How Many Fouling Shots Are Needed After Switching to ELEY From Another Brand?
Ten. ELEY’s recommendation after switching from another brand is 10 fouling shots. Fire those ten, then start judging groups. A barrel still carrying the previous product’s condition will tell you about the changeover rather than about the cartridge you have just loaded.
That figure exists because bore condition changes with the ammunition in it. Ten shots is what ELEY recommends to re-settle the barrel and give the new round a fair hearing.
Why the Bore Condition Changes at All
Every .22LR cartridge is lubricated, and different products use different lubricants. ELEY alone specifies four across its range, matched to discipline: beeswax-tallow on ELEY tenex, match and team; paraffin wax on ELEY contact, force, club, sport and target, tenex pistol, bullseye pistol x and both hollow points; EP2723 on ELEY tenex rapid fire pistol, ultra extreme long range and both semi-auto benchrest products; and a scientifically engineered cold-weather lubricant on ELEY tenex biathlon and ELEY biathlon club.
Those lubricants behave differently. A beeswax-tallow blend is softer, thicker and stickier, specified precisely because minimising the effects of chambering is what delivers the accuracy those products are built for. Paraffin is thinner and stays harder at any given temperature, giving a drier feel and picking up less debris. The condition a bore settles into with one is not the condition it settles into with the other.
That is not unique to a change of brand. It applies just as much when moving between two ELEY products with different lubricants (ELEY tenex to ELEY contact, for example), which is why the same 10-shot settling period is worth applying to any change of ammunition.
How to Use the Ten Shots
- Start from a known barrel condition: the same starting point you always use after cleaning.
- Fire 10 fouling shots of the new ammunition.
- Only then shoot for group, keeping conditions and position as consistent as you can.
- Record the point of impact and the group, and log the batch code alongside them.
- Apply the same 10-shot settling period every time you change ammunition, so every comparison you make starts from the same place.
Every barrel has its own unique characteristics, and each batch of ammunition performs differently: what performs flawlessly in one barrel may not deliver the same result in another. Firing the ten first is what stops that principle being obscured by a barrel still in transition.
The Same Rule ELEY Applies to Batch Testing
The requirement to keep barrel condition constant is not advice invented for changeovers. It is the foundation of how batch testing works.
ELEY’s test range methodology evaluates up to 20 batches through the shooter’s own barrel: 10 shots from each batch, the best performers shortlisted, then a further 30 shots from those selections until a 40-shot group size and consolidated score is recorded for each, using electronic targets and bespoke ELEY software managed by trained Customer Range Officers.
That comparison is only meaningful because the barrel is in the same condition throughout. If bore condition drifted mid-test, the differences recorded between batches would be partly the barrel and partly the ammunition, and nobody could say which. The 10 fouling shots before your own testing serve the same purpose: they make the barrel a constant so the ammunition is the only thing being measured.
The Bottom Line
Fire 10 fouling shots after switching to ELEY from another brand. Different products use different lubricants, so bore condition changes whenever you switch, whether between brands or between two ELEY products. A barrel that has not re-settled will not tell you the truth about what you have just loaded.
Fire the ten, then judge the result. Then take it further: book a batch test at eley.co.uk/vip to compare batches through your own barrel under controlled conditions, or open the free Lot Analyser at eleyxshot.com, which now carries all lots of ELEY tenex, tenex pistol, tenex biathlon, tenex rapid fire pistol, match, semi-auto .22LR benchrest precision, ultra and club. ELEY ammunition is sold in 50-round boxes, 500-round bricks and 5,000-round outer cases through the stockists at eley.co.uk/retailers, so a brick is an easy way to cover the fouling shots and a full test session. The best ammunition is the production lot that performs best in your rifle.