223 Rem 69 gr Rounds/Loads

[Iggy]

G'day all
I finally have a Savage 16FSS in .223 Remington with a 1:9 twist 22" barrel. As well as hunting, I will be shooting F Class Standard using the Sierra 69 gr HPBT MatchKing [out to 700Yds max]. I want to develop a round for my rifle using components available from the VRA shop.

What components are people using and why?

What are some good starting and if possible, accurate loads people are currently using?

Thanks

[Peter Marum]

Iggy,
Start with some good brass,ie. remington or lapua.
use either rem 7.5 or cci br4 small rifle primers, the rest wont cut the mustard
try starting loads of 24.7 of 2208, then work your loads up very carefully from this point.
69 grn projectile are ok to 500, then would use 80grn after that.

Peter

[Iggy]

Thanks Peter.

I will stick with 69 gr as I do not believe the 1:9 twist will stabilise the 80 gr. It will be easier to just have a single load that shoots accurately from this rifle rather than mixing short and long loads. After I get back into the swing of shooting, I will look at a more specialised rifle/cartridge for F Std or possibly F Open.

Iggy

ps
Any further suggestions anyone?

[pjifl]

A 1 in 9 inch twist 223 barrel I once used certainly did not stabilize 80 grain Sierra SMK projectiles. They were lucky to give a 40 foot (Seriously) group at 600 yards.

Actual twists may be a little out from nominal and the above may not be a definitive result.

I hate to say it - but I personally believe the 69 is just not competitive - especially from a 22 inch barrel. Except maybe at 300 under very good conditions. BUT - give it a go.

My recollections were that the projectiles had a long bearing surface and pressures were higher than expected. Tougher primers as some have mentioned are worthwhile - especially if using a thicker firing pin such as an OMark conversion. (I know this is not the case here.)

Peter Smith.

[Iggy]

Thanks Peter.

I will be primarily using the rifle for hunting and then F Class Standard...mainly to develop some skills in reading and offsetting for wind. If the rifle/load is not particular good at the longer distances, the upgrade to a decent F Class rifle may come sooner than later.

Iggy

[pjifl]

Iggy wrote

I will be primarily using the rifle for hunting and then F Class Standard...mainly to develop some skills in reading and offsetting for wind. If the rifle/load is not particular good at the longer distances, the upgrade to a decent F Class rifle may come sooner than later.

=======================================

There are plenty of quite cheap target rifles around secondhand. Mostly in 308. Talk to club members about them and availability. These are stiffer and more solid and much easier to get to shoot really well. Many bargains abound here. Use what you have for a little while and decide what you want and look around.

Peter Smith.

[Paul Janzso]

Tikka Varmint, Super Varmint and the Tactical have 1:8 twist barrels and stabalize the 80gn Sierra MK's out to 1,000 yards no probs.
Why not go back to where you brought the rifle and see if you can upgrade to a Tikka? Explain that the Savage does not suit what you want it for.

Cheers
p b

[RDavies]

I cant help with exact loads, but another shooter at my club uses a 223 with 69gn sierras in a 9" twist. It shoots OK up to 600 meters, but it seams to go subsonic by 700 meters, but he was using a fairly mild load (23.5gns of 2206H) . With 69gn pills, you might want to try 2206H instead. When he used 75gn Bergers, he was able to get to 1000yds OK, but his load was slightly warmer, though certainly not high pressure. He has a 26" barrel. With a warmer load, you should be able to get to 700 meters, but you might want to try 75gn Berger VLDs at longer range.

[RDavies]

We just shot at 800m today and the 223 shoter used 69gn sierras again. This time he used 24.5gns 2206H and the bullets hit the target sideways. Most of the time, they still got to the target, so they must have just gone subsonic in the last 50 meters or so. He will try 24.7gns next time he shoots at 800 meters. His most accurate load was with 23.5gns of 2206H with his 26" barrel. He is just shooting this barrel out until he can get an 8" twist to shoot the proper 80gn pills.

[pjifl]

First, a correction.

I previously mentioned extremely poor results with 80 grain 223 Sierras in a 9 inch twist barrel.

I looked up my records and it was a 10 inch twist barrel. Sorry for the error.

At one time I shot 62 grain ADI 223 projectiles from the 10 inch twist barrel in 223 and could achieve reasonable and consistent results back to 900 yards. They did not go through the target sideways. BUT the wind performance was very significantly behind a 308 (back then using 142 ADI projectiles) Never used the 69 grain projectiles seriously back the - they were not allowed for competition.

If you are buying new, just go for an 8 inch twist (or a very close equivalent). They do work well.

Peter Smith.

[mike H]

Check the current ADI Handloaders Guide. No need to go mad for velocity, however no need to put the brakes on either. Used 26 grs of 2206H, Remington 7 1/2, 69 Sierra, today at 300 yards.Scored 58/60. A better shot could have got 60. This was with a Ruger 1/8, 26" barrel.
Saw 69 grain factory used at Rosedale a couple of months ago, out to 800 yards. Couldn`t see much to complain about.
Unless you intend to travel the Australian Qeens Circuit, why worry, Just use the 69 grain Sierra`s and enjoy yourself. However please give the 80 grain SMK projectiles a fair test before condemming them.

Mike H.

[haemish762]

Hey there, i have some 69gn sierra for sale in the for sale section if you or anyone you know are interested.
Cheers Haemish

[Iggy]

Thanks for all of the replies. I have 100 Lapua .223 Rem cases, AR2208 powder, CCI BR-4 primers and the Sierra 69gr SMKs. I will start around the 24.7 gr mark as suggested and work up carefully. Another site I frequent suggested that 25.5 gr of Varget [listed as a similar burn rate to 2208] was about the optimum...seems to be in the ballpark. Anyway, when I get the load sorted, I will post it.

Thanks all