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May 9th, 2014
Lake City vs. Lapua — which brass is harder? And how about Remington vs. Winchester? Is the widely-held belief that Win brass is harder than Rem brass really true? To help settle these burning questions (raised in a Forum thread), Forum member Catshooter recently sampled the base hardness of four brands of .223/5.56 brass. He employed a very impressive tool for the task — a $2,500 Ames Hardness Gauge. Catshooter explained that his Ames Guage “is FAA certified and approved for testing aircraft engine parts — it does NOT get any better than that!”
Catshooter measured four cases picked at random from batches of Lake City (LC) 2008 (5.56x45mm), Lapua .223 Rem Match, Winchester .223 Rem, and Remington R-P .223 Rem.
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| Lake City |
Lapua Match |
Winchester |
Remington |
Photo Shows Ames Gauge Base Hardness Measurement on Lake City Brass
Photo Show Ames Gauge Base Hardness Measurement on Winchester Brass
 TEST RESULTS
Using Rockwell hardness standards (.062″x100kg, Rockwell “B”), the brass measured as follows:
LC 2008 = 96
Lapua 223 Match = 86
Winchester 223 = 69
Remington “R-P” = 49
Summary of Test Results
Catshooter writes: “For all you guys that have believed that Winchester cases were tougher than Remington — you are vindicated, they are a lot tougher! However, Lake City and Lapua are ‘the pick of the litter'”. Catshooter notes that both Lake City and Lapua are significantly harder than either Winchester and Remington .223 brass. That’s something that we’ve observed empirically (Lapua and LC stand up better to stout loads), but now we have some hard numbers to back that up. Hats off to Catshooter for settling the hardness debate with his Ames Hardness Gauge.
May 7th, 2014
Need .223 Rem ammo for your early summer varmint safari? Grafs.com has you covered. Over the past few months, Graf & Sons has acquired a large supply of .223 Rem ammo from a variety of manufacturers. Now Grafs.com has a great selection of .223 Rem ammo, with many items marked down on sale. You’ll find name-brand ammo for as little as $9.99 per 20-ct box (American Eagle 50gr JHP). If you prefer heavier bullets for longer-range shooting, check out the PRVI Partizan ammo loaded with 75gr HPBT match bullets — this is just $10.99 per per 20-ct box.
Here is just a sample of the .223 Rem ammo available at Grafs.com right now:
January 31st, 2014
Looking to start a new enterprise? How about entering a field where consumer demand greatly exceeds supply right now — the ammunition business. If you have $38,000 or so you can get your own automated ammo-making machine from Ammo Load Worldwide, Inc., an American-run business located in Lewiston, Idaho. There’s also an 11-station, computer-controlled “Mark L” rifle ammo machine that’s a bit pricier — $77,000 with accessories. Sure that’s a tad more expensive than a Dillon XL650, but with a Mark L you can produce three thousand .223 Rem rounds per hour with the push of a button.
Watch Ammo-Loading Machines in Action:
Mark X Pistol Cartridge Loading Machine (about $38,000)
For over 30 years Ammo Load machines have served ammunition manufacturers, commercial loaders, private shooting ranges, and numerous law enforcement agencies. The Mark X Ammo Load machine (for pistol cartridges) has a maximum production rate of just over 5,000 cycles per hour. Many users produce between 3,000 and 5,000 rounds per hour. The primary factors governing the quality and quantity of ammunition produced are the components (particularly the cases), the caliber, and the capabilities of the operator.
The Mark X Ammo Load machine for pistol cartridges has nine (9) stations: Case Check, Size and Deprime, Primer and Primer Disk Check, Belling, Powder Feed, Powder Check, Bullet Seating, Bullet Crimp, Final Sizing. There are checks (with shut-offs) for case feed, primer feed, bullet feed, and powder load. The Mark X comes complete with shell case feeder, primer feed tube, powder flask, and bullet feed tube.
Mark L – Automatic Rifle Ammunition Loader (About $77,000)
In 2009 Ammo Load Worldwide introduced the Mark L automatic rifle ammunition loader in .223 and .308. Many proven features from the Mark X pistol machine have been incorporated into the Mark L to provide precise and consistent rifle cartridge loading at approximately 3,000 to 3,600 rounds per hour. All of the sensors and switches use fiber optic technology to increase precision and reduce maintenance. The Mark L utilizes a 3-station powder drop; the manufacturer claims this maintains charge weights to within 1/10th of a grain.
| Mark L Rifle Cartridge Loading Machine has 11 stations: |
1. Sizing/Checking*
2. Mouth Flare
3. Priming
4. Primer Check / 1st Powder Drop
5. 2nd Powder Drop
6. 3rd Powder Drop
| 7. Powder Check
8. Initial Bullet Seating
9. Final Bullet Seating
10. Crimp & Bullet-in-Case Check
11. Eject |
*Along with sizing, this first stage performs Flash-Hole Check, Ringer Check, and Case Check.
