.223 W/h335 And 50gr V-max

[novicegun]

I want to load some .223 using H335 and 50gr Hornady V-Max but can't find any info. I could use some OAL info as well. Thanks

[George]

No shorter than 2.220" or longer than 2.250" OAL

Start around 24 grains of H335 and work up over a chrono until you get about 3230 fps or better, or see pressure signs. 26 grains would be a whole lot and should be considered max in an AR unless your testing proves otherwise.

Shorter OAL = smaller charge for starters

[38superman]

Is there no load data in the Hornady manual for this bullet / powder combination?

I'm not really familiar with this particular bullet, but I wonder if there is no data because it may not be suitable for .223 velocities.

It's been many years since I loaded .223, but Hornady used to make a 50 gr. bullet called the SX.

It was intended as a varmint bullet for lower velocity rounds such as the 222 Remington.

Just for grins I load some up for my .223 and the results were quite interesting.

The bullet would make it about 15 feet down range from my muzzle and disentigrate leaving nothing but a puff of smoke hanging in the air.

Tls

Edited February 13, 2006 by tlshores

[George]

Yes there is data from Hodgdon for H335 in .223 under everything from a 40gr Nosler to an 80gr MatchKing

http://www.hodgdon.com/data/rifle/223rem.php

The V Max bullet is fine at any attainable .223 velocity.

[novicegun]

Thanks for the help George. I was mostly looking for OAL. The Hodgdon manual has many loads using 335, but I couldn't find anything using the 50gr V-Max.

[gm iprod]

OAL is determined by your chamber, magazine length (if the rifle has one) and how much of the bearing surface of the projectiles remains in the neck. I like to have about 3.5mm minimum (.140") bearing surface in the neck, without touching the rifling or the magazine front. Ideally you should be .010" off the lands, just inside the magazine.

For one of the guys at work we load a 50gr Nosler Balistic Tip to the same load length that Hodgdon give for the 40gr BT, (2.280"). I use 26.5gr of H335 in a Tikka M595 Deluxe we get 3400fps average with an extreme spread of 20fps. Groups run .4" to .6" depending on idiot factor. Magpies dislike this load immensely.

[novicegun]

To gm iprod: Thanks for the info. Now I'm going to ask an amateur question. How do I find out the length of my chamber? If it helps any my rifle is a Remington 700 VSSF 2.

[Stumpnav]

What you really need to do is measure the seating depth with the bullet of your choice. I like to use the Stoney Point Chamber All. It uses a special cartridge case with a hole where the primer goes. There is a plastic rod that gets pushed through the hole against a bullet in the neck until you feel it hit the throat. Then you can lock the rod down, take it out of the chamber and measure the length. The Stoney Point Comparator is also helpful with this step.

Sinclair -- Stoney Point Chamber All

The folks at Sinclair are all shooters and can answer just about any question you can throw at them.