I have 55 gn hornady fmjbt bullets and h335 and cfe223 powder I am going to reload with. This is the first I have tried for rifle. The hodgdon site has a couple loads for some different style bullets of the same weight so I assume I can use that,right? I have a lyman and sierra manual that has data but are about 2 gn higher than what hodgdon says for the h335 and nothing for cfe223. Which do you go with or do you start somewhere in the middle of them? Since they are different bullets they are different lengths so how do you figure out oal. I know for pistol you do the plunk test but on an AR15 what do you do? Sorry if I left out any info you need to answer any of this. If anyone has load data they have used that worked well with these components they could share would be appreciated. Thanks
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- Thread starter grogetr
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Start at the bottom and work up from there.
When I have a bullet without load data specifically for it, I find a comparable bullet (Flat base, boat tail, tipped, hollow point etc) and start with that COAL.
But always start at the bottom of charge range.
When I have a bullet without load data specifically for it, I find a comparable bullet (Flat base, boat tail, tipped, hollow point etc) and start with that COAL.
But always start at the bottom of charge range.
What ZGunner said
In the case of 55 grain FMJBT bullets, all of them are pretty much the same as long as they are the same construction. So, it is easy to find data.
The Sierra data is dated. Still valid but new powders such as CFE223 are not included.
As far as the varying data, there are many factors that affect that. Different test equipment, different bullets, different powder lots, different lawyers, different marketers, different phases of the moon and so forth.
Hope this helps.
In the case of 55 grain FMJBT bullets, all of them are pretty much the same as long as they are the same construction. So, it is easy to find data.
The Sierra data is dated. Still valid but new powders such as CFE223 are not included.
As far as the varying data, there are many factors that affect that. Different test equipment, different bullets, different powder lots, different lawyers, different marketers, different phases of the moon and so forth.
Hope this helps.
rfwobbly
Member
Very intelligent questions !
• Yes, for any gun (especially those that use a bottleneck cartridge) you'd want to make a dummy cartridge (no powder, no primer) and see if it fits your chamber and allows the bolt to go into battery. Then you can use that to setup your dies thereafter. On bottleneck cartridges the head spacing becomes VERY important; much more so than on pistols.
• There will always be differences in the load data between any 2 manuals due to different equipment, altitude, temperature, etc at the test sites. You just have to pick a manual and say, "this is going to be my go-to manual, all others will be my backup and sanity check". Although I love my Sierra manual, I use my Lyman as the main manual due to the wider variety of loads presented. A chrono can also help you find which manual reports closer data for your type shooting and locale.
• Asking for load data on the internet is really bad form. If you can't find what you need in a published load, then you should call your powder company. They'll have several pages more data they'll be happy to email or fax you. They have a ton of data they simply can't put on their web page. On my last call, Accurate faxed me more than 7 pages of load data. All you need to do is ask.
• And as always, begin at the "starting load" and work up in small increments.
• Yes, for any gun (especially those that use a bottleneck cartridge) you'd want to make a dummy cartridge (no powder, no primer) and see if it fits your chamber and allows the bolt to go into battery. Then you can use that to setup your dies thereafter. On bottleneck cartridges the head spacing becomes VERY important; much more so than on pistols.
• There will always be differences in the load data between any 2 manuals due to different equipment, altitude, temperature, etc at the test sites. You just have to pick a manual and say, "this is going to be my go-to manual, all others will be my backup and sanity check". Although I love my Sierra manual, I use my Lyman as the main manual due to the wider variety of loads presented. A chrono can also help you find which manual reports closer data for your type shooting and locale.
• Asking for load data on the internet is really bad form. If you can't find what you need in a published load, then you should call your powder company. They'll have several pages more data they'll be happy to email or fax you. They have a ton of data they simply can't put on their web page. On my last call, Accurate faxed me more than 7 pages of load data. All you need to do is ask.
• And as always, begin at the "starting load" and work up in small increments.
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Thanks for the answers. I emailed hornady to see if they could give me load data for the fmjbt bullets but haven't heard back from them. I will start with hodgdon's data since it is the lowest charges and go from there. I will also do a dummy round to see where the rifling starts and back off a little from there.
rfwobbly
Member
There's an old saying in business: Men of action pick up the phone.
In my humble opinion, you should NEVER confuse your ease of sending an email with Hornady's ease, speed, or accuracy of reply. More than likely you'll receive a form email in 2 weeks saying they get 20,000 emails a day along with 50,000 pieces of spam, etc, etc.
