223 or 22-250

[mrb1982]

Since posting this thread, I have had the opportunity to to handly my buddy's Rock River Predator Pursuit 5.56 AR-15. What a really nice, cool, great fitting gun. He seems to get really good accuracy out of cheap steel case ammo with it also. So I did some searching on here and other places and it appears that these sort of reviews are the trend, not the anomaly, when it comes to these weapons. It appears to have a 1:8 barrel. Seems like it could be a really good gun. Obviously, more money too, but would probably fit in really well with what I need it for. Plus when my girls get old enough to start doing a little playing, I could put an adjustable butt stock on it and could have a good little gun for them to start putting a few rounds through.

Anybody have any thoughts on this?

 

[Mjrsfj40]

Since posting this thread, I have had the opportunity to to handly my buddy's Rock River Predator Pursuit 5.56 AR-15. What a really nice, cool, great fitting gun. He seems to get really good accuracy out of cheap steel case ammo with it also. So I did some searching on here and other places and it appears that these sort of reviews are the trend, not the anomaly, when it comes to these weapons. It appears to have a 1:8 barrel. Seems like it could be a really good gun. Obviously, more money too, but would probably fit in really well with what I need it for. Plus when my girls get old enough to start doing a little playing, I could put an adjustable butt stock on it and could have a good little gun for them to start putting a few rounds through.

Anybody have any thoughts on this?

I have the Rock River Varmint with the 18" heavy barrel with a 1/8 twist.

On the plus side: great trigger, sub-moa accuracy with bulk 55 grain PMC ammo and 1/2 moa with handloade 60 grain Hornady VMAX bullets, 50 grain Nosler Ballistic Tips or 55 grain Nosler Ballistic Tips.

Negative: heavy gun and due to the magazine length COL is limited unless using a single shot adapter.

I have not shot 40 or 45 grain bullets, as the bullets noted have worked great! When I have time, there are several other bullets I want to shoot; however, the current supply shoots tight and blows up critters just fine.

For an optic, a Nikon 4-16x SF Monarch sits on top. Great scope for my purposes and was used one deer season on my 300 Win Mag with great results! All of the rifles mentioned will meet your needs. Personally, I would focus on a quality optic to top the rifle. Without clarity or magnification, it does not matter how much is spent on the weapon, if you cannot see the target the gun won't shoot!

Happy searchinggun)

 

[mrb1982]

Cool. If I could shoot factory ammo at MOA or under it would be descent for the purposes I would need. Then I could always reload when I decide to really maximize it. Sounds like it would probably be a good investment for me and for my girls to try shooting. I see a lot of stuff with people using them with their kids because of the such manageable recoil.

 

[novaman64]

I would say got for a Tikka 223. My T3 Lite is a 1:8 and shoots lights out with anything I feed it. I cut the barrel down to 16" and threw a muzzle brake on it, its my truck gun, gets beat to heck but shoots great.

 

[njc89]

I have the 1:8 20" RRA Predator Pursuit. Mine is very accurate with heavier 75 grain match bullets, and fairly good with the American Eagle 50 grain tipped varmint bullets. The 55 grain blaster ammo runs closer to 1.5-2" groups at 100 yds. I have 50 rounds of 65 grain Sierra boat tail handloads with various charges waiting for the weekend to test out. Two stage trigger isn't my preference, but it's still pretty good for an AR.

I like this rifle a lot, but with the match barrel, it is a bit heavy. I PERSONALLY can't imagine going with the heavier bull barrel in a gun like this. The minimal gain in accuracy can't be worth lugging around the additional weight. If I needed the heavier, or longer barrel, I would opt for a bolt gun that would allow me more flexibility in cartridge length.

Browning offers their X-Bolt in a 24" camo'd out 223 with a 24" 1:8 barrel. Same gun in a 22-250 has a 1:9 26" barrel. kinda pricey, but I can't help but want one

 

[warboar21]

I have several varmint rifles now. .204 ruger, 223s, 243, 25-06, and a 6.5 grendel. The grendel and 223s are all ARs. I have a 16" carbine and a 20" match in 223. They both work well and are accurate. I carried a m16a2 as well as an m4 in the Army so the platform is comfortable to me. However with that said I really like a bolt rifle and now that I picked up my 243 I find that it gets used the most when out hunting. I bought a Remington 700adl on closeout for $300. I had intended to buy Tikka but when I saw the adl for half the price on the rack I bought it. I found a good load with the 55gr nos bt that will cloverleaf three shots at 100. It's pretty much lights out when I am lucky enough to call in a yodel dog.
I bought some of the 105gr amax to try out but just haven't had a chance to shoot them yet. The 100gr Sierra game kings are certainly accurate out of it as well.
I also picked up an old factory wood stock to drop it into but need to do some minor fitting still.

