First time reloading 223, should I stick to boat tail bullets?

[Dewey 68]

This will be the first time loading any bottleneck cartridge. These will be plinking loads, not looking for match grade stuff here. Are flat tail bullets much harder to seat than bullet tail?

 

[ATLDave]

I have found them annoying to get seated without shaving the copper jacket. That said, for plinking, that may not make much difference, and I still load some cheap flat-base bullets for just that purpose.

 

[LiveLife]

Starting out loading plinking rounds, I would use cheapest FMJ bullets until my reloading consistency is good enough.

Depending on barrel brand/type(.223 vs 5.56 vs .223 Wylde)/length/twist rate, etc., small difference in "cheap" bullets may not matter much, especially in 55 gr weight.

BTW, what rifle/barrel are you loading for?

 

[Average Joe]

I use boat tails because I think they are more accurate, just my opinion.

 

[CMV]

Something like Hornady 2266B 55gr SP BT bullets might be a good choice. Inexpensive, easy to seat, more accurate than typical FMJ. Worth checking out.

A decent chamfer inside the case mouth makes a VMAX or lightweight SMK still seat well.

 

[Kaldor]

This will be the first time loading any bottleneck cartridge. These will be plinking loads, not looking for match grade stuff here. Are flat tail bullets much harder to seat than bullet tail?

Look for 55gr Hornady FMJBTs or SPs. Both are boat tails, both are accurate, both are consistent. They cost about 6-7 cents each in quantity.

Dont bother with anything else. 1 penny isnt worth the head ache.

 

[jak67429]

Like CMV said chamfer the mouth and you won't have problems with shaving jackets. The boattail bullets are easier to start straight than one with a squared end.

 

[edwardware]

I use boat tails because I think they are more accurate, just my opinion.

Interestingly, this is exactly wrong.

For equal quality, a flat tail bullet will always be more accurate than a boat tail bullet, which is why benchrest uses flat tail bullets. Boat tail bullets have higher BC, which leads to less flight-time, and therefore small errors in reading the wind will have a smaller effect on score at long range.

In summary, BT bullets trade a small amount of absolute accuracy for reduced flight time to reduce the impact of wind reading errors.

For your purposes, buy 1k of Hornady's 55gr SP, and enjoy an introduction to reloading. Until you're tuning the last 0.5mil out at 500 yards, you don't care about boat tails.

 

[cfullgraf]

Boat tails are easier to start into the case when seating than flat base bullets.

For plinking, as said, bargain priced 55 grain FMJ bullets are hard to beat.

Chamfer the inside edge of the case mouth to remove the sharp corner and any shaving of the bullet jacket will be minimized or eliminated.

 

[2ndtimer]

It does sort of depend on your rifle and the twist rate of your barrel. The good thing about the Hornady 55 gr SP is that the new version has a slight boat tail, which will make seating easier. Also, almost any twist rate in your barrel should be able to shoot them reasonably well (at least from a 1 in 12" through a 1 in 7", though they won't provide the best accuracy in any of them. But for less than 8 cents each, you can't beat them.)
https://www.midsouthshooterssupply....oft-point-bevel-base-with-cannelure-250-count

 

[JimKirk]

Chamfer you brass and flat base bullets will not give you any problems ....

I shoot a bunch of 50 grain flat base in my .223....

 

[Galil5.56]

I load 55 gr FMJ-BT for my 1:12" rifle, and will add to the chamfer the case mouth suggestion, and hold-em upright as best you can during seating. No real need to crimp the case most of the time if good neck tension is present, but some still do.

Have you decided on a powder yet? Sure are a ton that work so well in .223, and since I load on a progressive press I like ball powder. Nothing wrong with 'stick' types, just that some have a very high fill rate, and can be a bit more frustrating to use at first. Some favorites of me and THR for ball powder might be:

AA2230
AA2460
AA2520
WW748
BL-C2
TAC
H335
X-Terminator
CFE-223

I will use a magnum primer when using ball powder, usually a CCI 450. I like their performance, and the primer cup is just a tad bit thicker. Lastly it might be a good idea to sort your brass by maker, military and non military. Some cases have less internal volume, and working up loads with different volumes is not the best practice. Good luck, and it's always nice to see a new rifle reloader on THR.

 

[Dewey 68]

This would be for a Ruger AR556, 1:8 twist barrel. For powder I was thinking about trying X-Terminator. I'll be loading on a Lee Pro 1000 with a Lee Auto drum so I want to stick with ball powder for metering purposes.

I was looking at some of the bullets at RMR, but I'll check out the Hornady's at the above link.

 

[Walkalong]

Another option

https://www.midsouthshooterssupply....meter-62-grain-bthp-with-cannelure-1500-count

 

[2ndtimer]

This would be for a Ruger AR556, 1:8 twist barrel. For powder I was thinking about trying X-Terminator. I'll be loading on a Lee Pro 1000 with a Lee Auto drum so I want to stick with ball powder for metering purposes.

