Making Remington Rimfire Ammunition

The .22 Long Rifle is one of the most used cartridges on the planet. Billions of .22 LR rounds are produced every year, and Remington Ammunition in Lonoke, Ark., produces a significant chunk of the rimfire ammunition used by shooters around the world. Watch our "American Rifleman Television" feature segment above to learn how they make it and the people involved in that process.
"Here in Lonoke, where all the Remington ammunition is made, we have some of the fastest rimfire-making equipment on the planet," said Nick Sachse, director of product management, Remington Ammunition. "It's mind-boggling whenever you watch that equipment run. That was all in-house designed equipment, those shell-makers, those things are really spitting out product."
At the start of the process, making rimfire ammunition doesn't look all that much different from the process of producing a centerfire case or a shotshell cap. Brass cups are stamped out of large sheets of brass, and the cups then move onto have the headstamps applied and rims formed. Unlike centerfire cases, though, this is where the case-forming process ends for .22 LR. Next, the rounds move on to be annealed, washed and rinsed. Then the cases move onto priming.
"The manufacture of rimfire mix, we make it in about 20-pound batches, it's got certain chemicals in it to make the mix, and it's in a wet form, there's around 20 percent moisture, so it's really wet, and we put this mixture into 1-pound cups, so we will transport it from our mix area up to the rimfire area," said Ronnie Evans, unit leader, Remington Ammunition. "We're getting pellets out of that mix and putting it into a tray, or plate. That plate is a certain thickness and it has a certain hole diameter for a volume. That volume in that hole is what we get a pellet from, and those pellet weights are what's important to get the proper amount of mix into each one of those primed cases."
The wet priming pellet is then pressed into an empty .22 case, and the case is spun rapidly, which spreads the pellet mix into the hollow rim of the cartridge. The primed cartridges are then sent to a drying house, where they'll sit for several days to allow the priming mixture inside the cases to dry. Once the cases are dry, each primed case is then examined by a camera, which peers into the open mouth of the cartridge and examines the case to ensure that each case is primed. Unprimed rimfire cases can be separated out during this quality-control check.
Once the cases are filled with powder and topped with a projectile, then comes the step of test-firing a sample size from each batch in order to ensure that the rounds are accurate, consistent and safe.
"Rimfire production follows a similar suit to the other loaders in our factory. The different being for rimfire testing, the sample sizes are generally higher. Our loading equipment is fairly unique, where we really need to shoot more per test than even SAAMI tells us we must," said Jimmy Lawrence, ballistics engineer, Remington Ammunition. "So, to assist with that, we actually have barreled actions on a Remington 40X single-shot platform, and the gunners don't have to manually insert and eject a cartridge like they would in a universal receiver, so they can gun with a handful of ammunition and load, fire and eject that ammunition almost as fast as you can fire from a magazine, once they get their dexterity tuned. The whole time they're firing, we're collecting the data through the transducer and across the velocity screens, and within no time, they have 50 or even 100 pieces of velocity and pressure, and we're concurrently measuring accuracy with those tests."
Ammunition is then packaged and shipped out to distributors, with those rounds joining billions of other rimfire cartridges on the planet and heading to target ranges and hunting fields across America.
"You know, CCI is the world's leader in rimfire. Federal's certainly a great, great brand in rimfire, too. Having the Remington brand in rimfire, it's just going to help the consumers," said Jason Vanderbrink, president, Remington Ammunition. "Rimfire is in high demand right now. Our job is to bring some expertise of how we think we can help Remington rimfire, but at the same time, don't change it. So, in the short term, our rimfire business is just to load as much as we can."
To watch complete segments of past episodes of American Rifleman TV, go to americanrifleman.org/artv. For all-new episodes of ARTV, tune in Wednesday nights to Outdoor Channel 8:30 p.m. and 11:30 p.m. EST.

[@Martin_919]

from an engineer`s standpoint, these 1950`s machines that were developed and built without CAD are just an awesome display of skill, and the fact that these run at this speed to this day really speaks for the ingenuity of its creators

[@oldschooldude8370]

Whatever is cheap is what runs. Big fan of Aguila.

[@UltraMagaFan]

Aguila ammunition is cheap because it's made in Mexico where they use child slavery and have no safety standards. I bought 4 500 round boxes of it last December. I got em for $40 a piece.

