Eley Ammo
Eley has manufactured precision .22 LR ammunition in England since 1828. Eley Tenex is the round Olympic rifle and pistol shooters have trusted since its Tokyo 1964 Games debut. Every lot Eley ships is statistically graded for consistency, from Tenex and Match competition ammo down to Force and Precision rounds engineered specifically for semi-automatic rifles and pistols. Impact Guns stocks the full Eley .22 LR lineup and ships nationwide to your local FFL dealer.
Read our full Eley Ammunition Buying Guide ↓
What Makes Eley the Gold Standard in .22 LR Ammunition?
Eley tests every production lot before it ships and grades the entire batch on the accuracy it actually shoots, not just its label. That statistical grading is why Eley Tenex has backed shooters to more than 125 Olympic medals since 1964, including three gold, four silver, and four bronze medals at the Paris 2024 Games. Eley builds every grade below Tenex — Match, Team, Club, and Sport — on the same manufacturing line, so the accuracy difference between tiers comes from testing, not a cheaper recipe.
Eley Tenex vs. Match vs. Team vs. Club: Which Competition Grade Fits You?
Tenex is Eley’s tightest-graded flat-nose ammunition, reserved for Olympic and World Championship-level competitors who need the smallest possible group size. Match carries the same flat-nose design graded to a slightly wider standard, built for serious international and national-level shooters. Team steps down again for club and county-level competition, still flat-nose and still far more consistent than standard sporting ammo. Club is Eley’s highest-graded round-nose option, aimed at developing competitors who want match-level consistency in a round-nose bullet. If you’re not yet shooting for score, Club is the easiest on-ramp into Eley’s target-grade ammunition.
Best Eley Ammo for Semi-Automatic Rifles and Pistols
Standard target-grade .22 LR is loaded for the light extraction of a bolt-action or single-shot target rifle, which is why it can be unreliable in a semi-auto action. Eley Force is loaded specifically to cycle semi-automatic rifles and pistols, with a round-nose bullet and velocity tuned for reliable feeding rather than pure accuracy. Eley Precision (Semi-Auto Benchrest) splits the difference, aiming for target-level consistency while still cycling reliably in a semi-auto platform. Either is a strong match for a semi-auto rimfire rifle like the Ruger 10/22 or a .22 LR pistol.
Eley Ultra Extreme Long Range: When Do You Need It?
Ultra Extreme Long Range is Eley’s round-nose load engineered for shots well past the standard 50-meter target distance. It carries a tighter velocity and accuracy standard than Eley’s club-grade ammo, aimed at rimfire precision shooters and long-range competitors stretching a .22 LR out to 100 yards and beyond, where every bit of consistency matters more as distance increases.
High Velocity and Subsonic Eley Loads for Practice and Suppressed Shooting
Not every range trip calls for competition-grade ammo. Eley High Velocity is a hollow-point round built for informal target practice and small-game hunting, with expansion and speed that target wadcutters don’t offer. Eley Subsonic keeps velocity below the sound barrier for quiet shooting, which matters most when you’re running a rimfire suppressor and don’t want a sonic crack undoing the can’s work.
How Eley's Lot Testing and Grading Actually Work
Eley pulls a sample from every production lot and fires it through test barrels to measure how tightly that specific lot groups. The lot is then sold under whichever grade name its real-world accuracy earns — Tenex, Match, Team, or Club — rather than being graded by recipe alone. That’s a different approach than most rimfire makers use, and it’s the reason serious competitors care about lot numbers on Eley boxes as much as the grade printed on the label.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Eley really better than CCI, Federal, or Winchester target ammo? For pure accuracy at the competition level, yes — Eley Tenex has the Olympic medal record to back it up. For general plinking, hunting, or budget practice ammo, other brands can be a better value; Eley’s strength is match-grade consistency, not price.
Can I run Eley ammo in a semi-automatic rimfire rifle like the Ruger 10/22? Yes, but pick Eley Force or Precision rather than Tenex or Match. The competition grades are loaded for bolt-action and single-shot target rifles and can be unreliable feeding through a semi-auto action.
What’s the difference between Eley’s round-nose and flat-nose bullets? Flat-nose bullets (Tenex, Match, Team) pull the center of pressure forward for maximum aerodynamic stability at target distances. Round-nose bullets (Club, Sport, Force, Ultra Extreme Long Range) feed more reliably through a wider range of actions.
Does Eley still make .17 Mach 2 ammo? No, Eley has discontinued .17 Mach 2. Shooters looking for a similar rimfire round should look at .17 HMR instead.
Is Eley ammo good for hunting? Eley High Velocity is loaded with a hollow-point bullet suited to small game, but most of the Eley lineup is built around target and competition accuracy rather than hunting performance.
Browse: .22 LR Ammo
See Also: .22 LR Ammo • Ruger 10/22 • .22 Pistols