55 grain .223 Remington Powder of Choice
Strictly for Highest Velocity with Supreme Accuracy, look no further than Alliant Reloder 10x. Hodgdon H335 cannot hold a candle to 10x velocitywise. Ramshot X-Terminator held my attention for quite awhile, but 10x whips its butt by a comforting margin of fps. I've tried others which paled by comparision, so I'd say I found my powder of choice. 55 grain Varmint Bulletwise, Nosler BallisticTips (the orange-tipped devastators) are well-priced in the 250 count varmint-packs. They also are boat-tailed beauties that hit the 10x ring with uncanny regularity. A C.O.L. of 2.250" functions well in my bolt-action rifle. If just beginning reloading .223s, 10x will function well at 22.7 grains; however, my best loads use a bit more. Small Rifle MAGNUM primers are the standard for such VARMINT loads. A wide-spread group of over 1" @ 100 yards would ruin my day. My loads stay within 3/4" with 10 round groups. Regular practice may have something to do with these acceptable results. These are great COYOTE loads and NOT deer loadings, due to bullet fragility regarding the thin-jackets designed for explosive varmint power. For DEER hunting with a .223 Remington, look for Speer 55 grain Trophy-Bonded Bear Claws, Nosler 60 grain Partitions, Speer 60 grain Spitzer SPs, and nothing else! cliffy