Down to my last box of fifty Eley .22 subsonic rounds and them being out of stock locally, I took the advice of a friend, who also owns the value for money Magtech 7022 and bought some Winchester SX .22 subsonics to try. With a break in the cold, wet weather, I fancied my chances of nailing my first rabbit of 2013, when the sun peaked out from behind the clouds as I made my way past the stables at the equestrian centre. A dozen wood pigeons were busy searching for grains among the new straw of the muck pile and from the cover of the barn, took a shot that hit the nearest with a whack, my mono pod,  sling combination once again providing a steady shooting platform.

Putting  the breast in my bag, I made my way with caution towards the next likely spot for pigeons, but they’d been spooked by the other birds and made their getaway. 50 yards on is a bit of cover, from where I can view the corner of another field and the most productive warren on this permission, the rabbits feeding along the pathway and into the field.  The Magtech can usually account for two or three each visit, before they scatter into the safety of the brambles. Today was not going to be one of those days, the whole area was under water and had been for a while judging by the number of moorhens and mallard cruising the surface. There is a lake in the country house next door and it’s level had risen to the point of overflow, filling the ditch and flooding the warren in front of me.

Skirting the flood, I waded across the bridge into the wood, which seemed devoid of life, not even a squirrel and made my way down towards the end, where a fallen tree has created the perfect spot for shooting targets. The bark of a muntjac deer drew my attention, as it broke cover and bounded off to the right, which in turn disturbed a fox and they crossed paths briefly in their flight, the small deer crashing through the undergrowth, while the long fox, red tail extended, slipped silently away in the opposite direction.

The fallen tree provides a rifle rest and a seat with a view through the wood and a clear line of sight for about eighty yards, ideal for the placement of targets. I paced out fifty yards and set two targets side by side. The Magtech is already zeroed for this distance, which gives a relable killing zone out to seventy yards. With two clips of ten Eley subs, I took my time with single shots at the left hand target. As expected, there were no jams, or misfires and on inspection the group were within a 30 mm dia. This empty clip was now filled with the Winchester subs and fired towards the right hand target. The second shot had jammed, the bullet half way out of the clip. Most disappointing. Next shot fired, but didn’t eject, the case sitting on top of the clip. There was another jam and the last shot did not hold open. I walked down to the target and was pleased to see that those that had reached the target were all within a 20 mm dia, some touching. The next clip of Eleys performed as before and likewise the Winchesters jammed and misfired with only three consecutive shots OK, and again no hold open, but the hole grouping was way better than the Eley subs.

With no more Eleys, I loaded up with the Winchesters and went off in search of rabbits. At one point I stopped to observe a pair of  nuthatches flitting around a tree and reached into my pocket for my camera, only to see out of the corner of my eye a buck rabbit sitting up on his back legs observing me. He didn’t wait around and hopped down a freshly dug burrow. I saw another pair a hundred yards away, an HMR shot I said to myself. They were the other side of a flooded ditch and out of range. Walking back, an adult and a juvenile rabbit ran across the path ahead, too fast for me to even raise the rifle, but a welcome sight with spring just a few wintery weeks away.

When I told my Magtech owning friend of my comparisions,  he could not believe the Winchesters had done so badly and insisted we try another box the next day. With two mags already loaded with the Winchesters, we took one each and did a side by side test firing. His jammed second and last shot. Mine fired eight before failing to eject. This time the breech was held open. More Eleys were fired without a hitch. We loaded up again with the Winchester SX and this time they all fired. I have since fired another fifty Winchester subs without a problem. They all grouped very well, 10 mm inside an Eley group, so guess it must have been a bad batch and I shall give them a go for the time being.