General purpose Barnes 223 bullet

[vincyr]

Pretty basic. Which Barnes bullet would you choose for a general purpose load in a 223/5.56. One that you would use if you weren't sure what you might come across, be it varmints, 'yotes, deer, or pigs( though I would never admit to shooting one of those, since NY came up with the brilliant hog control scheme of not letting anyone hunt them). Lurking around on another forum found this thread that has me thinking the 70 grain tsx would be a good choice, but more input is always better.

 

[horsey300]

Barrel twist is the big decider here, Barnes are long. In my 12 twist I'd throw the 53 and worry more about shot placement. Basically I'd pick the one my gun can shoot the best, then do my part to put the bullet where it needs to go.

 

[vincyr]

I haven't got the gun yet( on layaway) but it has a 1-8" twist. Should be fine with the heavier end of the 223 spectrum.

 

[VoodooMountain]

62 gr ttsx would be my pick. It should have enough velocity and momentum for what you mentioned.

 

[horsey300]

I'd play between the 55 tsx/ttsx and 62 tsx/ttsx, bigger is USUALLY better, and your rifle should handle them all, but you're only gonna get so much velocity no matter how hot you load, 55 might be a good compromise to get a little extra range but up close that 62 would certainly give a good reckoning! Try em both at the ranges you expect to shoot and have some fun. That 55 may not fully penetrate vitals through the shield of a mature boar but broadside shouldn't be a problem either in the cns or in the heart lungs. If you were going for brute force you wouldn't be looking at a .223 so you're looking at precision strikes no matter how big of a bullet you choose. Friend and son take deer with 55 sp but they choose their shots accordingly. I'm dropping coyotes with 50 sx.

 

[mtrmn]

I'm no expert or anything, but I would think the 70 grain Barnes would require a 7-twist. It's not so much the WEIGHT of the bullet as it is the LENGTH. The Barnes and similar copper bullets are a good bit longer than the same weight conventional lead bullet. Longer bullets generally require faster twists. I would think (never measured or researched) that the 70gr Barnes would be as long or longer than an 80 or 90gr lead bullet. I use Barnes 55gr in my ARs, which are mostly 9-twist. I just figure in my mostly empty head that the 55 would be roughly equivalent to a 62-65 gr lead. Never had any need to even try the heavier Barnes anyway- the 55's do all I need. Come to think of it, seems like I saw either on the Barnes website or on an actual box of bullets the required minimum twist rate......

 

[DeadEye9]

May I ask why it must be a Barnes bullet? There are lots of projectiles available from other manufacturers that, in my opinion, perform just as well or better with better accuracy.
Hornady, Nosler, and Sierra all offer excellent choices for your purposes in a .224" bullet so I wouldn't limit yourself to just Barnes personally.

That being said, my two favorite Barnes bullets for the .223 R.E.M. Cartridge are the Varmint Grenade and TripleShock/TSX.

 

[1stmarine]

the 70gr TSX is longer and you loose capacity plus with the length one needs a 1:8 twist minimum to properly stabilize.

As a result one gets modest velocities and this is a stout bullet so not the ideal for small animals like coyotes or even small deer. Pigs are harder and larger but still there
are better options. In the world of solid bullets it is ok to trade off a bit of sectional density and grain for speed. Massive speed is a good way to assure
maximum activation and maximum transfer of energy so try 62gr TTSX and even 55gr TTSX. Even 55gr has nothing to do with the average 55gr fmj although
62gr TTSX seems like a perfect balance specially if pork is in the menu.

The ideal thing is to match bullets to game and body weight by the book and while it can be done for larger animals the 223 is better for smaller animals.
One benefit over light for caliber options like the whisper/blackout and 7.62x39 is that it hits very fast so it works great at many distances with a huge number
of bullets, some affordable and popular. In a tactical situation it also has the capacity to penetrate steel and hard barrier where the 30 caliber slow moving
options will fail. Premium bullets will provide more energy and specially a lot more speed on the target plus a much longer effective range than the 30 caliber.

With all that said for coyotes and goats the 80gr Amax is a great bullet and one can expect pretty broad wounding with moderate penetration but because
of the small size of these soft skin animals it is very effective. That is why they choice for defense/humans. They say the new Sierra 77gr TMK is very good
for this too but I have not tried this. It is also a very good performer at long range and even in 11" short barrels is very fast up to 2,600fps like black hills.
With the FMJs one will have mixed and unpredictable results. There is one exception that is the old norinco 55gr fmj that for whatever reason it tumbles
like crazy always but those are hard to find surplus. The 75gr amax superformance from hornady will be also very effective in those animals but not pigs
for the same reason. Here you need a stout fast bullet and the 62gr TTSX seems perfect.

Another great bullet is the Sirocco 75gr but like the 70gr TSX is a pretty stout bullet for the speed it strikes at so I would leave those for a situation where penetration
is more important. I don't think they are the ideal for the 223 and will activate much better in a 22-250 due to the speed difference. That is the reason for
the lower SD yet a stout bullet. You will get much faster energy transfer therefore shock and good consistent wounding w/o worry about fragmentation.

Another bullet that is very versatile is the Winchester power point 64gr. It is a great round for hunting, defense and even a patrol car. Very reliable behavior
and not as stout with very decent speeds with the right ammo, casing and powder. this is easier to activeate so it will work great in deer. Same thing
wtih the nosler partition 60gr. These bullets no matter what grain they seem to be pretty consistent like the TTSx.

I guess there is no one bullet do it all and with the 223 is good to have two or three choices according to the situation due to the limited grain available.
I suggest keep distances real and for the larger deer or hogs use a 308 or at the very minimum a 6.8spc or 6.5 grendel.
I built a 35 caliber wildcat for my AR15 for that reason and to fill the void with 16" so I can have 308 killing power from the AR15.
So keep it real in terms fo reasonable goals and expectations. Ethical hunters will thank you.

 

[Shawn Dodson]

My general purpose .223 bullet is Hornady 50gr GMX, the same bullet Hornady loads in its Full Boar cartridge.