Body Count for 2026?

[Bowhunter57]

2025 was a good year for a Body Count of groundhogs with my M&P Sport 15-22. Even so, I had several get away and/or had to mag dump a few to keep them anchored. So, I thought I'd step up my game with a little more power. I sold the M&P Sport to a guy that was looking for a 22 LR, for a squirrel hunting contest, this weekend. Actually, it was silly luck that I happened to walk into the gun shop with the rifle, unknowing about the contest, sold it and purchased another rifle to take home.

This is my first Bergara rifle, it's a Bergara BMR 22 Mag. with a 10 rd. & a 5 rd. magazine. Good looking flake stock, a free-floated barrel and a trigger that is nothing less than amazing. As soon as I got it home, I installed my Sig Sauer Whiskey 3 4-12x50 scope on it and my Rugged suppressor. All I gotta do now, is get it to the rifle range and get it sighted in for the 2026 Body Count.

 

[Bowhunter57]

Well, she shoots as good as she looks. At 25 yards, where most of my groundhog work is done, it shoots nickel sized groups and at 50 yards it shoots inside a quarter. This is with CCI 46 gr. segmented bullets at 1875 fps....basically a hard cast hollow point.

I purchased some CCI 40 gr. JHP (1875 fps) ammo, along with some Winchester Super X 40 gr. JHP (1910 fps), which I have yet to shoot. Most rimfire rifles have a "favorite" ammo that they like and it's worth trying different brands to find out if the rifle likes something else.
I want to try some Hornady 30 gr. V-Max ammo that's rated at 2200 fps. It should be a killer batch of ammo.

 

[GoetzTalon]

Nice. Play around a little more. At 25 you should be putting them in one hole and at 50 in a dime. Always had great luck with CCI Maxi Mags plus V.

 

[Bowhunter57]

@GoetzTalon
I agree with you, on the group sizes. The trigger is absolutely amazing, which makes it a dream to shoot and obtain good groups.

 

[Bowhunter57]

I've been out with this new Bergara a few times and have noticed some bad feeding issues with this 10 round magazine. I took it apart and polished off the mold lines on the follower, but it still doesn't feed as it should. The inside of the mag well itself looks clean and smooth.
So, I took to the internet to see about a replacement magazine, in something other than a Bergara brand, but no such animal exists. Then I started looking up replacement magazine springs. Basically, this weak azz spring needs to be replaced and I'd install a leaf spring out of a '58 Chevy if it would fit.

Anyway.... I found this company in Pennsylvania called, Hoz & Shield that makes replacement springs for Bergara rifle magazines. Apparently, Bergara has a problem with their BR-14 mags, as well as their BMR mags. I made the call, they made a recommendation and I placed an order. Their springs are made out of aircraft grade wire, have 14 coils (instead of the 11 coils in factory Bergara springs) and after 10,000 cycles they had no failures.

It's a shame that as good as this rifle quality is, that Bergara would use such a trash magazine for it. The 5 round magazine is just as bad for feeding and it happens "whenever". Full mag, half full mag, next to the last round, etc.....very aggravating and it had to be replaced or I was considering selling the rifle and starting all over with something entirely different. However, I managed to push thru, find a company with quality springs and the shipment is on the way.

Hoz and Shield

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