The Aguila .22LR SSS cartridge features a 60 gr. bullet in a .22 short case.  The overall length is .22LR.  I tried a box, shooting through a standard 1022 Saturday, and have the following observations:
At 50 yds, the impact is about 1-1/2" lower than typical .22LR HPs.  The target appearance gives one the impression that the bullet is 'tumbling' at that range.  At 100 yds, the impact is about 10 inches lower, but the holes are concentric, indicating better stability.
The noise is somewhat quieter than the other .22s (these are subsonic rounds).  Through the semi action, after shooting 5 cartridges, the smell is acrid, and the smoke actually bothers the eyes.  My belief is that the round is better suited for bolt action than semi -- for this reason only.
Extraction was very nice -- no difference with the standard .22LRs.
Be prepared for the smell and smoke if you plan on shooting many of these through a 1022.

A 60 grainer in a .22 SHORT case... I wonder what the muzzle velocity is?

Per Natchez Shooters Supply (www.NatchezSS.com) a vendor of Aguila ammunition and fast twist rate barrels:
.22LR SSS:  950 fps, 60 gr, 120 ft-lbs energy
My observation from the range experience is that this velocity is possible from a bolt action, but most likely not from a semi.  A friend was shooting next to me (on the right), and he told me he was getting 'hit' with something such as unburned powder.  I did notice a 'flash' from the breech, and maybe, I got a batch with the 'weaker' primer (see below).
Also, Aguila makes a powderless .22LR (primer only) as follows:
Colibri:  375 fps, 20 gr, 6 ft-lbs
Super Colibri:  500 fps, 20 gr, 11 ft-lbs

I went out shooting the other day to do a test on some Aguila Colibri. I bought some at a gun show for pest control around the house,(birds and cats) Shows it as a 20gr. bullet with no powder,just priming mix. I think I have read it is around 350fps. Extremely quit fired thru a 10/22 with scope. (I know,dis-claimer says pistol only) I shot from a distance of 30 yards,a good backyard range. Could not get them to group any tighter than 5-6 inches. Oh'well, I'll give it another try with the super Colibri when I get my hands on some.

Here is what I know about them:

In semis with a more than 6-10 inch barrel, the action moves and the case comes out before the bullet leaves the bore.

You need a fast twist barrel to stabilize them.

the only thing i can add to this observation , is that the smoke does bother ya..also i did have bout 1 1/2 inch drop at 50yards BUT it was perfectly sited in , meaning the left and right stayed the exact same of as my standard veloc. loads..now i jus gotta get C3 barrel .lol

holey moley, u guys actually shot colibri out of a rifle? I was tempted to try it in my 10/22, but i was really afraid of getting it stuck, and being the broke ass that i am, i would not want to tear apart a barrel for a stuck round....
that said i usually shoot it out of an old H&R revolver. Works great together. I do also experience funny smells, but its quite tolerable. Bullet drops fast though, ive noticed that I tend to aim higher than usual to hit where i want to.

QUestion, has anyone tried shooting colibri out of a ruger .22 semi pistol? Im wondering if it would cycle the pistol? Or would i need to manually cycle each time? Thanks for the feedback.

Have shot Colibri out of a couple different rifles without problem. Quiet little bastards, the closest you can come to a suppressor in Iowa Im afraid

3+ inch groups and keyholing out of my Mossberg M-44 and 22 rimfire dedicated AR upper at 25 yards.

Ic, Thanks Treetop

I've done Colibris out of a rifle as well. It's on older bolt action rifle with a long barrel- the velocity is so low that you can easily see them in the right light. Trajectory is about like a Pony league pitcher chunking a bowling ball from the mound.
-Hobbit

lol, yea. I had people commenting at the range asking what the hell i was shooting that was so slow.
Dem thought it was bb's....


Wats a pony league?

On a side note,
Has anyone tested the penetration strength, tumbling, etc etc?

Pony League is a kid's baseball league... it's about two steps up from T-Ball.
-Hobbit

Ahh, ic

Wow the things you learn on a gun board.....
and people say im wasting my time..pshhh

Quoted: Has anyone tested the penetration strength, tumbling, etc etc?

The manufacturer claims the 60Gn SSS will penetrate 24"+ of ballistic geletan at 200 meters!

There are specialized 10/22 & 77/22 Brls available specifically for this round, with the right rate of twist.

I have a dedicated .22LR 1:12 scoped AR set up around the 60GN SSS. Its my urban pest control rifle.

What kind of accuracy are you folks getting with a dedicated barrel?  I've run this stuff through my 77/22 suppressed with a standard barrel and the consistency seems to be for shit.

Quoted: Quoted: Has anyone tested the penetration strength, tumbling, etc etc? The manufacturer claims the 60Gn SSS will penetrate 24"+ of ballistic geletan at 200 meters! There are specialized 10/22 & 77/22 Brls available specifically for this round, with the right rate of twist. I have a dedicated .22LR 1:12 scoped AR set up around the 60GN SSS. Its my urban pest control rifle.

who markets these specialized 10/22 barrels

Aguila sells these barrels..Vorquarsen makes em for them.

