best bullet for the 1:12 twist rate .223 bolt action savage 200
hi i was just wondering if anyone out there had already researched this subject. i have a stevens 200 .223 made by savage arms the barrel has a twist of 1:12 i was looking for the best weight bullet to fire in it... here are a few things i am looking to accomplish..i want to shoot distance greater than 400m i would like to do it as accurately as possible never took a long range shot so my expectations arent to high ... im also looking to maybe hunt large and medium game not wanting to take long range shots with the larger game. just looking for the best bullet .... also let me know what you think of the varmint gernades....
55 or 63 grain bullets stabilize best with a 1:12 twist in 24 to 26 inch barrels. Shorter ones such as 20 and 22 inch, should do well with 50 to 55 grains in a 1:12 twist.
But the above are best for ranges less than 400 yards. Longer ranges usually need heavier bullets and faster twists so those little bullets buck the wind better.
what would be the best for the twist and range... whats the military use? there twist is alot less i understand i have a 22 inch barrell .. what would a heavy bullet do would it hurt the range or increase it?
Military uses the 55gr.. Unless they;re special ops then they use what's best suite for them and any mission they may go or be on and it isn't always .223. Some are even using 6.8spc and 6.5Grendel even from what I've read and seen on Weaponology with Mack.
Some of which is still being tested.
If I understand it right, the lower the twist rate, meaning 1:8 and or 1:7 can use heavier bullets i.e. 75gr. and the higher the twist 1:12 1:13 use the lighter bullets i.e. 55gr.. And the ones in the middle 1:9 can use anywhere from 55gr-69 gr. Least that's what I took from he read I linked in my previous post???
Personally, with 1:9 I like and prefer 62gr..
As for that specific rifle, you'll have to try different weights with different loads to find the "best" for that rifle. Reloading will give you the best chance of doing that. Other then that you'll have to find a factory round that it likes best. And with either you will be able to tell...
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Last edited by GlockMeister; 12-15-2009 at 10:40 PM.
A 1in12" will handle up to 55gr.If using 55gr and under there are advantages to a 1in12"twist but the ideal twist for all around,according to the gun guru,s is 1in9"twist. ,,,sam.
As Sam says, your 1 in 12 will probably be best with up to 55gn bullets but I think you're P-ing into the wind if you're expecting great accuracy past 300 yards.
The 1 in 9 twist is OK with up to about 70gn bullets but if you want to shoot long range you'll need a faster twist which can stabilise the heavier bullets, 70-90 grains are commonly used for long range.
The Miltary rifles are 1 in 7 twist and the standard Nato 5.56 ammo is 62 grain not 55gn.
My 5.56 barrels are 1 in 7 & 1 in 8.
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How can I 'Soar with the Eagles' when I'm working with such 'Turkeys'!
If stamped .223 Rem. you can only shoot .223,no 5.56.The reason is two-fold,higher pressure loads and 5.56 has a longer chamber throat than .223 and both can cause high pressures in .223 chambers into the 70something range. You can reload military brass to loadbook specs starting at minimum and working to max and watching for pressure signs. I would stay 1gr below max.You must remove primer crimp from primer pocket before attemting to seat primer. ,,,sam.
Once you reload you can do all sorts of good things.
Because my AR15 is a straight-pull bolt action only rifle, some 5.56 nato ammo causes fairly tight primary extraction, to get round this issue, I just pull the heads, dump some powder out and reload with the pulled heads. Mexican match style. Good plinking rounds for up to 3/400 yards.
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How can I 'Soar with the Eagles' when I'm working with such 'Turkeys'!
with a 1 in 12 twist the barrel is best matched to a 55gr round. Like a 1in14 twist is best matched to 52 or 53 grain rounds. At least that what i have come across in all my searching.
Regarding the .223 vs 5.56 NATO round's interchangeability, consider the following.....
The 5.56 mm NATO and .223 Remington cartridges and chamberings are similar but not identical. Military cases are generally made from thicker brass than commercial cases; this reduces the powder capacity (an important consideration for handloaders), and the NATO specification allows a higher chamber pressure. NATO EPVAT test barrels made for 5.56 mm NATO measure chamber pressure at the case mouth, as opposed to the location used by the United States civil standards organization SAAMI. The piezoelectric sensors or transducers NATO and SAAMI use to conduct the actual pressure measurements also differ. This difference in measurement method accounts for upwards of 137.9 MPa (20,000 psi) difference in pressure measurements. This means the NATO EPVAT maximum service pressure of 430 MPa (62,366 psi) for 5.56 mm NATO, is reduced by SAAMI to 379.21 MPa (55,000 psi) for .223 Remington. In contrast to SAAMI, the other main civil standards organization C.I.P. defines the maximum service and proof test pressures of the .223 Remington cartridge equal to the 5.56 mm NATO.
The 5.56 mm NATO chambering, known as a NATO or mil-spec chamber, has a longer leade, which is the distance between the mouth of the cartridge and the point at which the rifling engages the bullet. The .223 Remington chambering, known as SAAMI chamber, is allowed to have a shorter leade, and is only required to be proof tested to the lower SAAMI chamber pressure. To address these issues, various proprietary chambers exist, such as the Wylde chamber (Rock River Arms) or the ArmaLite chamber, which are designed to handle both 5.56 mm NATO and .223 Remington equally well. The dimensions and leade of the .223 Remington minimum C.I.P. chamber also differ from the 5.56 mm NATO chamber specification.
Using commercial .223 Remington cartridges in a 5.56 mm NATO chambered rifle should work reliably, but generally will not be as accurate as when fired from a .223 Remington chambered gun due to the longer leade. Using 5.56 mm NATO mil-spec cartridges (such as the M855) in a .223 Remington chambered rifle can lead to excessive wear and stress on the rifle and even be unsafe, and the SAAMI recommends against the practice.
Some commercial rifles marked as ".223 Remington" are in fact suited for 5.56 mm NATO, such as many commercial AR-15 variants and the Ruger Mini-14, but the manufacturer should always be consulted to verify that this is acceptable before attempting it, and signs of excessive pressure (such as flattening or gas staining of the primers) should be looked for in the initial testing with 5.56 mm NATO ammunition.
In contrast to the above on what's safe to do, SAAMI's web site:
...says not to use the military version in rifles marked for the civilian version. And there's no mention of the 7.62 NATO vs .308 Win. issues on this site.
so is it safe to use the case trimed and sized for the 224 ? i was finding alot of once fired military brass cheap was wandering if i could reload it to 223 specs?
If it's marked .223 then NO, you shouldn't use 5.56. But if it's marked 5.56, then it's safe to use either...
so icant use the brass to reload my 223 ? another thing why do we have 223 with mil crimps if the military usess 556? i mean noone replaces them in the semi reloads so why are they there?
so icant use the brass to reload my 223 ? another thing why do we have 223 with mil crimps if the military usess 556? i mean noone replaces them in the semi reloads so why are they there?
Yes,you can use 5.56 brass to reload your .223.Just reduce the load by one grain and watch for pressure signs working back up.Weigh the cases and segragate by weight.If the mil case is thicker it will show up in heavier cases.It is seldom I find much difference.BartB posted a good article,read it well.Where the danger comes from is manufactured,already loaded ammo,not your reloads which will be .223 loads. ,,,sam.
