Browning BPR .22 LR: The Mid-Bulk Sweet Spot

Most rimfire shooters buy .22 LR in one of two sizes: the 50-round box for testing and the 1,000-plus-round brick or case for volume. Browning's Performance Rimfire line (BPR) sits between them. The listing we link here is a 400-round box of 36-grain copper-plated hollow points, which is the right quantity for a shooter who has a new rifle and wants to find out, over a couple of range trips, whether it feeds and groups before committing to a case of anything.

This is a buyer's guide built from the manufacturer's published specifications and the retailer listing. We haven't chronographed it or run it through a test protocol, and we say so because the load's value depends heavily on what you shoot it in.

Who actually makes it

Browning is a gun company, not an ammunition plant. Browning-branded ammunition is produced for Browning by Winchester, which is why the BPR .22 LR looks and behaves a lot like Winchester's own copper-plated high-velocity hollow points. That isn't a knock. Winchester's rimfire production runs at enormous volume, and copper plating over a soft lead core is the standard recipe for a .22 that cycles semi-autos cleanly and doesn't leave as much lead in the action as bare-lead bulk.

The practical takeaway: if your rifle already runs well on plated Winchester high-velocity loads, the BPR is a very safe bet. If it's picky, the 400-round box is a reasonable amount to test with. Our jam troubleshooting guide covers what to change if it isn't cycling.

Why 36 grains and high velocity

Standard .22 LR bullets weigh 40 grains. Dropping to 36 grains and raising velocity is a well-worn formula: the lighter bullet leaves the muzzle faster, which flattens the trajectory a little at typical plinking distances and gives semi-autos more energy to cycle. The trade is that a lighter, faster bullet is generally a bit less consistent than a 40-grain standard-velocity round, which is why it isn't a target load. For cans, steel, and small game inside 75 yards, that trade is almost always worth making.

Hollow points at high velocity also expand more reliably than they do at subsonic speeds, which matters if you hunt squirrels or rabbits with it. See our small-game hunting guide for shot placement and range limits with .22 LR.

What to run it in

The obvious host is a semi-auto rifle. Ruger's 10/22 has the largest install base in rimfire, and the Takedown version keeps the same action and rotary magazine in a rifle that splits in half for a backpack. High-velocity plated ammunition is what those rifles are designed around.

On the pistol side, high-velocity ammunition is even more important. Short barrels give the bullet less time to build velocity, and lightweight polymer pistols like the Kel-Tec P17 rely on the round's energy to cycle a light slide. A 36-grain high-velocity load is close to ideal for them.

When the 400-round box is the wrong size

• You already know your gun loves it. Then a case is cheaper per round, and the rebate and case-pricing guide explains how to time that purchase.
• You shoot suppressed. High-velocity .22 LR breaks the sound barrier and produces a crack the suppressor can't remove. You want a subsonic load instead; see our suppressed .22 guide.
• You shoot for score. Bullseye, NRL22, and benchrest all favor standard-velocity 40-grain solids for consistency. Our competition guide lists what those disciplines actually run.

Storage and lot-to-lot consistency

Rimfire priming compound is spun into the rim, and it's more sensitive to moisture than centerfire primers. Keep the box in a cool, dry place and it will last for many years. If you buy multiple 400-round boxes, check that the lot numbers match before you zero. Even good factory ammunition shifts point of impact slightly between lots, and the 400-round box is just big enough that a rifle you zero on one box may need a click or two when you open the next. Our zeroing guide explains why 50 yards is the sensible starting point.

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