AR-15 Ammunition

[Puma]

OK guys, like I said in earlier posts I am a AR-15 newbee. But I am eager to learn. Everyone talks about 69 gr ammunition being the best. Can you please tell me what manafacturer and where are the best deals to purchase in bulk.

New Stag Arms 3 G on its way............

Any and all information will be greatly appreciated.

[michael1778]

OK guys, like I said in earlier posts I am a AR-15 newbee. But I am eager to learn. Everyone talks about 69 gr ammunition being the best. Can you please tell me what manafacturer and where are the best deals to purchase in bulk.

New Stag Arms 3 G on its way............

Any and all information will be greatly appreciated.

"Best"?? I know plenty of people that shoot 55 grain for most of their competition. Maybe they do a 69-ish or 77-ish grain for long shots with wind. For a short range rifle stage I don't plan on using something expensive.

Best in what way?

Welcome to the forum and I hope you thoroughly enjoy your new rifle.

[Puma]

I have been advised that the Stag Arms ( 1:8 ) 3 G favors the 69 gr. I have also been told that the 69 is a good all around ammo. I would like to start on the right foot. I want to know where to purchase the 69 gr in bulk so that I can save some money. I would especially like to hear from those that may own a Stag Arms 3 G. But again all of your opinions are appreciated. If there is any ammunition that I should stay away from by all means let me know also.

Again, all information is greatly appreciated !

[ckell101]

I think you will be fairly hard pressed to find a manufacturer that makes a 69 gr 223 round that doesn't cost over 2 bucks a shot. Some of the most consistent and quality ammo I have found is Federal's AE556. Groups incredibly well and it's one of the more affordable bulk ammunitions that is readily available from most sporting good stores. You might also check out www.wideners.com they have good deals on bulk ammo.

[bgary]

I think you will be fairly hard pressed to find a manufacturer that makes a 69 gr 223 round that doesn't cost over 2 bucks a shot.

Before I started reloading my own, I used a lot of this: Black Hills 69gr

Great stuff, and well under "2 bucks a shot"

Concur with the other posters, though, that 69gr ammo isn't really required. Is it demonstrably better outside, say, 300 yards? yeah, probably.... but most shots in a typical match are much closer than that, and 55gr ball ammo works perfectly fine. There are some very good shooters who shoot 55s (or 52s) for everything.

[warpspeed]

The best 69gr ammo is Federal Gold Medal Match w/ Sierra Match Kings.

ammoman.com has it or $ 235 /200 or $ 499 / 500 rds.

The Black Hills Blue Box ( reman ) is very good too and at half the price of new Fed GMM. Same bullet as the Fed GMM.

[MarkCO]

There is a big difference between "Best" and "prefer". If you are shooting quality 52s, or 55s at 3100 fps or so vs. a 69 at 2700 fps, there are trade-offs. Some people prefer to trade one aspect for another. When it comes to discussion of a "preferred" bullet weight "Across-the-Course" one has to consider factory ammo, vs. reloads, BC, velocity, sighting system, recoil, accuracy, distance, cost, barrel life, etc. Some people also choose to have 2, 3 or even 4 loads for their rifle and change within the match based on the stage and targets. I'd not suggest that is best to start out with, or for some, ever.

I've heard a few people say "The target does not care what it is hit with, pick a load, know your dope." Great advice, BUT... I've seen targets hit at distance when they were not set-up the "best" or as spotted by ROs that were "distracted" or whose target vision was insufficient, require additional actual hits on the target for the competitor to get the hit. I yelled out "HIT" on several targets last year when the primary spotter was a target off, or missed the "moving", etc. Out past some distance (between 300 and 400 yards), energy on target may have some benefit. That maybe included 5 to 6 TOTAL targets at ALL of the majors last year (excluding the PR targets at Iron-Man). At some other matches, you could have shot all 50 grain bullets and benefitted from the lower recoil. The ruleset, target presenation, target set-up, particular RO all have had an influence on how I shoot a stage or what load I choose.

Short answer, if you want to go with one load across the course, for all matches, you have to test the loads on the target types at the distances expected. A 50, 52, 55, 60, 62, 68 or 69 grain slug "may" work the best for you out of your gun for an "Across-the-Course" load at the matches you shoot. I have one rifle that just dislikes a particular brand of 69s, just is. Another that even baffles JP as I can shoot 1/4 MOA groups using 50s at laser beam velocities for a 1/7 twist barrel. I am pretty sure Jesse and Kalani will say the same thing out of your STAG. What works for them is probably a great place to start, but don't get frustrated or locked in only only one solution. Conversely, don't get too wrapped up in testing every possible combination, it is NOT worth the time.

Anyone who says "X" is the best, is really only telling you what they think is the best in their own rifle on the courses they shoot or maybe does not realize all the applicable factors.

Edited February 12, 2012 by MarkCO

[bushmeat]

OK guys, like I said in earlier posts I am a AR-15 newbee. But I am eager to learn. Everyone talks about 69 gr ammunition being the best. Can you please tell me what manafacturer and where are the best deals to purchase in bulk.

New Stag Arms 3 G on its way............

Any and all information will be greatly appreciated.

I have a Stag 3G and it is quite accurate. Not hard to get sub-MOA. I use 55gr PMC Bronze up to 300 yards with no wind. Only to 200 if gusting. I reload 69gr SMK for 200-500. I zero to this load and the PMC comes within 1-2 inches.

PMC is reasonably priced @ $300/k and yields nice brass for reloading.

If you don't reload, two good options would be Black Hills Blue Box 69s and BVAC 69s.

[Bear1142]

I have been very impressed with Corbon's match ammunition. Their 69gr load was the most accurate factory load I tested. The velocity was exactly what the factory claimed, and they use Lapua brass.

Doesn't get any better than that!

Buy a box or two and give the Corbon a try.

Erik

[dmc_md]

Your ammunition choice depends upon your desired use.

For short range plinking out to 100 yards: 55gr. Cheap and plentiful. 4MOA ammo.

For accuracy out to 200 yards: 52-77gr

For accuracy out to 300 yards: 69-77gr

For accuracy out to 600 yards: 77-80gr. 80gr has to be single loaded.

Your 1/8 barrel will stabilize pretty much any bullet.

Darren

[THM7]

Prvi Partizen makes 69 grn match and 75 grn match that is pretty decent. Wildners usually has it in stock....but 80% of the time I use Federal XM193.

[Lead-Head]

I have had good luck with 55 grain AE556 and PMC bronze. If cost is not an issue, or you are reloading a bunch, maybe 69-77 are the way to go. I love the way a 77 hits steel. It is a noticable difference.

But I like to shoot one load in practice, local and major matches. So I shoot the 55 grain cheap stuff. I just get to shoot more of it without taking out a loan.

There is something to be said for volume. Especially in practice.

Edited February 14, 2012 by Lead-Head