223 8" twist will it still shoot the 55gr bullets very good,or is its best shooting with the 70gr + bullets Thinking of a Sako 85 Varmint laminated with 8" . Intended use is Prairie Dogs out to 500yds.
8"twist 223
- Thread starter Ironworker
- Start date
I was shooting some 52 gr Sierra HP's the other day as fast as 3500 fps out of my 8 twist 223 CBI barrel and they all made it to the target intact. 315,000 RPM is over their rated speed but they held together fine.
The 53 grain V-Max is pretty hard to beat for BC and accuracy. My son's stock Savage 12FV 223 Rem will make short work of 4 in clays at 500 yds with that bullet over IMR3031 at about 3300 fps.
Edit: to correct velocity to 3500 fps and 315,000 RPM
The 53 grain V-Max is pretty hard to beat for BC and accuracy. My son's stock Savage 12FV 223 Rem will make short work of 4 in clays at 500 yds with that bullet over IMR3031 at about 3300 fps.
Edit: to correct velocity to 3500 fps and 315,000 RPM
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jepp2
Gold $$ Contributor
That is pretty impressive speed. What powder do you use?
jepp2
Gold $$ Contributor
I shoot 7T, 8T, 9T, and 12T in 223. While all will shoot 55gr bullets, I find I have to work much harder to find the right combination on the faster twist barrels. The 12T for me is much preferred and a lot more forgiving.
I was shooting the Speer 52gr HP's through an 8T barrel and the bullets were letting go prior to arriving on the target. Velocities were around 3400.
My hvy bbl Tikka 8 twist shoots the Hornady 55gr sp w/c like a shotgun. I tried 2 different powders and 2 different primers to no avail. I thought I'd burn up some stuff I wasn't using to get a little trigger time. Seems like it never works out that way. Half a box of these , half lb of that....
jepp2
Gold $$ Contributor
I shoot a lot of these and they have never performed to my satisfaction. So it might not be the barrel or T.
Lone Hunter
Silver $$ Contributor
Agree with this. To me theses are blasting bullets not for accuracy. Have a 500 box and they will be loaded for the AR's for cans and such.
AckleymanII
Gold $$ Contributor
Iornworker, the twist is one issue, but a more important issue is the amount of freebore. If the barrel is throated for a 75-80g bullet then it maybe hard to tune a barrel for 55g bullets!
Accuracy to each of us may be different. If you are wanting to shoot 3/8" or less, then the distance to the lands is critical. You may not be able to touch the lands with a lot of 53-55g bullets in 8 Twist barrels because of how long the throat is. Most of the really good shooting barrels I have owned in 22 caliber liked the bullet within .010 of the lands.
So, if you want to shoot 55g to 69g tipped match king, then a Remington rifle with a 9 twist is your pick. If you want to shoot 75-80g bullets, a Tikka 8T is a good choice. The Remington and the Sako have very different throat lengths, very. The Remingtons shoot bug holes, don' t let anyone tell you they don't.
Have a tactical muzzle break put on the rifle and you will see your hits, otherwise you will not.
There is another thought on this P. dog rifle, buy a used Remington, boyd's stock, and have one of these great gunsmiths on this site put a custom barrel on it throated for the bullets you want to use, you will have a LOT better rifle than the Sako Laminated, and I had a 300 WSM in that rifle. When one of these gunsmiths puts on a custom barrel, the bullets go in the same bullet hole, minimal fouling, and very easy to tune for loads.
If you wanted to go with the 73g-75g bullet, have the gunsmith throat it specifically for the bullet you want to shoot with the intersection of the boat tail and bullet shank right at the shoulder/ neck intersection on the case. Matching the bullet with the throat will give you longer barrel life, and with this slightly heavier bullet, I would opt for the 223 AI. The AI is good for another 150-200 fps that really comes in handy getting the launches and helicopters you like to see on the dogs at 500 yards.
I am shooting the Hornady 53g at 3850 in a 29" MHV X Caliber barrel 223 AI with H335, 28g of H335, rem 7 1/2 primer, Lake City '12 brass.
Good luck!
Accuracy to each of us may be different. If you are wanting to shoot 3/8" or less, then the distance to the lands is critical. You may not be able to touch the lands with a lot of 53-55g bullets in 8 Twist barrels because of how long the throat is. Most of the really good shooting barrels I have owned in 22 caliber liked the bullet within .010 of the lands.
So, if you want to shoot 55g to 69g tipped match king, then a Remington rifle with a 9 twist is your pick. If you want to shoot 75-80g bullets, a Tikka 8T is a good choice. The Remington and the Sako have very different throat lengths, very. The Remingtons shoot bug holes, don' t let anyone tell you they don't.
Have a tactical muzzle break put on the rifle and you will see your hits, otherwise you will not.
There is another thought on this P. dog rifle, buy a used Remington, boyd's stock, and have one of these great gunsmiths on this site put a custom barrel on it throated for the bullets you want to use, you will have a LOT better rifle than the Sako Laminated, and I had a 300 WSM in that rifle. When one of these gunsmiths puts on a custom barrel, the bullets go in the same bullet hole, minimal fouling, and very easy to tune for loads.
If you wanted to go with the 73g-75g bullet, have the gunsmith throat it specifically for the bullet you want to shoot with the intersection of the boat tail and bullet shank right at the shoulder/ neck intersection on the case. Matching the bullet with the throat will give you longer barrel life, and with this slightly heavier bullet, I would opt for the 223 AI. The AI is good for another 150-200 fps that really comes in handy getting the launches and helicopters you like to see on the dogs at 500 yards.
