Highest BC bullet that will stabilize in a 16" 9 twist

[SteveOak]

I am going to shoot an AR Varmint Benchrest match. The course of fire is 20 shots at 300 yards.

I'm looking for bullets with a higher BC (accuracy would be nice too LOL) than a Hornady 68gr BTHP Match with cannelure that will stabilize in a 16", 9 twist barrel, chambered in 223 Wylde. Need to load to mag length.

Hornady says G1 BC is .355

Thanks!

 

[ronemus]

My go-to is the Hornady 75 gr BTHP, although I don't shoot competitive benchrest. I think that is the highest-BC bullet that will stabilize in a 1:9.

 

[SteveOak]

I dug though my supplies and found a box of Sierra 69gr TMK's. They will get me started.

I would appreciate very much 'confirmed sightings' of bullets with higher BC used successfully at 300 yards in a 9 twist, 16" barreled AR-15.

 

[284winner]

69 Sierra MK was the heaviest for me. The 75 amax wouldn't.

 

[Lefty2506]

69 Sierra MK was the heaviest for me. The 75 amax wouldn't.

I couldn't run a 75 amax at mag length. Not sure how the 62gr ELD-VT would do, but I'm guessing its too long for mag length also.

 

[284winner]

I couldn't run a 75 amax at mag length. Not sure how the 62gr ELD-VT would do, but I'm guessing its too long for mag length also.

69s work fine for mag length

 

[danny]

My go-to is the Hornady 75 gr BTHP, although I don't shoot competitive benchrest. I think that is the highest-BC bullet that will stabilize in a 1:9.

I have shot a lot of the Hornady 75 BTHP through a 9" AR. They did well for me.

Danny

 

[jelenko]

I couldn't run a 75 amax at mag length. Not sure how the 62gr ELD-VT would do, but I'm guessing its too long for mag length also.

In the testing I've done, the 62eld vt's need to be loaded close to the lands for accuracy.
I tried loading them at 2.340 [to fit in a cut out ar15 mag] and got 6" 'groups' at 100 yards.
I loaded a few using an arbitrary powder load at 20 off the lands and got 3/4" at 100 yard.

 

[William Vogel]

Hornady 73ELD is .395 and can load at mag length and get you to 300 yards flatter than the 75’s. The Sierras are good too.

 

[Kracken McGraw]

Hornady 73ELD is .395 and can load at mag length and get you to 300 yards flatter than the 75’s. The Sierras are good too.

That’s what that Bullet was designed for, wasn’t it. I had forgotten about it.

 

[SteveOak]

Hornady 73ELD is .395 and can load at mag length and get you to 300 yards flatter than the 75’s. The Sierras are good too.

From the Hornady website

1-8" (Minimum Recommended)

 

[William Vogel]

From the Hornady website

1-8" (Minimum Recommended)

I’ve shot 100’s of them through 1 hole at 100 yards and within 4 inch groups at 700 yards from a Remington 700 in 223 with the factory 9 twist barrel. 26 inches and 2900 fps. They work.

 

[Fuj]

77 SMKs can shoot well in the 9 twisters. Some time back, I picked
up a can of IMI MOD-1, 5.56 and tested it aganst Black Hills. The IMI
for the lessor price shot better. Rifle is my Rock River EOP 20" barrel
with Wylde chamber, magazine fed......Note......Get the mil brown box
and not the white and green box as sold from Midway. The brown box,
the cases have the same stamp numbers, and the commercially boxed
it's mixed numbers. They must buy in bulk and repackage.

 

[markm87]

69 TMK vote here. 77 TMK may stabilize too. Any of the suggestions might work. I'd see if the barrel has a favorite.

 

[jelenko]

Depending on how often you change barrels, I would go with a bullet that meets the manufacturer's twist recommendation.
For example, if I had to change a barrel every year or less, I wouldn't want to have to test each time to see if the bullet would stabilize in the new barrel. If I were changing barrels every couple of years, then maybe.
It's important to note that a bullet with less than a stability factor of 1.5 will lose some of it's ballistic coefficient => you won't be getting all of the advertised BC. Berger calls this out in their stability calculator.

 

[Cfshooter]

Like others have said, the 75bthp works pretty darn well, I have used them in 300 and 600-yard mid-range matches and done very well. The Berger 77 OTM and 80.5's do very well, don't think they won't stabilize until you try them in your barrel, I have 2 1/9 twists that shoot the 80.5's as their match load. The 77SMK are always solid too, but the Bergers just seem a bit more consistent.