First .223 reloads..... Should I keep going?

[Pigeon Paul]

Loaded up my first batch of home loads last weekend after watching hours & hours of reloading videos on YouTube, reading a ton of info from the Internet and of course.... reading nearly all the reloading threads on here.

 

I had a pile off once fired Geco cases, picked myself up some H322 and a box Sierra 55gr soft points and went for it.

 

Loaded 20 rounds of 4 different powder charges but seated all bullets to the same depth.

 

Went out yesterday evening and my rifle appears to like the 22.5gr charge.

 

 

Really pleased that I can cover all 5 shots with 20p coin! This is a better group than any factory round I have tried including the 55gr SP PPU it appears to like.

 

My question is...... Do I start playing with seating depths? Will I be able to improve on this or will it be a waste of time?

I shot this group at approx 80 yards and I only really shoot out to 150 yards as that is what I am comfortable at.

[chris1961]

Why mess about looks like you nailed it on the head first time well done there

[maxwell]

Hi Paul

Firstly, well done on having a go after doing your research. It depends on what level your after as some are happy with MOA and out to your comfort zone of 150yrds that would be more than adequate

Not a great deal of info to work with like other targets for OCW, scatter node, distance from lands etc,

It is quite possible that seating depth may tighten your group up, personally I would reload at 22.5gr same COAL and check the group is repeatable, if so then increment by 0.005" starting longer by 0.010" (providing your not already in the lands) and working back for best accuracy, this will also show you how wide your seating node is, throat wear etc

[Bewsher500]

looks like job done to be honest

you can tweak away with OAL but what you may gain in a bench scenario you will lose in the field under pressure, just good for confidence more than anything else

 

which hole has the 5th shot in it? they all look very neat to have a double shot through them

[Redgum]

That's pretty good for an 'off the shelf ' hunting rifle barrel, if that's what your using and to be honest the minimal gains you may possibly get will be at the cost of further barrel wear. I loaded hundreds of rnds when I first started reloading as I really enjoy it but sometimes you can find your just going backward. Now I just load what I need unless I have to change powder or bullets, which in the last five years hasn't been needed as use Viht powder and sierra bullets. Confidence in your homeloads is a real important factor to your shooting skills and humane dispatch.

[Fisheruk]

Looks pretty good, just out of interest how much was the set up cost and now the cost per round?

[Pigeon Paul]

Thanks for the comments and feedback gents.

 

For your info these were shot from a 2nd hand Howa 1500. Fairly good barrel. Slightly corroded crown and very poorly maintained previously. I have completely stripped and cleaned the whole rifle including the bolt.

 

I was lucky to a degree that the purchase included an unused lee 50th anniversary reloading kit. I had tried factory rounds from numerous manufacturers from 45gr to 65gr and had found surprisingly that PPU 55gr soft points grouped best.

 

So, based on this I went with the Sierra 55gr SP bullets and took a bit of a guess on the H322 to be honest. At this stage I cannot be bothered to sit and work out how many rounds/reloads I will get from one tub of powder, but if I were to take an average and compare it against the cost of 20 PPU..... I would say I am saving approx 10p per round??

 

I have just loaded another 10 this afternoon at the same depth as my best previous group (2.25) and 5 @ 2.35 & 5 @ 2.45. I will try these hopefully one evening during the week and see how I get on with them.

 

On another note.... As I am only neck sizing, how many times you expect me too able to reload a case?

Edited May 17, 2015 by Pigeon Paul

[pork chop]

Not to sure how many reloads you will get but when i used to neck size i found after 3/4 reloads i would need to full length size to bump the shoulder back.full length only these days

[Bewsher500]

neck sizing comes down to brass quality and charge levels

you don't say what charge level

 

I only neck size my .222 and am on 5 or 6 firings (60gr bullet 20.8gr N133 moderate load)

I only neck size me .270 and am on 8-10 firings (130gr bullet 54.5gr N160 moderate load)

 

both in Norma brass

[snow white]

Hi leave it alone somewhere on this site I put a photo it was slightly better than yours I messed about am having trouble trying to get it back.written it but lost it somewhere in with all the other reloading information.

[Underdog]

The only concern I would have if it were my load is.....drum role......the powder charge weight for h322 is like my old 222 charge weights and I would of thought you would get a little more in the 223! That alone could tighten it up and give a little more velocity!

 

Other than that well done.

