Thread: Reloading for .223

I checked a number of previous posts but couldn't find the answers so...

Reloading for .223 - I pulled apart a Belmont factory load and found it has 27.0 grains of their 747 Action Rifle Powder. I reviewed their reloading advice on their website and they're talking up to about 26.8 grains as a maximum.

I've been using a few of their factory rounds and getting good results so do I just planing on charging future cases with 27.0 grains or max out at 26.8 grains? Or go low and head for 26.4 grains like others on this forum have done?

@300_BLK I see you're using the stuff... I'd be interested to hear your thoughts?? Anyone else?

I use there Action Rifle Powder loading it with 69 TMK I'm using 25.4grn for 2954fps I haven't loaded any yet with the Hornady 55sp but I will at some stage once I run out of BM2.

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starting to sound like a stuck record...

start low, work your way up. each rifle is different.

or just go "fuck it" throw the max load right from the start. who knows, may it works, maybe you blow up the rifle and loose your eyesight or a finger or 3

My powder dispenser has an error margin of plus or minus .1 of a grain, so 27 gn instead of 26.8 isnt much of a surprise.

I'd start low and work up to where you want it as per @ebf.

1st off ...you dont state projectile weight...it IS important...for what its worth I personally dont load hot in the .223 and prefer to keep velocity and pressure down a tad....after all the trebly is plenty good enough. 50grn projectiles suit my type of shooting...mostly wallabies with the odd pig or deer,rabbits and hares no trouble. win 748 is lovely powder to use it throws very consistantly.

I've never bothered reloading for my 2x 223's as the Belmont ammo is that good in them, I doubt I could better it. I've got both their 55gr SP Hornady and 55gr SP Lapua stuff.

Originally Posted by Mathias

I've never bothered reloading for my 2x 223's as the Belmont ammo is that good in them, I doubt I could better it. I've got both their 55gr SP Hornady and 55gr SP Lapua stuff.

Yea you are right there it does shoot well.

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Sorry, I was looking at reconstructing the 55gr loadings that Belmont make.

My thoughts were that I could pay the 60 cents per shot... and its good ammo... but I have to outlay $600, go into Queenstown, suffer the gridlocked traffic, find a park, pay for the park with both my firstborn and my second child, visit the policems, wait 10 days for the form to go to Dunedin and get signed off and then wait for said ammo to arrive. OR... just assemble my own loads using the 200 dead ADI brass I have here, the same 747 powder and the same Hornady 55gr SP pills... all for about 40 cents AND without leaving home.

Mind you, giving up my first born is still on the cards if he doesn't buck his ideas up.

EBF - Yes, I do sympathize with your sentiments there and I take your point. I just thought that if Belmont were loading ADI brass with 27.0 grains of powder and 55 gr pills... which work well... then maybe I could too.

Originally Posted by planenutz

Sorry, I was looking at reconstructing the 55gr loadings that Belmont make.

My thoughts were that I could pay the 60 cents per shot... and its good ammo... but I have to outlay $600, go into Queenstown, suffer the gridlocked traffic, find a park, pay for the park with both my firstborn and my second child, visit the policems, wait 10 days for the form to go to Dunedin and get signed off and then wait for said ammo to arrive. OR... just assemble my own loads using the 200 dead ADI brass I have here, the same 747 powder and the same Hornady 55gr SP pills... all for about 40 cents AND without leaving home.

Mind you, giving up my first born is still on the cards if he doesn't buck his ideas up.

EBF - Yes, I do sympathize with your sentiments there and I take your point. I just thought that if Belmont were loading ADI brass with 27.0 grains of powder and 55 gr pills... which work well... then maybe I could too.

That's what I was going to do and seat to same LOA

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looking at your location...would it be wrong to assume you shooting mostly bunnies and the occasional goat????
Im enjoying results with 50grn zmax pills...cheap as chips in 500 pack
Ive seen 748 cheap from gunworks in plastic bags (maybe they had a keg and devanned it??)
AR 2206h is a great/awesome/easy powder to use in the .223 24.5grns behind a 45-55grn pill and you in load range right across weight spectrum...that was my go to load for years,still is if Im not using up 748...it was cheap OK lol... its an easy thing to have some TTSX loads with everything the same as your varmit load just incase you see something bigger....MY rifle prints them close enough to other loads to make no difference at all...in fact I cant remember changing my scope settings on my .223 in years...
love your logic re making your own..... my rifles very seldome taste factory loads.

Yo,

So Belmont is down the road and they told me their load was 26.3 gr W747 with a Murom small rifle mag primer. That’s what I load and it shoots well in my 223’s.

W747 is 7% faster than W748 so you could start at the 748 starting point minus 7% and work your way up.

Originally Posted by planenutz

Sorry, I was looking at reconstructing the 55gr loadings that Belmont make.

My thoughts were that I could pay the 60 cents per shot... and its good ammo... but I have to outlay $600, go into Queenstown, suffer the gridlocked traffic, find a park, pay for the park with both my firstborn and my second child, visit the policems, wait 10 days for the form to go to Dunedin and get signed off and then wait for said ammo to arrive. OR... just assemble my own loads using the 200 dead ADI brass I have here, the same 747 powder and the same Hornady 55gr SP pills... all for about 40 cents AND without leaving home.

Mind you, giving up my first born is still on the cards if he doesn't buck his ideas up.

EBF - Yes, I do sympathize with your sentiments there and I take your point. I just thought that if Belmont were loading ADI brass with 27.0 grains of powder and 55 gr pills... which work well... then maybe I could too.

Just get it shipped to your local shop / farmlands for pick up were you can flash fal.
At 60c a round its not worth the time to load it yourself.

I shoot there 77smk and its amazingly accurate

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Bought a 1000 77smk for multigun as cheap, haven't tested at distance but looked really tight as on a short range when zeroed. Think I might save them as feels a bit wasted on muitigun.
Have you used them on animals?
Have used 75 hornady BTHP and were ok, thinking these will be simular. Liked the 77 TMK better but obviously more expensive and have to load up.

Originally Posted by jackson21

Bought a 1000 77smk for multigun as cheap, haven't tested at distance but looked really tight as on a short range when zeroed. Think I might save them as feels a bit wasted on muitigun.
Have you used them on animals?
Have used 75 hornady BTHP and were ok, thinking these will be simular. Liked the 77 TMK better but obviously more expensive and have to load up.

No i havnt had the chance. Tgey shoot great way out there think i made it to 680y at toby shoot down south and smashed the punisher target at 470y ish. Was fun shooting it when its swinging.

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@planenutz Ladder testing for your rifle is very important. Don't shortcut and try and copy factory loads. It may not end well.

Ive been using ADI BM2 powder and 55gr SP projectiles with success on everything from bunnies to wallabies and fallow deer. I have worked out a very consistent recipe that works well.
There is no short way of sorting out your own recipe without doing lots of testing.
I made 5 rnds for each load from min to max and measured spread of the groups.The best grouping wasn't the max load for my rifle.