Question on .223 loads

[09cs]

I have some hornady vmax bullets 55gr and using imr 4895
On the imr site they do not have 55gr vmax listed but have 55gr spr.sp listed loads. They have 60gr vmax listed and the COAL is listed as 2.250. That just seems long to me but is that correct? And is the starting load for the 55gr spr.sp ok for the vmax?

Thanks for the help in advance!!

 

[SporterII]

I have the hornady book showing a max of 25.1 for imr4895 and the 55 vmax. dummy one up for max oal. Back it off .020 and load some. Unless you have a lot of throat. Stop at the 2.25 and try there.
I shoot 52's w/ h4895 and have a 3050 load w/ 24.7 and a nice 3300 load w/ 26.2

 

[09cs]

Thanks for the info!

So you think 2.225 will be ok and not cause problems? I tried loading one at 23gr with a 2.200 and with that load it was compressing the powder

 

[dauntedfuture]

As long as the loaded ammunition will fit in the magazine you are ok. Too short or too long can cause problems. I think the standard OAL for .223 is 2.250. Some of the shorter bullets will end up seated shorter in the case and they usually work fine. Many times with some of the bulkier powders you find that you run out of case capacity before you are at max load, brass internal capacity varies by brand. Some compression of powder is not an issue provided the bullets don't move back forward, you damage the base of the bullet or move the shoulder forward.

 

[NCHillbilly]

If I might make a suggestion, try some hodgdon H335 powder. It works great for all of the various 55gr bullets I've used it with. It is also a ball powder that runs through a powder measure like water and you won't get any compressed loads.

 

[dauntedfuture]

Please understand that OAL lengths are just places to start. If you have a factory rifle, with that bullet its almost always going to fit. for .223 length is limited most of the time by the magazine length and even then depending on the magazine you will have some variation. For example; there is more room in a GI mag then a P-mag. Factory WIN 70 magazines are longer then an AR magazine and you CAN seat the bullets longer if you want. If you want to seat bullets in the magazine that's usually your limiting factor but depending on the throat and chamber and bullet, you might be into the lands. If you are single loading, or in a single shot rifle, the sky in the limit and you can load longer to get the bullet closer to the lands and increase case capacity. You need a cleaning rod and a bullet to determine length from bolt face to lands, take .020 off and go from there.