I really wanted a faster twist, but to you think a 1:9 twist will be ok for a 223 trainer barrel on a bolt gun?
- Thread starter amedeo1227
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Good for up to 69 grains reliably if you’re fine with that
A good percentage of 1-9’s will even handle 77’s.
69smk’s at a decent velocity are no slouch.
69smk’s at a decent velocity are no slouch.
I think my favorite cartridge is the 223. My r700 5r stainless and 700p both have a 9.25 twist. They love 69 SMKs and the 69s punch holes as good as any.
My "junky" Rem 700 1/9 twist SPS shooting 75's @ 430 
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Depends on what you want to do with it. I like to shoot heavies out to 1100 yards or so. I would pass on a 1:9. Much prefer 1:7. I've had great performance out of 1:7 for everything from 50 gr v-max to 88 gr ELDs. For a more medium range gun 1:9 would be fine.
My 1:9 loves the 69smks. 1/2 MOA groups at 500
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What’s the heaviest bullet available in factory 223 ammo? I’ve noticed that 62 is about the heaviest in my area. Years ago I got rid of a Colt a2 sporter with a 1:7 20” barrel because it shot 3moa groups with the 55 & 62gr factory ammo. It did fine with 72s or 75 grain hand load. However I won’t hand load for hours only to shoot for 20 minutes. I know that has nothing to do with this but it came to mind so I thought I’d mentione it. It is good to be able to grab decent ammo off the shelf so the 1:9 twist has it’s advantages.
Hornady makes their Hornady Black line with 75 BTHP. It works great in a 1:9 twist and is very good ammo in my experience.
I don't think it really has any advantages at all over 1-8. The majority of AR barrels on the market are 1-8 for a reason. It covers the most common range of 52 grains to 77 grains very well. If it's a bolt gun and you want to experiment with heavier than 75-77, then a 1-7.5 or 1.7 makes sense..... but I'm honestly not sure why someone would go for a 1-9 today.
I run 77’s through my 1:9 and I’ve got no complaints.
Hmm. Fascinating .... Fascinating !
I believe the reason is that more people shoot factory built rifles and ammo. The manufacturer decides what twist barrels they put on their rifles and what ammo to produce. It’s easier to buy a 243 win or 6cm for shooting distances out to a 1000 yards and easier to hit consistently with those than to squeeze everything out a 223. We do these things for enjoyment. Other shooters don’t give 2 squirts about reloading or building rifles. They prefer to spend the time they have shooting. They usually buy the latest and greatest rifle made by the brand they were taught on. They buy their ammo the same way.
But, like I said, the majority of factory ammo is better suited to a 1-8. Heavier bullets than 77 might call for a 1-7 or 1-7.5 (just look at all the 224 Valkyrie twist rate debates). The graphic someone posted up above is pretty accurate, IMO. 1-9 stops being ideal around 65-69 grains. I guess 1-9 would be better suited to really light sub-50 grain varmint style bullets, but that's sort of niche.
Maybe in your area they stock different ammo than where I’m at. In my area even 62gn ammo is pretty uncommon. Most of the 223 is 55gn around here and those and 62gn are for 1:9 twist barrels. I say that because we used 55 & 62gn in the military for our 1:9 twist m16s. Maybe the military is using 1:8 twist barrels now, I’ve been out a bit and stuff changes.
Whoopsie just saw what I typed. Shoulda been MOA not inches