[@joewoodchuck3824]

Is Aguila as good as Wolf?

[@johnscreekmark]

I’ve found that Aguila 22LR is fine for manual-action rifles - lever, pump, bolt - and semi-auto pistols. It DOES NOT work well in semi-auto rifles. This is due to a sticky coating on the shells that causes them to stick in the chambers. It also makes for a distinctive and nasty smell.

[@moparjr89]

@@johnscreekmark yet i have a walther p22 that only really likes aguila

[@user-kl5pt4qn4y]

If I ever win the lottery I'm gonna buy me a pallet of 22 lr. I absolutely love 22 lr. I've got center fire rifles and pistols but I love my 22 lr guns.

[@diamondfox6272]

Which ones?...

[@peggymorgan6355]

You win the lottery your better off starting your own ammo manufacturing company!!!Thats what I’d do for sure.

[@mohammedcohen]

...THREE pallets...at least...

[@dannymcdaniel1652]

I'm 71 years old and love Remington

[@cygnus-studios]

Wow, what a mind-blowing process... I've been pumping various sorts of Remington 22LR ammo through a low-end Marlin Model 60 semi-auto rifle for over 30 years. Never experienced a hint of a misfire during all that time, with accuracy that's consistently excellent.

[@coal_tactical]

not one misfire in 30 years? might be the funniest joke ever read

[@timsmith6683]

Marlin 60s were cheap but great guns. I have 2 and they work so well, very fast and accurate

[@ragingjaguarknight86]

@@timsmith6683 It's the micro-groove rifling in the barrel. I've got a Marlin model 60 myself, it's an excellent gun. 😎👍

[@joewoodchuck3824]

Can you please tell us your accuracy numbers?

[@moneysaversilver]

So glad to see they are back

[@georgesakellaropoulos8162]

In the 70's and 80's, Remington rimfire ammunition was great. Accurate in almost any firearm, and virtually no misfires or failures to fire. Now you couldn't pay me to use it. Better off getting a slingshot.

[@LongHairPat]

Glad to have them back on the shelf, but the price has nearly doubled.

[@stuartmarkman769]

CCI is my favorite 22 and 22 magnum.

[@faschwank]

CCI Rules!

[@TheMotorick]

I'll stick with CCI mini-mag

[@tonyv8925]

local sports store has premium prices on the mini-mags. So I get the Blazers instead and they work just fine in my Single shot rifle. Once in awhile I am able to get CCI Standards at low price during "sales", so I buy just 2 boxes so others can have some too.

[@j.gordonellis4175]

Thank you Big Green and employees for providing the 22 lr. Billions and billions of empty cans and bottles have fallen victim at the hands of young shooters and old shooters alike. Keep us plinking.

[@donaldhollingsworth3875]

I love the .22LR Thunderbolt lead round ammunition & Golden Bullet ammunition.

[@JF-xq6fr]

I hope this is the start of great quality. Even decades ago Thunderbolt had many split cases and irregular velocities. Always bought the 'Golden Bullets' to step up, but it seemed from about the middle 90s on the results would be BANG, bang, bang, Bang, pop... Chronographed to make sure and it was pathetic. Of course sending it back to Rem was always the same "within specs" reply. I comment to be constructive, straight from first hand experience. CCI Mini-Mags used to be the Gold standard for 'normal' ammo, and wonder how they are doing lately?

[@PlanktoniusRex]

I live in the sticks and have to deal with a lot of varmint issues. I also train .22 quite a lot. I use only CCI Stingers and Mini Mag in both a Ruger 10-22 and a Walther P22. Never had a single failure. My P22 is super finicky, and it eats CCI with no complaints at all but refuses to cycle with cheaper bulk style ammo (Win Super-X, Rem Golden, etc.) Now, the 10-22 will gladly eat any .22 LR except for conical shaped (Yellowjacket and Viper) ammo. So, I just stay with CCI and pay the extra $.

[@tonyv8925]

A few years back Remington did a recall on HP Goldens. I had two bricks and called Remington about the recall. They sent me a return label and a check for what I paid for the two bricks. That's customer service. What little I have left from previous purchases I just use for plinking...too many FTF's to rely on for hunting.

