Having fun with Blue Dot

Rustydust

Rustydust

Active member
I was at the range yesterday just enjoying the weather and shooting a few guns with a couple of friends. I bought along my .243 AI that I had loaded with the 'economy' 55 grain Nosler spire points. I had some new .243 brass loaded with 18.5 grains of Blue Dot to push them along with. I put this gun together with the original thought of a long range varminter and it does this well but it's bit much for popping the local ground squirrel population with. I did shoot a few Nevada ground squirrels with this load and it worked well but I may have forgot how accurate it was. My first two shots were not just touching but in the same hole. Excited now I shot another one just just opened the group a tiny bit. After a bit of (good natured?) ribbing from the others that it had to be a fluke I decided to fire two more into it a bit later. Rats. I should have stopped at a three shot as after the barrel cooled some my next two shots opened up the group to around 3/8" of and inch. Still, not bad and one that I sure plan on shooting more of. I have had great results shooting BD in my .223 too and plan on using it more in the future. Quiet (fairly) and accurate and will toss a squirrel just fine. Lot to like right there.
 
Originally Posted By: Bowhntr6ptWow... great shooting Russ.

Thanks, Bob. Now then! If I could do that every time I go to the range that would be something for sure.
 
40 grain zmax and 13 grains Blue Dot sent a lot of prairie dogs to that big mound in the sky this summer. You can sure get a lot of rounds out of a pound.
 
Originally Posted By: pdog206240 grain zmax and 13 grains Blue Dot sent a lot of prairie dogs to that big mound in the sky this summer. You can sure get a lot of rounds out of a pound.

Are you referring to loads for the .223 here? If so then yes, that works really well in my .223 too. Almost amazing how good it shoots.
 
Congrats, Russ!!!

I shoot 14g of Blue Dot in my 223, 40's at 3200 and they group 1.5" at 200 yards. 14.3 is a max load for my gun, but with 40g V max or Blitz kings, I sure have wasted a lot of squirrels. Great load for not tearing up cats also, but I slow the load down to 12g and use a 40g Nosler bT.
 
Thanks, Keith but dont forget that you helped to reignite my interest in using Blue Dot several months ago. It just works so well for low to medium power loads that I have no desire to even try anything else. Save the high power stuff for when it's needed and use Blue Dot for everything else.
 
I also have been using Blue Dot out of my 223 with 40 grain Blitz Kings I was shocked at the group's I was getting. Some of the tightest groups that my TC Contender has ever seen was with blue dot.
 
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I had a 221 that I shot 10g in and a 223 with a low power load of 12g(40@3000 fps) and high power(40g at 3200). I would only clean the low power load rifles every 600 rounds....SWEET! I went 900 rounds on the fire ball once, but had to brush with JB to get the powder out.
 
Keith, I have used those very two loads in my .221 and my .223 and have just settled on them as being the best for my needs. Even though that 18.5 grains of Blue Dot grouped very well it was in .243 brass and only 2900 fps. When I try .243 AI brass I am going to try 19, 19.5, and 20 grains and see how it does. If I hit 3000 fps using the 55 grain bullet and excellent accuracy then I will be done I think.

BTW- 10 grains of BD in the .17 Remington works well too!
 
I load 10.5grn of Bludot with a 40grn Vmax for my son. Never put them on paper but they blow up water bottles out to 100 yards just fine.
 
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Originally Posted By: BrownieWhat kind of velocities are you getting or is this just for foreforming brass??

12 grains of BD in my .223 with a 40 grain bullet is right at 3000 fps
When shooting 18.5 grains using new .243 brass in my .243 AI it is in the low to middle 2900 fps range. It is not quite hot enough to fireform the brass all the way but one more firing should take care of it. I'm tempted to step it up another grain or so but it shoots so dang good like it is so I guess I wont.
 
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