Hor.55 SX vs Hor V MAX

[Tedk]

What is your story on expansion and accuracy. I had a 22-250

 

[JB10]

I never tried the sx, but have tried the sp. I have had to shoot every coyote more than 1 time to stop it. One was 3 times. This was all from a 223 at under 50 yards. I will not be using them again. Never had to shoot twice with vmax unless i got a back shot with one on the run

 

[pauls]

The SX are very explosive - not sure they are rated for the velocity of the .22-250 , but, in a .223 size case they are probably better than the VM ( especially for small varmints like PD's, groundhogs, crows, etc. ). Generally much cheaper too.

 

[SBS]

The SX was designed to give explosive performance with .222/.223 cases similar to the performance of the high velocity rounds such as .22-250 and .220 Swift. It has a thin jacket and factory doesn't recommend use in the above HV rounds. It was the first really accurate Hornady bullet I can recall using -- shot a lot of PD's with it in the latter 1970's out of .222, .222 Mag. and .223. I do think the V-Max does a little better in the explosive performance category at the same velocity, but not by much. As pauls states above, somewhat cheaper also. Availability has been spotty last few years, guess not as many shooters using them compared to the V-Max.

 

[357Mag]

Tedk -

Howdy !
I and my best friend / shooting buddy have used the 55 SX alternately for 49 yr.
Fred Sinclair initially recommended we try the 50SX in our .22-250 groundhog reloads.
After I encountered a crawler on what I thought was a well-placed hit @ 235yd, we switched to using the 55SX exclusively. That included shooting them in .222, .223, .222Mag, .22BR; and .220 Swift. All had 1-14 twist barrels.

Hornady used to ship each red box of SX bullets w/ a slip of paper inside that cautioned reloaders/shooters to not exceed 3,400fps with these bullets; probably because of their .009" jackets. I shot them successfully in my 24" barrelled custom varmint rifle, chambered in my " .22-35 Remington " wildcat. The accuracy / field load gave 3,690fps, and I never had a 55SX fail to make it to the target. It was not a " max " load of WW 760.

 

[357Mag]

Tedk -

Oops... Hit transmit in-error.

To continue....

When I wanted to go for a 500yd groundhog kill, I knew the 55SX flat base would be scrubbing off a lot of vel on a shot that far out; and I called Steve Hornady to talk about my situation. Steve was genuinely surprised I was able to reliably put nearly 3,700fps on 55SX.
He also cautioned that I was hanging things out there, for expected .224" cal 55gr varmint bullet performance @ 500 yd+.

As it happened, Hornady was just getting ready to introduce their ( then new ) 55" V-Max.
Steve knew what I needed was a BT bullet, to maximize retained energy for a 500yd + groundhog kill. During their " V-Max "development, they had for a while originally shot the 55 w/ a longer boat tail than what they finally settled on for production. Steve graciously sent me a small clutch of the long BT 55" V-Max prototypes, and I used one to get a 510yd kill.

I continued to buy ( on occasion and as 8

What is your story on expansion and accuracy. I had a 22-250

Tedk -

Sorry...computer glitches knocked out the 2nd half of the second message!

Maybe I can try finish the message, Mon ?

A thousand apologies !


With regards,
357Mag

 

[sw282]

l bought a couple boxes of 50gr SX blems awhile back from Jon's Reloading. lt would be interesting to compare them to 50gr VMAX blems from Jon's on water filled milk jugs in my 222 and 223 Rem Varmints.
A forum member suggested the Hornady 50gr SX. l think he's used them on prairie dogs

 

[357Mag]

What is your story on expansion and accuracy.

Tedk -

Ok, I'll try to conclude....

After switching over from the 50 SX to the redoubtable 55SX back in 1975,
we have experienced zero ( groundhog ) crawlers; when shooting any of cartridges
I previously listed... and GH is the only varmint we shoot.

