.223 for bear, mountain goat, deer, elk, and moose.

[Schmo]

What do you recommend for powder, charge and velocity for a 20” Tikka?

I won’t recommend charge weight, as I prefer to let you work up to pressure on your specific gun, but TAC, StaBall Match, Power Pro 2000-MR, and N540 are going to give better velocity. One thing I have done for my own loads is move to 5.56 brass. I shoot Starline. Started with their 223, then switched to 5.56. The 5.56 is just a touch tougher, and believe it or not, has a little more case capacity for extruded powders like N150/N540.

 

[Schmo]

With the 77TMK, I’m getting 2750-2800 out of an 18” Tikka. With the 75 ELD, 2800+

 

[ShootOkHuntWorse]

I won’t recommend charge weight, as I prefer to let you work up to pressure on your specific gun, but TAC, StaBall Match, Power Pro 2000-MR, and N540 are going to give better velocity. One thing I have done for my own loads is move to 5.56 brass. I shoot Starline. Started with their 223, then switched to 5.56. The 5.56 is just a touch tougher, and believe it or not, has a little more case capacity for extruded powders like N150/N540.

I cannot get my Staball Match loads to have good ES or accuracy.

 

[YaakRiver]

With the 77TMK, I’m getting 2750-2800 out of an 18” Tikka. With the 75 ELD, 2800+

With which powder? I am using 5.56 brass as well.

 

[6creed]

What stock is that on your rifle? Thanks

 

[6creed]

77gr. TMK. Black Hills factory ammo. 360 yards. One shot, small run and piled up quick. Bullet got lungs and punched through opposite side leg. No bullet recovered.
My son shot two deer on MT youth hunt with the same bullet and set up. He claimed my first Tikka T3X .223. I just had to put together another! I will get his posted up later. Bonus: the Scythe didn’t blow up on 3 animals!
View attachment 951979View attachment 951980View attachment 951981

What stock is that? Thanks

 

[Schmo]

With which powder? I am using 5.56 brass as well.

I am not responsible for, or suggesting these powder charges. Was trying to find pressure.

 

[Schmo]

Here’s my powder ladder groups. Each 5 shot group is a 2.5 grain spread on powder charge.

 

[vonb]

I won’t recommend charge weight, as I prefer to let you work up to pressure on your specific gun, but TAC, StaBall Match, Power Pro 2000-MR, and N540 are going to give better velocity. One thing I have done for my own loads is move to 5.56 brass. I shoot Starline. Started with their 223, then switched to 5.56. The 5.56 is just a touch tougher, and believe it or not, has a little more case capacity for extruded powders like N150/N540.

Thanks for that. I've tried XBR 8208, RL-15, Lever and am now on to trying AA2520. Brass I've tried is LC '21 and Swiss P 5.56. All that to say that I've not found that magic load that cut holes with 77 TMKs in factory Tikka mags. Velocity I'm seeing are around 2,700 as I've stuck with .223 loads and have not ventured in 5.56 charges with the Tikka 20" .223. I'm in the South and temps get hot down here in the summer...I wanted to leave myself some headroom for that reason.


Lastly, my older Tikka T3 .223 with the 1/10 twist really spoiled me with its accuracy. It would absolutely cut holes with Sierra 50 and 55 gr Blitzkings. I was hoping for this with the new T3x with 77 gr loads but it hasn't happened yet.

 

[Formidilosus]

Thanks for that. I've tried XBR 8208, RL-15, Lever and am now on to trying AA2520. Brass I've tried is LC '21 and Swiss P 5.56. All that to say that I've not found that magic load that cut holes with 77 TMKs in factory Tikka mags. Velocity I'm seeing are around 2,700 as I've stuck with .223 loads and have not ventured in 5.56 charges with the Tikka 20" .223. I'm in the South and temps get hot down here in the summer...I wanted to leave myself some headroom for that reason.


Lastly, my older Tikka T3 .223 with the 1/10 twist really spoiled me with its accuracy. It would absolutely cut holes with Sierra 50 and 55 gr Blitzkings. I was hoping for this with the new T3x with 77 gr loads but it hasn't happened yet.

