Which .223 chamber for target work?

[CFJunkie]

Paddyd has good advice on set up.
A tight fit in the shoulder works really well especially with higher calibers.
It was the key to me getting back in the accuracy mode with my 6.5mm CM.
I got lax shooting the .223 since there is relatively little recoil with a 15 lb. target rifle.

One other thing that might cause a shot to go to the left for a right hander is not pulling the trigger straight back. A little side pressure on the trigger can cause the rifle to move slightly as you are pulling the trigger. It you're not really paying attention, you might not even notice it.

Absolutely right on losing concentration and getting sloppy. I can only really concentrate for a couple of groups before start to get sloppy and leave out a critical step in the set up process. It also seems to occur when I am shooting really well and get over-confident about my skills. That's when the 'one out' event occurs.

I now use an F-Class bipod from Sinclair. No need to worry about front loading a bipod with that.

 

[ONE-TEN]

When I was learning to shoot, my mistake was shooting at the hole left by the last round. I don’t know why I thought that was correct.

 

[Billnthedesert]

That's simply an astonishing bipod, CF. I just have a plain-Jane Harris S-BRM. I'll start working through the variables of getting into proper and repeatable position with my owl-ear bag in the rear, keeping aware of eye position, keeping as much of Bill off the stock as possible. Might even "pinch the trigger." That said we usually have wind to deal wth here -- and the target frames are made of bent 3/8 rebar with a crude pressboard backer attached with baling wire and each leg of the thing stuck into a half-inch pipe in the ground, often plugged with dirt. The targets are capable of considerable movement in a breeze -- not even close to ideal when chasing small groups.
Paddy, you are giving some useful advice as well and thanks.

 

[Tacoma]

I'm going through the same decision process rigth now as I get ready to build a new .223 competition rifle. Part of me thinks that 95% of my shooting will be with 69 through 77 gr handloads so a std 223 rem chamber is fine. Then there is the part of me that thinks that experimenting with 80 gr and heavyer/longer bullets could be in my future. In that case, I'd be looking at something with a longer throat to accomodate those bullets ( which some companies call a "match" chamber. ) Truth be told, my Savage 12 LRPV (1:7) and Tikka T3X Ace (1:8) are all that are needed as either will outshoot me at my max 300 yd range distance. Still, this whole hobby "keeps me off a bar stool" and is an awful lot of fun.

 

[Billnthedesert]

Your handle reminds me of the 7 years we lived in Fircrest, Washington, in the 1960s. Shot at Tacoma Rifle and Revolver Club.

 

[Tacoma]

Your handle reminds me of the 7 years we lived in Fircrest, Washington, in the 1960s. Shot at Tacoma Rifle and Revolver Club.

Funny, I get that corrolation all the time. I actually live in New England. I have used "Tacoma" as my handle on most firearms forums since 2000 when I bought my new Toyota Tacoma truck. The handle lasted longer, with more integrity than that POS truck ever did. The handle is here to last. That rattle trap, rust bucket is long gone!

 

[CFJunkie]

Tacoma,
Your 1:7 12 LRPV will handle 90s without any problems.
The Tikka 1:8 probably won't, but it should easily handle 80 gr bullets.

My buddy's 12 LRPV factory barrel seems to have a bit more free bore than a standard chamber, perhaps it is a Match chamber. It shoots everything from 69s to 90s well.
It took some 'trial and error' to find the load length that worked for the 90s, but once he got in the zone, they performed great.
He has over 6,120 rounds through the barrel and it is shooting as accurately as it ever has.

His 90 SMKs average 0.195 at 100 yards.
His 80 Berger VLDs average 0.200
His 80 ELD-Ms average 0.208.

I wouldn't give up on your 12 LRPV, just yet

 

[Tacoma]

Tacoma,
Your 1:7 12 LRPV will handle 90s without any problems.
The Tikka 1:8 probably won't, but it should easily handle 80 gr bullets.

My buddy's 12 LRPV factory barrel seems to have a bit more free bore than a standard chamber, perhaps it is a Match chamber. It shoots everything from 69s to 90s well.
It took some 'trial and error' to find the load length that worked for the 90s, but once he got in the zone, they performed great.
He has over 6,120 rounds through the barrel and it is shooting as accurately as it ever has.

His 90 SMKs average 0.195 at 100 yards.
His 80 Berger VLDs average 0.200
His 80 ELD-Ms average 0.208.

I wouldn't give up on your 12 LRPV, just yet

Thanks for that. I have no doubt my LPRV will handle any heavy weight bullet I chose to handload. To date, I've only gone as heavy as 77's but do have some 80's inbound. I'm just begining to really work on developing loads for that rifle. The new rifle is really more about always wanting a custom centerfire rather than shortfalls of my Savage. i'e It's not need but want that drives those sleepless nights. One of the decision points now is to build on a zermat or savage action.

 

[Paddyd]

After a few thousand rounds that SAMI 223 chamber will also have enough freebore. My 9 twist loved those little 50 gn BKs, but its getting to the point that Im running out of case neck to hold them. LOL

 

[CFJunkie]

I've done a lot of analysis of the difference in accuracy resulting in hunting jump as the chamber erodes versus managing the amount of bullet in the neck.

