wdallis
Member
I am looking for accurate ammo for an AR-15 with a 16" barrel. I hope to find ammo that will be accurate at 300 yards if possible? Thank you
Good accurate ammo for an AR-15 with 16" barrel?
- Thread starter wdallis
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hardluk1
member
Do you know your barrel twist rate you have and brand and model would help. It will still take some range time with several brands and weight to find the best choice. And a 20 or 24" barrel would be even better. The 16" kills off a lot of FPS. I have one too.
saddlerocker
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Twist rate is important
Is it 1:9" or 1:7" Twist?
Do you reload or you want a factory round?
Is price an issue?
Federal Gold Medal Match loaded with 69gr SMKs are a great factory round that should be good in a 1:9" and certainly good in a 1:7"
Is it 1:9" or 1:7" Twist?
Do you reload or you want a factory round?
Is price an issue?
Federal Gold Medal Match loaded with 69gr SMKs are a great factory round that should be good in a 1:9" and certainly good in a 1:7"
wnycollector
Member
+1 on this.
If you have a 1:7 barrel you might want to check out Black Hills 77gr and Prvi 75gr OTM's. The Prvi is very good ammo for price vs accuracy.
wdallis
Member
Sorry guys, it is 1 in 7" twist , Olympic arms, model m.f.r.
saddlerocker
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Are you sure its 1:7" twist? I thought Oly's were 1:9". It should be stamped on the barrel, maybe under the handguards.
But, if you have a 1:7" twist then 68gr Hornady, 69gr Sierra, 75gr Hornady and 77gr Sierra are all great loads, but can be expensive if you dont reload.
Privi has 69 and 75gr rounds that are about $0.40-$0.45/rd and are good for the money, but wont be as accurate as the other Match loads.
Also Hornady Steel match or TAP Training rounds are pretty good, they use a steel case, but use good powder and projectiles. A good way to save some cash and still have an accurate round (Assuming your rifle will shoot steel cased ammo)
If its 1:9" then the 69gr Privi or Sierra or 68gr Hornady would be as heavy as I would go and should perform well.
There are also alot of good 53/52gr projectiles that are really accurate, but again expensive if you dont reload.
Fiocchi 50gr V-Max is accurate and affordable and great for varmints (Cabelas has good prices on this)
But, if you have a 1:7" twist then 68gr Hornady, 69gr Sierra, 75gr Hornady and 77gr Sierra are all great loads, but can be expensive if you dont reload.
Privi has 69 and 75gr rounds that are about $0.40-$0.45/rd and are good for the money, but wont be as accurate as the other Match loads.
Also Hornady Steel match or TAP Training rounds are pretty good, they use a steel case, but use good powder and projectiles. A good way to save some cash and still have an accurate round (Assuming your rifle will shoot steel cased ammo)
If its 1:9" then the 69gr Privi or Sierra or 68gr Hornady would be as heavy as I would go and should perform well.
There are also alot of good 53/52gr projectiles that are really accurate, but again expensive if you dont reload.
Fiocchi 50gr V-Max is accurate and affordable and great for varmints (Cabelas has good prices on this)
Last edited:
Several 16" carbines from Olympic have 1 in 10" twist.
Mid-weight bullets from 50 grains to 69 grains seem to work well from 1 in 7" to 1 in 9" twist.
My humble advice, from an idiot like me who knows nothing,
I don't care if the other members may bash me for my idiocy:
My percentages may be off a bit, but generally
One-third of accuracy is the barrel, 1/3 the shooter, 1/3 ammo.
Generally, factory ammo accuracy is about the same for 16, 18, 20 and 24 inch barrel,
true, shorter barrel gives up a couple hundred feet per second, but still accurate.
Premium ammunition shoots better than bargain cellar ammunition.
Premium ammunition costs a lot, oh yes they are very proud of it.
There is no dirt cheap bargain-basement ammo that drives tacks.
Military surplus is seldom highly accurate, unless it was made for match/sniper use.
Premium hunting ammo is often surprisingly accurate, and often easily available.
Standard soft point hunting ammo is generally a little better than FMJ.
Nearly all FMJ rifle ammo is good for fun plinking, but hardly ever match-grade accurate.
In addition to the good advice from members on this thread, what I found personally:
Every Day Ammo bargain: Any 55fmj will help you learn skills.
Bargain accuracy ammo: Remington 55 grain CoreLokt soft point is often on sale.
Costs a little more but better: Federal Premium PowerShok soft point (not fmj).
Better accuracy ammo somewhat higher priced: Federal Gold Medal Match, Remington Premier Match, PRVI Partizan PPU Match.
[Disclaimer: I reload large quantities, so I very seldom buy factory ammo.]
If I were helping a shooter improve with his 16" AR15 carbine,
I say buy 500 rounds of cheap bulk ammo and use it to develop shooting skills.
Sling, stance, grip, breath control, trigger control, etc.
Go to an Appleseed shoot if you need instruction, those are FABULOUS.
After that, buy the more expensive stuff to see what you got.
Mid-weight bullets from 50 grains to 69 grains seem to work well from 1 in 7" to 1 in 9" twist.
My humble advice, from an idiot like me who knows nothing,
I don't care if the other members may bash me for my idiocy:
My percentages may be off a bit, but generally
One-third of accuracy is the barrel, 1/3 the shooter, 1/3 ammo.
Generally, factory ammo accuracy is about the same for 16, 18, 20 and 24 inch barrel,
true, shorter barrel gives up a couple hundred feet per second, but still accurate.
Premium ammunition shoots better than bargain cellar ammunition.
Premium ammunition costs a lot, oh yes they are very proud of it.
There is no dirt cheap bargain-basement ammo that drives tacks.
Military surplus is seldom highly accurate, unless it was made for match/sniper use.
Premium hunting ammo is often surprisingly accurate, and often easily available.
Standard soft point hunting ammo is generally a little better than FMJ.
Nearly all FMJ rifle ammo is good for fun plinking, but hardly ever match-grade accurate.
In addition to the good advice from members on this thread, what I found personally:
Every Day Ammo bargain: Any 55fmj will help you learn skills.
Bargain accuracy ammo: Remington 55 grain CoreLokt soft point is often on sale.
Costs a little more but better: Federal Premium PowerShok soft point (not fmj).
Better accuracy ammo somewhat higher priced: Federal Gold Medal Match, Remington Premier Match, PRVI Partizan PPU Match.
[Disclaimer: I reload large quantities, so I very seldom buy factory ammo.]
If I were helping a shooter improve with his 16" AR15 carbine,
I say buy 500 rounds of cheap bulk ammo and use it to develop shooting skills.
Sling, stance, grip, breath control, trigger control, etc.
Go to an Appleseed shoot if you need instruction, those are FABULOUS.
After that, buy the more expensive stuff to see what you got.
wdallis
Member
I disassembled it and could find no twist rate stamped any where on barrel. I determined the 1 in 7 twist rate by running a tight fitted jag down the barrel. It turned one complete turn in 7 inches.
hardluk1
member
Bottom line !! Get a box of ammo in several weight and brands and see how it shoots. It may turn out to do what you want with a 55 or 62 gr bullet . I have a 16" i-8 twist and can shoot groups of 1" at 100 yards with the extra cheap 55gr AR223 american eagle label. I did not expect that. Still have some hornady 72g hpbt reloads to try.
MtnCreek
Member
Agree with other that you'll need to try several weights. Black Hills 'blue box' is really good ammo for the money.
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