Reloading 223 suggestions

Thank you very much guys for the replies. I didn't expect to get many replies as I have tried looking for threads on .223 and there are many but not what I was looking for.

The only reason why I wanted to use IMR 4064 because in Lyman 50th book, it is on the list where it starts at 23.8gr. I guess I have to read on how the burning rate affects the load. This I have no idea on how it affects. Some of the powders mentioned are also in the book such as Varget (which has been mentioned more), H335, 748 (what does it mean by dirty?), BL(C)2, to name a few.

Reason why I choose 60gr is at the moment that is what I found at Cabela's. I don't don't go online to get items. Not that I am a cheapo and don't want to pay shipping etc... just the Cabela's near me is very close and don't mind driving to window shop while I'm there as well. Lol.

At the moment, the range I go to reaches up to 200 yds. I do intend to go further. But when I feel confident to do so... it's a bit of a drive. So at the moment I am stuck where I am at... don't mind as I still have a lot of shooting to do in order to progress with skill level.

How does certain brass affect a load as well? I currently have Remington brass that I kept when shot. Did buy other one box of each of the following American Eagle (two different boxes one is MSR and the other has stencil looking font), Frontier, Winchester, and PPU.

But maybe I do have to venture out from Cabela's once in a while. Lol.
 
IMO,if you are going to seriously get into handloading, the next time you go to Cabelas ,buy at least 200 rds of virgin brass and 4ea 50 rd plastic ammo boxes.
I like WW brass,myself.

Primers,bullets,etc come 100 to a box. Load in lots of 100. You will have the 100 you are shooting up,and a reserve 100 ready to go.

It will be easy to keep organized.

No need to toss your variety brass,use it!.Keep it separate. Use it till its wore out. Perfect for a different bullet experiment,etc.
 
Barnes Match burners 69g from Cabela's performance was near enough to Hornadys 69g hpbt that I used the load manual from Hornady and started low and worked up after eliminated the powders that burned slowest( using short 16.5 barrel in MVP LC)
As for brass I agree that Winchester brass is a solid budget brass that performs above it's price point. Sierra MK are considered the standard for target shooting by many. I don't bother though with thier newer TMKs.
 
I shoot 77 and 80 grain SMKs. The 77s love 8208 XBR and the 80s love CFE223. I tried Varget but my 308 loves it. My bolt gun is 1 in 7 and my AR is 1 in 8 though.
 
How does certain brass affect a load as well? I currently have Remington brass that I kept when shot. Did buy other one box of each of the following American Eagle (two different boxes one is MSR and the other has stencil looking font), Frontier, Winchester, and PPU.
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The purpose of new brass is to have quality brass from one manufacturer and one lot fire formed to your rifle. This will mostly cover the case fit to your rifle. This should be enough to get under 1 moa, if the rifle likes the bullet and can shoot.
 
If a powder charge isn't efficient with the barrel length and bullet weight... sometimes a powder can get 'dirty'... leaving crap in the barrel. There are a bunch of different reasons why a powder can burn dirty, and it's hard to tell until you just happen upon that particular circumstance in your loads. Pistol powders in particular do this... some powders don't do well under lighter bullets, etc.

You also have to be aware of military brass and commercial brass... military brass is thicker, meaning less internal space. The same/same bullet/powder charge... one in commercial brass, one in military brass... the military brass will typically develop higher pressure, so it pays to know your brass.
 
The point about thick military brass can be true,and it is likely in .308.

With 5.56 and USA manufactured military ammo,such as Lake City and Winchester,I'm pretty sure thick brass is not an issue.

Though,with international brass,who knows?

Generally,with the powders I use there is little to no case volume to spare with 5.56

If case walls were thicker,my powder would be up in the neck.

With adirect impingement AR ,a clean burning vs dirty powder will show up the bolt ,bolt carrier,rings,etc as either "not too bad" or crunchy black stuff.

Some will remain in the gas tube.

Some ball powders are rather nasty. It takes serious deterrent to slow the burn on the fine powder .

A powder in the "slow" range may be dirtier.

That part is less of a concern with a bolt rifle
 
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Thanks again guys. Will probably end up going with the Varget as it seems to be mentioned more.

Being new to reloading, I will for the meantime go with the 60gr VMAX. Just to get a feel for it. Then will look into the heavier ones and try different manufacturers.

Now a few times some mentioned CCI 450 instead of CCI 400. Why use 450 instead of 400?
 
That will work,and I'm splitting hairs. Benchmark is same family as Varget,but a shade quicker. IMO,it gives exceptional performance with the Nosler 60 gr Varmint Ballistic tip.

I spent a fair amount of range time with a chrono fiddling with this stuff.

With a 75 gr Honady HPBT, 77 gr MKs,etc,IMO, RE-15 is hard to beat.Better,IMO,than Varget.
With a 69 gr bullet,Varget is hard to beat.