I was looking at some of the bullets at RMR, but I'll check out the Hornady's at the above link.

I love RMR bullets, great people and service, but my experience with their .223 55 gr FMJ bullets was not that great. Much better accuracy with the Hornady 62 gr HPBT bullets from Mid-South referenced by Walkalong above. Since you are shooting a 1 in 8" twist, I suggest you give them a try. They are available in a 250 pack at a slightly higher cost per bullet than the 1500 pack link above.

 

[ArchAngelCD]

Yes, the RMR bullets are good.

Take a look at these: https://www.rmrbullets.com/shop/bul...-56mm/224-5-56-62-gr-newly-mfg-lead-core-fmj/

 

[Bartojc]

Oddly enough my two most accurate loads are flat based bullets. Yes BT seems to be easier to get started when seating, but just slightly. Once you load enough you'll get the hang of it. What range will you be shooting ? You may not be able to tell a difference. For plinking and getting used to reloading and shooting you might just want to use the cheapest 55 gr FMJ you can get. I use Hornady FMJBT 55gr for cheap practice which can be had for .06-.08 a round if you search for it.

-Jeff

 

[Blue68f100]

All depends on what distance you want to shoot at. <300 yrds the flat base normally will be more accurate but not all the time, barrel dependent. Once you extend past 300 yrds the boat tail advantage takes over. Yes the BT are easier to start than FB. Some FB have a generous radius that makes them start easier. For general plinking buy what ever you can get the best deal on. With a 1:8 twist barrel the 60gr+ bullets will give you better accuracy than the lighter pills.

 

[Dewey 68]

Distance would be 100 yards and under. Truly plinking. I know I could get steel cased cheaper but frankly, I'm finding that I enjoy reloading almost as much as unloading factory cartridges.

 

[Kaldor]

I used to run the old 55gr SPs (223) and I still run the 150gr SP (308) with the flat base. My solution for not fighting them was to use an M-die and put just a very small flare on the case mouth so I could keep my sanity. Then just close that flare gently with a FCD.

And yes, flat base bullets are more accurate out to about 300 yards. Every 100 yard benchrest record in the world was shot with flat based bullets.

 

[Kaldor]

One of the reasons why the Hornady FMJBTs are generally considered to be the best FMJ style bullet is due to the quality of the base. If you look at them, they are all nearly perfectly uniform. If you take the time to do some development on them, you can generally get them to shoot between .750 and 1.000" groups.

Ive tried some Amscor's that we given to me, junk, and I still have 2500 of them on the shelf that I will never touch again. Purchased Winchester's and MidSouth's, junk. Group size on these were all in the 1.500-2.00" range from multiple rifles. The issue with all of them was the same, the bases of the bullets were very inconsistent in comparison to the Hornady.

Like I said before:
"Dont bother with anything else. 1 penny isnt worth the head ache."

 

[Bfh_auto]

I agree with the people saying chamfering the case mouth removes issues of shaving.
For plinking, I like the 55 sp flat base.

 

[AshMan40]

Hornady 55gr FMJ-BT is the cheapest 22-cal bullets I can consistently find so they usually make up my blasting/plinking loads... outside the occasional deal that pops up "once in a blue moon" where some other 22-cal bullet is on sale for less.

My 20" Colt Sporter-II loves 52gr HP Match bullets (flat base) over anything else I have tried even though it has a 1:7 twist barrel. So barrel twist alone does not dictate the most accurate bullet type/weight for your rifle. I've yet to try some 75gr OTM bullets so maybe there's hope it will love those better.

 

[Birdhunter1]

Boat tail vs flat base bullets inside of 200 yards won't make much of a difference if any at all. in .223's my personal favorite is a 55 gr Hornady SPSX (soft point flat base) that is not anymore effected by the wind than the loads I work up using a 52 Gr Amax bullet, now keep in mind this is inside of 200 yards. While I say I do not see the effects I mean exactly that, you'd have to get the calipers out.
Beyond 200 yards is a different situation, but I stick with my flat base 55 SPSX's simply because I use the same bullet in that rifle all the time.

I'm not a benchrest shooter but I learned most of what I know of reloading under one of them, from what he has told me is that most benchrest guys prefer flat based bullets over boat tails.

 

[Rule3]

The OP is not shooting a "match". Range shooting 100 or less yard. Will never know the difference
BT bullets are fine.
Of course then he will need a concentric gauge, a Different press and powder measure as well.It's amazing how much ammo and projectiles Hornady sells that are BT bullets.

https://www.hornady.com/ammunition/rifle/223-remington-55-gr-hp-match-frontier-oriented#!/