5.56 ammo for sighting in

[Ponder_MD]

A side question; when you built your rifle, did you true the receiver face, and if the barrel was not a "thermal fit", did you seat it using Locktite 620 on the barrel extension?

No, and no.

I think I sabotaged myself and I've not recreated the test conditions identically each time. I also seem to have unrealistic expectations of the rifle.

Contrary to some advice I received, I shouldn't have gone with a chrome lined barrel.
Also, I need to stay on the bench with match grade ammo until I'm certain that I understand the rifle's limitations. Then I can start shooting from different positions with some other kind of ammunition (but probably never the M855 stuff).

 

[Russ D]

It was one of 3 ammos that I tried. It's a commercial reproduction of M855 by X-TAC.
I do have some Hornaday Superperformance Match grade stuff.

Superperperfomance is designed to be very “hot” as in high pressure and velocity. It’s not known for top tier accuracy.

 

[Doco Overboard]

I think particular considerations for chamber spec could could play a role here.
Cartridge head space in particular and how well the ammo fits a specific chamber.
308/7.62 cartridge headspace and final chamber dimensions come to mind at least for me.
I would think the same principles would apply to a different service configuration. (556-223)
First thing I would do is find out how my chamber compared up to my ammo selection and go from there.
There are lots of consideration points to take into account before the trigger is even pulled I think.

 

[outrider58]

No, and no.

I think I sabotaged myself and I've not recreated the test conditions identically each time. I also seem to have unrealistic expectations of the rifle.

Contrary to some advice I received, I shouldn't have gone with a chrome lined barrel.
Also, I need to stay on the bench with match grade ammo until I'm certain that I understand the rifle's limitations. Then I can start shooting from different positions with some other kind of ammunition (but probably never the M855 stuff).

All chromes are not equal. I'm not sure what the intended use for the rifle was(or is) for. If it is primarily for practice and not for competition, chrome barrels are fine. Depending on the type of competition, a chrome barrel might be required. I don't shoot comp., so I can't advise any further on that.

Like you said, get the rifle on a bench with some sand bags and decent ammo and see what you can wring out of it. Not sure where you are located, but I have a few boxes of Black Hills 68g Match ammo(blue box) I could swap a box if you have trouble finding decent ammo. I,m in G-burg

Good luck!

 

[Ponder_MD]

Not so much having trouble finding decent ammo, I just need to know what decent ammo is, so I can buy it!

 

[outrider58]

Fed Gold Medal Match 69g Sierra Match King

Federal Premium Gold Medal Ammo 223 Remington 69 Grain Sierra

These extraordinary loads combine the legendary Sierra MatchKing bullet with Federal's proven quality standards and stringent manufacturing controls to...

www.midwayusa.com

Black Hills 68g heavy match hollowpoint

Black Hills Remanufactured Ammo 223 Remington 68 Grain Match Hollow

Black Hills Remanufactured Ammunition is produced on the same production line as their newly manufactured ammunition and subject to the same testing and...

www.midwayusa.com

Shop around for pricing.

 

[brianns]

I should have also recommended against 'superformance'. Hornady is not bad but their super line is like what was said above, really hot.

SGAmmo has some match 68gr ammo made by Lake City(Winchester owns/runs it now).

20 Round Box - 5.56 NATO 68 Grain BTHP Match Hornady Frontier Ammo Made by Lake City - FR310 | SGAmmo.com

For sale is a 20 round box 5.56 NATO 68 Grain BTHP Match Hornady Frontier Ammo Made by Lake CitySku number: FR31025 boxes per caseProduct FeaturesConsistency in every cartridgeState-of-the-industry loading techniques and quality control procedures ensure the reliability of every Frontier®...

www.sgammo.com

 

[Ponder_MD]

Fed Gold Medal Match 69g Sierra Match King

Federal Premium Gold Medal Ammo 223 Remington 69 Grain Sierra

These extraordinary loads combine the legendary Sierra MatchKing bullet with Federal's proven quality standards and stringent manufacturing controls to...

www.midwayusa.com

Black Hills 68g heavy match hollowpoint

Black Hills Remanufactured Ammo 223 Remington 68 Grain Match Hollow

Black Hills Remanufactured Ammunition is produced on the same production line as their newly manufactured ammunition and subject to the same testing and...

www.midwayusa.com

Shop around for pricing.