If you are jumping to a 60 gr bullet,I'd buy Benchmark.(And other powders come into play)

55 gr bullets,one of the classic "bests"is H-335.

Folks get great results with other powders,those are not the only choices.

I'm just sharing the sweet spots as I found them.They will work.
 
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ninosdemente asked:
Would 60gr be fine? What other good/better options are there?
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A question I have not seen asked and answered here is what distances are you planning on shooting?

And what results are you looking for?

If you're shooting at a range where the farthest target is 100 yards out and all you care to do is punch paper plates, then your needs are vastly different from someone who is going to reach out to 300 yards and aspires to having five shots and only one hole.

I am not, now will I ever be, part of the "one hole" crowd. Most of my shooting is done at ranges of 100 yards or less. And essentially all of it is done offhand with no bench, bags or rest for support. For casual shooting under those conditions, I have found the much aligned 55 grain FMJ boattail that are available for as little as about 6 cents each to be more than adequate. I have found them quite satisfactory with IMR-4064 at loads close to the Starting Load.

For hunting and self-defense use, I long ago developed a load around the Hornady 60 grain Spire Point bullets (they make both Hollow and Soft Point) loaded above IMR-4198, IMR-3031, Winchester 748 or, still in development, Benchmark. It works very well on the deer in northern Arkansas and would presumably be just as effective on a person although I hope to never be in a situation where I have to find out.
 
To be honest as far as results expectations... I am just trying to learn as I go. I am first generation gun enthusiast/owner so basically all you guys, this forum, youtube and google are my teachers. As well as other forums, but mostly here. LOl. Plus a couple of people have been kind enough to answer questions I have that kinda may seem embarrassing for me to ask. But won't learn if I don't go to range either.

I do try to read threads that pertain to me even those that may not pertain to me... and try and soak up information that may be good to know or just to know.

This may seem dumb, but not sure what to expect/look for as far as results when I do load .223. I know part will depend on me when behind the trigger, and I know I have more practicing to go. I have even gone online and looked up "what to expect from reloading" and other phrases.
 
Well...

A few people I spoke with vaguely at different stores in the past, mentioned that when your groups get closer and closer, that is an indication of what your gun likes. So that is one result I am looking for.
 
BR-4s work very well, I use them quite a bit but I can't honestly say I've done extensive accuracy testing against the standard 400s. Since most of my .223 shooting is with the AR platform and often with ball powder so I generally only keep 450s and BR-4s because they have a thicker cup - I feel they also reduce risk for a slamfire when single loading. Most all of my small rifle loads are developed with one or the other since that's what I tend to have around.
 
I like Accurate 2200 and 2230 both are very good powder. I like 62 64 gr bullets and Sierra 69 gr BTHPM they have shoot one hole with 4 shots at 100 yard the 62 64 will shoot 1/2 MOA at 100 yards in my AR,S Your Savage can do the same if you reload your own ammo. It takes time to build a accurate load lot of range time. GOOD LUCK
 
Use CCI 450's. Not 400's. The 400's pierce easily at warm pressures. CCI #41 are milspec for the commercial market.
My Savage Axis in 1:9 will stabilize Hornady 75 gr HPBT, not the Amax (haven't tried it). I have Savage 10 in 223 but I do not load those 75 HPBT for that gun because I cannot load long (they won't chamber; or if I force them to, the bullet gets set back).
Yes, it will stabilize the Barnes 70 gr all copper. There is a stability calculator available free that will help you see this on paper before buying the bullets and confirming it.
http://jbmballistics.com/ballistics/calculators/calculators.shtml
I suggest you check your chamber length/throat by making a dummy cartridge, no crimp, just barely start the bullet. Load it and close the bolt (some effort will be needed). You just measured your max COAL, remove the cartridge, measure it on calipers and write it down. I have two Savages in 223: one wont close on anything longer than 2.26", the other will take longer 2.36". The longer length is useful with the heavy longer bullets. But the ammo wont be interchangeable.
I have shot 40 to 75 gr bullets in 224 with 1:9 twist.
 
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Thanks guys for the help.

BWM, good thing I do have time for loading, unfortunately don't have very much time for the range as much as I would like to.

I did end up getting the Varget but they didn't have Benchmark and did get both CCI 450 and CCI BR4. Since I have 4064, guess will give it a try as well. When I run out of the 60gr V Max will move up to 69gr... just still deciding what manufacturer to go with.
 
My friend just returned from nationals shooting a 200 at 200 with a Hornady 75 eld and 4064. Bolt gun, not mag length but still pretty awesome. FWIW, even after that he is moving to Varget and a bigger bullet for longer than 200. His attention to ammo detail, is .... obsessive. It does help.
 
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