223 twist rate for 50 gr bullet
- Thread starter glbpmc
- Start date
Ackman
Gold $$ Contributor
Either 12 or 14 twist will be fine. There's no reason to go any faster with twist than the bullet requires and my choice would be a 14 twist.....the accuracy window will be larger and with a good barrel/chamber it's not hard to find accuracy over a wide range of loads. And the Sierra Blitzking that some people claim is too long for a 14" twist?......it shoots fine in my 14twist .223. Anyway you'll probably wear out 2 barrels long before all of those 12,000 bullets are gone.
CatShooter
Tommie said:
Long and short: the standard twist for the factory .222 is 1-14" and this cartridge was designed around a 50 grain bullet.
Not quite.
The 50 gr poly tipped bullet is marginal in a 14" twist - some 14" rifles shoot it well, some don't. The 55 gr poly is poor in the 14" twist, most 14" rifles in 223 shoot it poorly, and some can't shoot it at all.
The 223 cartridge was never designed around the 50gr bullet - the original bullet in 1950, was 55 grains, and for ~50 years, the only factory bullets offered were the 55gr softpoint and 55gr FMJ.
When the poly tipped bullets came on the scene, it was discovered that the 55gr poly tipped bullets were poor in the 14" twist. Some would shoot it ok, but many would give very poor accuracy.
50 grain poly loads were offered for shooters of the 14" barrels so they had a choice if the 55gr didn't shoot well.
The 50gr poly bullet is much longer than the 55 gr soft point. The 55gr soft point has traditional been the accepted maximum length for the 14" twist.
Currently, the factories offer only 55gr softpoints, but the offer 50 and 55 grain polys.
Since the poly tipped bullets are the current love of the varmint shooter, if you have a 12" twist, you are covered for all of the light and medium weight varmint and match bulleets.
I would not even consider getting a 14" twist barrel for a 224 bore varmint rifle because of the above.
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Ackman
Gold $$ Contributor
glbpmc said:
You don't mention what kind of bullets you have. With 50's, Nosler makes only plastic tipped now and their 50Bal Tip is the longest 50gr plastic tipped bullet. I've shot gobs of them. Lots of hollowpoints out there. But Speer makes a 50gr soft point, Remington makes a 50gr soft point, Hornady makes 2 50gr softpoints, and Sierra makes 3 different 50gr softpoints. And they all work very well. My .223's,14 twist) shoot 50gr plastic tips into very small groups. A 55 Sierra Blitz King - plastic tip - is the longest 55gr plastic tipped bullet and it shoots tiny little groups,.2"s) in my 14 twist .223. Even factory .223 ammo with that bullet is accurate.
A 12 or 14 twist doesn't matter. But with a 14 twist you'll be fine shooting 50gr bullets, plastic tip or not.
AckleymanII
Gold $$ Contributor
I have shot nosler 50g Ballistic tips since they first hit the market in 14 twist222 & 223's with exceptional accuracy.
When nosler first introduced their 55g Balistic tip, it was found that they were marginally stable in a 14 twist and would not stabalize in many guns as the temps dropped. Nosler took the 55g bullet off the market for some years and re-introduced a newer design on the 55g bullet which now stabalizes in all of my 14 twist 22's of what ever caliber.
Hornady 55g V Max may have trouble in some 14 twists if the twist ends up being a 14.5" twist, for example.
In my 223's over the years with a 14 twist, I have shot untold thousands of the Nosler 50g Ballistic tip. I shot the barrels out of a 40X and a 700 Varmint in 222 shooting the 50g Nosler Ballistic tips shot at 3200 fps.
The only reason to order a 1-12" twist in a 223 is if you want to shoot a 60g V-Max.
When nosler first introduced their 55g Balistic tip, it was found that they were marginally stable in a 14 twist and would not stabalize in many guns as the temps dropped. Nosler took the 55g bullet off the market for some years and re-introduced a newer design on the 55g bullet which now stabalizes in all of my 14 twist 22's of what ever caliber.
Hornady 55g V Max may have trouble in some 14 twists if the twist ends up being a 14.5" twist, for example.
In my 223's over the years with a 14 twist, I have shot untold thousands of the Nosler 50g Ballistic tip. I shot the barrels out of a 40X and a 700 Varmint in 222 shooting the 50g Nosler Ballistic tips shot at 3200 fps.
The only reason to order a 1-12" twist in a 223 is if you want to shoot a 60g V-Max.
It's been a week since I asked if anyone has ever owned a .223 that wouldn't stabilize 50 grain poly-tipped bullets in a 1-14" twist. As I have used 55 grain V-Max bullets in a 1-14" twist with fine results, I am still curious as to where these finicky .223 rifles live. Can someone,anyone) confirm another another poster's claim that:
"The 50 gr poly tipped bullet is marginal in a 14" twist - some 14" rifles shoot it well, some don't."
We're all interested in factual information. I can only share my personal experience and having never encountered a .222, .223 or 22-250 that wouldn't stabilize a 50 grain poly-tipped bullet in a 1-14" twist, I'm very curious about this issue. Today I contacted several manufacturers of poly-tipped 50 grain bullets and every one advised me that the bullet will stabilize in a 1-14" twist barrel at .223 Remington velocities. Maybe someone here knows something that the bullet manufacturers dont?
Tom
"The 50 gr poly tipped bullet is marginal in a 14" twist - some 14" rifles shoot it well, some don't."
We're all interested in factual information. I can only share my personal experience and having never encountered a .222, .223 or 22-250 that wouldn't stabilize a 50 grain poly-tipped bullet in a 1-14" twist, I'm very curious about this issue. Today I contacted several manufacturers of poly-tipped 50 grain bullets and every one advised me that the bullet will stabilize in a 1-14" twist barrel at .223 Remington velocities. Maybe someone here knows something that the bullet manufacturers dont?
Tom
CatShooter
I have two...
One is a 222 Mag, and one is a 223.
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One is a 222 Mag, and one is a 223.
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I spoke with Krieger about barrel twist for a 223 I was having rebarreled and they were very strong on the a 1:12 twist for the 50-53 grain bullets.
My Rem M700 was rebarreled by Terry Cross,not a BR smith) and shoots 52 gr SMK's in the .2's and I would not hesitate to get a 1:12 again. I ahve not shot the Sierra Blitz 50 grain bu;llets yet, but that bullet is no "go to" bullet for small critters.
I would recommend a 1:123 twist for 50 grain bullets.
My Rem M700 was rebarreled by Terry Cross,not a BR smith) and shoots 52 gr SMK's in the .2's and I would not hesitate to get a 1:12 again. I ahve not shot the Sierra Blitz 50 grain bu;llets yet, but that bullet is no "go to" bullet for small critters.
I would recommend a 1:123 twist for 50 grain bullets.
I have a varminter weight 223 with a Hart 14 twist barrel. I first started with 50 BT in it. The result was for what ever reason it didn't shoot very well. I changed to the forties and the rifle has been a killing machine ever since. Since reading this that might have had something to do with it. The bullet holes with the fifties were nice and round but shot 3/4 inch or bigger. The forties shoot in the two's. At 3900 the forties are a better choice for me.
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