Got the cart before the horse (Sort of, kinda, maybe)

[Maggiesdraws]

Recently purchased a Savage 110 in 223. 1:9t 26 inch barrel. Figured I'd use it to chase coyotes, have a few of them around here. My longest safe shot would be in the area of 300 yards so I felt pretty good about the rifle. Today I was looking to buy the scope base, was looking at the "0" MOA and happened to see a "20" MOA and I started to think and that is not always a good thing.

I'm a shotgun, bird dog guy so my question is, with the rifle I have how far can I reach out with it I decided to? How heavy of a bullet can I shot with accuracy? I have several pounds of Varget that I used for a 308 that has since gone down the road. Also, any recipes you would like to share would be appreciated as I do like to roll my own. Thanks.

 

[dedogs]

"0" MOA for 300 and under. dedogs

 

[sawcarver]

In a 9T I have good luck with 69gr TMK's on Coyotes. Much heavier than that and the start to get squirrelly. Ringing steel at 600 is pretty easy with my 223. F-class matches can be fun but the 80-90gr are going to beat you unless you're really good reading wind

 

[Ned Ludd]

The twist rate of the barrel is likely to be your limiting factor. You *might* be able to stabilize bullets as heavy (long) as Hornady's 75 gr BTHP or a 77 SMK. Otherwise, there are some bullets in the low 70-ish gr range, such as Berger's 70 gr VLD and 73 gr BT that should work fine with a 9-twist. All of these bullets have better BCs than the 69 gr (or lower) offerings and should allow you to reach at least a couple or three hundred yards farther with reasonable precision.

As far as the scope base, you shouldn't need 20 MOA even for 600 yd. However, with a scope that has a reasonable amount of elevation travel, you should still be able to zero at 100 yd with a 20 MOA base, or very close to it. Unless there is a good reason not to, I'd leave the base as it is.

 

[Boyd L.]

With my Stevens 200 (essentially the same critter as your rifle) I mounted a 20 MOA base. I’ve been able to shoot at 300, or 100. This base replaces a zero base because I couldn’t reach 500. I don’t shoot 500 often, but when I do, I want to be able to do it without issues.

 

[Outrider27]

A personal preference, but even with the heavier (than 55 grains) bullets you can use with a 9 twist, I regard 300 yards as close to the limit for coyotes and such with a .223. For that reason, mine wears a 0 MOA base. For ranges much beyond 300, I break out the Swift or borrow my cousin's 22-250 if I want to stick to a 22CF cartridge. YMMV.

 

[Baddog0302]

I have the same Savage 26" 1-9 T Bbl. for my swap bbl. set up. I'm limited to 300 yds and have several 300 yd. MOA 5 shots. Most with NCC & SMK 77 gn bullets. When time & weather allow I want to try the new Nosler 70 gn. low drag bullet.
For load data, look in the " bulletin section" as well as google "223 load data.
http://accurateshooter.net/Downloads/sierra223ar.pdf while this data is for an AR I used it for my "bolt gun"

 

[msinc]

69 or 70 grain bullets are about the limit for a 1-in-9 twist. 26.0 grains of W748 works nice in mine. You might also want to try 25.5 grains of N140 behind a Berger 64 grain bullet.
I don't know why either one of these wouldn't work fine for coyotes out to 450-500 yards. I have a Mark4 scope on mine and use "come ups" marked on the turret and a range finder. You will of course need to watch the wind. I don't have any MOA's built into my base.

 

[Baddog0302]

PM your mail to address, and I'll send you a few H-75's & NCC & SMK 77's to try in YOUR rifle. IF YOUR rifle won't stabilize these bullets it should be obvious at 50 yds. for sure at 75 - 100 yds.
It dosen't matter what I or others say, it's what YOUR rifle can do that matters.

 

[thatguyshm]

It's a Savage. Always go with a 20 MOA. It sounds like you do your own barrel swaps so down the road that action may become something you want to reach out with. I haven't had any problems with 20 MOA bases and zeroing a rifle yet, and if I decide to go bigger then I'm not searching for another base. Just my thoughts on the topic....

SHM

 

[Dgd6mm]

My Savage 1-9 twist is a 20" barrel. I run a 0 MOA base on it because that is what it came with, plus I'm running a straight 12x Super Sniper which has a lot of travel. One day I will either shim the rear and bed the base or switch to a 20 MOA base.

 

[Texas10]

I have a model 12FV, 223 with 26 in varmint barrel, 9 twist. It'll shoot the 53 grain V-Max to 500 yds easily with a 0 moa rail and Vortex Crossfire II scope, so yours should too. If you do some ballistic calcs with the 53 V-Max you'll see that they will keep up with or outperform a 69 grain pill for quite a distance. So if you're shooting 500 yds and under, this might be the best way to go.

Varget and any 69 grain bullet will do fine. For 53's I use IMR-3031 for 3250 to 3350 fps.

 

[JRS]

You don't need a 20 MOA base.

 

[boltfluter]

One thing to keep in mind when shooting a .223 at extended ranges is the absolute necessity of using a plastic tipped bullet for expansion. Match bullets will not expand and you will loose most coyotes and cause needless suffering. Plastic tipped match bullets are just fine, but not tiny hollow points . 75 A-max or 69 Sierra TMK would be great. Learned this lesson the hard way. Shoot straight!

Paul

 

[JRS]

One thing to keep in mind when shooting a .223 at extended ranges is the absolute necessity of using a plastic tipped bullet for expansion. Match bullets will not expand and you will loose most coyotes and cause needless suffering. Plastic tipped match bullets are just fine, but not tiny hollow points . 75 A-max or 69 Sierra TMK would be great. Learned this lesson the hard way. Shoot straight!

Paul

That will depend on the match bullet used. Match bullets made on the original J4 jackets (before Berger increased the jacket thickness) now recognized as the hunting bullet, provide great terminal performance. They fragment into the vital areas.

 

[SmokinJoe]

Nobody has mentioned using Weaver type bases and Burris Signature Zee rings. IMO that gives you the most versatility and is scope friendly, too.

 

[boltfluter]

Nobody has mentioned using Weaver type bases and Burris Signature Zee rings. IMO that gives you the most versatility and is scope friendly, too.

Exactly! My personal choice as well. Just a combo that has worked great for me.

Paul

 

[Idaho-45]

I usually just go with the 20moa bases, got them on 223,22-250, 6x47L, 308, etc. I can't really think of a reason not to.... Maybe I'm missing something there. And for that 1-9 twist 223, I highly recommend the 53 Hornady V-Max. Great bullet in the 223. Just my $0.02 worth, guys. Idaho-45

 

[Tommie]

Nobody has mentioned using Weaver type bases and Burris Signature Zee rings. IMO that gives you the most versatility and is scope friendly, too.

Ladies and gentlemen,
We have a winner!

 

[Falfan2017]

I got 20 moa bases on everything. May not need it but we got steel out to 1k at our range so it’s fun to have it to plink with.

1-9 twist I shoot a 62 gr federal fusión bonded soft point bullet with varget or ramshot tac.