Sierra MatchKing .223 69 Grain HPBT Load

I did not get anywhere with a 1:8 barrel and 69gr SMKs with H335. I have used IMR4895 with good results.

Some other places you might want to look are:
http://www.usrifleteams.com/forums/index.php?& (you'll have to register)
http://radomski.us/njhp/
http://www.shootingtimes.com/ammunition/st223_120606/index.html
http://www.northfloridashooting.com/Misc/Reloading for the AR15.htm
http://www.whiteoakprecision.com/info-reloading.htm

From John Holliger's of White Oak suggestions ...
69 gr Sierra (overall length 2.25")
Powder Type Grains
Reloader 15 24.0 to 24.8
This is my favorite load with the 69 grain bullet. It is extremely
accurate and consistent. Very good velocity.

Varget 24.0 to 25.0
Very accurate. You may have trouble obtaining the velocity of faster
burning powders. Also, Varget powder burns dirtier than Reloader 15.

AA 2460 23.5 to 24.0
Very accurate and excellent load. It is a ball powder, so it measures
very well. No chronograph data.

Hogdon 4895 24.0
Shoots very well, but it does not meter very well, as it is a medium
stick powder.
/Bryan

My most accurate results so far with my 16" middy with a 1 in 9 twist are with 23 gr. of H335, a WSRP pushing the same 69 gr. SMK BTHPs.

I've had a hard time tracking down H335 locally with all the crazyness going on, so I snagged a couple pounds of H322, but haven't tried it yet.

Benchrest Primer book had article on AR with 69gr SMK in Wylde chambered long barreled rifle.

H322 was one of the better powders in the list. The article is somewhat old and didn't have Varget or VV powders.

I use AA2230, R15, and Varget for 69gr SMK and 75gr Hornady BTHP. I like AA2230 because it is easy to measure, cheap and made some very consistent loads. 23gr for any of the these powders should do quite well. I've gone as high as 26.5 with R15 and Varget, but performance was down. Velocity was over 3000fps in 20in barreled AR in the max loads.

Try mag length (2.26in OAL) and then single shot length (varies by rifle).

IMR 4198 is my most accurate .223 powder

According to my modified Powley Computer a powder like Reloader 15 or IMR4064 would be ideal. If you choice is ONLY H335 or H322, then go with H335, it's slower, but it's still way to quick for best results. 1:8 twist is plenty fast, should work fine. Greenhill calculation says 1:10 is adiquite.

Some good info here. I like 4895 (IMR or Hodgdon) and Varget. BL-C(2) is a good substitute but not quite as consistent as the others I mentioned.

+1 on the IMR4895, not the fastest velocity, but very accurate. This powder shoots the tightest groups in my Mini-14, 2.5" at 100 yds pretty consistently.

Couldn't get 69SMKs to fly good out of my 8" twist RRA. 60gr Sierra Varminters over 24gr of H335 shoot very good at 100yrds, .5" for 5 shot groups, and right around an inch for 10 shots.

Range Hound,

Not a problem. Should of caught that first time around.

Bullet length, cartridge length, and cartridge capacity can all have significant impact on powder selection. I've assumed those numbers in this model, since I don't have your specific bullet, action/magazine/throat, or brand(s) of empty cases to measure and average. Let me know if you'd like to see some other values plugged-in for those.

From John Holliger's of White Oak suggestions ...
69 gr Sierra (overall length 2.25")
Powder Type Grains
Reloader 15 24.0 to 24.8
This is my favorite load with the 69 grain bullet. It is extremely
accurate and consistent. Very good velocity.

Click to expand...

I think it's interesting that my mathematical model is in agreement with Canuck and this guy John Holliger (whoever he is). Reoloader 15 is the way to go. It’s satisfying to see validation of my equations and methods from real-world shooters. The beauty is I never had to fire a shot (leave my couch, try nineteen other loads that didn‘t work, or even own a .223), and I already have the makings of a promising Pet Load.

