Which .223/5.56 ammo?

[viper37]

Before I begin I know creating a thread about ammunition is akin to a "This oil vs that oil" thread on a car forum. That said..

I took my new rifle out to shoot yesterday and after some adjusting got it shooting pretty well. Rifle in question:

Of all the variables, those most pertinent to my round selection are:
18" 1:9 barrel w/DPMS Brake, Aero upper.

I used five different rounds, and my findings at 100 yards are as follows:

Federal XM193 55gr FMJ(Brown box) - 2" groups

PPU M193 55gr FMJ(white box) - 4" groups (My other AR's don't like this stuff either. Nice brass though!

PMC XP193 55gr FMJ - 1.5" groups

PMC 5.56 NATO 62gr Green Tip - 3" groups

Nosler Custom Match .223 60gr - .5" groups Sub-MOA. This stuff was outstanding. Once dialed in, out of 20 rounds I shot 20/20 X's on a five spot target. Very impressed.

The Nosler I picked up is this :

http://www.sportsmanswarehouse.com/sportsmans/Nosler-Match-Grade-223-Rem-60gr-Ballistic-Tip-Rifle-Ammo-/productDetail/Rifle-Ammunition/prod999901364986/cat100114

So with all of the above said, what ammo are you guys running with a barrel like mine that is giving you your best groups? I love the consistency of the Nosler but the price is just to steep for me to handle on a regular basis. Is there another round out there that is comparable for less money?

I'm just shooting for fun, so a looser but consistent group is all I am looking for. Not expecting match accuracy out of lower quality ammo obviously.


Thanks for reading!

[highpower790]

With a 1:9 try shooting a 69gr bullet,maybe 75/77s would work.

[BigPimping]

I buy whatever is available at a great price. I do not consider myself a connoisseur of high end ammo. I buy good stuff and save it for SHTF. The rest is whatever I can get in bulk.

[Garandimal]

18.5"/1:9 Mini-14:

Federal Lake City 5.56mm NATO Ammo 55 Grain Full Metal Jacket 1000 Rounds Bulk

Wolf Gold 223 Remington Ammo 55 Grain Full Metal Jacket- 1000 Rounds Bulk

Both ~ $350 delivered.




GR

[CK_32]

I prefer Rem Oil over Slip2000. Jus sayin

[FromTheGrave]

I've been using the PMC xtac 55gr. (which looks like it was your second best performer) and have been happy.

[Niviticus]

I would try some more different .223 ammo instead of the NATO stuff. You should get better accuracy.

[deadcoyote]

Coincidentally I just took my new RRA r3 upper out to try yesterday, 18" 1:8 stainless barrel with a 2.5x PA scope. I was shooting about .9" groups with suprema ( Fiochi) 55 grain ammo. Good start. I have some hornaday 60 grain tap to try and some cheap Turkish zq1 62 grain.

[NorCalFocus]

Start reloading, and crack out match quality ammo at a fraction of the price.

[deadcoyote]

Sorry, perfecta not suprema. I'm confusing my Walmart budget brands.

[viper37]

Looks like I'll be doing a bit of playing around with .223.

[ScottsBad]

You are getting about what I get with the same ammo out of a stainless 1:8 twist. You could try some 50 grain too. It might sing in the 1:9 twist barrel.

EDIT: IT was a V-Max 50 grain maybe Hornady that I used.

[CGT80]

I reload and wanted to be somewhat cheap. Hornady 55 fmjbt/c over 24.5 grains of h-335 and 2950 fps over the chrono. I don't care how good the group is on paper, as I only shoot cardboard at 40 yards and less and steel out to 200 yards. My barrel is a 1:9 Bushmaster HBar that is cut to 18" and profiled to 0.700" under the handguard. I do very well on steel and the close up paper depends more on me knowing my dot offset than the ammo.

Action shooting is more fun than trying to shoot groups on paper, for me. I have never put factory ammo through my AR or Mini 14 Target Model. The mini does well enough with the same bullet as above, but makes more velocity with less powder than the AR. Bubbapug, on calguns, shoots the long range matches and has specific loads for his AR's. It sounds like handloading is a must for best accuracy, and it is cheaper than buying factory ammo, if you have the time and desire. My reloads cost me 20-30 cents per round, with using range brass. It seems like a waste to shoot for tiny groups on paper, with ammo that is less than ideal for your gun. The steel targets I shoot at 100+ yards are 6" and up. A 6" group will work, IF I aim dead center on a 6" plate. We shoot on the clock, so time means as much or more than extreme accuracy. Cheap ammo for steel or action shooting and the good stuff when you really want to shoot for groups?