[casts_by_fly]

If you're shooting only to 200 yards, I'd load up 10 rounds, stick a target at 150 yards, shoot a group or 5, and zero it to whatever elevation you want at 150 (probably 1/2" high), shoot the next 5, and call it a day. Assuming that accuracy holds out to 150 I wouldn't waste my time or money trying to dial it in any tighter. Life's too short to mess about unless you have a bunch of components and time.

 

thanks,

rick

[Vince Green]

Thanks for the comments and feedback gents.

 

For your info these were shot from a 2nd hand Howa 1500. Fairly good barrel. Slightly corroded crown and very poorly maintained previously. I have completely stripped and cleaned the whole rifle including the bolt.

 

I was lucky to a degree that the purchase included an unused lee 50th anniversary reloading kit. I had tried factory rounds from numerous manufacturers from 45gr to 65gr and had found surprisingly that PPU 55gr soft points grouped best.

 

So, based on this I went with the Sierra 55gr SP bullets and took a bit of a guess on the H322 to be honest. At this stage I cannot be bothered to sit and work out how many rounds/reloads I will get from one tub of powder, but if I were to take an average and compare it against the cost of 20 PPU..... I would say I am saving approx 10p per round??

 

I have just loaded another 10 this afternoon at the same depth as my best previous group (2.25) and 5 @ 2.35 & 5 @ 2.45. I will try these hopefully one evening during the week and see how I get on with them.

 

On another note.... As I am only neck sizing, how many times you expect me too able to reload a case?

Why do you say it is surprising that PPU grouped best? I have always found it to be very accurate ammo. You could get about ten loads out of a case if you neck size but its a bit like how long is a piece of string and when you decide to say enough. Usually the neck splits or the primer pocket goes loose

[robbiep]

Why do you say it is surprising that PPU grouped best? I have always found it to be very accurate ammo. You could get about ten loads out of a case if you neck size but its a bit like how long is a piece of string and when you decide to say enough. Usually the neck splits or the primer pocket goes loose

Yup. No surprise if PPU groups well in a rifle.

 

Unfortunately, it groups horribly in mine (about 4" groups), whereas RWS GECO 55grain (the police stuff with crimped primers) was incredibly good, with the only poor shots being down to operator error.

Sadly, due to a lack of the RWS, I'm loading my own these days - fortunately a lot of people I know do use PPU and don't reload, so I've never got a shortage of brass

[1066]

That's not a bad start, but why stop there - that's just the first step on a long, interesting and satisfying journey. Of course, it depends on why you want to reload and what you want to achieve.

If you're happy to just load a few rounds with acceptable results and save yourself a few bob then you're already there - stick to the same "recipe" push in your "heads" to what ever it says in the book and go and blag a few foxes. Nothing wrong with that at all.

 

I just feel it's like running an old classic motorcycle and taking to a garage to be serviced - getting your hands dirty and understanding how it works is half the fun.

 

Let's say there are a million combinations for loads in your rifle with locally available components - are you happy that you hit the jackpot on your first try?

 

That group looks about 1 moa at 80 yards - about comparable with a good .22lr on a still day. Yes, there's more to come, do some proper load development and enjoy another entirely new aspect of your chosen hobby.

 

I've been reloading for more than forty years and still enjoy searching for the prefect load.

[Vince Green]

That's not a bad start, but why stop there - that's just the first step on a long, interesting and satisfying journey. Of course, it depends on why you want to reload and what you want to achieve.

If you're happy to just load a few rounds with acceptable results and save yourself a few bob then you're already there - stick to the same "recipe" push in your "heads" to what ever it says in the book and go and blag a few foxes. Nothing wrong with that at all.

 

I just feel it's like running an old classic motorcycle and taking to a garage to be serviced - getting your hands dirty and understanding how it works is half the fun.

 

Let's say there are a million combinations for loads in your rifle with locally available components - are you happy that you hit the jackpot on your first try?

 

That group looks about 1 moa at 80 yards - about comparable with a good .22lr on a still day. Yes, there's more to come, do some proper load development and enjoy another entirely new aspect of your chosen hobby.

 

I've been reloading for more than forty years and still enjoy searching for the prefect load.

 

 

 

I have been loading for over forty years too, just as a counter argument I would advise against chasing rainbows. I have been down that road many times. If the OP is happy with his load then stick with it.

Edited May 19, 2015 by Vince Green

[casts_by_fly]

That's not a bad start, but why stop there - that's just the first step on a long, interesting and satisfying journey. Of course, it depends on why you want to reload and what you want to achieve.