[@supertom8552]

Cci mini mag ! My favourite ! Consistent velocity and reliable 99% or more ! Thunder bolts I find crap 💩 the golden bullets not much better 👎🏼

[@joewoodchuck3824]

Were minimags ever truly accurate? I look for 1 moa in a sporting rifle.

[@joewoodchuck3824]

​@supertom8552 Please tell us about your minimag accuracy numbers.

[@Hidalguense]

Love remington ammo, no complaints 👍

[@deanhenthorn1890]

Billions of rounds are made yet that .22LR is not easily available in stores.

[@cptmiche]

That's what happens when consumers want tens of billions of rounds.

[@retirednavy8720]

I guess it depends on where you are. I am in Amarillo TX and I can go down to any store in the area that sells ammo and buy 10,000 rounds any day of the week. 2 years ago that wasn't the case but it is now. I am betting you haven't actually tried to buy any lately right?

[@kerrydavidsadler980]

Love these kind of videos

[@dannymcdaniel1652]

The one of a kind, Remington 22

[@HobbitHomes263]

my first rifle was a Marlin 39 boy scout edition with an octogon. Man did I cherish that gift ans still use it today. Back then I would walk the neiborhood looking for any kind of little job I could find just buy a box of ammo. for 75 cents a box I could hit the woods with my buddies and blast cans all day

[@madgroundhog8020]

I remember back in the 90s getting bricks of that garbage round for $8.88.

[@allens9573]

Early 2000's I would get about 10 duds in a box of 525 golden bullets......

[@randomidiot8142]

That was my experience 10 years ago, around 2012. Murphy burned me so many times with that ammo that I never used it again. I'd get my rifle zeroed and get in practice, and then when it really mattered trying to shoot a starling in the yard.. click. Tried shooting their subs through a pistol and really heard/felt the velocity differences. It's ok for kids starting out and mag dumping but past that it's just not worth it.

[@jarcher5626]

They changed the primer mix, then started blowing things up.

[@wizardofahhhs759]

Those were bonus rounds.

[@ACommenterOnYouTube]

With cci mini mags, maybe one fail to fire out of ~500 rounds but i will get about ~5 weak rounds which cause the stove pipes.

[@ronaldbradley9949]

Last time I bought the 22LR Thunderbolt I would get no less than 5 rounds per box of 50 would not fire. It didn't matter what type or brand of gun I used.

[@HanstheTraffer]

One company owns all of the commercial ammunition manufacturing in the USA now. So when you get political pressure on them they pinch off the supply. That's why reloading components are so hard to get now. It's all about control.

[@adamthomson2873]

Thanks for the tour. Very interesting and informative.

[@dannymcdaniel1652]

Everyone wants to talk bad about..about ammunition but when it comes to hunting in southern states can't go wrong with Remington ammunition

[@edwardh1591]

I like their golden bullets but there thunderbolts I refuse to buy. I have bought a half dozen bulk boxes over the past two years. Every box has been returned due to quality control issues. Remington always replaces them with golden bullet and they are awesome!

[@gunnutz2030]

The golden bullet bulk pack has been my go to for 40 years. Hot and accurate. Never had a bad box. I remember when it was 2c per rd. Miss those days. Just bought 7 6300rd cases. Should last a while. First sample box was great!

[@johnpower8356]

I get about 2-3 fail to fire out of 100 on remington thunderbolts, I bought a case of 5000 a year or two ago I still have 7 boxes of 500 left. Gave up on them so I bought a case of 5000 blazers, been through about 1000 not one ftf, not one fte. Perfect. The thunderbolts can sit until I find someone that wants them

[@stonerman15]

Keep it up Remington. Love the .22lr bulk packs. I always come back to Remington ammo.👍🇺🇸

[@chrismoody1342]

Just provide me a few 5 gallon buckets and I’ll stand at the outfeed collecting as much as I can carry.

[@mato9884]

At what point in the process do they dump the sand in the casing?

[@FFFFYOURWOKE]

Outstanding love 22lr

[@donaldanderson4139]

Would love to see Remington come up with a really good competition round like Eley and SKS have done. Then we competition could switch to ammo made in the USA by Remington. Good luck folks.

