Impact .223 rifle

[r1200mike]

I have a switch barrel .223 and 6br. Impact action Foundation stock and Vortex 4.5x27x56 scope. Currently playing with the 223 using my 77gr. using 24.4gr of VV N-140 Lapua brass and Wolf SRM primers, gives me about 2900fps with a 26in. Bartlein 5r 1-8 twist barrel. Off the bench at 100yds. the group is just a ragged 25 cal. hole with 10 shots. moving to 600yds. it opens up a bit but still hovering 1/2 MOA. went to 900 yds. and just shooting incredibly well. Now the wind was zero on my kestrel and the wind flags were not moving much at all so it was a good day to true my Kestrel data. The velocity(2897FPS) (Extreme spread 6) and BC was dead on. G7 BC was at set at .195

After trueing the kestrel I started back at 100yds and went back to 900 checking data every 100 yds. The targets have a small dot that we use as an aiming point, that little 77gr. hit or was very close to it. This is my first .223 bolt gun and that cartridge really comes alive with a longer barrel, I am sure the 223 AI is even better !

I then set the scope dial to my 100yd zero and used the 1MOA hash marks on the scope for hold off and while looking at the dope card I had just made went thru the targets with one shot each, the bullet impacted in the same area as the others. It was a great day to be at the range shooting a rifle that has very little to no recoil and used very little powder to boot !

 

[steve123]

We all wish every trip out was as successful!!!

 

[fredo]

Very nice, Mike!
For comparison, you could expect about 200fps gain with that bullet weight if going to "AI", given the same 26" barrel. Give or take...

Have fun!

 

[r1200mike]

Very nice, Mike!
For comparison, you could expect about 200fps gain with that bullet weight if going to "AI", given the same 26" barrel. Give or take...

Have fun!

So with the Added velocity will that cartridge be as accurate ? will the barrel last as long ? This is my PRS training barrel, primary is a 6br. I have a large amount of brass and bullets left over from my Service Rifle shooting and just wanted to utilize the supply at hand. I don't really like fire forming brass as it just gets too complicated with everything else that I have to do.

I will post some pics of the bullets and how they are made on my next run. Mike

 

[fredo]

Mike, the AI flavor can absolutely be as accurate!
Fireforming can be perceived as a chore, or can be deemed an excuse to get out and shoot! If you have varmints in your AO, fireforming your brass with some fun days in the field is a no brainer. If not, practice your PRS positional shooting with your fireforming loads, then throttle up your formed brass for match time. The only caveat with FF loads is the "crush fit" is not great for smooth bolt manipulation, but you can still concentrate on breaking a clean shot and follow thru, then eject your formed brass before moving, etc...

I actually started using my .223AI as a primary match rifle, over my 6x47L or 6.5 SAUM. Obviously, the larger caliber/cartridges offer benefits, but a 75Amax @ 3105 inside of 700yds is surprisingly effective for how we shoot in Practical rifle matches. My barrel is a 26" 1:7.7 Bartlein, therefore can also shoot an 80AMAX/Eld/SMK, but I like running up nearer the PRS 'speed limit'...

If you're dead set on WINNING matches, then a .223/AI is obviously not the smartest choice. But, if you like to shoot & watch your hits/misses with little/no recoil, load cheap brass on a diet of ~25-26gr per, not cry when ya lose brass on a stage, AND have the satisfaction of placing well against a field of larger cartridges, then ya just might find happiness with one!

As a trainer, I'd stick with the straight .223, for the ability to smoothly operate the bolt in a 'match safe' manner, and use all that brass you've got piled up. However, once that brass is fully formed to AI, it will feed/cycle just fine, and you'll have a dandy 'backup' match cartridge...

Have fun!

 

[Twitchy]

R1200Mike-How far off wha your Kestrel? And which model is it? I just picked up a 5700 Ballistic (not Elite or the Applied Ballistic version) to replace my decade old 4500nv that finally died.

I'm going through he same thing with mine and had to "true" the velocity from 2830 to 2765 in order to get the correct holds. It seemed like a lot.

I shoot a match on Saturday (different load) and haven't had the chance to collect data on yet.


FYI, I'm also shooting 223. I use it with heavies for F-TR (30" with 90g VLDs) and PRS (80g SMK).

 

[r1200mike]

R1200Mike-How far off wha your Kestrel? And which model is it? I just picked up a 5700 Ballistic (not Elite or the Applied Ballistic version) to replace my decade old 4500nv that finally died.

I'm going through he same thing with mine and had to "true" the velocity from 2830 to 2765 in order to get the correct holds. It seemed like a lot.

I shoot a match on Saturday (different load) and haven't had the chance to collect data on yet.


FYI, I'm also shooting 223. I use it with heavies for F-TR (30" with 90g VLDs) and PRS (80g SMK).

Twitchy, I have the model with the AB ballistics, Had it for a year or so and really enjoy using it, The learning curve is steep at first but not too bad once you get it going. Mike

 

[r1200mike]

So I have two point forming dies for making .224 projectiles. One is a 7s ogive and the other is a 10s ogive. I have been using the 7s for making short range 77gr. bullets for my service rifle using a .930 jacket, these are the ones I shot at 900 yds. But with a 1.00 jkt. and they are super accurate, the nose is similar to a football with of course a boattail at the end. So I tried the 1.00 length(77gr) jacket but use the 10s die. Well they shot just a little knot at every target from 200 to 1000 yds. with nothing more than checking seating depth to make them jump around 5 thousands.

I have also tried this with my 308 projos, I used a 1.300 length jacket but kept the weight at 175gr to 180gr. and they shot better than the 1.200 length jacket @175gr. My 308 is a 1-8 twist and shoots pretty much every weight from 150gr. @2900fps. to a 220gr. @ 1000fps.

 

[flatlander]

I've built myself a couple of 223AI rifles, both on trued M700 actions, both with 26" Krieger 1-7tw bbls. Both shot Berger or JLK 90VLDs very well at 1000; even got hits on a 1400yd steel target in a practical/tactical match a few years back. Biggest downside to using any 22CF in steel matches is that bullet splash - even with 80-90gr .224 bullets -gets very hard to see by the time you get out to 600yds. If you're shooting a match where the RO/scorer has to see hits in order for you to get credit for them, you're putting yourself at a considerable disadvantage by using a 22 cal rifle. OTOH, using a good 223 for practice is a good thing IMHO.

I will disagree with how much additional velocity you can get by going with a 223AI though - you gain very little additional case capacity with the AI version of the 223. The main advantage I see is not having to trim very often - if at all - with the AI. It's a cute little case, and I've really enjoyed shooting mine - but there's no magic attached to the AI.