Bullet/Powder for 5.56 recommendations needed

alloy · April 24, 2011, 01:46 PM

What's a good weight SMK for a 1 in 7 twist AR with a 16 inch barrel?
I see some ammos loaded with the 69 grainers...good choice for reloading or too heavy?

Powder recommendations for same?
Preferably IMR/Alliant/Hodgdon/Winchester, due to availability locally.

Marco Califo · April 24, 2011, 02:43 PM

Sierra Bullets - 223/AR:

"In 1992, Sierra announced an 80 grain MatchKing specifically for the
600-yard stage of this type of competition. As this is a slow-fire stage, the 80
grain HPBT should be seated to approximately 2.550" OAL, and must be single loaded. This bullet requires the use of a 1x7" or 1x8" twist for proper stability."

"Hodgdon’s H335, Winchester 748 and Reloader 7 are all top choices, generally giving good velocity and excellent accuracy."

I use Accurate Arms 2230, and their Data Powder 2230-C which meters exactly the same, and loads using 2460 data. I got an 8lb jug of 2230-C a few years ago cheap (under $10 / lb.), but have not seen it lately.

alloy · April 24, 2011, 03:31 PM

Have been reading thru my reloading manuals and 748 as well as Reloader 7 do look like possibles, as my local store stocks both.

Taking a drive tomorrow, and one gun shop sells powder considerably less than what I pay locally. Kinda got caught unawares of the drive and haven't finished my homework.

Quote:

This bullet requires the use of a 1x7" or 1x8" twist for proper stability.

Have seen that listed for several Sierra weights, at least the weights I've been reading about.

Marco Califo · April 24, 2011, 04:34 PM

Sierra Bullets 223/bolt:

"Unlike most of the currently available semi-autos, factory bolt-actions generally come equipped with 1x12" twist barrels. As such, they can handle
Sierra’s line of bullets from 40 to 60 or 63 grains, but not the heavier
MatchKing designs. This isn’t a problem in custom-built rifles, if the shooter
chooses a twist rate appropriate for the bullets used. With this cartridge, we
recommend a 1x10" as minimum for the 69 grain MatchKing, and a 1x8" for
77 or 80 grain MatchKings."

I love those Sierra articles, one for each gun type, of the same cartridge. I wish they did that for 308, too. The loads they publish for bolt guns are 100-200 fps faster, mainly due to barrel length. Curiously, the specific powder loads, for the same bullet weight class, are different from the AR loads to the bolt gun loads!!

Savage makes their current 223 bolt guns in 1:9". I also have a Ruger Mini-14 that is 1:7"; not all of them are - they have used 3 different twist rates, I believe.

Not understanding the twist rate of the gun you shoot, and the bullet weight you use, is probably responsible for at least 2/3 of the people who say a particular 223 isn't accurate.

**Unclenick** · April 24, 2011, 05:33 PM

You can go to an even longer bullet than the 80 grain SMK with a 7" twist, including the 90 grain Berger match bullets, but the 80's a good choice. None of those long bullets seat deeply enough to fit into and feed from a magazine, though. If you want to feed from a magazine, the 77 grain SMK is the best option for your twist rate. It is shorter and stubbier for the fit.

You'll find a number of powders work well with these heavies. Reloader 7 is best with lighter bullets, IME, and the newer Reloader 10X will fill the case better and get you a little more velocity, but neither produces top performance with the heavies. Among the powders Hodgdon sells, their own data shows Benchmark getting the most velocity out of the 77 grain bullet and a compressed load of Varget doing best with the 80 grain SMK seated out further to leave a little more room in the case. That's a top accuracy combination according to Glen Zediker, among others, and I haven't found any flies on it. It is what I use at 600 yards currently.

The 90's take up too much room in the .223 case, so you can't fit enough powder in to get up enough velocity for their better ballistic coefficients to be any practical advantage over the 80 grain bullets. There was an article in Precision Shooting demonstrating this at 1000 yards, so I haven't messed with them at all.

alloy · April 24, 2011, 05:51 PM

Feeding from a magazine is the consideration. Gas gun so burn rate as well.

Have seen some good opinions/results on the net with 69 grainers and Reloader-15, and some that swear by Win 748.