Wow, the variations of ammunition quality are amazing. Obviously, I can't trust just anything that has the word "match" on the box.

Ok, so I ordered a couple of boxes of the Federal. I'll do this on the bench.
Should I start at 50 yds and then re-do it at 100 yds or should I just start at 100yds?

I didn't want to put optics on this rifle but I guess if the point is testing the rifle and not myself, using a scope for this exercise is the right thing to do.

 

[outrider58]

Wow, the variations of ammunition quality are amazing. Obviously, I can't trust just anything that has the word "match" on the box.

Ok, so I ordered a couple of boxes of the Federal. I'll do this on the bench.
Should I start at 50 yds and then re-do it at 100 yds or should I just start at 100yds?

I didn't want to put optics on this rifle but I guess if the point is testing the rifle and not myself, using a scope for this exercise is the right thing to do.

It depends on what you are after. If you put a scope on it, don't waste the good ammo trying to get on paper. Bore sight it at 50 and test with some of the other ammo. You don't need to shoot bullseyes with the scope. You only need to aim at the bull consistently to see how well your gun will group. At that point, you'll know exactly what your gun will be capable of.

If you hand load, it would be very easy to come up with a decent bullet-powder-brass-primer combination. Short of that, you'll be left with finding affordable factory ammo. At least, after all this, you'll know what you are after.

 

[Park ranger]

I say try 100 first. Don't waste that ammo at 50 yards. Use your ball ammo to get sighted in with a scope. You may find the ball ammo shoots a little better than you thought. One variable at a time. Good luck.

 

[FFBWMD]

Wow, the variations of ammunition quality are amazing. Obviously, I can't trust just anything that has the word "match" on the box.

Ok, so I ordered a couple of boxes of the Federal. I'll do this on the bench.
Should I start at 50 yds and then re-do it at 100 yds or should I just start at 100yds?

I didn't want to put optics on this rifle but I guess if the point is testing the rifle and not myself, using a scope for this exercise is the right thing to do.

If you need more Federal GMM we have it in stock

 

[Ponder_MD]

Ok, I have a couple of boxes of FGMM. I'm going to scope and bench this thing to assess the rife (not me).

Once that's done, what is a decent general-purpose ammunition that doesn't cost a fortune? In this thread, I've been advised to steer clear of "M" series ammo such as M855.

 

[rossiski]

No one has mentioned Frontier 75 grain HPBT. I find this ammo to be extremely accurate out of my LWRC varmint .223 Wylde. Worth a try and pricing is reasonable. Was around $.70 a round last time I bought a case.

 

[Park ranger]

Imi razor core is ok.

 

[PeteW]

Ok, I have a couple of boxes of FGMM. I'm going to scope and bench this thing to assess the rife (not me).

Once that's done, what is a decent general-purpose ammunition that doesn't cost a fortune? In this thread, I've been advised to steer clear of "M" series ammo such as M855.

PMC bronze or x-tac, wolf gold are generally what I use. PPU and igman aren't bad either, they can just sometimes run a little dirtier but it's not noticeable to me without a suppressor. Norma used to be one of my go-to companies but last year they had a some bad batches in their bulk cans and didn't rectify the problem to customers very well - so I'm giving them another year before I trust then again.

 

[Ponder_MD]

Great, I was unaware of any of these. I just using Ammoseek and buying whatever popped up.

 

[Ponder_MD]

Final question: Do you guys who are chambered in 5.56 shoot 5.56 and .223 interchangeably without worries?

 

[COACH1106]

Final question: Do you guys who are chambered in 5.56 shoot 5.56 and .223 interchangeably without worries?

Yes

 

[RRomig]

All guns have their idiosyncrasies so I buy numerous 20 round boxes of assorted brands that falls into the category I need and after seeing which my gun prefers I buy in bulk.

 

[Ponder_MD]

All guns have their idiosyncrasies so I buy numerous 20 round boxes of assorted brands that falls into the category I need and after seeing which my gun prefers I buy in bulk.

That's kind of where I'm at now.

I have secured the use of a scope for my bench trials. After I shoot the hoity-toity match ammo, I'll report back. Then I'm going to try a variety of stuff that I have, ranging from 55gr up to 75gr of different manufacturers.

It is becoming apparent that building the rifle was the easy part. Figuring out what it wants and how bad the operator is, is the hard part.