seems that last weekend's 3-day dog foray has depleted my supplies a bit. so, i went on a reloading binge, and am trying to re-stock. i got everything set except for the ar-15.
i found a great load for the ar using h-322 and sierra 63 grain smp's. unfortunately, while i can still get the smp's, it is a mail-order proposition only - none of the local guys stock 'em anymore. no matter, 60 grain v-max's shoot tight - even better than the smp's, but now i need powder. was using aa 2230, but that stuff is driving me nuts. goes from safe to blowing primers w/ no warnings, and only .3 grains between safe and primers stuck in my magazine. so, i figured i'd switch to h-322 and be happy. trouble is, that stuff is $170/8lb locally, and is only available at one place - nobody else stocks anymore than 1-pound cans, and i need to load several thousand pieces, ie, 1-pound jugs aren't gonna do the trick.
so, i am on the hunt for a new load for the ar-15. got 1100 v-max's to start, and am gonna go get a few more today, since i need a stupid shellholder anyway. but, the problem is the powder. i'm going to mail order that, so powder options are open. bullets i want to keep local, since it seems i need bullets more often than i need powder.
so what powder seems to meter well, run an ar-15 appropriately, and is prairie dog accurate to at least 500 yards? my contenders list right now is h-322, h-335, h4895, and 2230c. i am a little leary of 2230c because of my piss-poor experience w/ 2230, but i'm willing to try it if it is the best.
any input?
i found a great load for the ar using h-322 and sierra 63 grain smp's. unfortunately, while i can still get the smp's, it is a mail-order proposition only - none of the local guys stock 'em anymore. no matter, 60 grain v-max's shoot tight - even better than the smp's, but now i need powder. was using aa 2230, but that stuff is driving me nuts. goes from safe to blowing primers w/ no warnings, and only .3 grains between safe and primers stuck in my magazine. so, i figured i'd switch to h-322 and be happy. trouble is, that stuff is $170/8lb locally, and is only available at one place - nobody else stocks anymore than 1-pound cans, and i need to load several thousand pieces, ie, 1-pound jugs aren't gonna do the trick.
so, i am on the hunt for a new load for the ar-15. got 1100 v-max's to start, and am gonna go get a few more today, since i need a stupid shellholder anyway. but, the problem is the powder. i'm going to mail order that, so powder options are open. bullets i want to keep local, since it seems i need bullets more often than i need powder.
so what powder seems to meter well, run an ar-15 appropriately, and is prairie dog accurate to at least 500 yards? my contenders list right now is h-322, h-335, h4895, and 2230c. i am a little leary of 2230c because of my piss-poor experience w/ 2230, but i'm willing to try it if it is the best.
any input?