The program is my own creation. It's just a MS Works spreadsheet, and I tweak on it constantly. If my time was worth ten cents an hour I would of been WAY ahead buying a commercial program like Load-From-A-Disk.

But it's been fun making my own. It does exactly what I want, and displays it how I want to see it. I might add a momentum scale next. See how that compares to the other performance indicators.

There's a free online Powley Computer here:

http://kwk.us/powley.html

24.5 grains of Varget with a 69 SMK does the trick for me in my bolt gun. Just loaded 50 rounds tonight with Lapua brass and CCI BR primers. I've had groups as small as .3" w/my Savage 12FV, and I'm a lousy shot.

I think it's interesting that my mathematical model is in agreement with Canuck and this guy John Holliger (whoever he is)

Click to expand...

FYI ... he's the owner of White Oak Precision - very popular highpower builder and many time IL state HP winner.
http://www.whiteoakprecision.com/
/B

Thanks for the information in this thread. I ended up shooting some of my best groups to date last weekend out of an older Colt HBAR. Using the 69 grain SMK and 24.2 grains of Reloader 15.

Reloader 15 24.0 grns, Rem 7 1/2 primer

My experiences with a 1 in 9 twist varminter were 2-3 MOA groups with 4064(not acceptable) and 1.1MOA groups around 25 grains of varget and 1.1 MOA can't remember how much of R15. My last hope is IMR4895 which is loaded and ready to shoot when the wind lays!

YMMV

I have had good results with RL15, Varget, and Tac.

JDGray said:

Couldn't get 69SMKs to fly good out of my 8" twist RRA. 60gr Sierra Varminters over 24gr of H335 shoot very good at 100yrds, .5" for 5 shot groups, and right around an inch for 10 shots.

Click to expand...

My RRA shoots 69gr SMKs with excellent results with 1 in 8 twist. It hates 55 gr, but shoots 53 gr almost as well as the 69gr. Go figure............
BTW I use Varget for powder.

I'm just getting started reloading, but I've had good luck with 22.7gr of H335 behind a 69gr SMK out of my 16" AR-15 (LaRue Stealth with a Lothar-Walther 1:8 barrel). Sub-MOA five- to seven-shot groups at 100 yards are par for the course if I do my part. I hope to see even more consistency once I perfect my reloading scheme and get some good brass.

I've had good results with Varget too, but the H335 seems to be a hair better in my very limited testing so far.

In my exactly one year of reloading, I've used the following powders for my 69 gr. SMK's:

Varget - 24.0 to 25.0 gr. I have several batches, which I steadily increased, and I have no intentions of going further - I get great accuracy from the 25.0 gr loads, and really good accuracy from the 24.2, and 24.5 gr. loads.

IMR 4895 - I had initially bought two different powder types, and gave this stuff a try.

I had some phenomenal (to me anyhow) shooting using 22.7 gr. of 4895. 3 shot strings touching each other, at 100 yards, and covered up by a US Quarter at 150 yards. These are from two sandbag rests, and not quite rapid fire, but not the cooling down/cleaning in between each shot either.

The rifles used were:

My old reliable 16" Rock River Arms Elite Car A4, My project rifle I built for my son which is an 18" Larue Stealth Sniper upper on a Tactical Innovations lower, and my Steyr Jeff Cooper Scout rifle. The COL were at 2.260", and I used pre-primed Remington cases in the Varget and 4895, and just the Varget in some Lake City once fired cases with a CCI 400 primer. The Remington pre-primed cases provided better overall accuracy, possibly because they were brand new, or I haven't developed great case prep skills yet. I'm still trying to learn this art myself. I hope the info is useful to you - have fun and stay safe.

-tc

For years the Camp Perry match load was 24.5 H4895, gi cases, Remington or Winchester primers and the 69mk for the AR-15 service rifle. Still hard to beat that load today with an AR.....consistant and accurate over the course.

Interesting thread and timely. I just cranked out my first 50 .223 AR reloads this afternoon. Used 24 grains of IMR 4895 over a 55 grain Sierra pill. Can't wait to try it out.