Newb looking for .223 varmint load.

Patt08

Patt08

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East of the Rockies... West of the rest.
Howdy,

I am brand new to reloading and looking for a place to start for a coyote round that is fur friendly. I have access to all the equipment I need, just looking for some load data on a place to start.

Weatherby Vanguard .223
1/9 twist
22" barrel

I was thinking of like a 53-55 gr vmax or nosler BT maybe?

Cheers.
 
I hear 8208xbr produces some great velocities, I would try that if I could get my hands on it. I have shot h335, win 748 and imr4895.
I like the 40 grain v max in my 1-9 twist 20 inch barrel. The seem to shoot faster and flatter.
 
shoot_to_kill said:
I hear 8208xbr produces some great velocities, I would try that if I could get my hands on it. I have shot h335, win 748 and imr4895.
I like the 40 grain v max in my 1-9 twist 20 inch barrel. The seem to shoot faster and flatter.
Click to expand...

I was under the impression that the 1/9 twist was still a bit too fast for a40-45 gr. If I could shoot a 40-45 gr I would much prefer that tbh.
 
Try Varget or benchmark for your .223 shooting 50 and 55gr bullets. Both the v-max and nosier shoot excellent.

My BIL gets dime size or smaller groups @ 100yrds and moa to 300yrds with 23.8gr of benchmark 55gr noslers
Savage axis 1-9

My son and I get 1” or less size groups @100yrds and Moa to 300yrds with 25.3-25.8gr of Varget shoot 55gr hornady both v-max and PSP with a slight accuracy edge going to the v-max
Savage axis 1-9

Varget has been consistently the best performer loading for five different .223 rifles I have loaded for. As for fur friendly that depends on you the shooter. Got hit them in the right spot.
 
cdn1canhunt said:
Try Varget or benchmark for your .223 shooting 50 and 55gr bullets. Both the v-max and nosier shoot excellent.

My BIL gets dime size or smaller groups @ 100yrds and moa to 300yrds with 23.8gr of benchmark 55gr noslers
Savage axis 1-9

My son and I get 1” or less size groups @100yrds and Moa to 300yrds with 25.3-25.8gr of Varget shoot 55gr hornady both v-max and PSP with a slight accuracy edge going to the v-max
Savage axis 1-9

Varget has been consistently the best performer loading for five different .223 rifles I have loaded for. As for fur friendly that depends on you the shooter. Got hit them in the right spot.
Click to expand...

Great info, thanks!! Much appreciated.
 
I have a Savage Model 12 with a 26" barrel and a Savage Axis with a 24" barrel, both having 1 in 9 twists and have found that both rifles shoot amazingly with Hodgdon H322 and Hornady 50g Vmax seated 0.015" off the lands. The model 12 likes 24g of H322 and the axis 25g. Group sizes are sub 1/2 MOA for 5 shot groups out to 200 yards in both rifles. I have tried so many different powder/projectile combos and have found this above mentioned recipe to be very good across the seasons. You can usually find H322 in stock at numerous locations. I know a lot of people like varget, myself included, but its next to impossible to find these days. Dominion Arms sometimes carries D4064SSC which works well with the heavier pills like SMK 69g HPBT. I zero at 100 yards for the 50g Vmax/H322 combo and find negligible drop out to 200 yards which would be helpful in coyote hunting.
Enjoy working up new loads/combos. I've always enjoyed that part of shooting. Keeps things interesting and makes you realize that a cheap firearm can still be a tack driver.
Happy loading.
 
Buy 3 loading manuals
and go from there
hornady, speer, nosler
lyman

whatever tips that you are going to use
don't rely on the internet to set you straight
 
There's so many good powder and bullet combinations that are great choices it makes it hard to decide. However today you are limited by lack of available components.
Below is a url load data for the speer 52gr hp on top of Reloder7. This has been a fantastic combination for me.

h ttp://www.alliantpowder.com/reloaders/RecipeList.aspx?gtypeid=2

Reloder 7 works great for 223 generally for bullets on the lighter side. Both the Reloder 7 and the speer 52gr hp are available at a good price (The 5lb container of Reloder 7 works out to $35.45/lb. The speer 52gr hp are priced at $16.15/100) however unfortunately the vender is not a site sponsor. If you are interested PM me. I'm not affiliated with the vender they are local for me I'm just a happy customer trying to help a fellow fur hunter.
Happy hunting good luck
 
Last edited:
Airgunnr said:
I have a Savage Model 12 with a 26" barrel and a Savage Axis with a 24" barrel, both having 1 in 9 twists and have found that both rifles shoot amazingly with Hodgdon H322 and Hornady 50g Vmax seated 0.015" off the lands. The model 12 likes 24g of H322 and the axis 25g. Group sizes are sub 1/2 MOA for 5 shot groups out to 200 yards in both rifles. I have tried so many different powder/projectile combos and have found this above mentioned recipe to be very good across the seasons. You can usually find H322 in stock at numerous locations. I know a lot of people like varget, myself included, but its next to impossible to find these days. Dominion Arms sometimes carries D4064SSC which works well with the heavier pills like SMK 69g HPBT. I zero at 100 yards for the 50g Vmax/H322 combo and find negligible drop out to 200 yards which would be helpful in coyote hunting.
Enjoy working up new loads/combos. I've always enjoyed that part of shooting. Keeps things interesting and makes you realize that a cheap firearm can still be a tack driver.
Happy loading.
Click to expand...

This is perfect, thanks! Yeah lots of guys have been telling me Varget, but I can't find it anywhere and all my buddies who reload say its unobtanium these days lol. Thanks a ton for all the info it's much appreciated.
 
RVG_Don said:
There's so many good powder and bullet combinations that are great choices it makes it hard to decide. However today you are limited by lack of available components.
Below is a url load data for the speer 52gr hp on top of Reloder7. This has been a fantastic combination for me.

h ttp://www.alliantpowder.com/reloaders/recipedetail.aspx?gtypeid=2&weight=52&shellid=46&bulletid=88

Reloder 7 works great for 223 generally for bullets on the lighter side. Both the Reloder 7 and the speer 52gr hp are available at a good price (The 5lb container of Reloder 7 works out to $35.45/lb. The speer 52gr hp are priced at $16.15/100) however unfortunately the vender is not a site sponsor. If you are interested PM me. I'm not affiliated with the vender they are local for me I'm just a happy customer trying to help a fellow fur hunter.
Happy hunting good luck
Click to expand...

Will do, thanks for the info its much appreciated!
 
I like varget, cfe 223, H335 or 4166. A 55 grain Sierra GK or Varminter would be my pick of bullets, but many others will work fine. These days with components hard to find just use what you can get.
 
The great thing about the .223 is it's not fussy when it comes to bullets and powder .
There are dozens of bullets and about the same powder types that will work well.
I shoot a lot of 4895 as well as Varget and H322 and a couple of others , in bullet weights from 50 to 75 grains .
Cat
 
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