 

[mrb1982]

Benches certain how is that Mossberg MVP shooting? Could use an update to sway me one way or the other

 

[benchracer]

Benches certain how is that Mossberg MVP shooting? Could use an update to sway me one way or the other

There has been a learning curve for me, regarding small rifle primers, that has hampered my load development efforts. The rifle is shooting well, but I haven't yet seen its full potential. So far, it has done its best work with bullets seated longer than mag length (2.260"). I still have some shooting to do to complete the load development I had been working on.

I tested some factory ammo, including some match ammo, for SD, ES, velocity, and accuracy. The best factory load I have found, so far, is the 55 grain Hornady Varmint Express load.

I still think the MVP is about the best deal going for the balance of performance, features, and price. I recommend it without hesitation or reservation.

I am about to shift gears and begin development of mag-length loads that will also work in my AR.

 

[mrb1982]

There has been a learning curve for me, regarding small rifle primers, that has hampered my load development efforts. The rifle is shooting well, but I haven't yet seen its full potential. So far, it has done its best work with bullets seated longer than mag length (2.260"). I still have some shooting to do to complete the load development I had been working on.

I tested some factory ammo, including some match ammo, for SD, ES, velocity, and accuracy. The best factory load I have found, so far, is the 55 grain Hornady Varmint Express load.

I still think the MVP is about the best deal going for the balance of performance, features, and price. I recommend it without hesitation or reservation.

I am about to shift gears and begin development of mag-length loads that will also work in my AR.

Interesting. I have aspriations of trying to possibly shoot some 62-70gr bullets out of it if I invest in one. Bucks the wind well then and pretty fair drops then. Probably not going to be able to get anything like that to work and still fit in the mag, huh?

 

[benchracer]

Interesting. I have aspriations of trying to possibly shoot some 62-70gr bullets out of it if I invest in one. Bucks the wind well then and pretty fair drops then. Probably not going to be able to get anything like that to work and still fit in the mag, huh?

The Hornady 75 BTHP will work from the mag. My rifle seems to like them. Longer ogive bullets like the 75 AMAX have to be seated longer than mag length.

 

[mrb1982]

Interesting. How do you feel the 69gr bthp Sierra or the 65g spire point Sierra would fare?

 

[mrb1982]

Also the Ruger american is interesting. Looks like a 8 twist barrel, but only 22". Probably could shoot 70gr bullets in it. Could I fit them in the magazine in this gun?

 

[benchracer]

Interesting. How do you feel the 69gr bthp Sierra or the 65g spire point Sierra would fare?

The 69 SMK works well, also. My rifle definitely likes them. The new tipped version of the SMK should work well, too. The 65 SGK is a shorter bullet than the SMK and will work without problem.

 

[benchracer]

Also the Ruger american is interesting. Looks like a 8 twist barrel, but only 22". Probably could shoot 70gr bullets in it. Could I fit them in the magazine in this gun?

In a .223, a 22" barrel isn't likely to put you at much of a disadvantage, given that the .223 is most commonly chambered in AR's with 20" and shorter barrels. The 8 twist is a nice option that will easily stabilize conventional 70 grain bullets.

Where mag length is concerned, 2.260 is the max length that will feed through an AR magazine. I would expect most other rifles to have a bit more room in the magazine, but I don't know exactly how much. More so than merely weight, bullet length and ogive shape play a large role in whether or not a given bullet can be loaded to mag length. For example, a Hornady 75 AMAX will have the ogive seated below the case mouth when seated to an OAL of 2.260. That is why it must be loaded longer, which necessitates single feeding in an AR (or anything else using AR length mags), while the shorter 75 BTHP can be seated to 2.260 and loaded from the magazine in an AR.