BEST load for 16" .223 barrel on AR15?

KATTRAKER

KATTRAKER

Member
What bullet and powder combo have you found that works best in your AR? Twist rate in this example is 1:9

Any one have any luck with 50-55 grn bullets?
 
50-55's should shoot well. My 9 twist shoots 75gr hpbt real good as well.

I dont have a 16" barrel though, an will be curious as to what others have to say about them. I would think that faster burning powders will work best though. Slower powders wont burn completely in a 16" barrel.
 
I have an 18" bushmaster predator 9 twist. It likes a light load of H4895 with 53gr SMK's. Great for targets but rather slow for hunting. I load the 50gr Nosler BT's over a heavy load of H4895 for yotes. Longest shot on a yote has been 450 yards. I have been unable get anything over 55gr bullets to stabilize.
 
Cheap 55gr Dog Town bullets (Midway brand) and Varget work great as do 60gr VMax with Varget. Great accuracy and velocity. I have a 1-8 twist.
 
I have two 1/9 twist ARs (16") and use Ramshot's X-Terminator and TAC, as well as Winchester 748 with a lot of different bullet weights and designs...I'm not at home for the next few weeks, so my data is not with me...You really need to work up your own loads anyway..

I usually start one full grain below published max loads and work up a bunch of test loads in .1gr increments...My most accurate loads usually fall between .4gr and .7gr below max listed...I don't settle for less than five shots touching at 100 yards and don't usually have a problem finding that level..
 
I agree with OldTurtle and be aware that bullet manufactures have lower maximum powder loads listed than the powder manufacturers. For example, Noslers max might be Hodgdon's mid charge recipe in many calibers. The idea is to work up a safe load in your particular gun.
 
I have been handloading for 7 years. I am a conservative fellow in my handloads (and in general).

I have a heavy barrel ruger 6MM bolt gun that has killed hundreds of prairie dogs. I have loaded and tested it every way you can think of. No matter what, that gun is the most accurate at 2 grains below max listed. So long ago I quit trying to push it and was happy to have 1/4 " groups. All of those dead PD's dont know the difference.

This is my first 16" AR15 and I am just looking for a starting point. In general, I like to use light fast bullets for hunting coyotes. I knew going in that I would lose some velocity with a shorter barrel, I am just looking for input and a starting point. I appreciate any real life experience and observations you might have to guide me.

I am thinking that a shorter barrel would benefit from a faster burning powder, and maybe heavier bullets. But every gun likes something different...
 
26.6 gr of Win 748 was the long-time accuracy load for a 55gr bullet. My 16"AR prefers 27gr. With a 9 twist you need to be aware of RPM on lighter bullets, like TNT's, Dogtowns, and SPSX bullets. They generally have a RPM limit of around 230,000rpm. Which equates to just under 3000fps.
 
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