[@johnfillion379]

Very good. I would enjoy and actual factory tour. This video is almost as good and inspires me to go out to my back deck and shoot about 50 rounds.

[@bogey19018]

The best round ever made.

[@daleharvey3278]

Because I'm a senior ..I've used cci,fed,rem,and rem......rem rimfire quality went down....I don't want to see rem go under as their brass and primers were great for the handloaders. At this time vista has possibly sold to a foreign company....I'm hoping this to escape taxes to sell in the USA market and not move things abroad....this to say firearms as well,due to the fact their separate now... I'd love to see Remington follow browning and have limited runs of old models.

[@OGbqze]

Thank you all for what you do.

[@pawetulski7115]

I have been using Remington Nylon with Remington Thunderbolt for years. They get along great.

[@sSuperpu]

Remington Thunderbolts left me with the worst lead fouling I have ever seen with any leaded 22. I was pushing out spirals of lead chunks that were caked to the lands.

[@randybichsel4244]

WOW Remington is by far the Worst ammo I've ever shot Period...

[@rontakayama6379]

I gada say your right. But if you shoot winchester ammo. You’ll find that is the worst! 😂

[@michaeldoe4805]

I think Winchester took the crown from Remington especially after covid. Definitely they are the bottom two

[@EgoFiveFiveSix]

You clearly haven’t shot Winchester.

[@bisleyblackhawk1288]

Back in the 1970s it wasn’t so…but over the last few years Remington rimfire ammunition is nothing but 💩…I’ve refused to purchase it…wouldn’t take it if was FREE…it’s the Joe Biden of rimfire ammunition 🙄🙄🙄

[@maniachill3069]

Agreed. First time ever this past season, I had a DUD while hunting. Ten yards from a buck, pulled the trigger, CLICK. Remington ammo in .35 Rem caliber. Never again

[@roccoelleto9900]

Never had an issue with Remington 22LR. Great product. Nice video.

[@fastvega]

My Beretta 21a loves CCI and Rem golden bullet ammo. Federal and Winchester Super X ammo gives it multiple failure to fire and failure to feed, though they do work good in my other guns.

[@tmann153]

Agree, Federal sometimes does not go bang which is not good in match competition.

[@olivergardner7664]

I always found it to be very dirty, and it would deposit unburnt powder up the barrel so every 5 rounds you get a turbo charged flyer

[@tymz-r-achangin]

Would love to know how many times that their prototype machinery made the rim-fire discharge until they got it just right

[@gaildimick1831]

My first accurate rifle was and still is, a Winchester 52C with a Unertle scope.

[@guyriboul1774]

I have bien using lr 22 solid point Remington for more than 30 years, for hunting doses, pigeons, ducts, and guinea fowl. Thank's Remington.

[@boshaznip]

Gotta love hunting those doses and ducts

[@djm4son910]

all my guns love thunderbolts

[@PietEloff-tt1kw]

I never had a problem with remington ammunition

[@tmann153]

I shoot CCI standard velocity .22 LR for in my handgun for NRA Bullseye matches.

[@tonyv8925]

CCI Standard and Aguila Standard (both 40gr RNL) are what I use in my Grandpa's old single shot. Both perform well.

[@jaysrandomnesschannel]

​@@tonyv8925Aguila Interceptor is the best .22LR out there.

[@crittrgittr]

Thank you Remington/NRA for this video It would have been nice to see the bullet made from lead block to lead rope to lead bullet. Also, was anyone un-impressed with the lack of accuracy during the testing stage? This is a fixed mounted test bolt action rifle w/ no wind, movement, assumed short range, etc. and they weren't making at least dime size groups?

[@bunkstagner298]

and that barrel must have had about a gigazillion rounds through it. That might have something to do with accuracy.

[@tonyv8925]

Yeah, I noticed that too...shooting patterns like a shotgun instead of groups like a rifle....smh

[@twodogs7741]

In today's world of changes hitting us in the face with every new day it's good to see a company that knows where the roots lie. Even though Vista Outdoors is the new owners of Remington ammo the board members are smart enough to see a good thing and not tear it down..just tweak the financial and keep kickin. I expect to see good things from a company that owns Remington ammo, Federal, CCI and Speer. Keep up the good work and we'll keep sending them down range.

