Hornady 50gr V-max bullets

[RonS]

I have a few of these that I want to try in my 223, when calculating stability for this bullet do you factor in the plastic tip? What is the best twist for this bullet? I’m looking to achieve at least 3200 fps out of a 26” barrel.

 

[SSL]

I have had excellent results with the 50-grain VMax bullets in .223s ranging from 22" to 26" and 1-8 to 1-12 twists. In the 1-12 (26") barrel my loads were just at 3,400 fps with its preferred load. My current 1-8 barrel gets well into the 3,300 range with its favorite loads. Your targeted speed is quite reasonable.

 

[B23]

If all you plan to shoot is the 50's a 1-14tw would do you well and in a 26in tube you should easily be in the 3450-3550 fps range. If you're having a new barrel chambered to shoot those 50's I'd go zero or near zero freebore and a 14tw. That combo and the right powder you could easily be well in to the 3600fps range.

 

[jpx2rk]

I'm running in the 3100-3200 fps zone with a 12T, 26" factory Rem 700.

 

[SSL]

The slowest twist I would recommend is the 1-12. That buys you some wiggle room in case you want to try heavier than your 50-grain choice later. At .223 velocities a 1-14 twist isn't likely to stabilize much heavier than a fifty-five or so grain bullet. Some may do it, but they have to be on the edge of performance.

 

[bloc]

The slowest twist I would recommend is the 1-12. That buys you some wiggle room in case you want to try heavier than your 50-grain choice later. At .223 velocities a 1-14 twist isn't likely to stabilize much heavier than a fifty-five or so grain bullet. Some may do it, but they have to be on the edge of performance.

Agree. My .225 Win is a 1:14, and it won't stabilize anything heavier than 55s.

 

[wkdickinson]

I can tell you that the VMAX 50 gr. shoot amazingly well from a Colt AR with a 24", 1:9" barrel and 75% of them won't get to the target out of a 28", 1:7.7" Krieger barrel on a different AR - at least in my rifles.

 

[SSL]

Agree. My .225 Win is a 1:14, and it won't stabilize anything heavier than 55s.

Same with my .22-250 (Ruger #1) but it dearly loves Hornady 52-grain AMax (ELD-M now) bullets at 3,850 fps. Once that barrel dies, I'll either re-barrel it or replace the rifle with one at a 1-9" minimum.

 

[B23]

Same with my .22-250 (Ruger #1) but it dearly loves Hornady 52-grain AMax (ELD-M now) bullets at 3,850 fps. Once that barrel dies, I'll either re-barrel it or replace the rifle with one at a 1-9" minimum.

IMO a 9tw in 22 cals is kind of the Goldilocks twist rate, not to fast, not to slow, but just right for all but the heaviest bullets. I personally wouldn't build anything with a 14tw my comment earlier about a 14tw was with regard to answering the OP's question about best twist rate for a 50gr Vmax.

 

[JB10]

Im running then in a 22 inch 1:8 twist just fine. Just got rifle in October. Worked a load and have been out hunting coyotes as much as possible. Did not get time to check speed yet. Ill wait till spring when calling is over.

 

[RonS]

Thanks guys, I have a Savage 1:9T and Rem 700 1:12T both with 26” barrels. When I ran the numbers on Bison Ballistic stability calculator it recommended a faster twist then 1:12. Awhile back I thought I read somewhere that bullets with ballistic tips had to be calculated differently. Does this still stand true today?

 

[Coyotefurharvester]

They shoot good even out of a 222 with 1/14 twist. The 53 gr vmax whole different story.

 

[searcher]

I LOVE that bullet. I've probably shot 25,000 and I'm thankful I loaded up on the 500-pak Z-Max boxes before Hornady quit selling them packages as such. I shoot them in several different rifles. My favorite twist for them is a 1-9 to 1-12 twist, though I also shoot a bunch out of an 8 twist and have shot them out of a 7 twist. Hornady did their homework on that bullet, for sure. Unfortunately, I have never gotten the best accuracy out of any of my rifles with any twist when they are being shot with the powders that provide the highest velocity. My rifles all shot most accurately with relatively fast powder like RL-7 and Accurate LT-32, though the slower IMR8208XBR can be fairly good, along with a few others. It will probably come down to what your rig likes unless accuracy is not your major point. In that case - I'd look towards CFE-223 and others noted for velocity.

 

[RonS]

searcher,
I like speed but accuracy is my thing. The 50’s are becoming harder to find but I did pick up some Hornady 52gr HP, 52gr ELD-M and 53gr V-max this weekend. I will be giving these a try as soon as the weather breaks in my 9 and 12 twist 223’s plus my 12 twist 221FB

 

[SSL]

searcher,
I like speed but accuracy is my thing. The 50’s are becoming harder to find but I did pick up some Hornady 52gr HP, 52gr ELD-M and 53gr V-max this weekend. I will be giving these a try as soon as the weather breaks in my 9 and 12 twist 223’s plus my 12 twist 221FB

I think you should be able to develop good loads for those. The 52-grain HPBT and 52-grain ELD-M (A-MAX) shoot superbly in my 1-14" .22-250, which is notoriously picky about bullets and weight, and my 1-8" .223. In your rifles they should perform quite well. I have some 53-grain V-MAX on the way, so I'll be trying them next.

 

[Dgd6mm]

I have only shot the 53 vmax, so I will say I love it. It hammers for me at 600 yards in mild conditions.