Accuracy:
My custom .22-35Remington varmint rifle was set-up specifically for the SX bullet.
I gave Fred Sinclair inert sample cartridges, for his use when cutting to the chamber and leade. Fred had me all set to run the SX .002" off the lands, and I found no better seating depth during subsequent range testing. This placed the bullet base .125" into my wildcat's case neck, which itself was .250" lg. I ran .010" neck wall thickness, and .002" of
" squeeze " . *** I Do Not use any crimp when shooting the SX ***

At a 100yd benchrest shoot over in Leipsic, OH...I won a single shot "closest to center"
add-on relay. The target was a small diameter cartoon faced decal. My shot taken w/ my .22-35 and 55SX bullet beat the rest of the shooters; who were all shooting 6PPC.
They tried their best, and so did I. Could I do that all day....no. But...I did manage it once, when called upon.

I have given 1,000 55SX bullets to my best friend, as a hedge against any possible suspension of production @ Hornady. I just recently received a box for myself.
I did give other .224" cal varmint bullets a try, as they came out....the 55 " Blitz " and later
55 " Blitz King "... Hornady 55 " V "- MAX... JLK 55gr #12 ogive FBHP... et al.
None demonstrated better terminal performance and accuracy than what the 55SX gave me.

Seating:
My custom RCBS seater die worked well w/ the 55SX, as did the Wilson seater die I used with a Sinclair arbor press. In more recent years, I went with a Hornady " Custom Grade New Dimension " seater die, which features their .224" cal seater stem design; and I added Hornady's " Micro-just " top. All work great !

Note:
At hyper velocity, the exposed lead tip on the SX will ablate on its way out to the target.
This can be seen as a vapor trail in the atmosphere, when shooting in high humidity conditions, like we have here Spring & Summer in NE Indiana. I have been asked in the past, if I was shooting " tracers ".

Use an ammo storage box that protects the exposed lead bullet tips.


With regards,
357Mag

 

[boltfluter]

They are great on coyotes out of a .222 or .223. Many bullets do not exit leaving no damage to the hide.
Paul

 

[centershot]

I used the 50 grain SX in the early years before the v-max came out in my .222. Loaded with blc-2, they blew up prairie dogs! Loved the bullet.
I now use 53 grain V-Max in my .223 A I and .220 Rocket. Love them.

 

[V509]

IIRC the SX have a max velocity of 3600fps in a 1in 14 twist barrel
I have found those flat bass bullets shoot well in almost everything

 

[Tedk]

IIRC the SX have a max velocity of 3600fps in a 1in 14 twist barrel
I have found those flat bass bullets shoot well in almost everything

Shot 55 gr SPSX in a 1/14 bbl, 22-250 with 39.5 gr to 40gr H414 with no vaporizing issues. Lot of copper fouling and 414 was pretty dirty. Lot of soaking and brushing. Shoot in the 3's most of the time. The SX shines on a centered crow!!

 

[357Mag]

Shot 55 gr SPSX in a 1/14 bbl, 22-250 with 39.5 gr to 40gr H414 with no vaporizing issues. Lot of copper fouling and 414 was pretty dirty. Lot of soaking and brushing. Shoot in the 3's most of the time. The SX shines on a centered crow!!

Tedk -


Howdy, again !

In my 24" Hart SS 1-14 5 groove .224" cal barrel, my wildcat .22-35 accuracy /field load
was 41.2gr WW760 and FED Large Magnum Rifle Match under the 55SX; for
3,690fps. This was not a " max load ", pressure wise.

I myself did not experience copper fouling issues, nor excess powder residue that required extensive cleaning. Also ( in my shooting circumstances) I did not find WW760 to be temp sensitive.


With regards,
357Mag

 

[Tedk]

Tedk -


Howdy, again !

In my 24" Hart SS 1-14 5 groove .224" cal barrel, my wildcat .22-35 accuracy /field load
was 41.2gr WW760 and FED Large Magnum Rifle Match under the 55SX; for
3,690fps. This was not a " max load ", pressure wise.

I myself did not experience copper fouling issues, nor excess powder residue that required extensive cleaning. Also ( in my shooting circumstances) I did not find WW760 to be temp sensitive.