[@valkry007]

.22 ammo nowadays is substandard to what it was 10 years ago. Used to be .22 ammo was super reliable, now myself and my friends experience lots of failure to fire issues because if inconsistent uneven application of primer paste, which results in no ignition. Yet if you take that same round it it is struck again in a different spot, it goes off. All the guns are in good working order and well struck by the firing pin. This happens not only in Federal rim fire ammo but in Winchester, Remington and CCI. Mini Mags used to be my go to ammo because of their reliability and accuracy but now even they are having issues and not what they used to be. Unfortunate.

[@Bodhi1satva]

Impressive!

[@zacharyrowe8667]

Literally the only brand of ammo I have ever had an issue with is remington from shotgun shells to 22 ammo

[@bryce4359]

I've broken open my Remington 22 ammo before to see whats inside out of curiosity and the primer is definitely bright green. Its not yellow like this video is showing

[@Hitman-zp5wi]

use to do armed security there at Big Green somedays i do miss it

[@robertyoung9467]

High quality ❤

[@louisriverin2295]

🤨😐

[@freebsd7551]

So are golden bullets just the reject batch?

[@LRHutch]

Remington rim fire .22 sucks about one third misfires and another third is too weak for a semiautomatic to reload.

[@louisbertaux5193]

🇺🇲 LOVE Remington High Velocity

[@framusburns-hagstromiii808]

Have had and seen too many failures with their Golden 22lr bullets...i dont trust them. Glad they have upped production, even though prices have gotten stupid high. I would rather see them start making #10 percussion caps than crank out a bunch of merdocre rimfire ammo i wont buy.

[@ACommenterOnYouTube]

CCI is better

[@uweyaa]

Yes 100%

[@BobDiaz123]

I really love 22LR, it's ideal for plinking and general target shooting. I find it amazing that the cost per round can be kept so low.

[@critiqueview859]

The cost per round is so high now i.e. it used to be 2 cents a round - reloading .25 auto/.32 auto: which is a superior round @ least for the smallest pocket pistols. For rifles the 17 HMR: for a rimfire is not too much more expensive and would be superior overall for shooting with iron sights as far as the eye could see for precision shooting for both targets- and hunting with less meat loss. The price of .22 LR has not come down enough to justify its purchase vs the enhanced performance vs .17HMR. For centerfire cartridges- mayhaps the .17 hornet is better for the least expensive reloadable centerfire offering provided someone has more time than money. Provided you have an existing .22 LR arm -or have/could/did acquire one with the most modest investment in ammunition: the sweet spot for using .22 LR with the historically high cost of ammunition may- of course be worth it.

[@retirednavy8720]

I wonder just how many spent 22 cases are scattered across the land? I have been shooting and hunting for well over 50 years and I don't know anybody that has ever picked up 22 cases. Handloaders will pick up centerfire cases but you can't reload rimfire.

[@JohnPublic-dk7zd]

The 1400 round buckets of golden bullets is acceptable range fodder, a bit messy but adequate...thunderbolts are fed to our autos, they run rather reliably...have no experience with the other varieties, but I figure big green does okay...the range ammo tends to be 2-3 cents cheaper than 'better' brands, over thousands of rounds it adds up...we stash the 'better' ammo, and Remington is just another brand for the range...rate the brand a-/b+...

[@bulkbogan4320]

the fact that they have a sister company shows that their is cracks and holes in the way they do things..

[@jamese1596]

Remington needs better QC on its Thunderbolt line. I have more failures to fire with that ammo than any other .22 on the market.

[@orangejuice4332]

Good video.

[@codygriffin4225]

good stuff

[@CountryboyBOB]

I hope Remington is making improvements because a few years ago their guns were absolutely junk.

[@TRUTHBMXracing]

Not the same Remington. Remington is now two separate and independently owned companies. Remington, now owned buy Federal makes ammo and everything Remington EXCEPT firearms. Remington Arms or Remarms is the firearms manufacturer. Both share the Remington logo.

[@CountryboyBOB]

@@TRUTHBMXracing I still would not buy a gun from them ammunition yes gun no.

[@HinrikS]

Gotta say, in maybe 2000 rounds i've had 1 or 2 duds with the cheapest stuff i could find.