If you're happy to just load a few rounds with acceptable results and save yourself a few bob then you're already there - stick to the same "recipe" push in your "heads" to what ever it says in the book and go and blag a few foxes. Nothing wrong with that at all.

 

I just feel it's like running an old classic motorcycle and taking to a garage to be serviced - getting your hands dirty and understanding how it works is half the fun.

 

Let's say there are a million combinations for loads in your rifle with locally available components - are you happy that you hit the jackpot on your first try?

 

That group looks about 1 moa at 80 yards - about comparable with a good .22lr on a still day. Yes, there's more to come, do some proper load development and enjoy another entirely new aspect of your chosen hobby.

 

I've been reloading for more than forty years and still enjoy searching for the prefect load.

 

1066,

 

It is actually a good bit better than MOA. As a neat trick, you can zoom your browser until the coin is actual size and then use a ruler on your screen to measure the groups. For me, that is ~50% in Chrome on my monitor. The groups measure 11/16" to the outside edge which is .4635 center to center (0.224" bullet diameter). MOA at 80- yards would be 0.8" so actually that is nearly 1/2 MOA. Like I said above, if you can hold that out through your shooting range, then for a hunting rifle I wouldn't bother trying to push it further.

 

thanks

rick

[1066]

I'm not saying it's a bad group - I'm saying why give up there.

If this was a pest control forum and the OP's question was "Is this group good enough to kill a fox at 100 yards or should I try and trap it or use poison bait?" The answer is unquestionably yes.
or "I'm not really interested in shooting but this is the rifle my employer says I must use, is it good enough?" Again yes.

This is the reloading section of a shooting forum - The OP has, what appears to be, a fairly accurate rifle and the ability to shoot it. He has spent money on reloading gear and components, why not start investigating how to use that gear, find out what effect seating depth has, try different charge weights, try crimp/not crimp etc.

How dull to think you might have one of those rare factory rifles that can produce near benchrest accuracy but you never knew because your first load shot passably ok and you never bothered to try anything else.

What happens when the "recipe" powder or bullet is not available - how are you going to know how to work up a load? What about when you change your rifle - You may not be so lucky next time.

 

Isn't this the same as those "shooter" who haven't a clue about how to zero a scope because it was fitted at the gun shop and I've never needed to change it.

 

Anyway, what better excuse do you need to get out and get some trigger time?

 

[maxwell]

1066, fair comment.

 

I like to chase the ninth degree as it is part of the whole reloading attraction for me but like I said to the OP it depends on what level of accuracy you require and are happy with, as a minimum my advice was to re-test his accurate load to make sure it was repeatable (similar conditions etc)

[Vince Green]

I have got into the "change this and see what happens" game several times in my shooting life. It can be great fun but you also produce an awful lot of rubbish that you end up shooting off just to get rid of and it can be frustrating as well as fun.

 

If you are a fox shooter your failures may still be good enough to bag a fox but as an out and out target shooter trying to develop loads for some very old military rifles I can tell you there is no incentive to put less than perfect ammo down the range because you know the result will be meaningless

 

It very much depends on what you want to get out of it.

[Alycidon]

 

 

 

I have been loading for over forty years too, just as a counter argument I would advise against chasing rainbows. I have been down that road many times. If the OP is happy with his load then stick with it.

 

Agreed, I have known people shoot out a barrel looking for a better load. What you have there is fine.

 

A

[Pigeon Paul]

Thanks for all great comments/opinions gents.

 

I am desperate to get out and try my second batch but due to work commitments I have not had a chance yet. I will be firing a few off this weekend and am hoping they group as well as my first batch.

 

I have too say I have really enjoyed the whole reloading process and I am inevitably going to end up "fettling" with this load some more.

 

I have managed to cobble together a homemade tumbler this week using an old windscreen wiper motor and an old coffee can. I will try to get a video up soon. An hour tumbling with crushed walnut shells and a little T-cut and my empty cases were gleaming!

[pstenson123]

Show us ya tumbler!!

[Pigeon Paul]

http://youtu.be/fHPUwXlMchE

 

It's very "cobbled" together at the moment but I was so pleased with how well it cleaned the cases!!

 

Now I know the design is good, I will build the frame out of steel angle with some rubber feet.

Edited May 21, 2015 by Pigeon Paul

[1066]

Excellent Paul, catching the bug already - you'll want to be making an annealer soon. I enjoy making my kit too.