My data tells me that once the bullet has less than 35% of the caliber of the bullet in the neck, the accuracy begins to fall away more than any benefit I would get from trying to minimize jump. For my lighter bullets, I manage % of caliber in the neck once it gets below 50% (0.112 for my .224 bullets). The 35% works as a lower limit until the number of reloads without annealing gets around 12 to 15. I have concluded that the brass gets a bit stiffer with multiple full resizings, and doesn't consistently maintain the same neck tension in every piece of brass.

 

[K80skeet]

Paddyd has good advice on set up.
A tight fit in the shoulder works really well especially with higher calibers.
It was the key to me getting back in the accuracy mode with my 6.5mm CM.
I got lax shooting the .223 since there is relatively little recoil with a 15 lb. target rifle.

One other thing that might cause a shot to go to the left for a right hander is not pulling the trigger straight back. A little side pressure on the trigger can cause the rifle to move slightly as you are pulling the trigger. It you're not really paying attention, you might not even notice it.

Absolutely right on losing concentration and getting sloppy. I can only really concentrate for a couple of groups before start to get sloppy and leave out a critical step in the set up process. It also seems to occur when I am shooting really well and get over-confident about my skills. That's when the 'one out' event occurs.

I now use an F-Class bipod from Sinclair. No need to worry about front loading a bipod with that.

I'm going through the same decision process rigth now as I get ready to build a new .223 competition rifle. Part of me thinks that 95% of my shooting will be with 69 through 77 gr handloads so a std 223 rem chamber is fine. Then there is the part of me that thinks that experimenting with 80 gr and heavyer/longer bullets could be in my future. In that case, I'd be looking at something with a longer throat to accomodate those bullets ( which some companies call a "match" chamber. ) Truth be told, my Savage 12 LRPV (1:7) and Tikka T3X Ace (1:8) are all that are needed as either will outshoot me at my max 300 yd range distance. Still, this whole hobby "keeps me off a bar stool" and is an awful lot of fun.

We only have a 100 yard range so I would buy a 1 in 9 twist. That's what mine is. It shoots the 69grs through 73grs into a tiny one hole group. But opens up when 75&77gr bullets are used. The best load I have found is with W748 25.0grs with a Sierra 69gr SMK and a Remington case set .005-,010 of the lands. My rifle is LRPV 1 in 9 twist with a Nightforce 12x42x56br with a NP-2DD reticle also known as a Double Dot. That's the only reticle I buy. It weights about 18 lbs.

 

[ONE-TEN]

Hmm.. That reticle looks like a reticle for the small 3-4X Prism Scopes. Interesting.

Shooting only 100yds., it seems ok. But your scope is 10-42x? Thats a serious “reach out & touch ya” scope. I certainly don’t like an overcrowded, BUSY reticle, like this TREMOR3 reticle. Thais is WILDLY overcrowded imo.


But I do prefer hash marks. I’ve been using the GEN2XR for years. And though it’s a bit long in the tooth, it’s still a great reticle with great hold-overs & such, but not crowded at all.

 

[CFJunkie]

I love the NP-2DD reticle. I have it on 3 32X and 1 42X NightForce Benchrest scopes.
Very clean and neat for target shooting at known distances.

I guess the complex reticles might be great for varying distances but, for me, the clutter gets in the way of precision shooting that requires precise aiming.

As for limiting twist because of distance, I have shot 1:9, 1:8 and 1;7 twists with my .223 and have no issues with shooting 85.5, 88 and 90 grain bullets at 100 yards.
I admit it was a lot simpler loading with a standard chamber with the 1:9 and 1:8, but I learned to load with a VLD chamber with the 1:7, even shooting 69 to 75 grain bullets. My 73 s shoot just as accurately or better in the 1:7 as they ever did in the 1:9.

 

[NF1E]

Very nice. Can't have too much power on optics. I use 50 and 80 power scopes from 50 yds on out. Most of my shooting is between 50 and 150. Whatta Hobby!

 

[ONE-TEN]

50x & 80X magnification at just 50yds?? What’s the field of view? About 2”??

How is that not just a blurry mess? I’ve never heard of that… EVER!

 

[NF1E]

Learn something new every day and you might have knowledge by the time you croak. Many good quality benchrest scopes can focus down to 25 yds. When you are trying to see a 1/16 moa nor smaller aimpoint it is pretty important. Whatta Hobby!

 

[CFJunkie]

I've always used high magnification scopes that are 36 power at 50 yards, even with rimfires.
NF1E is right, that is one of the reasons to use high-quality scopes, some of which can focus closer than 25 yards.
Aim small, hit small.
Precise aiming is the key to getting tight groups.

For years, I was somewhat sloppy with aiming because I never had rifles accurate enough to teach me that I had to aim more precisely.

 

[ONE-TEN]

Hey, gotta stick with what works ya.

 

[RevKeith]

Very nice. Can't have too much power on optics. I use 50 and 80 power scopes from 50 yds on out. Most of my shooting is between 50 and 150. Whatta Hobby!
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Where did you get the bag rider on your Oryx? Also, what’s attached under the front end? Thanks!

Keith

 

[NF1E]

Where did you get the bag rider on your Oryx? Also, what’s attached under the front end? Thanks!

Keith

JKL makes the rear bag rider. Front has a 3" wide flat bag rider attached to a short Picatiny rail.