands.
- Not everybody had the minimal flyer Grands experience that I enjoy from this particular barrel.
With my personal hard line in the sand of the power wars not exceeding .22, they offer a slight advantage over the MRDs, mostly in the reduced incidence of flyers. I've been wanting to try the Grands in the pellet class/full monty of one of Ben's Ultimate Field Target matches. It just hasn't happened yet (too many guns, not enough time).
If you're a staunch .22 guy, have a gun with the oomph necessary for 28.44grains, and aren't scared away by the price/shot, the 28.55grain Grands are worth looking into.
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