CCI Hunter Series .22 LR Now Shipping: Two 40-Grain Loads

Last updated October 2026 · By Nick Hall, small-game hunter and rimfire shooter who reads the ballistics table before the box art

Quick take: CCI says its Hunter Series .22 LR ammo is now being delivered to retailers, almost nine months after the line was first announced. There are two loads with the same 40-grain lead flat nose bullet, one at 1235 fps and a subsonic at 1050 fps. CCI’s release puts MSRP at $13.99 per 100, and its own store lists both at $12.99.

• What it is: Two .22 LR small-game loads with a 40-grain lead flat nose bullet in a blaze orange 100-pack, one at 1235 fps (part number 3R40LFN) and a subsonic at 1050 fps (2R40LFN).
• Price: CCI’s October 1, 2026 release lists $13.99 MSRP for each load, while CCI’s own online store lists each at $12.99.
• Where: CCI says the line “is being delivered to retailers nationwide,” and it also sells both loads direct from its own site.
• Why it matters: The subsonic load gives suppressor owners a flat nose hunting round that costs $6 less per 100 on CCI’s store than the company’s 45-grain Suppressor Max.

This isn’t a new product, whatever the first line of the release says. CCI announced these two loads in January. What changed on October 1 is that they’re on the way to dealers. I pulled the numbers from CCI’s own release and ballistics tables, and one of them deserves a second look.

Table of Contents

What’s in the CCI Hunter Series Box

CCI’s release, datelined Lewiston, Idaho, October 1, 2026, describes the Hunter Series as “a purpose-built product line designed specifically for small game hunters.” That’s two loads. Same bullet in both: 40 grains, lead, flat nose.

The faster one, part number 3R40LFN, leaves the muzzle at 1235 fps. The subsonic, 2R40LFN, does 1050 fps. CCI lists a ballistic coefficient of .125 for each, and both come in a blaze orange plastic 100-pack that the company says is “perfect for dropping into a game vest and taking afield.”

The target list is squirrels, rabbits, grouse and groundhogs. The flat nose is the selling point, and CCI’s product page puts it plainly: “Lead flat nose bullets are highly lethal on game without ruining meat.”

“Small game hunters need ammunition that’s practical, effective, and dependable,” said Steven Monniere, Rimfire Product Manager for CCI. “The new CCI Hunter Series was built with that purpose in mind.”

The Ballistics Table Beats the Box Art

CCI publishes velocity at 50, 75 and 100 yards for both loads. The 1235 fps load is down to 1088 fps at 50 yards, 1035 at 75 and 992 at 100. So by the 100-yard line, the fast load is moving slower than the subsonic one does at the muzzle.

The subsonic starts at 1050 fps and holds 966 at 50 yards, 932 at 75 and 902 at 100. That’s 148 fps lost over 100 yards. The fast load gives up 243.

Energy follows the same curve. CCI lists 135 ft-lb at the muzzle for the 1235 fps load and 98 ft-lb for the subsonic, a 37 ft-lb gap. At 100 yards it’s 87 against 72, and the gap is 15.

CCI’s trajectory figures assume a 100-yard zero with the sights 1.5 inches above the bore, and on those terms the 1235 fps load prints 2.9 inches high at 50 yards while the subsonic prints 3.9 inches high, which is one inch of extra arc for a round that never breaks the sound barrier. A scope dial covers that.

Two Prices From One Company

The table at the bottom of the release gives $13.99 for each load. CCI’s own online store lists each at $12.99. That’s 14 cents a round against 13.

Dealers set their own prices, so treat $13.99 as the ceiling and $12.99 as the number to beat. When I checked CCI’s store, the 1235 fps load was marked “Available” and the subsonic was marked “Currently Unavailable.”

Buying direct has limits. CCI’s store does not ship ammunition to Alaska, California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Massachusetts, New York, Rhode Island or Washington D.C., and it restricts New Jersey orders to shotshell and centerfire rifle ammunition, which rules out rimfire.

The useful comparison is inside CCI’s own catalog. Suppressor Max, the company’s 45-grain segmented hollow point at 970 fps, is $18.99 per 100 on the same store. Hunter Series Subsonic is $6 cheaper, 80 fps faster and five grains lighter, with a flat nose instead of a hollow point.

CCI is pitching it squarely at the same buyer. The Hunter Series page is headed “Subsonic For Suppressors” and says the load “stays just under the sound barrier.” If you want to know why that matters, our guide to how suppressors work covers the crack that a can can’t remove.

Announced in January, Shipping in October

CCI first named the line on January 5, 2026, in its new products release for the year, where it said the two loads “feature Small Game Bullets (SGB).” A dedicated release followed on January 12 under the headline “CCI’s New Hunter Series Rimfire Ammunition Coming Soon.”

That one promised the loads “will be shipping to dealers soon” and said they would be on display at the 2026 SHOT Show in Las Vegas, January 20 to 23, at Booth No. 11838. Soon turned out to be almost nine months.

But an October ship date isn’t a bad one for a squirrel load. It also lands in CCI’s 75th anniversary year, which both January releases mention.

Which Hunter Series Load to Buy

If you hunt without a suppressor and want the most energy on target, the 1235 fps load is the pick, with 135 ft-lb at the muzzle. If you run a can, the 1050 fps load is the one CCI built for you, and you give up 15 ft-lb at 100 yards to get it.

Every .22 rifle has ammo it likes and ammo it doesn’t. Buy one 100-pack of each and shoot groups before you commit, whether that’s through one of our small game rifle picks or the 10/22 you already own. Our .22 LR ammo roundup has the loads to test it against.

Same bullet. Two speeds. Thirteen bucks.

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• .22 LR vs .22 WMR: Which Rimfire Caliber Is Right for You?