[@schlaznger8049]

One case of Remington shotshells 2024 $135.00 per case.

[@mikeboschert4905]

Amazing

[@goldchris1111]

the cheapest .22lr i can find is remmington thunderbolt, at .05 cents a round in the 525 boxes, so i buy 2 boxes a month

[@UltraMagaFan]

I call BS on that. I looked at the Scheels, Academy, Remington, and Cabelas website and the cheapest I could find it was 7 cents per round.

[@dlighted8861]

Remington rimfire .22s won't work in my Remington .22lr so go figure. They jam like crazy.

[@NormalishGuy]

I would love to work here 🤤

[@callumbush1]

Some of that equipment looks ancient.

[@paulanderson771]

It was built in the 1950s so yeah

[@lynnhall5115]

Thanks Big green. Your ammo is to expensive. Can't afford 80.00 Bucks a box. For 444.

[@donwyoming1936]

I think the only Remington rimfire line that works in my guns is the old Yellow Jacket. The rest just dont function in anything I have.

[@shannonpaplow7754]

Remington 22 cal. ammo has always been great,,,, Glad they decided not to change anything..

[@larryjones6049]

They keep saying how fast it is. Maybe that is why it’s so bad.

[@MrJimmy-fl2bn]

Why is Remington 22 long rifle so dirty?

[@dougbruce4978]

will jam in most automatics golden bullets r the worst thunderbolt r not as bad

[@SnifferAndFrens]

22lr is the best ammo type.

[@cecilking3727]

The golden bullets are the best bulk 22lr ammo period

[@richardcarden4161]

Federal Automatch is better

[@900stx7]

I've had good results with both.

[@ACommenterOnYouTube]

ahh .. NO

[@tonyrodriguez2543]

Why can't they make 32 Colt Rimfire? They could sell millions at a much higher price than the 22.

[@charlesdavaro8554]

Why are the bullets loose in the case? Mo other rimfire is that way

[@tbone5040]

Why not?

[@connerreacts8971]

Which is better the Winchester M 22 1000 rounds or the Remington bucket o bullets 1400 rounds

[@jamesbranham2217]

I bought a bucket of bullets and haven't had any issues yet.. i have shot a couple hundred of them..heck I took an old box ..about 25 years old of thunderbolt out and it ran fine.. might depend on your firearm

[@uweyaa]

CCI STANDARD!😉

[@fauxtool952]

that toupee isnt cutting it

[@exploark8466]

About 25 miles from my house

[@dustinlargin6769]

Election year: means load up on ammo

[@ACommenterOnYouTube]

because ??? What has happened every other election year in the last 50+ yrs that ammo is needed ???

[@prebaned]

It's no mystery why the ammo can't stay on the shelf. Still pushing primer compound through plates by hand, hand loading one at a time for test firing, antiquated equipment from the 50's. Those cases should be flying out after the third draw 50 at time at a rate of 10k a minute. One machine isn't cutting it.

[@Skunkstew]

You have a better factory to produce it faster?

[@prebaned]

S&B

[@bojiden5042]

If it isn’t Winchester white box I shoots it !

[@bluzamps23]

Box of 50 for $0.99

[@Portlycranium]

Used to love golden bullets back in 80 s and 90 s . They have been dud city since. Really bad ammo in my experience. Literally threw away two bricks that I had. Just way to many pops yips and duds. Not even good for mag dumps.

[@randomidiot8142]

Unique to Remington? You can keep your thunderduds and golden squibs, thanks but no thanks. I'm just here snooping after machine manufacturers.

[@sharpnr445]

Make a budget priced round as accurate as CCI 1070 , I will be a customer.

[@aarongoleman]

i hate how the young guy talks about products it's not consumers it's customers

[@ted3681]

"How a turd is made"

[@nigel900]

Powder charging, bullet seating and crimping?! Talkin bout coitus interruptus… 👎🏻

[@LordFred69]

I dont get it...all that manufacturing excellence produces garbage Thunderbolt 22 ammo...how does that happen??

[@edprince9079]

I have great luck with thunderbolt .22 ammo. Clean your firearm.

[@saamstaan6540]

Golden bullets ok,thunderbolts are rubbish