Criterion Barrels 223 wylde 1-8 twist ammo choice

[Europe]

I was told that the 1-8 twist loves heavier bullets. After shooting 69gr SMKs along with Hornady Black 77gr I ended up with best groups shot with Fiocchi 55gr fmj. Weird.
Do you have similar experience?

[M1A4ME]

Guns (any/all of them) "like" what they "like."

I've not shot anything heavier than 55 grains in any of my 1 turn in 7" or 1 turn in 8" AR15s.  I have some heavy stuff to reload, just  haven't gotten around to it.

If you reload you may find a bullet/powder/primer combination for your rifle that really makes the big bullets shoot good groups.

People say 55 grain Hornady FMJBT are not accurate bullets.  Best group (100 yd) I ever shot with an AR15 was with those same bullets.

If the rifle likes 55 grain shoot those.  I'll bet they are cheaper than the heavier "match" bullets.

How far have you shot them out to?  How far it the farthest you are likely to shoot?  Having a load that shoots 1 MOA out to 600 yds. is nice, but now would you know if the farthest you can shoot is 100 yds.?

Not an AR, but I can tell you with my old M1A (.308 Win.) I tried bullets from Speer, Hornady and Sierra from 110 grains to 180 grains.  I know, they say don't shoot 180 grain bullets in an M1A.  I tried 10 or 12 powders, extruded/IMR and ball/Win & Hodgdens.  The best shooting load was with 180 grain Sierra match bullets with an IMR powder that should never be used in M1As (burn rate way to slow).  Broke two op rods before I gave up on it.  Chamber pressure well below max but gas port pressure well above max (for the gas port/gas system).  A rifle likes what it likes.

Besides, trying different ammo or different handloads is fun.  More range time, more learning.

I will offer a piece of advice.  Once you find something that shoots well, don't stop trying other ammo.  A time may come when you can't get the first good shooting ammo/loads anymore and its good to already know what to buy that does as well in your rifle.

[rckendall]

Europe,
The 69 gn SMK is a tried and proven bullet in 22 cal and I believe Sierra gives the ideal twist rate either on the box or their website. I don't have recent rifle experience loading for mag lengths, but I have learned a bit in the last couple years shooting F-Class.

The quickest way to develop a load for many of us was to find the correct bullet jump first. Load a mid range charge and vary the jump in .005 increments to find what the barrel likes. It should be obvious. You only need to work in a .040 range because it will repeat itself, so loading for magazine length is only a stating point. I have loaded with .010-.015 jump up to .125 and still had good results. After the jump is determined, work on the powder.

Although Varget is a good go to powder for 223, I couldn't get what I was looking for until I tried 8208. More details on your development procedure will help probably. That barrel should give you bug holes at 100 yards.

Richard

Edit: I just realized that you didn't mention the rifle being magazine fed. I don't know why I assumed that? If it is a bolt gun, start testing at .010 and go up to around .040 or so.

[Europe]

I don't reload. I shoot factory ammo only.

I was dissapointed by GGG ammo (lituanian brand) reloaded with 69gr SMKs. I am leaning towards Hornady V-Max or something similar. I am looking forward to warmer days to try different brands. Currently I have on the shelf S&B 55 gr, Fiocchi 55 FMJ, Hornady 77gr, GGG 69 gr. I plan also to try Lapua Scenar in 69gr.

[rckendall]

Sorry I didn't pick that up since you were mentioning the specific bullets. As far as factory ammo is concerned for 223, Federal Gold Metal Match is the standard used to measure by. Black Hills also uses the SMK in 69 and 77 gn, and they have new and reloaded brass versions. Of the 55 gn variety, Wolf Gold is highly respected but I have no personal experience with them.

Richard

[Europe]

Black Hills is really difficult to get here. I assume that I will not come across anything more accurate than Lapua Scenar or Hornady Match.

[wagon]

I think 1:7 prefers “ heavier” bullets, and 1:8 will (still) work well with the more common weights such as 55 gr.


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[rckendall]

Sorry it has taken me a few days to return to this, but I have done some research into my records and the Sierra website. Sierra states the 69 gn SMK needs a 1:10 twist rate or faster and my personal experience is with a cheap Savage 12FV from Cabelas, which has a 1:10 twist rate. I used a Harris by-pod with a sandbag at the butt end and a 4-16 scope. I did do a hand load development with this rifle but nothing fancy as this was just a cheap venture to help me get trigger time in prone position.

One of my test targets, 5 shots at 100 yards using 8208 powder and 69 gn SMK bullets. The note on the target says the jump was .030. So in my eyes, I don't see the bullet as being an issue but the combination of powder used and jump to the lands.

Richard

[Wobbly]

You pass the class.