Solid Copper 55gr Load? Worth it?

[Psychbiker]

Came across somewhat cheap 55gr solid copper buckets but load data is hard to fine.

Wondering it buying is worth it or sticking to fmj 55gr. Will be shot with 16" and 18" 1/8 twist ARs.

I only have cfe223 and 4895 powder. From what I found, many use heavy 62gr data.

Any experiences with solid copper 223?

[Fjold]

I use Barnes bullets for coyotes and ground squirrels here in the condor zone. The 50 grain bullets are as long as a 65-70 grain cup and core bullet so I shoot a lot of 36 grain copper bullets which are shaped more like the 50-55 grain bullets.

Check out Barnes' website for loads for the copper bullets.

[chknlyps2]

Are you talking about the same ones that Germz posted about in another thread? Maybe he will chime in with his results.

I bought 1,250 copperhead 55gr .224" bullets for $70 flat, and that included shipping.
that was during some sale I guess, now its 73 with $6 shipping. at least they don't joo you on the shipping.

http://www.theamericanmarksman.com/C...unt_p_378.html

[edgerly779]

These are not approved for non lead areas to hunt with.

[Psychbiker]

Are you talking about the same ones that Germz posted about in another thread? Maybe he will chime in with his results.

Yeah. They look good and cheap. I'm only a 100-200 yard range. Could be good to use. Not much info though.

[edgerly779]

Yes the copperheads. All non lead projectiles must be approved for use by dfw commision and listed thereafter. You cannot even make your own and use for hunting without approval.

[Spyder]

I've got several thousand that I picked up for a little over a nickel each on a blem sale. They load and fire fine. I've only used them for bulk loading so far, with no real accuracy testing other than hitting beer cans at fifty yards with iron sights. I'm totally happy with them.

[Spyder]

Yes the copperheads. All non lead projectiles must be approved for use by dfw commision and listed thereafter. You cannot even make your own and use for hunting without approval.

Incorrect.

[edgerly779]

I stand corrected the copperhead bullets are certified for use under the name of www.solidcopperbullet.com for non & small game. They are not expanding so not ok for large game animals. & you cannot mfg your own bullets unless approved by ca dfw.

[eduardomontejo]

I would love any feed back from anybody who has loaded these already, I have just bought my press along with 2500 of these bullets to reload 223 so any input would be apreciated.


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[Jedediah Munroe]

gotta love the condor California safe bullet roster...........bull****

[Daydrmr999]

I picked up 2500 of these a few weeks ago. So far it appears that they will be ok at standard 55g fmj loading, but I have not yet reached maximum loads as I started low and am slowly working my way up. So far I have tried imr 3031, accurate 2015, and benchmark. Of these the imr 3031 looks to be the most promising. I've loaded up some more with 3031 pushing up to published max loads as well as some loads with one 4198. I am also planning on trying alliant power pro varmint, and varget. I will post more detailed info once I get some chrony numbers and more powders tested.

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[Daydrmr999]

I got out and ran some loads over the chronograph today. I'm not at max loads yet, but based on velocities, I'm going to proceed with caution work in up past where I am now. So far:
Marlin x7vh 26" heavy barrel 1:9 twist
IMR 4198
19.5g 20g. 20.5
2913. 3002. 3033
2908. 3030. 3093
2865. 2947. 3098
2915. 2981. 3059
2917. 2950. 3041

IMR 3031
21.4g. 21.9g. 22.4g
2861. 2908. 2958
2813. 2880. 2952
2842. 2852. 2948
2830. 2874. 2942
2858. 2882. 3002

No group result due to a strong cross wind with even stronger gusts. I plan on loading more with these powders and also varget and alliant power pro varmint. Hope this info is useful for someone.

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[JMP]

Came across somewhat cheap 55gr solid copper buckets but load data is hard to fine.

Wondering it buying is worth it or sticking to fmj 55gr. Will be shot with 16" and 18" 1/8 twist ARs.

Are they worth it? I'd say it depends on your application. For target shooting, I'd say they are not. You don't pick up any significant ballistic edge from any .224" monolithic bullets that I am aware of.

Then, looking at those cheap blems, just from looks they appear tragic. One of the nice features of monolithic bullets is that you can get them machined with near perfect geometry, which is not the case with those. Plus, they appear to be old fashioned full thickness bullets and do not have a driving band, so they'll be quite a bit more rough on your barrel.

One of the things about solids is that they are fussier than lead as the lower density makes them more difficult to stabalize. Solids will be more sensitive to bore conditions. As they are more difficult to load for accuracy, plus the fact they are full diameter, plus they look very flawed in the photograph, I'd certainly not waste my money on them unless I needed to shoot lead free bullets for a specific reason.

Going to solid bullets will help your performance BIG TIME, but that is once you get to larger calibers and cartridges. Really .338 and bigger is where you start to see gains. The one exception I have found is in some 6mm bullets, as i have found one that can achieve extreme velocities with a good BC to allow them to outperform the 105gr BTHP at longer ranges.

[Daydrmr999]