Just saying.
In my humble opinion, you should NEVER confuse your ease of sending an email with Hornady's ease, speed, or accuracy of reply. More than likely you'll receive a form email in 2 weeks saying they get 20,000 emails a day along with 50,000 pieces of spam, etc, etc.
Just saying.
frankenstein406
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Isn't there load data including oal right on the h335 bottle. Don't be lazy work up your load.
I wasn't trying to be lazy but with big differences in load data just trying to be cautious on where to start and get the opinion of more experienced people. I have no problem making several different loads and see what works best. Its part of the fun.
moxie
Member
If the bullets have a cannelure, seat the bullet so that the case mouth is centered on the cannelure.
For 55 FMJBT Sierra specifies 2.250". Speer says 2.215". Lake City XM-193 rounds run right at 2.250" or a bit more.
Yes you can use the same data for different style bullets of the same weight. Many of the load manuals are set up that way.
The loads in either the Lyman or Hodgdon or any good manual are perfectly fine and safe. Just as advised above start low and work up. Think about getting a chrono at some point so you can see what's actually happening with different loads out of your rifle.
For 55 FMJBT Sierra specifies 2.250". Speer says 2.215". Lake City XM-193 rounds run right at 2.250" or a bit more.
Yes you can use the same data for different style bullets of the same weight. Many of the load manuals are set up that way.
The loads in either the Lyman or Hodgdon or any good manual are perfectly fine and safe. Just as advised above start low and work up. Think about getting a chrono at some point so you can see what's actually happening with different loads out of your rifle.
The Hornady fmjbt 55s I load have a cannelure. Trim your brass to 1.75 and seat the bullet to the middle of the cannelure and you will be good to go. I recently worked up a load using H-335 with those bullets. I thought my existing load using AA2460 was very accurate, but the H-335 was even better. I think you will be pleased with it. My best group was at near max listed in Hodgdon data, but do a proper work-up, be safe and good luck.
ArchAngelCD
Member.
A semi-auto rifle isn't like a bolt action rifle so setting the bullet just off the lands usually isn't possible. If the bullet has a cannelure seat there. If the bullet doesn't have a cannelure you should have at least one caliber length of bullet in the case neck for proper tension.
I know what you mean about the data being all over the place from different sources. It can be confusing. I have found for ammo used in a semi-auto AR rifle, when loading a 55gr bullet a charge of 25.0gr H335 works very well. It's not the top charge but it's fairly close. Start your work @24.0gr and work up to 25.0gr and see if you like that load.
Don't forget to come back to this thread and post the range report...
J_McLeod
Member
My best results with CFE 223 have been 26.4gr. I've shot 4 lbs of it at that load. Personally I always default to Hodgdon data, since they made the powder. If you want to be extra safe or conservative, use the lowest of the different sources you have.
The different load data/bullet types caused me a lot of headache when I first started reloading too.
The different load data/bullet types caused me a lot of headache when I first started reloading too.
With H335 and Hornady 55 fmj's trust Hodgdon's data as a maximum load which is 25.3 grains. Most shooters load between 24.5 up to 25 grains of H335 with 25 grains a favorite for many. Work up to these levels in your rifle watching for pressure and the most accurate load in your rifle. Hornady says seat to an overall length at 2.200" but to mid-cannelure or out to 2.230" works well for Hornady 55 fmj's. Haven't tried CFE 223 powder. Most recommended primers for AR's is with CCI 41 or 450's and Remington 7 1/2's.
ArchAngelCD
Member.
IMO and only my opinion .5gr is such a small capacity case is a bit much. I would probably go .3gr in cases that hold 23gr to 25gr. If you were loading a 30-06 with 50gr+ then .5gr would be a good number.
Using .5gr won't hurt anything it's just that you might go right past the most accurate load jumping a half grain in a small case. (or maybe it;s just me being me lol)
Potatohead
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Same here.
I started to load up some and checked for set back by pushing the bullet against the bench and it set back. I measured the neck of the case before and after seating the bullet and looks like there is .002 difference for tension on bullet. Is this sound right? I have lee die set with taper crimp die so then ran it through crimp die and got .003-.004 of crimp on the end of case but still get the set back when I push against bench. The bullets have a cannelure and are seated to about the middle which gives me 2.220 oal. I brushed and wiped the necks with a qtip dipped in alcohol to make sure they were clean but made no difference. Any thoughts? Thanks
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