Ramshot TAC in .223

[KansasSasquatch]

Long story short, I do some work on occasion near a gun shop that has had some useful powder all throughout this shortage. They may not always have "the best" stuff on the shelf but no matter what cartridge you're loading for they have something. Well yesterday after work I walked in to see a good supply of IMR 3031, IMR 4064, H380, H414, Reloder 22, Benchmark, Ramshot X-Terminator, Ramshot TAC, and a few others.

Well, I grabbed some Benchmark since I've used it with great results in .223 and thought I'd try some TAC as well since it seems to get good reviews. My question for those who use it, does it seem to produce better results with charges at the low end or does it work better with higher charges in .223? I'll do a proper work-up, I'm not looking for exact data. I mainly use 50-65gr bullets in .223. I'm asking because with Benchmark for example I get better results with low-mid data, while CFE223 works best towards the top end, and Varget doesn't seem to care what the charge is as far as accuracy goes (cycling an AR is a different story). I'm kind of expecting it to work best right in the middle of published data, but for no particular reason I guess.

 

[IMtheNRA]

I use 22.0 grains of TAC under 55-gr Hornady FMJBTWC bullets when making plinking ammo that is not intended for great accuracy. It is a very, very light load, but it cycles all ARs that I shoot. The load prints 1.5 to 1.75 inch groups at 100 yards in my 1/7 to 1/8 AR rifles, which is probably the accuracy limit of the bullet itself. The powder is exceptionally clean-burning and meters perfectly. I think you'll be very happy with this value-priced powder in plinking loads.

For accurate long-distance loads with SMK and Lapua bullets, I can't offer any insights regarding TAC, because I use Viht-133 for accuracy loads.

 

[longdayjake]

Using 55 to 65 grain bullets you won't be able to fit enough powder in there to get over pressure. TAC is a slow powder meant more for the heavier 70 grain and heavier bullets. I use about 25 grains of TAC for a 69 grain SMK. This is my more accurate load in my competition gun. For future reference, my favorite powder for 50-62 grain bullets is AA2230 which is the same thing as Xterminator.

 

[KansasSasquatch]

Using 55 to 65 grain bullets you won't be able to fit enough powder in there to get over pressure. TAC is a slow powder meant more for the heavier 70 grain and heavier bullets. I use about 25 grains of TAC for a 69 grain SMK. This is my more accurate load in my competition gun. For future reference, my favorite powder for 50-62 grain bullets is AA2230 which is the same thing as Xterminator.

They had X-Terminator too. Maybe I'll swing by and grab a pound or two Wednesday or Thursday.

 

[HJ857]

I'll agree that TAC won't get you top velocity out of lighter bullets. I run 25.7 with bulk 55 grain soft points and they run about 1.5" at a hundred yards. I run 26.2 under the 53 grain Vmax and those run at an inch or slightly less and are great out to 500 meters.

I find TAC is better at the upper limits and burns cleaner too and it's already a clean powder.

I like standardizing as much as possible so I use it for .308 loads too and am very happy with it in that caliber.

 

[W.E.G.]

23.9 grains TAC with a Sierra 77-grain bullet will win the National Match events.

 

[blarby]

Black Hills uses Ramshot Tac.

Take that for whatever its worth.

 

[2ndtimer]

I have actually had very good results with TAC and bullets as light as 40 grains. With the 40 gr bullets, it seems to be most accurate at the upper end of the loading data and is good for 3700 fps out of my 26" barrel Remington. With the 50 gr bullets, it did well at a lighter than maximum 26 gr. load, so that is what I load for the 50 gr loads. For 55 gr and heavier (I rarely load heavier than 55 gr) I usually opt for Varget.

 

[CHALK22]

I run 24.5 of Tac under Hornady or MG 55 gr FMJs w/c. Shoots MOA or better. it's my go-to powder for AR plinking.

 

[griff383]

I have run an almost max load of TAC under several 55gr projectiles with most being sub-moa. My go to is 25.0gr with a 55gr SP, that load has been shot out of 5 or 6 different rifles both bolt and AR with great results.

 

[cougar1717]

I've used 68gr with TAC, right under max, with great results. It's a relatively slow powder for 223, so it's expected that it would work best near max with heavy for caliber bullets.

 

[LivewireBlanco]

Grab that X-terminator! That's my favorite powder for .223 and 55 grain Hornady FMJ. It has a faster burn rate than TAC and many people haven't caught on to it yet. My AR-15 with a 1/9 twist loves that powder bullet combo. I can't remember the exact powder charge but it's close to the max listed.

 

[mtrmn]

As I have before stated:
TAC - Me likey.
I use it in 223 and 308 with very good results.