.223 - 62gr FMJ + TAC - Just sharing load data and chrono readings.

[Click_Here]

Sorry probably an ad nauseum topic but I was pleasantly surprised with my handloads consistency today. Just wanted to share.
Hornady 62gr FMJ + TAC
2.226 COL
Tula SRMP
MHS Brass
Crimped (FCD)
Fired out of FN 20" 1:7


24.2gr (Most accurate)
1. 2909
2. 2889
3. 2900
4. 2907
5. 2900
ES: 20
SD: 7

24.5gr
1. 2947
2. 2923
3. 2934
4. 2934
5. 2929
ES: 24
SD: 8

25.0gr - Caution - This is above published max load from recent Hornady load data.
1. 3003
2. 2978
3. 3014
4. 2965
5. 2966
ES: 49
SD: 22

 

[Soonerpesek]

Good work, man…

 

[DMW1116]

Haven’t ventured into the 62 FMJ region. I stuck with 55 grain projectiles for my 20” w/ 1/7 twist. I will keep this in mind though as sometimes the 62 grain projectiles are on sale for less than the 55 grain ones. I have found Tac to be quite good for lighter projectiles though: 52 grain HPBT, 55 grain FMJ & Soft Point.

 

[AJC1]

Haven’t ventured into the 62 FMJ region. I stuck with 55 grain projectiles for my 20” w/ 1/7 twist. I will keep this in mind though as sometimes the 62 grain projectiles are on sale for less than the 55 grain ones. I have found Tac to be quite good for lighter projectiles though: 52 grain HPBT, 55 grain FMJ & Soft Point.

223 or 308 in the design bullet range are gooder. 55-69 or 147-165ish good to go. Heavier go slower

 

[Click_Here]

Haven’t ventured into the 62 FMJ region. I stuck with 55 grain projectiles for my 20” w/ 1/7 twist. I will keep this in mind though as sometimes the 62 grain projectiles are on sale for less than the 55 grain ones. I have found Tac to be quite good for lighter projectiles though: 52 grain HPBT, 55 grain FMJ & Soft Point.

I found that Exterminator was good for the 55’s and that TAC was good for almost everything from 55gr up to 68gr. So I stopped buying exterminator and just buy TAC for my bulk plinkers to cover whatever projectiles 55-68 when I come across a good deal.

 

[AJC1]

I found that Exterminator was good for the 55’s and that TAC was good for almost everything from 55gr up to 68gr. So I stopped buying exterminator and just buy TAC for my bulk plinkers to cover whatever projectiles 55-68 when I come across a good deal.

I edited my post tac is great at 69 grains for both smk and rmr. I spend most of my time 69 grains or heavier.

 

[2ndtimer]

I settled on the Hornady 62 gr BTHP and 24.5 gr of Ramshot TAC for my main load for AR’s. The bullet was offered solely by MidSouth Shooters Supply and is no longer available. According to Hornady, it is not currently in production. I haven’t tried the 62 gr FMJ, but I guess I should.

 

[DMW1116]

That explains why I couldn’t find it there. I have some factory 62 grain Hornady Black. I think it’s the BTHP. I’m working on a FMJ training load and a higher performance (more $$) BTHP load.

 

[2ndtimer]

Sorry probably an ad nauseum topic but I was pleasantly surprised with my handloads consistency today. Just wanted to share.
Hornady 62gr FMJ + TAC
2.226 COL
Tula SRMP
MHS Brass
Crimped (FCD)
Fired out of 20" 1:7


24.2gr (Most accurate)
1. 2909
2. 2889
3. 2900
4. 2907
5. 2900
ES: 20
SD: 7

24.5gr
1. 2947
2. 2923
3. 2934
4. 2934
5. 2929
ES: 24
SD: 8

25.0gr - Caution - This is above published max load from recent Hornady load data.
1. 3003
2. 2978
3. 3014
4. 2965
5. 2966
ES: 49
SD: 22

Just out of curiosity, what kind of groups were you getting with your most accurate load and the 62 gr Hornady FMJ?

