.223 or 5.56 for better accuracy?

[Mike41]

Gun has 18" barrel 1/8 twist chambered for 5.56. Using 55gr bullets which will more likely give better accuracy 5.56 or .223?

Mike

[LoganbillJ]

All will depend on where the particular load falls in with your barrel harmonics. Buy a bunch of different manufacturers and see what shoots best. There is no perfect factory ammo that has amazing accuracy in every barrel. Manufacturers pick a load that works the best over a broad spectrum.

Always handload for the best accuracy.

[BOOM]

I'll VOTE .For me off the shelf factory ammunition,( 223.)

[Tackman11]

+1 for hand load

[Steve RA]

A lot of ranges won't let you shoot FMJs, so if "store bought" then .223. Reloads tailored to your own gun are best (as mentioned several times above).

[striped1]

off the shelf? .223

My search would start and end with Federal Gold Medal Match and Black Hills match.

[pjb45]

Hornady, Steel Match is very good.

IMO, X193 5.56 is a military round. It is not known for being super duper accurate. That said, I have seen it hit steel gongs past 600 yards.

Run of the mill commercial ammo is about the same as the x193 out of my JP.

My hand loads; VV133/69gr SMK and upscale commercial ammo like Federal and Hornady Match stuff run <.3 MOA.

IMO, unless your are shooting prairie dogs at 500 yds, X193 is a very predictable round. There is a big difference between $.36 andn $1.00 per round. You get what you pay for--I just don't need to spend a dollar a round. BTW: A fellow at our 3G matches usually wins shooting Russian steel ammo.

[mngunguy]

Hornady, Steel Match is very good.

IMO, X193 5.56 is a military round. It is not known for being super duper accurate. That said, I have seen it hit steel gongs past 600 yards.

Run of the mill commercial ammo is about the same as the x193 out of my JP.

My hand loads; VV133/69gr SMK and upscale commercial ammo like Federal and Hornady Match stuff run <.3 MOA.

IMO, unless your are shooting prairie dogs at 500 yds, X193 is a very predictable round. There is a big difference between $.36 andn $1.00 per round. You get what you pay for--I just don't need to spend a dollar a round. BTW: A fellow at our 3G matches usually wins shooting Russian steel ammo.

It's soft shooting but Hornady Steel Match is sub MOA out of my barrel out to 220 yards (longest local range). XM193 is about 3 MOA at the same distance. I've been very happy with 55gr Steel Match so far.

[BOOM]

Black Hills 77gr. red box 223; unless your set up to reload (for accuracy) all the way out to 600 yards

[Flatland Shooter]

Until I started reloading 223/5.56 ammo, I did not realize just how accurate my carbines can be.

For quite some time my go to load was XM193. Hotter than necessary for 3 gun but readily available. At best it shot around 1" groups at 100 yards. At 200 yards it was more like 3" - 4" groups.

The various .223 loads I tried were not much better.

Started loading my own late last year. All my reloads are to 5.56 measurements but with better bullets and a lot less velocity. Accuracy to 200 yards and beyond greatly improved.

If I don't feel like reloading and the distances are under 200 yards, I still may use XM193 but it I feel like reloading, I uses 50 grain SP bullets at 2825 fps for hoser loads and targets out to 150 yards. Longer distances call for 77 grain HPBT bullets running at 2600 fps.

Bill

[NisilS14]

PMC Xtac 55gr 5.56 is right at .75moa @100yds out of a BCM 18". Black hills 77gr, Hornady 75gr will be around .6moa for me. I've taken it out to 500yds and still be decently accurate on a 15" gong.

Edited July 26, 2014 by NisilS14

[BOOM]

Thanks Got to try that PMC X . Whats it like at 300 yrds, and is it a snappy recoil round as a 5.56

[openclassterror]

I just did a runout check on some new Federal XM193s and some were up to .008 out on concentricity. I have seen better, but this is not totally unheard of either. Handloads usually run well under half of this. In real life, your particular rifle may show a preference for 5.56 or .223, but at the club match level either will usually give "good-enuf" accuracy for the target presentations given. 2MOA means MGM flashers should be a slam dunk out to 400 yards, ASSUMING YOU PLAY THE WIND AND KNOW THE DISTANCE. Best decision may be dictated by which one works your comp better, giving you faster controlled pairs. Handloading allows you to either load better ammo for a similar price, or load similar ammo for less money. But even with the same components accuracy should be better due to your ability to tune ammo to the gun.

[BOOM]

Distance is easy with a range finder. Spending time, and ammunition ( Learning) to read the wind using mirage is frustrating

[openclassterror]

Most 3gun scopes do not have enough magnification to read mirage effectively. Lots of matches have wind flags, but often you are looking at grass, bushes, advertiser's banners, etc. My secret is watching where OTHER people's bullets are hitting (missing), and asking what their hold was. Take binocs to a match, and watch your fellow squad members' bullet impacts on the long range stuff. If a LOT of the competitors are missing right, I hold a little more left than I think I should. Learning from other's mistakes is waaaayy cheaper than making them yourself! Not all learning has to be done with your own bullets

[BOOM]

Sit back drink a red bull, and use a spotting scope on a tripod.

[Wild Gene]

I have determined, that without a doubt, and as previously stated, it really just depends on the rifle.

I have an LWRC that has eaten and shoot everything I have put into it. It is a sub MOA gun, but just barely. I have a Seekins that is also a sub MOA gun, but shoots much better groups, more like .5 MOA, but shoots much better with .223 ammo than 5.56, especially with the Hornady V-Max 55 grain bullets. This could be in part due to a much better trigger in the Seekins, I don't know, but possibly.

It is really cool to have a very accurate rifle, but really, how accurate do these rifles need to be? I'm beginning to be more inclined to look for ammo that feeds reliably and is consistent with what you have, that is affordable for your budget.

wg

[dauntedfuture]

it does not matter one bit. If you turn the same brand blanks into finished barrels and finish them with 12 different reamers ill bet you a buck that they will all shoot the same or to a degree that there is not a statistical difference. I'll say it again, .223, 5.56 or Wylde chamber does not affect accuracy, the barrel matters most.