I shot a bunch of this stuff a cuple of years ago thru a suppressor, I used the factory colt .22 conversion kit and was shooting thru an A1 1:12 bbl. Stuff shot great accuracy wise but the short case did cause a couple of feeding/extraction problems

My kids and I have been shooting the Colibri since last summer in a Marlin 15Y, a Chipmunk and an Anschutz youth model with outstanding results.  Very good, consistant groups (sub 1" at 15-20 meters) and the birds in the fruit trees don't stand a chance.

I shot the SSS 60 grainers in a Model 63 S&W and a Ruger Bearcat.  We were shooting coke jugs at 35 to 50 meters and were getting pretty consistant hits, but you have to use quite a bit of "Kentucky Windage" with them.  

Quoted: Aguila sells these barrels..Vorquarsen makes em for them.

do you know where we can buy them?

ya can call vorquartsen directly..do a search and find their website..or call aguila directly , as of a couple weeks ago they were waiting on vorquarsen to send sum..they only had 16" and i wanted 18"..also on a side note..i jus got an Adams 7 Bennent normal twist barrel , and i shot sum aquila sss stuff and at 50yards it was bout 1/4" low..alot better than my butler creek carbon barrel.it was like 3 " low with that barrel..

Your comment is an old wives tale not based upon facts. It's just plain ridiculous.

Use some common sense if the bullet and bolt weighed the same amount they would travel at equal and opposite speeds. This is assuming the bolt was not spring loaded to slow it down. Since the bullet weighs 60 grains or .009 lbs and the bolt would weigh maybe 1/2lb. So the bolt would run minimum 1/55th the speed of the bullet. This is without being slowed by the recoil spring. So since the bullet speed is 900fps the bolt speed is 16 feet per second. So let's assume the bolt travels 2" at 16'/second which is 192"/second. That would give  2/192= .0105 second for bolt open and ejection. 900fps X .015sec bolt open time, =bullet is 13.5feet down range before the bolt opens. Still consider this is with no recoil spring delaying the bolt opening.

The fastest machineguns in 22lr run close to 2000rpm or 33rnds per second. or 1 rnd in 1/33rd of a second or .030 seconds per cycle. Now divide that by three assuming the closing of the bolt is 2wice the opening time. .01 bolt open time. .01second X 900fps or 9'down range where the bullet will be before the bolt is opened.

If you have ever seen high speed photography of a gun show you will see the bullet is out of the barrel before the slide of the gun even cracks open.

The way  auto guns work is the spring tension and weight of the bolt must hold the bolt closed untill the bullet exits the barrel and pressure drops in the chamber. If the bullet was still blocking the bore the presure would be so high the cases would explode.

Yep, the SSS is dirty as heck.  I get all kinds of crap blowing back in my face when I use them in the ciener kit on my suppressed ar.  It's really annoying; I need to get a Gas Buster charging handle.  I've shot super colibri through my ar with no problems.  I checked the bore after each shot in the first mag to make sure they were coming out!

Quoted: Yep, the SSS is dirty as heck.  I get all kinds of crap blowing back in my face when I use them in the ciener kit on my suppressed ar.  It's really annoying; I need to get a Gas Buster charging handle.  I've shot super colibri through my ar with no problems.  I checked the bore after each shot in the first mag to make sure they were coming out!

So how quiet is the SSS with the can?

Highline..who ya talkin too??? if it is my comments..they are facts..there are targets with holes in them sumwhere..showing this..othere wise..not really sure what ya talkin bout..Aquila is the quietest and dirtiest i have seen..

Quoted: Highline..who ya talkin too??? if it is my comments..they are facts..there are targets with holes in them sumwhere..showing this..othere wise..not really sure what ya talkin bout..Aquila is the quietest and dirtiest i have seen..

Nope, I think he was referring to Combat_Jack's assertion that the action cycles before the bullet has left the bore.  The math is a little more complicated than presented, because both the bullet and the bolt are subject to forces which vary over time (including friction), but I'm inclined to believe that the bullet is out by the time the bolt opens much.  (Normally, the mathematical exercise would be fun, but I just finished an 8 hour drive and am dying to go to bed.)

Quoted: Yep, the SSS is dirty as heck.  I get all kinds of crap blowing back in my face when I use them in the ciener kit on my suppressed ar.  It's really annoying; I need to get a Gas Buster charging handle.  I've shot super colibri through my ar with no problems.  I checked the bore after each shot in the first mag to make sure they were coming out!

Hey fizassist,

Does the SSS feed & cycle reliably through your Ceiner conv.??

____________________________________
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Yes I was responding to that. The math was no where near complicated enough. Due to acceleration times, etc. But my point is that the action can not open before the bullet leaves the bore.

Look at it this way if the action/breech opened while the bore was still plugged with the bullet the pressure and escaping gasses would all come out of the action instead of pushing the bullet down the barrel.

Originally Posted By ColtShorty Hey fizassist, Does the SSS feed & cycle reliably through your Ceiner conv.??

Yep, works 100% for me.

The SSS ammo works really well out of my suppressed Beretta 87 pistol...the cases are still flaming when it spits them out, but the accuracy is good.  I think the twist is tighter than in my rifle.