Home Forums Reloading Varmint Rifles 223 and accuracy

The wife's CZ 223 has shot 3 shot groups smaller than a .500-MOA. This is with factory ammo! I have handloaded some for the rifle and it now gets around the .425-MOA.

I also have a CZ, but it is the American with a 1-12" twist barrel. It loves AA2015. Specifically 25.2grs with a 50gr Speer TNT bullet.

My Kimber is a 223 (Longmaster Classic) witha 1:9 twist 24" barrel. I tried every trick in the book and several different primers, powders, and bullet manufacturers to get it to shoot 55 grain bullets without success. I thought there was something wrong with the gun until I tried a 40 grain Nosler BT, then I couldn't get a bad group no matter what I did. I found the Sierra 63 grain semi point bullets shoot really well too but bullets that are >40 grains, <63 grains no luck at all. Another bullet that shot very accurately in my gun is the Speer 70 grain round nose. My chamber requires it be deeply seated and the powder is compressed but it is an accurate bullet in my gun.

Has anyone actually found anything that will not shoot accurately in a 223 bolt gun, ( with the exception of cheapo 55 grain FMJs from some foreign sources)

I have heard this a lot, but what does a "dirty powder" mean?

Seafire - each gun is a law unto itself. Plus, what is "accurate" to you may not be to me ... and vice versa. I've never had as much success with 55s in general as I have with lighter bullets from 50 grains on down in any of the .22 calibers. .223s with a 1-12" twist are less bad than the bigger cases with 1-14" twists but still not been happy.

MarkD - I don't know about dirty. It's got half again the muzzle flash and shock wave of anything else I've used. You want abuse, try slightly reduced H335 loads in a bigger case like a .22-250. Egad.

It means that there is usually alot of carbon fouling in the barrel, sooty case necks. In an AR, it will clog up the gas tube and bolt carrier. H335 will also throw visible flames, even in daylight.