Blackhills blue box ammo, should I use for coyotes? AR-15 what can you tell me about

NYCOP · December 17, 2002, 02:19 PM

What can you tell me about this ammo? is it any good for coyotes out of the AR-15? is it pretty accurate? what grain should I pick(I practice with win Q3131A)? do they have diffrent choices? hollow point and so on?

dakotasin · December 17, 2002, 03:09 PM

the blue box is factory reloads using lake city brass. the accuracy of it should be acceptable. some rifles shoot it fairly well, some only so-so. overall, the accuracy is not spectacular.

in the 223, i know they have nosler ballistic tips available...i think there are other styles available, but not sure...i don't think the blue box is available w/ moly, but am not positive on that.

when i use factory loads for the 223, which is pretty rare, i usually use black hills red box stuff. the red box ammo is all new, and the brass is labeled 'bha - match'. in my 223, this brass is very good...runout is minimal and consistency is great; i use these loads because i want the brass, really no other reason, although the accuracy is generally very good. the stuff i buy is loaded w/ 52 grain match bullets (probably sierra matchkings, but not sure).

the ammo should be fine in an ar, though all my 22's are bolts, so i have no experience, there.

if you reload, i'd advise spending the extra money on the red box so you'll have some real nice brass to load later. if you don't load your own, the blue box should be able to cover most of your uses if the accuracy is ok in your rifle. i think the blue boxes are loaded with mixed lots of lc brass...mixing lots of brass is generally not the best way to achieve best accuracy.

Art Eatman · December 17, 2002, 11:30 PM

If you're getting three- or five-shot groups inside two MOA, inside a hundred yards Ol' Wiley won't care what you use. Chest shot, he's ruint.

If you expect to go to 200 yards or more, then down around one MOA starts becoming important. Beyond 200, the particular bullet becomes of greater importance for a clean kill.

I've never shot a coyote out at 300 yards with a .223; around 125 is about as far as I've had a clear shot. The 55-grain Rem SP worked just fine. I've killed feral cats to 300 or so with the Sierra 52-grain HPBT, but from a Swift--with some 500 or 600 ft/sec more MV. But, they never moved after being hit.

Art

NYCOP · December 18, 2002, 02:09 AM

What should I use? 55gr hollow point or 55gr soft point?

dakotasin · December 18, 2002, 06:30 AM

i'd use nosler ballistic tip for coyotes if they shoot in your rifle. hollow point would be 3rd choice behind hornady v-max.

H&H,hunter · December 18, 2002, 10:04 AM

NYCOP,
Use anything you've got. Coyotes ain't hard to kill once you put a sight on them. I used to kill them with 55gr ball all the time never had a problem with it.

December 17, 2002, 02:19 PM	#1
NYCOP Member Join Date: October 23, 2002 Posts: 64	Blackhills blue box ammo, should I use for coyotes? AR-15 what can you tell me about What can you tell me about this ammo? is it any good for coyotes out of the AR-15? is it pretty accurate? what grain should I pick(I practice with win Q3131A)? do they have diffrent choices? hollow point and so on? __________________ BUSHMASTER AR-15 A3 20 INCH H/BAR, HANDLE MOUNTED COLT SCOPE 3/20.

December 17, 2002, 03:09 PM	#2
dakotasin Senior Member Join Date: June 22, 2002 Location: south dakota, U.S.A. Posts: 136	the blue box is factory reloads using lake city brass. the accuracy of it should be acceptable. some rifles shoot it fairly well, some only so-so. overall, the accuracy is not spectacular. in the 223, i know they have nosler ballistic tips available...i think there are other styles available, but not sure...i don't think the blue box is available w/ moly, but am not positive on that. when i use factory loads for the 223, which is pretty rare, i usually use black hills red box stuff. the red box ammo is all new, and the brass is labeled 'bha - match'. in my 223, this brass is very good...runout is minimal and consistency is great; i use these loads because i want the brass, really no other reason, although the accuracy is generally very good. the stuff i buy is loaded w/ 52 grain match bullets (probably sierra matchkings, but not sure). the ammo should be fine in an ar, though all my 22's are bolts, so i have no experience, there. if you reload, i'd advise spending the extra money on the red box so you'll have some real nice brass to load later. if you don't load your own, the blue box should be able to cover most of your uses if the accuracy is ok in your rifle. i think the blue boxes are loaded with mixed lots of lc brass...mixing lots of brass is generally not the best way to achieve best accuracy. __________________ Hunting is not a matter of life or death. It is much more important than that.

December 18, 2002, 02:09 AM	#4
NYCOP Member Join Date: October 23, 2002 Posts: 64	What should I use? 55gr hollow point or 55gr soft point? __________________ BUSHMASTER AR-15 A3 20 INCH H/BAR, HANDLE MOUNTED COLT SCOPE 3/20.

December 18, 2002, 06:30 AM	#5
dakotasin Senior Member Join Date: June 22, 2002 Location: south dakota, U.S.A. Posts: 136	i'd use nosler ballistic tip for coyotes if they shoot in your rifle. hollow point would be 3rd choice behind hornady v-max. __________________ Hunting is not a matter of life or death. It is much more important than that.

December 18, 2002, 10:04 AM	#6
H&H,hunter Senior Member Join Date: July 25, 2001 Location: Colorado Posts: 504	NYCOP, Use anything you've got. Coyotes ain't hard to kill once you put a sight on them. I used to kill them with 55gr ball all the time never had a problem with it. __________________ Velocity is thrilling, But diameter does the real killing.

December 17, 2002, 11:30 PM	#3
Art Eatman Staff in Memoriam Join Date: November 13, 1998 Location: Terlingua, TX; Thomasville, GA Posts: 24,798	If you're getting three- or five-shot groups inside two MOA, inside a hundred yards Ol' Wiley won't care what you use. Chest shot, he's ruint. If you expect to go to 200 yards or more, then down around one MOA starts becoming important. Beyond 200, the particular bullet becomes of greater importance for a clean kill. I've never shot a coyote out at 300 yards with a .223; around 125 is about as far as I've had a clear shot. The 55-grain Rem SP worked just fine. I've killed feral cats to 300 or so with the Sierra 52-grain HPBT, but from a Swift--with some 500 or 600 ft/sec more MV. But, they never moved after being hit. Art