23.5gr 8208
CCI primer
77gr TMK
2.26” coal

That has shot below 1.5 MOA (almost all way below that) for average ten round groups in well over a hundred 223 tikkas. It works from the swamps of Florida in the summer, to the mountains of Alaska in winter.
If that doesn’t shoot, you have other problems.

 

[Matt5266]

Agree with the above. Took that load that Form supplied and did 0 load development with my Tikka. Just loaded up 50 of them and went out. Shot fantastic. It shot around 1.3 inch 10 round group if I remember correctly. Im sure someone who shoots better than me would make it even smaller. I didn't bother with any other for the 77 TMK.

Edit to add, that was also using LC range pickup brass.

 

[vonb]

23.5gr 8208
CCI primer
77gr TMK
2.26” coal

That has shot below 1.5 MOA (almost all way below that) for average ten round groups in well over a hundred 223 tikkas. It works from the swamps of Florida in the summer, to the mountains of Alaska in winter.
If that doesn’t shoot, you have other problems.

The red squares are 1”. This was 100 yards. This is representative of what my 20” Tikka can do. I was hoping for better but wasn’t impressed with 23.5 gr of 8208.

 

[Formidilosus]

The red squares are 1”. This was 100 yards. This is representative of what my 20” Tikka can do. I was hoping for better but wasn’t impressed with 23.5 gr of 8208.

So you are shooting sub MOA for 5 rounds, and most likely at 1 MOA for ten round groups- but that isn’t good enough?

 

[gbflyer]

Here’s my powder ladder groups. Each 5 shot group is a 2.5 grain spread on powder charge.View attachment 959365

Those N150 groups are nice. Believe I’d quit at that and put ‘er back in the safe. Haha.

 

[Dust Rider]

What stock is that? Thanks

Peak 44 Bastion

 

[Schmo]

Those N150 groups are nice. Believe I’d quit at that and put ‘er back in the safe. Haha.

And those groups are a powder charge spread of 2.5 grains lol. But I can’t leave well enough alone. Gonna test some N540 for more speed!

 

[swavescatter]

Thanks for that. I've tried XBR 8208, RL-15, Lever and am now on to trying AA2520. Brass I've tried is LC '21 and Swiss P 5.56. All that to say that I've not found that magic load that cut holes with 77 TMKs in factory Tikka mags. Velocity I'm seeing are around 2,700 as I've stuck with .223 loads and have not ventured in 5.56 charges with the Tikka 20" .223. I'm in the South and temps get hot down here in the summer...I wanted to leave myself some headroom for that reason.


Lastly, my older Tikka T3 .223 with the 1/10 twist really spoiled me with its accuracy. It would absolutely cut holes with Sierra 50 and 55 gr Blitzkings. I was hoping for this with the new T3x with 77 gr loads but it hasn't happened yet.

I echo what Form posted about 8208 XBR, but I enjoy the mental ma$turbation of posting 10-shot sub-MOA groups on the internet. I probably shouldn't post this too much because it's already hard enough to source, but H4895 was the ticket for me to bring my 10-shot groups under an inch with 77 TMK's and picked up some speed as well.

2870fps out of a 22" T3X with an OCL Polonium can loaded to about 20 thou off the lands in Ascension Mags. Feeds flawlessly, shoots fantastic. Now looking for what the heck to do with 10lbs of 8208 XBR...

 

[TimberHunter]

The red squares are 1”. This was 100 yards. This is representative of what my 20” Tikka can do. I was hoping for better but wasn’t impressed with 23.5 gr of 8208.

If you overlay all those groups, you have a near 1” group for many shots over a wide spread of charges. Just pick one and practice at distance and in difficult field positions other than prone

I too used to be the guy that tried to squeeze groups at 100 yards. Lot of wasted time, money and missed potential for improving my actual hunting style marksmanship.

 

[YaakRiver]

Varget is a great powder, but you are leaving significant velocity on the table using it in this application.

I'm tempted to change but this was my 10 shot group. I know it's only 2725 at the muzzle but that is still good to 550 yards.

 

[Gstew1930]

I gonna make a wild claim here. The 77 TMK also kills coyotes pretty well lol