300 + yds rounds for .223

[Austin]

I'm 17.I am new to the forum but not new to the slaying of fur balls. Here in central oregon we have rock chucks,AKA Yellow Bellied Marmmots).They have keen eye sight.20-100 yds shots are the norm but we also have the ones that have been to school.Laying on rock piles hundreds of yards away,see you come across a cow pasture and go down.I need help forming rounds to get that job done.What bullets are good to start with.50-55gr plus be able to buck wind,smack coyotes.Thanks

 

[Exhaust3]

I love the 223 Rem.. I am currently loading 55gr NBT's w/ 26.0gr. of Benchmark. I am looking at my drop chart for this load and it calls for 2.75 MOA for a 300 yd poke. Should put you in the ballpark you are searching for. Good Luck and Smack away!!

 

[JER]

55 grain 223s, bucking wind, and 300 + yard shots do not belong in the same sentence.

If you want to buck the wind, you need a heavier,68 gr+) bullet. Period. Get better at range estimation if their larger drop is a concern.

 

[Linefinder]

I load 55 grain VMaxes in my,2) .223 Rems to 3125 fps using Varget. I'll kill the exteme majority of pdogs I shoot at out to 350 yards in winds of up to 15 mph. If the wind's calm, mirage is down, and the light is good, they're effective to almost twice that distance.

Mike

 

[F224]

Any of the better 55-60gr polymer tipped bullets will work fine out to almost 400 yards if you load them to 3200fps or so. I like to use a fixed 6x scope on prairie dogs with my 223Rem's, if you cannot clearly see them, they are too far to hit.

 

[Austin]

Thanks guys.I will try to get some loads worked up.When I test them I will get some target,gun,critter pics to you.One more thing.What polo-tipped bullets do you like.Sierra Hornady Nosler.What HP bullets do you like.

 

[mikeinct]

austin it is not a matter of what we like for bullets..it is the gun & load combination...The polymer tipped Hornady V-max is good, so is the nosler brand...I've used more of the Hornady brand because midway puts them on sale in the 250 pack..The rifling rate of twist in your gun will determine what u should be loading...Slow twists one in 14 one in twelve will do best with the 40 to 55 grain bullets...With Faster twist rates 1 - 10 1 in 9 or 1 in 8 u can use the heavier bullets 55 to 69 & more..[note most of the real heavy bullets are not varmint useful]...I have had good luck with the 60 grain 22 Cal V-max bullet in a sako varmint 223...U will need a good range finder because the small case capacity & heavy bullets makes for some serious bullet drop at extended ranges...The benifit to using those bullets is a better wind cheating ability...It is a trade off ..High velocity light weights loads give great performance under 250 yds..If u need to shoot farther it gets more difficult...to judge the drop & the wind drift..Find the load that kills cleanly & shoots best in your gun..mike in ct

 

[Austin]

Thanks Mike