Not a benchrest gun by any means, and I'm not chasing that type of accuracy at all, just something that works well and isn't too far removed from surplus NATO, and maybe Black Hills or FGGM so I can compare against a benchmark and keep a relatively close POI, with easy to find components.

Jim243 · April 24, 2011, 10:18 PM

IMR 4895 or H 4895 work well with the heavier bullets other wise H 335.

Jim

April 24, 2011, 02:43 PM	#2
Marco Califo Senior Member Join Date: April 4, 2011 Location: LA (Greater Los Angeles Area) Posts: 2,598	Fast twist is good for heavier bullets Sierra Bullets - 223/AR: "In 1992, Sierra announced an 80 grain MatchKing specifically for the 600-yard stage of this type of competition. As this is a slow-fire stage, the 80 grain HPBT should be seated to approximately 2.550" OAL, and must be single loaded. This bullet requires the use of a 1x7" or 1x8" twist for proper stability." "Hodgdon’s H335, Winchester 748 and Reloader 7 are all top choices, generally giving good velocity and excellent accuracy." I use Accurate Arms 2230, and their Data Powder 2230-C which meters exactly the same, and loads using 2460 data. I got an 8lb jug of 2230-C a few years ago cheap (under $10 / lb.), but have not seen it lately.

April 24, 2011, 05:33 PM	#5
Unclenick Staff Join Date: March 4, 2005 Location: Ohio Posts: 21,063	You can go to an even longer bullet than the 80 grain SMK with a 7" twist, including the 90 grain Berger match bullets, but the 80's a good choice. None of those long bullets seat deeply enough to fit into and feed from a magazine, though. If you want to feed from a magazine, the 77 grain SMK is the best option for your twist rate. It is shorter and stubbier for the fit. You'll find a number of powders work well with these heavies. Reloader 7 is best with lighter bullets, IME, and the newer Reloader 10X will fill the case better and get you a little more velocity, but neither produces top performance with the heavies. Among the powders Hodgdon sells, their own data shows Benchmark getting the most velocity out of the 77 grain bullet and a compressed load of Varget doing best with the 80 grain SMK seated out further to leave a little more room in the case. That's a top accuracy combination according to Glen Zediker, among others, and I haven't found any flies on it. It is what I use at 600 yards currently. The 90's take up too much room in the .223 case, so you can't fit enough powder in to get up enough velocity for their better ballistic coefficients to be any practical advantage over the 80 grain bullets. There was an article in Precision Shooting demonstrating this at 1000 yards, so I haven't messed with them at all. __________________ Gunsite Orange Hat Family Member CMP Certified GSM Master Instructor NRA Certified Rifle Instructor NRA Benefactor Member and Golden Eagle Last edited by Unclenick; April 25, 2011 at 11:29 AM. Reason: typo fix

April 24, 2011, 10:18 PM	#7
Jim243 Senior Member Join Date: January 5, 2009 Location: Just off Route 66 Posts: 5,067	IMR 4895 or H 4895 work well with the heavier bullets other wise H 335. Jim __________________ Si vis pacem, para bellum

April 24, 2011, 04:34 PM	#4
Marco Califo Senior Member Join Date: April 4, 2011 Location: LA (Greater Los Angeles Area) Posts: 2,598	Sierra Bullets 223/bolt: "Unlike most of the currently available semi-autos, factory bolt-actions generally come equipped with 1x12" twist barrels. As such, they can handle Sierra’s line of bullets from 40 to 60 or 63 grains, but not the heavier MatchKing designs. This isn’t a problem in custom-built rifles, if the shooter chooses a twist rate appropriate for the bullets used. With this cartridge, we recommend a 1x10" as minimum for the 69 grain MatchKing, and a 1x8" for 77 or 80 grain MatchKings." I love those Sierra articles, one for each gun type, of the same cartridge. I wish they did that for 308, too. The loads they publish for bolt guns are 100-200 fps faster, mainly due to barrel length. Curiously, the specific powder loads, for the same bullet weight class, are different from the AR loads to the bolt gun loads!! Savage makes their current 223 bolt guns in 1:9". I also have a Ruger Mini-14 that is 1:7"; not all of them are - they have used 3 different twist rates, I believe. Not understanding the twist rate of the gun you shoot, and the bullet weight you use, is probably responsible for at least 2/3 of the people who say a particular 223 isn't accurate.