I am shooting the Hornady 53g at 3850 in a 29" MHV X Caliber barrel 223 AI with H335, 28g of H335, rem 7 1/2 primer, Lake City '12 brass.
Good luck!
First let me say that I have a lot of experience with the 223 but all with 12" twist rates. I currently have seven rifles in this twist and all shoot terrific with 50 and 55 grain bullets. I have shot many many ghogs and predators with the 223 using 50 and 55 grain Sierra and Nosler bullets. In a quality rifle (barrel), stocked properly with a quality scope I can achieve 1/2 moa precision without much load development. My go to load is 50 or 55 Nosler BT's with H4895 or Varget. H335 and Benchmark also work extremely well.
So why in the world would I buy an 8" twist 223? First I love Tikka rifles and they are only available in 8" twists in the 223. Secondly, I was assured by many that the 8" twist will shoot 50 and 55 grain bullets accurately. Third, good luck trying to buy a 12" twist 223 factory rifle today. It seems everyone want to shoot heavy bullets. I still don't understand this concept of shooting heavy bullets with a rainbow trajectory in a varmint rifle but I'm not a "expert".
So last fall I weakened when I got a deal on a Tikka T3X .223 and I took the plunge. I love the rifle. HOWEVER, I was disappointed with 55 grain bullets. The best I could do is about .875". Granted I haven't tried every combination of powder and bullets, only the ones that work for me in the past with the 223.
I'm not a fan of Hornady bullets but I tried their 60 gain VMax anyway. Bingo, groups tightened to 1/2 moa and slightly under with H4895 and Varget. Surprisingly the 60 Nosler didn't shoot as well, about .750". I haven't hunted with 60 VMax yet but I suspect it will hit like a hammer. Going to try in this fall / winter on predators. On balance I'm happy with my Tikka T3X 8" twist - just wished they sold it in a 12" twist then I'd be real happy.
So why in the world would I buy an 8" twist 223? First I love Tikka rifles and they are only available in 8" twists in the 223. Secondly, I was assured by many that the 8" twist will shoot 50 and 55 grain bullets accurately. Third, good luck trying to buy a 12" twist 223 factory rifle today. It seems everyone want to shoot heavy bullets. I still don't understand this concept of shooting heavy bullets with a rainbow trajectory in a varmint rifle but I'm not a "expert".
So last fall I weakened when I got a deal on a Tikka T3X .223 and I took the plunge. I love the rifle. HOWEVER, I was disappointed with 55 grain bullets. The best I could do is about .875". Granted I haven't tried every combination of powder and bullets, only the ones that work for me in the past with the 223.
I'm not a fan of Hornady bullets but I tried their 60 gain VMax anyway. Bingo, groups tightened to 1/2 moa and slightly under with H4895 and Varget. Surprisingly the 60 Nosler didn't shoot as well, about .750". I haven't hunted with 60 VMax yet but I suspect it will hit like a hammer. Going to try in this fall / winter on predators. On balance I'm happy with my Tikka T3X 8" twist - just wished they sold it in a 12" twist then I'd be real happy.
It was just a passing thought, Sako rifles actions are so smooth AT $1800 BUCKS. Anyhow I'm waiting for a call from my gun smith who is chambering my 12"twist 22/250 in a 26"Mullerworks barrel.
H335 working up a load, but was piercing primers near max, and every shot was faster as the barrel heated up. Backed way down to 3250 and shot much more consistently.
Sorry for the brain fart on velocity. I got no excuse but early senility, I guess.
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Yup. To me the 223 is a varmint rifle meant to shoot light bullets relatively quickly at small targets @+/-300 yards or so.....I do, however, prefer my 223's to be 9 twist barrels though.
My 6mm's get much more attention when I start thinking about anything heavier than 69 grain bullets anyway....
I shoot Hornady bullets almost exclusively. I dearly love the 105 Amax in my 6XC....Too bad they don't make them any more! Anyone have some that they'd like to sell or trade!?
I have a few .223s with the 1/8" tw bbls, 18 & 20" lengths, (AR15s). Not a single issue running 55g vmax handloads to 500 yards. 100yds they print right at 5/8". They were built for coyotes only.
My personal dedicated .223 varmint rigs are all bolt action and have 1/9" or 1/14" tw, 24" & 26" lengths. Just the 50g Z & V max bullet in those.
My personal dedicated .223 varmint rigs are all bolt action and have 1/9" or 1/14" tw, 24" & 26" lengths. Just the 50g Z & V max bullet in those.
My 8 twist T3's both have short throats and short mags. Dunno if the the T3X is different??? In my gun the 55gr hornady @ 0.010 off splits the cannelure dead center with the end of the case. I could use a 0.075 longer throat to put the beginning of the boat tail of the heavy bullet I use at the neck shoulder junction.
You can have it in an 8,10, or 12 twist.
https://www.gunbroker.com/item/781290449
https://www.gunbroker.com/item/781290078
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Didn't know that! The gun shop I deal with told me that only the 8" twist is available in the T3's. They even booted up the Tikka website to confirm it.
Well, I'm stuck with it now but the 60 Vmax are shooting good although they drop more at 200 to 250 than I like compared to the 55 and 50 Nosler BT's.
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