“Rokslide Special” .223 Training ammunition?

[PC356]

Ran some 77 OTMs from Blackhills today out to 500. Accuracy was on par with AACs, which is to say excellent for me. They averaged 80 fps slower out of my 16” factory Tikka tube than the Palmetto stuff. Minor gripe. Plenty good to train with and availability is adequate for now.

 

[Coopsdaddy]

After fall hunting I switch over to ADI 55 gr blitzking. Cheaper and I use them for prairie dogs. I think the last time I bought them they were $160/case of 200

You like these better than adi 69gr?
1/8 16in barrel

 

[Q_Sertorius]

You like these better than adi 69gr?

In my Tikka T3, the 55-grain are more accurate than the 69-grain. That’s based on my experience of a few hundred versus a few thousand rounds. The 55-grain group around 1”, while the 69-grain is consistently just under 1.5”.

 

[Ajsomp]

In my Tikka T3, the 55-grain are more accurate than the 69-grain. That’s based on my experience of a few hundred versus a few thousand rounds. The 55-grain group around 1”, while the 69-grain is consistently just under 1.5”.

don’t you have a slower twist 223? May not be 1:1 with his 1:8

 

[Q_Sertorius]

don’t you have a slower twist 223? May not be 1:1 with his 1:8

Yes, the current barrel is 1:9”. But, across a broad sample of 55- to 77-grain bullets, the ADI 55- and 69-grain were the best. Those were also the two best loads in my 1:8” twist AR. The Frontier 5.56 62-grain were really good too. Of course, the 77-grain bullets didn’t stabilize at all in the 1:9”.

 

[Cherokeeguide]

Let me start by saying I do not enjoy reloading. Does it make any sense, cost wise to reload for a .223 training rifle at 300-400 rounds per month?
I would like to practice with what I’m going to hunt with to get better at quick drop.

I don't enjoy reloading, either.

What I do enjoy is hitting what I am aiming at.

Whether reloading .223 Remington makes economic sense depends on the individual.

For me, it doesn't make any sense to shoot anything but the same ammunition I use "across the course" in CMP Service Rifle and in CMP Modern Military. That load is a hand-load and that specific load is what my home-assembled AR-15 A4 was "tuned" for. Thankfully, I discovered this site, where folks have demonstrated success on game with same bullet I had been using for match shooting. I tried it during last fall's hunting seasons and I'm still whacking feral pigs with it, Being able to use one load for everything I do with a rifle makes life simple.

When I go "target shooting," I always shoot the CMP service rifle National Match course of fire and shoot it exactly as I would in a CMP sanctioned match. "Doing everything the same" only has value to me if "everything," including the ammunition, is the same.

In service rifle, Phase 1 slow fire standing and Phase 2 rapid fire sitting / kneeling are both shot from the 200 yard line, but the zeros used for each of those two phases are NOT the same. With the load my rifle is "tuned for," how many clicks of elevation I have to take out for the transition from Phase 1 to Phase 2 is consistent to the point of exactly the same, every time. How much "wind" I need to click in or out over the 20 minutes of 600 yard slow fire prone is likewise keyed to the ammo I shoot. I don't have the time or resources to re-learn "wind dope" for an assortment of .223 Remington or 5.56 NATO commercial loads.

In short, in order for MY "training" to have meaning, everything, including the ammo I shoot (handloads in my case) has to be the same as it will be for the use I'm training for.