Practice 223 load

[HOLY DIVER]

Just wondering what everybody's favorite plinking/practice load is for the 223. Right now I'm loading mil surplus 55gr fmj with 22.7 grains of h322 for plinking

 

[Red Hat]

I use just one load for my 55gr bullets. 27.5gr of BL-C(2). I have some AR's that won't cycle with anything lower.

 

[rdinsc]

Ram shot tac, wolf ..223 primers,lake city brass and the hornady 55 grain sp. much more accurate than factory fmj fodder, mild plinking load and easy to load on a dillon 550

 

[Clicker]

I've run from 24.7 to 25.0 grains of H335 under 55 FMJ's and function has been good in AR's and the AUG.
I've also loaded WC846T which worked OK. I have some WC844 (supposed to be H335 in surplus form) to try also.

 

[HOLY DIVER]

wow clicker thats a pretty hot load. what kida life you getting out of your brass?

 

[Clicker]

I think max is 26.0 on their site, probably could find even hotter in old manuals. I can't speak to brass life since I have about four 5 gallon buckets of brass, I'm still loading once fired stuff most of the time. I do have some 2X & 3X fired brass, they appear OK without any signs of high pressure.

One thing to consider is I shoot a mix of full auto & semi guns so function is important across a wide range of rifles. When it comes to blasting ammo I can not tailor a load to just one gun. I need to generate enough gas to cycle a 11 " barreled M16 or enough recoil for a 9" barreled HK 53 among other things.

 

[FunkyMonkey]

CCI 41 primer
25.5 gr WC844
Hornady FMJ, just a smidge of a crimp on the cannelure
Any old brass

Easy on the brass, accurate, parts can all be had cheap.

Just re-read the forum and question of Clicker's 25 gr H335 load - the mil-spec load for 5.56 is 27 grains. Any decent chamber should take 25 grains. I have the US military data sheet around somewhere, can post or email it if anyone's interested.