(FN=Flat Nose, SP= Spire Point,
HP= Hollow Point, RN= Round Nose)
JHP= Jacketed Hollow Point, FMJ=Full Metal Jacket)
Loads for .223 Remington Rifle:
(Note: These are near maximum loads, you should use 10% less to start.)
(See note on Powders below or read all about various Powders.)
Bullet is .224" diameter. Due to different barrel lengths,
type of bullet, seating depth, primer type and other factors,
you may not get near the FPS charted. It is just a guide and the reason you should start under these charges and work up.
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45 grain JSP (Speer or Sierra Spitzer)
IMR 3031 25.5* gr. 3,300 FPS
IMR 4895 26.5* gr. 3,280
2400 14.9 gr. 3,030
Reloader 12 28.0 gr. 3,470
Reloader 7 21.8 gr. 3,375
#2230 27.0 gr. 3,447
#2460 27.0 gr. 3,405
* compressed charge
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50 grain JSP (Hornady Soft Point)
IMR 3031 25.5* gr. 3,225 FPS
IMR 4895 26.5* gr. 3,270
2400 14.5 gr. 2,795
Reloader 12 27.0 gr. 3,335
Reloader 7 21.5 gr. 3,195
H4895 26.0 gr. 3,174
H335 26.0 gr. 3,398
#2230 26.0 gr. 3,342
#2460 26.0 gr. 3,329
748 26.0 gr. 3,200
* compressed charge
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52 grain JHP (Sierra Hollow Point, Boat-tail)
IMR 3031 25.5* gr. 3,--- FPS
IMR 4895 26.5* gr. 3,---
Reloader 12 27.5 gr. 3,310
Reloader 7 20.9 gr. 3,165
H4895 26.0 gr. 3,123
H335 26.0 gr. 3,300
#2230 26.0 gr. 3,252
#2460 25.5 gr. 3,234
748 25.5 gr. 3,160
* compressed charge
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55 grain JSP (Hornady Soft Point)
IMR 3031 25.0* gr. 3,165 FPS
IMR 4895 26.0 gr. 3,120
2400 14.0 gr. 2,685
Reloader 12 27.5 gr. 3,255
Reloader 7 20.5 gr. 3,080
H4895 26.0 gr. 3,099
H335 25.3 gr. 3,203
#2230 26.0 gr. 3,216
#2460 26.5 gr. 3,231
748 26.3 gr. 3,150
* compressed charge
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60 grain JSP (Hornady Spire Point)
Reloader 15 26.5 gr. 3,240 FPS
Reloader 12 25.5 gr. 3,070
H4895 25.5 gr. 3,078
H335 25.0 gr. 3,051
#2230 25.0 gr. 2,950
#2460 25.2 gr. 3,015
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68 grain JSP (Hornady Hollow Point, Boat-tail)
Reloader 15 25.6 gr. 3,030 FPS
Reloader 12 25.0 gr. 2,925
H4895 23.0 gr. 2,679
H335 23.5 gr. 2,825
#2230 24.5 gr. 2,929
#2460 24.7 gr. 2,991
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Discussion: The .223 is fast and flat. I have listed powders of IMR, Hodgdon, Alliant and Accurate. Use which ever you have handy. Slow burning powders generally work better in longer barrels and heavier
bullets. .223 Cases will stretch, especially with hot loads, and you definitely need to check
each in a case length guage and trim off excess brass. Of course, discard any cases that show
a split anywhere on the case. For hunting at long distances with an unobstructed view, you should
choose the spire point with a soft lead tip or a hollow point. The .223 is
really better for long-range, open country and not so much for the brush and woods. But any clear shot with it is deadly.
There are a number of other high performance bullets on the market. The "boattail" is a very good long range target match bullet. It has very good wind performance. If you are shooting for precision, you should weight each powder charge and put exactly the same amount in each case. Each case should be exactly on specs.
*
#2400, Reloader 7, 11, 12, 15, 19, and 22 are products of Alliant (formerly Hercules) Powders.
H335, H450 and H4895 are products of Hodgdon Powders.
IMR 3031 and IMR 4895 are products of IMR (formerly DuPont) Powder Company.
No. 2, No. 5, #2230, #2700, #3100 and #2460 are products of Accurate Arms Company
WMR, WSF, WSL, 760, 748, 231 and 540 are products of Winchester, Components Div.
References: Accurate Arms Co. 1996 Reloading booklet - - Alliant Powder Co. Reloaders' Guide (1995) - - Hodgdon's Basic Reloaders Manual (1996) - - Speer Reloading Manual, #12 - - Winchester Reloading Components Manual, 14th edition - - Lyman Piston & Revolver Reloading Handbook, 2nd edition. - - VihtaVuori Oy Company, reloading booklet (1995) - - Numerous magazine articles on reloading special calibers and personal loads where noted.