 

[Click_Here]

Just out of curiosity, what kind of groups were you getting with your most accurate load and the 62 gr Hornady FMJ?

W/ Front sandbag @50 yards. 4x Optic. I didnt have a flier so I think one of rounds went into that slightly bigger hole in the middle

 

[lordpaxman]

I’ve got both 55 and 62gr bullets and need to work up loads for the 62. When you’re used to loading 3 grains for 9mm, even the smaller .223 case really consumes a lot of powder on the progressive. I usually use H335 but there’s a lot of TAC users so I’m thinking I need to try that soon. Thanks for the range report.

 

[DMW1116]

I know everyone will have different results but Tac has been more accurate in my 55 grain FMJ loads than H335. Switch to a 52 grain match bullet and I can’t tell a difference.

 

[2ndtimer]

I’ve got both 55 and 62gr bullets and need to work up loads for the 62. When you’re used to loading 3 grains for 9mm, even the smaller .223 case really consumes a lot of powder on the progressive. I usually use H335 but there’s a lot of TAC users so I’m thinking I need to try that soon. Thanks for the range report.

TAC replaced H-335 for me years ago (back when I ordered 3 8 lb kegs for $79.99 each). Lately, I ordered a pound of Shooters World AR Plus in my never ending search for affordable effective components and was quite surprised how well it worked with 55 gr bullets in my AR’s. It is even cheaper than TAC, and if still available at a lower price might get the nod the next time my TAC supply runs low.

 

[MarshallDodge]

I know everyone will have different results but Tac has been more accurate in my 55 grain FMJ loads than H335. Switch to a 52 grain match bullet and I can’t tell a difference.

Brand of match bullet?

You are seeing no difference between that bullet and a 55 FMJ?

 

[DMW1116]

No I meant I can’t tell a difference between powders with the match bullet. It’s a Barnes Match Burner and definitely shoots better than the FMJ.

 

[Dane R. Marley]

W/ Front sandbag @50 yards. 4x Optic. I didnt have a flier so I think one of rounds went into that slightly bigger hole in the middle


View attachment 1169643

How long is your barrel?

Thank You for the Info!

 

[Click_Here]

How long is your barrel?

Thank You for the Info!

FN 20” 1:7 twist
It’s a really old barrel, bought it used. The finish is all worn, probably an old training barrel or its been through some “stuff”, wish I knew.

 

[Click_Here]

TAC replaced H-335 for me years ago (back when I ordered 3 8 lb kegs for $79.99 each). Lately, I ordered a pound of Shooters World AR Plus in my never ending search for affordable effective components and was quite surprised how well it worked with 55 gr bullets in my AR’s. It is even cheaper than TAC, and if still available at a lower price might get the nod the next time my TAC supply runs low.

In that never ending search MP 450 "Similar to TAC" from American Reloading might be an option for you, comes out to $22.49/lb. I'm tempted but I don't want to buy 8lbs to "test".

 

[FROGO207]

Well the TAC and 55 grainers have gone together like PB&jelly in all three of my Mini 14's. Most accurate. Also 55-65 grain bullets with TAC in my 1:8.5 Shelin 20 inch barrel are all good and accurate. No loads I tested were less than 1.5 MOA, best were .5 or so. I have alot of TAC to burn up so not tried developing loads with anything else yet. I'd rather use my primers on proven loads for now. OP thanks for your sharing of your results.