January 20th, 2014
Here’s a smart product from MTM Case-Gard, new for 2014. You get a rugged, polypropylene plastic ammo carrier, complete with a matched set of 100-round ammo boxes for a particular caliber (e.g. 9mm, 45 ACP, or .223 Rem). This is a slick, intelligent way to transport ammo to the range.
We like these new MTM plastic ammo carriers better than military surplus metal ammo cans, which have sharp edges, finger-pinching clasps, and rust far too easily. MTM’s ammo carriers are much lighter than milsurp ammo cans, and they have an enhanced O-Ring seal system for a superior water-resistant seal. All plastic, the MTM ammo carriers can never rust. They have easy-to-shut dual latches, double locking tabs for padlocks, and convenient built-in stacking ridges molded into the lids. Overall, the MTM ammo carrier is a superior, more user-friendly design compared to conventional metal ammo cans. And the combo set, with fitted 100-round boxes, gives double protection to your precious ammunition.
January 12th, 2014
 Redding is now offering Micro-Adjusting Taper Crimp Dies for the .223 Remington (5.56×45) and .308 Winchester (7.62×51), the two most popular cartridges used in competitive rifle shooting. New for 2014, these top-adjusting, micrometer-style dies, you can adjust crimp precisely without having to back-out the die and reposition the lock ring.
The process of traditional taper crimp die adjustment is generally both time consuming and imprecise due to the 1:14″ thread pitch coupled with the need to reposition the lock ring after each adjustment. The new Redding Micro-Adjusting Taper Crimp Dies for .223 Rem and .308 Win use a knurled, micrometer-type head situated to provide approximately +/- 0.100″ of adjustment after initial die set-up. The actual crimp is applied with a hardened steel “free floating” internal sleeve.
To Taper Crimp or Not to Crimp?
That Depends…
Do you actually need a taper crimp on .223 Rem or .308 Win cartridges? If you are shooting a precision bolt gun, the answer is “probably not”. However, if you are hand-loading ammo for a semi-automatic rifle, there are reasons you may want to apply a taper crimp on the cartridge. And high-volume .223 Rem shooters may want to apply a taper crimp, particularly when loading mixed headstamp brass using a progressive press. The new Redding dies allow you to control the amount of crimp easily and more efficiently. Redding claims that: “Down time and loss of production due to adjustment of the crimp are virtually eliminated, dramatically increasing the rounds per hour rates of all progressive and turret-style presses.”
High-volume hand-loaders often struggle with the realities of case variation and the resulting difficulties in obtaining a uniform crimp. Redding notes: “Case length is not the only variable, as case neck-wall thickness also impacts where the case intersects the die’s tapered crimping surface.”
December 20th, 2013
The 300 AAC Blackout (300 BLK, or 7.62x35mm) was created by Advanced Armament Corp. and Remington in order to provide the military with a way to shoot .30-caliber bullets from the M4 carbines with only a barrel change. It has since become popular with AR shooters for a wide range of uses including hunting and home defense. With the increased popularity of this cartridge, folks have been looking for reliable 300 BLK load information. Now, thanks to Sierra Bullets, we have some good load data for the 300 AAC Blackout. Sierra has released a FREE 6-page Load Guide for this cartridge, as part of the Sierra Reloading Manual (5th Edition).
CLICK HERE for Sierra 300 AAC Blackout Load DATA (PDF Format).
Here is ONE of SIX Pages in the Sierra Load Sheet for 300 AAC Blackout
About the 300 AAC Blackout (300 BLK)
The 300 AAC Blackout cartridge shares case-head dimensions and body taper with the .223 Remington. Not only does this allow for compatibility with existing magazines and bolts, but it allows reloaders to form their own brass from cut-down 5.56×45 mm or .223 Rem cases. You can also form 300 Blackout cases by necking-up .221 Fireball brass. Take Note: Lapua has started producing .221 Fireball brass — this should be available in the USA by early April.
The 300 AAC Blackout is a similar concept to previous wildcats, such as the 30-221 and 300 Fireball, as well as the proprietary 300 Whisper®, except that 300 BLK was the first to be a SAAMI-approved cartridge and any company is free to make firearms or ammunition.
