What Is the Difference Between ELEY semi-auto benchrest precision and Outlaw?

Three things separate ELEY semi-auto benchrest precision from ELEY semi-auto benchrest outlaw: bullet weight, velocity and Radial Standard Deviation (RSD). Precision is a 2.59 g / 40 gr bullet at 314-326 m/s (1030-1070 ft/s) held to a maximum RSD of 4.90 mm. Outlaw is a 2.69 g / 42 gr bullet at 317-332 m/s (1040-1090 ft/s) held to a maximum RSD of 7.00 mm. Everything else is common to both: a round-nose profile, the same EP2723 lubricant, the same 25.4 mm / 1 inch cartridge and the same manufacturing process, so both feed and cycle through an autoloading action in the same way.

In practice that makes precision the competition cartridge and outlaw its training and entry-level counterpart. Precision is what you shoot when the card counts; outlaw is what you shoot to get there.

The Three Differences, Side by Side

Bullet Weight: 40 Grains Against 42

Precision loads the lighter of the two projectiles at 2.59 g / 40 gr, the same weight class as ELEY tenex, ELEY match and ELEY team. Outlaw loads 2.69 g / 42 gr, putting it alongside ELEY force and ELEY contact in ELEY’s heavier class.

The heavier bullet carries more mass to the target; the lighter one sits in the weight class ELEY’s most accurate flat-nose target cartridges are built around. Both are round-nose, because a round nose enhances smooth chambering and consistent ballistics through a semi-automatic action, where the cartridge is stripped from a magazine and driven forward under spring pressure without the shooter guiding it.

Velocity: The Tighter Band Wins Aggregates

Precision runs at 314-326 m/s (1030-1070 ft/s), a spread of just 12 m/s (40 ft/s) and the tightest published band in ELEY’s semi-automatic range. Outlaw runs slightly faster and slightly wider at 317-332 m/s (1040-1090 ft/s).

That difference is worth more than it looks. Consistent velocity means consistent elevation at the target, and a benchrest aggregate is won and lost on elevation across a full card rather than on any single shot. The narrower the band a cartridge is held to, the less vertical dispersion the shooter has to read and correct for.

RSD: The Accuracy Standard

The third difference is RSD, and it is the figure most competitors look at first. Radial Standard Deviation measures the distance from each shot hole to the group’s centre point, the mean point of impact. The lower the RSD, the closer the group and the more consistent the performance. Unlike extreme spread, which considers only the two furthest shots on a card, RSD evaluates every shot fired. That is the statistically robust way to judge whether a cartridge will hold the ten ring across a full aggregate rather than across one lucky target.

ELEY tests 200 rounds from every batch across four different firearm brands to calculate RSD. The 4.90 mm published for precision and the 7.00 mm published for outlaw are therefore ceilings that every batch has already proved it can meet, not marketing estimates.

Placed against the wider range, precision at 4.90 mm sits between ELEY match at 4.74 mm and ELEY team at 5.50 mm. That is a genuine competition-grade standard, achieved in a cartridge specifically engineered to work in an autoloader. Outlaw at 7.00 mm sits alongside ELEY sport / target, ELEY force and ELEY contact, the level ELEY builds for volume shooting rather than for scoring cards.

Why Precision Is the Competition Round

ELEY semi-auto benchrest precision was developed using the same engineering expertise that drives ELEY tenex, the most accurate cartridge ELEY manufactures. What carries across from tenex is the process rather than the bullet shape: a propellant charge measured electronically for every individual cartridge, a case mouth trimmed flat so the bullet is always seated perfectly, exacting crimping standards for consistent round-to-round pull-out force, high-tech inspection of the critical heel area, and priming from ELEY’s air-conditioned facility, which achieves a 75 per cent improvement in the spread of primer weights compared with other manufacturers.

What does not carry across is the flat-nose profile. ELEY’s patented flat nose is engineered for precision bolt-action target rifles, so precision instead takes the round-nose bullet an autoloader needs, and the 40 gr weight, tight velocity band and 4.90 mm RSD do the competition work.

Why Outlaw Is the Training and Entry-Level Round

Outlaw does the job that every serious competitor needs done: it lets you shoot in volume without shooting your competition ammunition.

At 2.69 g / 42 gr it is the heavier of the two, running at 317-332 m/s (1040-1090 ft/s). The same EP2723 lubricant means it behaves the same way through the mechanism and leaves the bore in a comparable condition, so switching between the two does not force you to re-season the barrel from scratch. It is also the natural entry point for a shooter moving into semi-automatic benchrest who wants to learn the discipline, the wind and the rhythm of the line before committing to competition-grade ammunition.

ELEY ammunition is supplied in 50-round boxes, 500-round bricks and 5,000-round outer cases. Stockists are listed at eley.co.uk/retailers.

Which Should You Buy?

Buy precision if you are shooting registered semi-automatic benchrest competition and the score is recorded. The 4.90 mm RSD standard and the tighter velocity band are exactly what you are paying for.

Buy outlaw if you are practising, sighting in, learning the discipline, running club-level matches, or shooting in enough volume that competition ammunition is not the sensible tool.

Most competitors end up buying both, and that is how the pair was designed: the same lubricant, the same round-nose feeding behaviour and the same manufacturing process, at two accuracy grades to suit two jobs.

The Bottom Line

Bullet weight, velocity and RSD are what separate the two. Precision is the competition round at 2.59 g / 40 gr, 314-326 m/s (1030-1070 ft/s) and 4.90 mm RSD; outlaw is the training and entry-level round at 2.69 g / 42 gr, 317-332 m/s (1040-1090 ft/s) and 7.00 mm RSD. Both are round-nose, both use EP2723, and both are built to run reliably in a semi-automatic rifle.

Whichever you choose, the final step is the same. Every barrel has its own unique characteristics and each batch performs differently, so book batch testing through your own rifle at eley.co.uk/vip. The free Lot Analyser at eleyxshot.com now carries all lots of ELEY tenex, tenex pistol, tenex biathlon, tenex rapid fire pistol, match, semi-auto .22LR benchrest precision, ultra and club, so you can open the full 200-shot proof data behind any lot of semi-auto benchrest precision before you buy. The best ammunition is the production lot that performs best in your rifle.