 

[Shovel]

I just got around to tuning a ladder of a similar load. Too lazy to take photos, but (for my rifle, only - do not use for any of your stuff):

62 Gr Hornady FMJBT w/cannelure
AA2230 powder (have lots of it)
Winchester small rifle primers
LC-95 brass - trim length 1.745", full sized length 1.751"
OAL bullet seated = 2.230", light crimp
Dillon XL650, RCBS dies. Only weighed 1st charge after weight changes
Colt H-Bar Match Target, 1:7 twist, 20" barrel
Old Bausch & Lomb 3 - 9 scope
100 Yards, 90F, variable wind, off my range bag with a rolled towel under the stock

10 Round groups:
24.2 Gr ran around 2960 FPS. 1" w/15 SD
24.0 Gr was 2930, 1" w/17 SD
23.8 Gr was 2900, 3/4" w/17 SD
23.6 Gr was 2885, 1" w/29 SD

I wasn't expecting much due to the Hornady cannelures needing a deeper seating and more throat jump than anything else I've loaded. Pleasantly surprised and pland on putting up 2K of these for practice rounds. Expect I'll need to go play with some slower powders for any bullet weights above this.

Long story short - the Hornady 62 Gr seem to like around 2900 FPS in a 1:7 twist.

 

[2ndtimer]

In that never ending search MP 450 "Similar to TAC" from American Reloading might be an option for you, comes out to $22.49/lb. I'm tempted but I don't want to buy 8lbs to "test".

I only laughed because I bought all 3 of the 8 lb kegs without actually trying it. I trusted a gun writer from Montana (John Barsness) who extolled the virtues of TAC in .223 Rem., claiming he fired 500 rounds without cleaning his barrel with no significant accuracy loss, so I figured for $10 per pound, why not spread out the hazmat fee….

 

[Charlie98]

The bullet was offered solely by MidSouth Shooters Supply and is no longer available.

I've got some of those, too. At not much more than cheapo 55grn FMJ bullets, the better quality and accuracy of those 62's was really, really nice. I hope Hornady runs those again one day.


Thanks for the data report. I'm actually working it backwards... I bought TAC to replace IMR3031/IMR4895/IMR4064 in my .30's, and I'm hoping it will replace H335 for the 5.56mm... which I'm sure it will, H335 does not have a very tall threshold to beat. I've got my preliminary test ladder for the 5.56mm, those will be fired in my 20" Colt H-bar compared to the same load with H335.

It works really well in .308 in particular, to include my M1a, and even my Savage bolt gun... where the 168grn SMK load with TAC narrowly edged out the Gold Standard of IMR4064, which impressed me.

I will say... in my experience... TAC does NOT like Magnum primers. I loaded a short ladder for the .308 Savage, the only difference being a standard CCI LR primer vs a Magnum (CCI Arsenal) primer... and it was like night and day. YMMV, of course.

 

[MarshallDodge]

I settled on the Hornady 62 gr BTHP and 24.5 gr of Ramshot TAC for my main load for AR’s. The bullet was offered solely by MidSouth Shooters Supply and is no longer available. According to Hornady, it is not currently in production. I haven’t tried the 62 gr FMJ, but I guess I should.

They seem to come in batches. I think they were $0.10 each the first time a batch was released years ago. Then they bumped up the price a little but had stock for a while, right up to the pandemic.

Hopefully they release them again as they perform really well for the money.

 

[Viking painter]

Older thread but had to share my experience with hornady 62 gr fmjbt and tac. Tac is all I use for 62 gr m855 clone loads with the fmj gen2 bullet and I’ve done a buttload of load development with these. I started in the 23.8-25 gr range and found a couple nodes one was at 24.2 and one at 25. Once I got a chronograph, I found that these loads were under the mark I was going for and the sd’s were crap. Now I’ve went all the way up to 5.56 nato max and back down again to find 25.5 gr at 2.230 was the sweet spot I was looking for. 16” 1:7 mid gas 5.56 nato, LC22 brass trimmed to 1.748, ginex srp, 25.5 gr at 2.230, 295 fps avg, es 18 sd 7. 3/4” groups at 100 yds. I liked these projectiles so much I bought 8000 of them on a deal for $.09 each and glad I did because they’re $.11-$.14 ea now. 25.4 and 25.6 gr weren’t all that bad either, sd under 20.