300 AAC Blackout is also finding use with hunters, who may not have been able to legally hunt with .223 in their state, and who prefer .30 caliber bullets for medium-sized game. It provides similar effectiveness to the 7.62×39 or the slightly more powerful .30-30 cartridges except works in the more up-to-date AR-platform rifles. Effective hunting range is about 150 yards. Some innovators, such as Dave Whitford, have also experimented with the 300 BLK for Across-the-Course competition. READ Whitford story in Rifleman’s Journal..
October 21st, 2013
Report by Boyd Allen
This pistol belongs to Dan Lutke, a Bay Area benchrest shooter who publishes the results for the Visalia matches to the competitors and the NBRSA. He has been an enthusiastic competitor for an number of years, at various ranges, notably Visalia and Sacramento. The action is a Remington XP-100, to which a Kelbly 2 oz. trigger has been fitted. On top is an old Japanese-made Tasco 36X scope (these were actually pretty darn good). The Hart barrel (a cast-off from Dan’s Unlimited rail gun) was shortened and re-chambered for the 6x45mm, a wildcat made by necking-up the .223 Remington parent case. The custom stock/chassis was CNC-machined by Joe Updike from 6061 Billet Aluminum to fit the XP-100 action and mount a target-style AR grip with bottom hand rest. The gun was bedded and assembled by Mel Iwatsubu. In his XP-100 pistol, Dan shoots 65gr custom boat-tails with Benchmark powder.
TEN Shots in 0.303″ at 100 Yards
How does Dan’s XP-100 pistol shoot? Look at that target showing TEN shots at 100 yards, with eight (8) shots in the main cluster at the top. The ten-shot group measures .303″ (0.289 MOA), as calculated with OnTarget Software. Not bad for a handgun! What do you think, can your best-shooting rifle match the 10-shot accuracy of this XP-100 pistol?
This diagram shows the most common 6x45mm wildcat, which is a necked-up version of the .223 Remington parent cartridge. NOTE: The dimensions for Dan Lutke’s benchrest version of this cartridge may be slightly different.
ACAD drawing by Peter Gnanapragasam CC by SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Title Added.
Story tip from Boyd Allen. We welcome reader submissions.
June 12th, 2013
 We all know that reloading components have been in short supply in recent months. If you’ve been searching for quality brass, your wait may be over.
A boatload of Lapua cartridge brass has crossed the Atlantic, cleared customs, and is now in warehouses. Many large vendors report that they have ample supplies of Lapua brass in stock now. So if you need some cartridge cases, place your orders today.
Here is a summary of the cartridge types in stock, vendor by vendor. Sorry, no 6mmBR brass on hand at these outfits, but you’ll find most other types of Lapua rifle brass:
| Lapua Rifle Cartridge Brass in Stock as of 6/12/2013 |
| Creedmoor Sports |
Grafs.com |
Powder Valley Inc. |
.220 Russian
.223 Rem
22-250 Rem
6.5×47
6.5×284 Norma
.260 REM
.308 WIN
.308 WIN Palma
.30-06 Spr |
.220 Russian
6.5×47
.260 Rem
6.5×55 SE
6.5×284 Norma
.338 Lapua Mag |
.220 Russian
.222 Rem
.223 Rem
22-250 Rem
.243 Win
6.5×47
.260 Rem
6.5×55 SE
6.5×284 Norma
7.62×39
.308 Win
.308 Win Palma
.30-06 Spr
.338 Lapua Mag |
April 11th, 2013
Report by Richard King (King’s Armory, Texas; ‘Kings X’ on our Forum)
With all the talk from Vince Bottomley in the April issue of Target Shooter about aluminum stocks, I thought you might like to see my latest project. This is my personal gun, built the way I wanted it. I know it’s radical and some may not care for it. But it works.
This is pretty much an all-aluminum rifle. The action is a Kelbly F-Class with a Shilen stainless steel competition trigger. The scope is a 1″-tube Leupold 36X with a Tucker Conversion set in Jewell spherical bearing rings. The .223 barrel is Pac-Nor 3-groove, 1:6.5″-twist mounted in a “V”-type barrel block. The bipod has vertical adjustment only via a dovetail slide activated by a stick handle. It works like a joy-stick, but for vertical only. I adjust for windage by moving the rear sandbag.
The 30″ barrel is 1.250″ in diameter. With the barrel block forward, the vibrations should be at a low frequency. Instead of one long rod whipping, I now have two short rods (barrel haves) being dampened. This is my fourth barrel block gun. They work, but so does a good pillar-bedded action. I just do stuff a little different.