With regards,
357Mag

Tedk -


Howdy, again !

In my 24" Hart SS 1-14 5 groove .224" cal barrel, my wildcat .22-35 accuracy /field load
was 41.2gr WW760 and FED Large Magnum Rifle Match under the 55SX; for
3,690fps. This was not a " max load ", pressure wise.

I myself did not experience copper fouling issues, nor excess powder residue that required extensive cleaning. Also ( in my shooting circumstances) I did not find WW760 to be temp sensitive.


With regards,
357Mag

Maybe they made some changes in the composition of both the jackets and powder. I am talking at least 30 years ago. I also had a Hart bbl.

 

[snert]

A few observations:

I shot SX in factory Remingtons...222 and 22-250. 50 grain in the 222, 55 in the 22-250. The 222 was awesome, the 22-250 occasionally had a bullet vaporize. I then ran the same bullet in a Hart 22-250 and never had a vaporized bullet, same load. I attribute this to the quality of barrel.

I also shot the Hornady 55 SP in the 22-250, both factory Varmint special and in a Hart barrel. I much preferred this bullet for accuracy and stability. Both were 1 in 14 barrels and they shot extremely well. My varmnt of choice was the exhulted eastern groundhog.

I switched to the vmax when they came out, only for the improved BC. I found they didn't shoot as accurately, but the difference only mattered on paper, not on groundhogs.

Im not sure that the change some 20 years ago was honestly worth the $$ difference I have spent on Vmax vs the SP or Sx.

 

[Tedk]

Maybe they made some changes in the composition of both the jackets and powder. I am talking at least 30 years ago. I also had a Hart bbl.

What rifle/action do you have?

 

[357Mag]

Tedk -

Howdy !

If you are asking me about the rifle.

I have a Wichita WBR1375 single shot action ( s/n 15 ) that Sinclair mated to a
24" SS Hart .224" cal 1-14 5-groove. I went with a straight 1.375" diam bull barrel,
which matched the 1.375" diam of the action. The Wichita action is a 3 lug. Sinclair installed an AR- style extractor.

My rifle at first utilized a Bishop walnut / walnut laminate target-style high comb stock.
Forend width was 2.75", and I used a Dremel and sandpaper to fashion a Wundhammer swell on the grip ( Rt handed). Sinclair machined a custom recoil lug and also custom aluminum trigger guard for the rifle. Tom Meredith did the bedding, I believe.
Dave Schwarze of Ft. Wayne, IN did the stock finishing. Sinclair also secured an M-700
trigger converted to 2oz by Ken Burns.

My thoughts at the time on rifle configuration, had me go with the 24" barrel length.
This I did for both ( what I felt then were ) cosmetic reasons, and for easier rifle portability;
as the total scoped rifle weight w/ the 24"-barrel gun ended up being 17.75 lb.

The action has since seen other wildcat-chambered barrels installed and shot, for both varmint and target applications.


With regards,
357Mag

 

[Jrjones]

Imo probably one of the hardest bullets to beat of all time for 221,222,223 for shorter range varmints, plinking, practice. Hard to beat the price. For over 20 years now My 788 222 is just a driller with these. They have performed to perfection for me on coyotes to be skinned. And these make an absolutely awesome “PLOP” sound on every hit. Same can be said for sierra blitz sp’s. Ill shoot em forever.

 

[JSH]

I have found barrel quality and twist will determine how fast you can push the sp/spsx.
Factory 1-9” savage 223, about half would make it to the target. Buddy rebarreled his, think it was a wilson, was all he shot for a long time.
I mistakenly grabbed a few boxes of 223 loaded with spsx on my last dog hunt, 1-7.7 twist Brux I believe. Talk about frustration, trying to spot your self and see no impact. About 15 rounds I hollered at my buddy to come watch for a white cloud. Sure enough, first one poof about 50 yards out.
Later that evening we got to talking glad it didn’t poof right out of the muzzle, my can may have suffered badly from that.