What to do ---- new .223 Bolt Action.

[Deadshot2]

Time for me to put a new barrel on a .223 Remington Action. I figure if I'm going to do it I want to do it up brown.

I want to get ALL I can get out of a 80 gr Berger VLD target bullet. Barrel will most likely be a 1:7.5 twist.

What length? I'm leaning to 26" in an MTU profile. The only "packing" I plan to do with this rifle is from the truck to my shooting position and back. I just want something that will maximize the .223 performance using this bullet or one very similar.

Any ideas? Only undecided part is the barrel length for this rifle.

 

[Danley]

I'm shooting a 30" / 1:7.7 at 2920 fps with 80.5 FB Bergers. I could easily push it a bit faster, but groups open up. Others that I shoot with have 26" barrels and do good with there velocity as well (different powder choices). If I were to do another, I think I would go 28" ... 99% of my shooting is done between 500-1000yds.

 

[long range newbie]

I was thinking of doing the same thing. But I'm deciding whether to get a 308 or 223.

 

[Coldcase1984]

AI it! That'll up the all you can get quotient.

 

[chevytruck_83]

Neither for 1000. Both will have a ton of wind deflection. 750 and under I would use them. Otherwise there are better choices. My experience is heavy 223 bullets need to b pushed so hard that you will be going through brass like crazy.

 

[BoilerUP]

Time for me to put a new barrel on a .223 Remington Action. I figure if I'm going to do it I want to do it up brown.

I want to get ALL I can get out of a 80 gr Berger VLD target bullet.

So you're going with an Ackley chamber that has 0.088 or longer freebore...right?

 

[sgtsmmiii]

I had PCR do me a long throat, 8 twist to shoot 75 grain Amax's. Seated out to the AICS .223 mag length, combined with 27.2 grains of 2000MR, I get 2955 fps out of a 26.5" barrel with no high pressure signs. My son used it back in June to pop a PD at 1030 yards ( on the 3rd shot ). He killed PD's like clockwork between 300 and 800 yards. I will agree with the one poster, there isn't much energy left at 1000. We found the first round my son shot. It hit the dirt in front of the mound, skidded 5", and could still be re-loaded if necessary ( had a slight amount of distortion at the front of the jacket where the red tip pushed back slightly ). But, in a 17.5 pound .223, there was almost zero recoil, and you could spot your own shots even at 1000. I say "do it".

 

[chevytruck_83]

If conditions arent perfect and you cant see splash from your misses youll likely get frustrated from tossing rounds down range blindly. There are better ways to do it. If your going to spend the money. Do it right.

 

[gstaylorg]

My first suggestion would be to look at the 80.5 gr Fullbore or 82 gr BTHP bullets. The BCs of the three 80-something gr offerings from Berger are so close the difference is negligible. Either of those will be easy to reload and should shoot well at .015"-.020" off the lands. I've been using the 80.5s at 2860 fps out of a 26" barrel and they shoot extremely well. In general, VLDs require a little more attention during reloading to keep everything working well.

2nd suggestion would be to think about something more like an M24 contour barrel. The MTU contour is quite heavy, I have a couple .308s with 30" MTU barrels. Because of the smaller caliber, the M24 is comparably "heavy" in .223 to an MTU in .308. I think you'll find the rifle easier to handle without the extra weight on the front end. Depending on the distances you plan to shoot, you could even go 28" in length, but only if you really want to stretch it out. There are people competing out to 1000 yds with .223s using the 80.5s or 82s, but my understanding is that they need to be pushed in excess of 3000 fps to keep up with a .308 shooting 155s. That kind of velocity is not realistic out of a 26" pipe, even a 28" would be stretching it, although you could probably get there with the right powder. Brass life would be proportionally lessened. The 1:7.5 twist should be perfect for anything in the 80 gr range,

 

[Deadshot2]

I was thinking of doing the same thing. But I'm deciding whether to get a 308 or 223.

I already have the "tack driving " .308 and now just want to build it a "little brother". Plan on using the same model of stock and may even move the NF scope back and forth as I shoot the different rifles.

 

[leadbullet]

28" 223 AI is my next barrel when the 204 bites the dust, I plan on shooting lots of 80Gr bergers as well. I good buddy has one and I love shooting it but I got cut off.
cheers.

 

[TRAAV]

22" 223AI pushing Berger 80VLD's @ 3050

 

[chevytruck_83]

Traav.. how is brass life pushing the 80 grainers that fast? I realize its 223 ai. Do the primer pockets stay tight for many firings?

 

[TRAAV]

Traav.. how is brass life pushing the 80 grainers that fast? I realize its 223 ai. Do the primer pockets stay tight for many firings?

I am using Lapua brass and have 4 firings on it so far. They are not as tight as they were when they were new but still pretty good. I know Im at the very max but I have ran this load in 100 degree temps and it has done fine.