The vertical “keel” down the bottom of the stock stops the “spring” of a flat-bar stock. There is little, if any, noticeable flex before or during recoil. The long length of the stock, the fat barrel, and the forward-mounted barrel block work together to keep the gun from rising off the ground. BUT, remember this is a .223 Rem rifle. A .308 Win version might act very differently. I may try a .308-barreled action soon, just to see what happens. But I will stick with the .223 Rem as my choice for match shooting.
 The offset scope idea came from a benchrest “rail” gun. In truth, the whole concept came from a rail gun — just adapted to being shot off a bipod. Sure it isn’t directly over the bore. It is about 1.5″ over to the left. So if you want the scope to be zeroed on the center of the target, you have to adjust for the offset. At 100 yards that is 1.5 MOA. But at 300 it is only 0.5 MOA, at 600 only a ¼-MOA, and at 1000 about 1 click on my scope.
What the offset DOES do for me is eliminate any cheek pressure. My cheek never touches the stock. Since this is only a .223 Rem, I don’t put and shoulder pressure behind it. And I don’t have a pistol grip to hang on to, but I do put my thumb behind the trigger guard and “pinch” the two-ounce trigger.
The offset scope placement could interfere with loading a dual-port action from the left. That’s not a problem for me as I set my spotting scope up on the left side very close to the rifle. I have plenty of time to reload from the right side while the target is in the pits being scored.
Again — this is my rifle. It is designed for my style of shooting. It is not meant to be a universal “fit all” for the general public. However, I will say the design is adaptable. I can easily convert the system to run in F-Open Class. I would drop a big-bore barreled action into the “V” block, slide on a heavier pre-zeroed scope and rings, add plates on the sides up front to bring the width to 3”, and maybe a recoil pad. It might be interesting to offset the wings up from to counter torque of the big bullets. But I would also have to offset the rear bag rider to get the gun to recoil straight back.
How the Gun Performs
I have had “T” to the range only twice for load development. It groups like my present barrel-blocked 223 F-TR gun. But it’s much easier to shoot and it only moves about 3/4” — straight back. I tried to build am omni-directional joy-stick bipod but I could not get all the side-to-side wiggle out of it. So I have set it up so it only moves up and down (horizontal movement is locked-out). As it works now, the joystick on the bipod lets me set elevation on the target quickly (with up/down adjustment). Then, to adjust for windage, I slide my rear bag side-to-side as needed. Once set, I just tickle the trigger and smile.
Gun Handling — Shoot It Like a Bench-Gun
I basically shoot the gun with no cheek or body contact. I don’t grip it, other than maybe a pinch on the trigger guard. The scope was offset to the left to help the shooter move off the gun and avoid the possibility of head/cheek contact with the stock.
Listen to Richard King Explain How He Shoots his ‘Texas-T’ Rifle:
[haiku url=”http://accurateshooter.net/Video/RichKingTalks.mp3″ Title=”Richard King Talks”]
CLICK PHOTOS to See Big Size
February 9th, 2013
Olin’s Winchester Division has issued a Recall Notice for one (1) lot of its 5.56x45mm M855 62 grain PENE centerfire rifle ammunition. This notice applies only to Symbol Number ZGQ3308 with Lot Number WCC10M106-004. Other Symbol Numbers or Lot Numbers are not subject to this recall.
Symbol Number: ZGQ3308
Lot Number: WCC10M106-004
 Winchester states: “Through extensive evaluation Winchester has determined the above lot of 5.56mm M855 ammunition may contain incorrect propellant. Incorrect propellant in this ammunition may cause firearm damage, rendering the firearm inoperable, and subject the shooter or bystanders to a risk of serious personal injury when fired.”
The ammunition Symbol Number and Lot Number are ink stamped on the outside of the 900-round shipping container, and on the outside of the 30-round carton as shown at right:
If you have Winchester Ammo with Symbol Number ZGQ3308 and Lot Number WCC10M106-004 immediately discontinue use and contact Winchester toll-free at 866-423-5224 for free UPS pick-up of the recalled ammunition. Upon receipt of your recalled ammunition, Winchester will ship replacement ammunition directly to you.
If you have any questions concerning this 5.56mm M855 ammunition recall please call toll-free 866-423-5224, write to Winchester (600 Powder Mill Road, East Alton, IL 62024 Attn: 5.56mm M855 Recall), or visit www.winchester.com.
Notice tip by EdLongrange. We welcome reader submissions.
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