Home Forums Reloading Varmint Rifles .223 reloads not as good as factory fodder

I have been trying to make a reload that is as good as Winchester's 55 gr. PSP in my Ruger lightweight. The factory stuff shoots into 1/2", my best reload so far is a 1" load. (55 gr. Sierra, WSR primer, 26.3 gr. W748)
Sometimes I wonder why I reload!! Any advice would be appreciated.

Try a different powder like H335 or Benchmark. I have had good results with both in my various varmint guns.

Also, in my 204, the groups size kept getting smaller as the charge of Benchmark increased. My tightest groups were achieved right at book max.

Westerner: What works for me is a 55 gr. Sierra Game King over 26.5 grs. of Varget with a BR4 primer in Winchester brass. This will shoot in the .4s for 5 rounds at 100 yds. in a Winchester Stealth Heavy Varmint with 1/9 twist. This will run 3248 ft/sec. and using the same weight in RE15 will run 3225 and slightly tighter. The Varget is cleaner burning, though.

It could be your Ruger Lightweight simply does not like Sierra bullets. W748 is a good .223 powder, and I use 26.5 grs. of that with a 55 Nosler. This load doesn't do much better than .8 at 100 yds. for five rounds, but it was used for a lot of varmints before I found the rifle's sweetness with Sierras.

What brass are you using? I have very good luck with the 55 sp and 27gr 748. You might also try 25 to 25.5 gr of H335 and if you have a slow twist barrel, which you should, you can go higher than that. I use a lot of Benchmark but have not had much luck with it and 55 gr bullets, it is fantastic with 52 gr match bullets though.

westerner,

When I switch from Fed to CCI BR-4 primer the groups went from 7/8" to 7/16" from then on.

I'd try a different powder first.

+1 on the H335 (which blammer has the generic # for and is less $). I also saw the groups tighten up as the charge elevated........go slowly and methodically on the increases, however. (I'm loading 50 gr. V-Max's).

May I suggets you go to a fifty grain Hornady SX seated out as far as you can and still have it work through your gun.

WC 844 is the milsurp equivilent to H335.

That is also correct with my rifles, too. Benchmark and Sierra 52 gr. match with BR primers is a fantastic load!

Jim

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eureka!! Thanks for all of the hints, I finally found my load. 55 gr. Nosler BTs, 25.3 gr. H335, Rem. 7 1/2 primer. 3 shots from my Ruger ultralight: 1 ragged hole.
Several 3 shot groups same thing. Strangely, the above load with 25.0 gr. H335, 1" 3 shot groups.
Thanks again for the encouragement to keep trying.

H335 Tried it the first time, and never saw fit to use anything else.

Not one guy mentioned any stick powder! I am a dinosaur, so I will. Around 24.8 grains of IMR 3031, with a 50 to 53 grain bullet, produces very tight little groups, with either my 700V or my CZ527 carbine. For a heavier bullet like a 69 grainer, if you are twisted for it, try IMR4895, around 24.4 grains.

Good luck

Jerry

I get my best accuracy with 26.5gr W748, Hornady 50gr V-Max bullets, and a Remington 7-1/2 primer.

Last season, I traded in a Ruger VT in 223... It was the first year production rifle, with blued receiver, no target trigger and stainless steel barrel.... I traded it in on a Savage 12 BVSS.. I was offered $400.00 in trade for it toward the Savage....

Since I had paid $300.00 for it seven years before with a 8 x 32 Tasco Custom Shop scope on it.. I did not think this deal was going to be available twice.. so I snapped it up....

When I got the gun it was 6 years old or so.. and I got it from the guy who bought it new...He said he had put a lot of rounds down the barrel but claimed he didn't know how many..... I think he knew, but didn't want to say, so not to sour the sale...

Well in my possession I put another 8,000 rounds down the barrel.. until the groups started opening up some where I decided that it was time to rebarrel or trade it in...Since I got such a good trade in toward the Savage, which I was going to buy one anyway.. I took it....

Well living in a small town ( 30,000) last week at the range, I ran into the guy whom had bought that rifle....He indicated that he had worked on loads, and nothing was satisfactory until he tried 25 grains of H 335, with a 55 grain Ballistic tip..

That he claimed to have gotten a one hole group out of the rifle... then he showed me, after shooting a few groups at 100 yds...

He also indicated that he had put 2,000 rounds plus down the barrel the previous sage rat season.....

So between he and I, this rifle has seen 10,000 rounds down the barrel!! Plus who knows how many more before I got it, when it was 6 yrs old.....

But 25 grains of H 335, and the 55 grain Ballistic tips are still performing superbly in this rifle......

I had used H 335, with this and several of my other 223s.. but I also use a lot of other powders....I quit using H 335, when I fired it several times one time at night.... talk about Muzzle flash!!!! I envisioned of sitting the grass on fire some dry time out in the field.. so I started using other stuff....

But for now, in that rifle... 10,000 plus rounds down the barrel ( probably more like 12,000 to 15,000) H 335 is still making a tack driver out of that old girl!!

Ya can't beat that!!!