Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters On The Cheap-- 223 Small Game Loads

Link here for Seafire Blue Dot loads.

Range Report (sort of)

I had to quit. Winds were 12 MPH gusting to 23 MPH when I stopped. I'd already had the backer board for the targets get ripped off the stand.

What I can tell you is this:

With a 55 grain FMJ seated to 2.2", I did loads of 7, 12,13 and 14 grains of Bullseye, 5 rounds apiece.

7 grains (roughly 22 Magnum strength) I got more of a pattern than a group.

The wind was picking up and so rushed ahead. 12 gr (22 Hornet strength) gave me the best, but it had a flyer in it. 13 gr( 218 Bee) and 14 (221 Fireball) were not as good.

I couldn't set up the chronograph, because the wind would have carried it off.

The recoil was negligible. The report was pretty much what I'd expect, were I shooting the real thing.

I'll try this again when I don't have to fight the wind.

Thanks for the report.

I have a "spare" XR-100" in 223 that I should dedicate to a low recoil rifle instead of rebarreling it to a 221 FB, and as a bonus it will eject brass properly.

Hoping you will try more accurate bullets than the FMJ's. I think your efforts will be more useful and accuracy should be better than what I consider AR-Mini 14 Plinking bullets.

I did a reduced 223 load using the 40gr VMax over 9.0gr Unique for about 2700 fps from a 22" barrel.

I didn't try reducing much lower because the 9.0gr charge is about 57% case fill, so an accidental double-charge would overflow....a safety measure, sort of. I end up hand-measuring each charge anyways, just for safety. It's slow, but I don't shoot that many of them anyways.

Anyhoo, that load is super accurate in my Ruger American Predator, and has worked very well on prairie dogs out to 200 yards or so.

Played around with this a few different ways

A 22lr is probably ur answer. Buy a good rifle. Get good ammo. And kill stuff.

If the goal is a one gun quiver, I think the 6mm is easier to deal with then 224 diameter.

But it’s more expensive

But a 58gr vmax with about 14gr of blue dot out of a 243 is awesome. And it kills prairie dogs well, and holds accuracy long range.

A cheap and fun plinker is a Hammond game getter. Super fun way to get small game during big game hunts.

As for the original request for 223. use hornady 55gr sp bullets and blue dot. The sp bullets are borderline match grade but are usually found sub 10 cents. I think 8gr was a good place to be.

But doing quick math..

10 cent bullet, 7 cent primer, 5 cents powder plus time reloading to shoot glorified cci stinger is pretty backwards.

Yeah, the bullet is definitely a question mark. So is the rifle. My RAR Predator was giving me somewhat the same results early on when I was trying 55 grainers. It did much better with 63 grain bullets, and finally started to shine when I went to 75 grain. I have a Savage that does well with 55 grain. I will probably bring that out next and compare it to the RAR Predator. I have a slew of Hornady 55 grain FMJs. I'll try them too.

As to the overall sanity of downloading a 223 REM vs. just using a 22 LR, we can chalk it up to late winter boredom. I got ahead of myself in the reloading room and ran out of projects. This first trip down to the farm is one of the earliest times I've gone down after the winter hiatus, and within a month, I'll be down here worrying about turkey. The wind down here is fierce and a quiet bit of plinking with the wind blowing like it is turns into a struggle. I probably won't try this again until mid-spring, when I start getting quiet mornings.

The other thing is the way my range is set up. It's easy to pull off shots at 100 and 200 yards. If I turn the bench, 450 yards is easy. 50 yards is just not happening without some effort. I get out to 20 yards and the ground falls off. I don't know about y'all, but 22 LR at 100 yards is not what I call plinking. I've got the wind flags and all that, but some days it's just not worth all the hassle.

The math on the expense side is right, but there is a vast difference in effectiveness of a 55 gr bullet vs a rimfire weight bullet, assuming they arrive at the same speeds. The spitzer will retain speed, and thus energy, better, and will have started with more to begin with.

I use the blue dot loads on varmints out a bit past 150 yards and they are effective, while stingers really struggle past 100.

Powder and primer costs are fixed, especially if starting from ground zero and having to buy powder and primers specifically for this exercise. Bullets are the wild card. If one makes/casts his own bullets out of scrounged lead (yeah, it's still out there) then you're still in the camp of "ridiculously cheap" shooting. $6 for a box of 50 cartridges ain't hay by anybody's definition. Heck, even adding a dime per round for el-cheapo jacketed bullets as stated still only comes to $11 for a box of 50 centerfire rifle cartridges. And we're talking cartridges that are accurate, versatile, offer more energy than CCI Stingers (or the same, or less, depending on creativity with powder charges), but most importantly are just plain fun to shoot.

Time is the only mitigating factor, and if one approaches it purely from a cold analytical viewpoint rather than a fun hobby activity then perhaps one really is better off just buying a pack of Stingers and calling it a day.

For anyone interested in any data I've put on line on Blue Dot loads....

I have had that data on several computers that have had the hard drive crash...

Most of the time for my own use, I just search Seafire's Blue Dot Loads and list the caliber I'm wanting to reference.

If anyone asks me for some of that data, that is exactly how I locate it.

I know A lot of these parameters in my head from doing it for so long and so much.

The chronograph data I've posted, which has been in about any and all calibers I have tested it in, and the bullet weights I have used. I find those on line, on other sites.

All my work was posted on Accurate Reloading and on the campfire here.

Cast bullet manuals have a lot of other load data that is reference-able.