New barrel or use what I have

[22vartarg]

I currently have a 223 Remington barrel in a 1:8 twist that I used to shoot 69 through 80 gr. bullet with. I want to experiment with now lighter bullets say 45 to 65 gr. Can I use my current barrel and expect very good accuracy or should I get a new barrel with a slower twist say 1:12?

 

[urbanrifleman]

It's fine.

 

[linedrive301ft]

I have 3 223's that I have shot 50 gn. and heavier bullets. 2 8tw and a 7 tw. You will be surprised
how well they will perform for you. Good luck and shoot straight.

 

[SSL]

My Ruger American Predator is a 1-8 twist and shoots 50 through 68 grain bullets brilliantly with the proper loads (haven't tried lighter or heavier). You should be happy with what you have.

 

[Eagle Six]

I have a 1:8 that shoots the little one and the big ones well. It all depends on you barrel/chamber, your loads, and what you deem is "very good accuracy". Before I re-barreled I would test some loads with the lighter bullets. If it didn't work out the re-barrel is still an option. There is a book somewhere that states the lighter bullets like the slower twist. Then there are many shooters having great success shooting lighter bullets in the faster twist, go figure!

 

[wkdickinson]

With the lighter bullets your MV will be significantly greater, which may result in bullet jacket failures. I have an AR Match Rifle with a 1:7.7" twist Krieger on it. When I have tried to shoot 50 gr VMAX from it, only about 1/3 of the bullets make it to the target, the rest shed their jackets about 10 yds from the muzzle.

 

[B23]

I currently have a 223 Remington barrel in a 1:8 twist that I used to shoot 69 through 80 gr. bullet with. I want to experiment with now lighter bullets say 45 to 65 gr. Can I use my current barrel and expect very good accuracy or should I get a new barrel with a slower twist say 1:12?

I know they're suggesting a slightly faster twist then 8 but those new Hornady 62gr ELD-VT's could be a good candidate for you to try with your existing barrel.

 

[JSH]

I and two friend have identical rifles in 223. 1-7.5”. I never tried anything lighter than a 55. One of them tried some 40 Vmax, he said they shot very well. Soooo I had some 40 grains stuff laying around I was shocked how well they shot.

 

[Fern]

I have a tikka varmint with 1/8. Friend told me same thing about light bullets. I tried some 40g noslers and they grouped great

 

[K22]

I have a few Tikkas with 8" twist. While the 50 and 55's don't shoot terribly, these rifles really shine with the 60 Vmax. Groups are significantly tighter in my rifles with the 60 Vmax.

 

[22vartarg]

Thanks to everyone…I will keep what I have.

 

[TheCZKid]

I have a 1:8 Wylde chamber which I've shot Nosler 40 ballistic tips with excellent accuracy, about 3316 fps.
Also, 50 Vmax with 26 grains of Varget shoots tight groups, at about 3137 fps.
Seems a 8 twist is good from at least 40 grain, and highest I tested was 77 grain Sierra tipped match king, very good accuracy.

 

[B23]

I'm always a fan of the 53gr Vmax so I'd give them a try first and they're a pretty easy bullet to find in stock on the shelf at most places. They are not a seating depth sensitive bullet at all I've jumped them a mile and loaded them close they always seem to shoot well.

 

[dantiff2]

I've shot every bullet you can find from 50gn to 78gn from a 7,8,9 and 12 twist barrels and have had zero problems with the lighter ones spinning up to 340,000 rpms from the 7 twist barrels. Great results on critters!

 

[searcher]

I have a lot of .223's, used for various things. My 1-7's are too fast for tiny bullets, while my 1-12's won't stabilize heavier (or lead-free bullets of 50 grains or more). I have found the 1-9" twist to be the ideal, all -around twist for bullets in the 40-55 grain varmint rounds. I shoot mainly 50 grain bullets and it is ideal. I'd not go under 1-10" or over 1-8"" for optimum performance in shooting that range of bullets. The 1-9" is a bit fast for the 40's, but not too fast. It is a bit slow for anything over 60. A bit of over-stabilization at distance trumps under stabilization. My thoughts... If your rig shoots the bullet you choose - keep the tube you have.