Ruger AR-556
- Thread starter dburk
- Start date
Plant.One
Well-known member
weather or not someone has a load thats worked well for them by no means indicates that YOUR gun will like it - or that that peticular load will even be SAFE in your gun. as a beginner picking load data from random people online is one of the WORST things you can probably do. I mean it might work out ok, but this is also one of the ways KABOOM's happen.
you can take 5 guns off the rack from the same mfg with sequential serial numbers and they are just as likely to each have their own pet load than they are to share one.
i strongly suggest you get a couple reloading manuals, and start to do some reading before you jump in too far. Hornady's 9th (or 10th now i guess) is a great book with LOTS of load data as well as a good introduction section in the how-to part at the beginning of the book. I'm sure others will recomend other guides as well. You can enver have too much information.
once you've done some reading and kind of have an idea as to what goes on and needs to happen during reloading, come back here and ask some more questions to develop YOUR process. Write it down and make yourself a checklist. Consistency is important and consistency starts with a good process you can follow over and over.
then and only then i would suggest picking a common bullet that folks are using, getting some powder and primers and doing a proper load developement and finding out for yourself what works.
thats the only way to ensure you have both an accurate and safe load for YOUR firearm.
i dont mean to scare you away from reloading, but we'd like to keep you as a firearm's enthusiast for a long time to come. Losing fingers or worse because of a foolish mistake while learning to reload isnt the way to go about it.
you can take 5 guns off the rack from the same mfg with sequential serial numbers and they are just as likely to each have their own pet load than they are to share one.
i strongly suggest you get a couple reloading manuals, and start to do some reading before you jump in too far. Hornady's 9th (or 10th now i guess) is a great book with LOTS of load data as well as a good introduction section in the how-to part at the beginning of the book. I'm sure others will recomend other guides as well. You can enver have too much information.
once you've done some reading and kind of have an idea as to what goes on and needs to happen during reloading, come back here and ask some more questions to develop YOUR process. Write it down and make yourself a checklist. Consistency is important and consistency starts with a good process you can follow over and over.
then and only then i would suggest picking a common bullet that folks are using, getting some powder and primers and doing a proper load developement and finding out for yourself what works.
thats the only way to ensure you have both an accurate and safe load for YOUR firearm.
i dont mean to scare you away from reloading, but we'd like to keep you as a firearm's enthusiast for a long time to come. Losing fingers or worse because of a foolish mistake while learning to reload isnt the way to go about it.
Plant.One
Well-known member
as a side note - lyman publishes its basic intro to reloading guide in PDF format.
feel free to give this a browse or even download and print it out if you want for reference.
http://www.lymanproducts.com/lyman/presses-and-kits/pdf/IntroToReloading.pdf
hopefully this will be helpful to get you started down the right road!
feel free to give this a browse or even download and print it out if you want for reference.
http://www.lymanproducts.com/lyman/presses-and-kits/pdf/IntroToReloading.pdf
hopefully this will be helpful to get you started down the right road!
Originally Posted By: Plant.Oneweather or not someone has a load thats worked well for them by no means indicates that YOUR gun will like it - or that that peticular load will even be SAFE in your gun. as a beginner picking load data from random people online is one of the WORST things you can probably do. I mean it might work out ok, but this is also one of the ways KABOOM's happen.
you can take 5 guns off the rack from the same mfg with sequential serial numbers and they are just as likely to each have their own pet load than they are to share one.
i strongly suggest you get a couple reloading manuals, and start to do some reading before you jump in too far. Hornady's 9th (or 10th now i guess) is a great book with LOTS of load data as well as a good introduction section in the how-to part at the beginning of the book. I'm sure others will recomend other guides as well. You can enver have too much information.
once you've done some reading and kind of have an idea as to what goes on and needs to happen during reloading, come back here and ask some more questions to develop YOUR process. Write it down and make yourself a checklist. Consistency is important and consistency starts with a good process you can follow over and over.
then and only then i would suggest picking a common bullet that folks are using, getting some powder and primers and doing a proper load developement and finding out for yourself what works.
thats the only way to ensure you have both an accurate and safe load for YOUR firearm.
i dont mean to scare you away from reloading, but we'd like to keep you as a firearm's enthusiast for a long time to come. Losing fingers or worse because of a foolish mistake while learning to reload isnt the way to go about it.
Thanks for the concerns and suggestions. I am by no means the type of person to blindly jump into something without doing my research first. I purchased Hornady's 9th, and Nosler's 8th (Lyman's 50th might be under the Christmas tree) before I even built my bench or mounted my press. I've reloaded a few times with friends and family, just to learn the basics and to understand the dangers that come with reloading. I didn't intend to take someone's load, throw it in the chamber, and pull the trigger. I know there are common combinations out there that have worked well for many people depending on caliber and I was simply looking for a starting point. I am fully aware that just because a load is good for one person, doesn't mean the same load will work well in your rifle, but when you read over and over again that a certain powder/bullet combo has been accurate for many people in a certain caliber, I might as well try that first don't ya think?
If it doesn't work, so be it, but hopefully I'll learn something along the way and have fun doing it.
you can take 5 guns off the rack from the same mfg with sequential serial numbers and they are just as likely to each have their own pet load than they are to share one.
i strongly suggest you get a couple reloading manuals, and start to do some reading before you jump in too far. Hornady's 9th (or 10th now i guess) is a great book with LOTS of load data as well as a good introduction section in the how-to part at the beginning of the book. I'm sure others will recomend other guides as well. You can enver have too much information.
once you've done some reading and kind of have an idea as to what goes on and needs to happen during reloading, come back here and ask some more questions to develop YOUR process. Write it down and make yourself a checklist. Consistency is important and consistency starts with a good process you can follow over and over.
then and only then i would suggest picking a common bullet that folks are using, getting some powder and primers and doing a proper load developement and finding out for yourself what works.
thats the only way to ensure you have both an accurate and safe load for YOUR firearm.
i dont mean to scare you away from reloading, but we'd like to keep you as a firearm's enthusiast for a long time to come. Losing fingers or worse because of a foolish mistake while learning to reload isnt the way to go about it.
Thanks for the concerns and suggestions. I am by no means the type of person to blindly jump into something without doing my research first. I purchased Hornady's 9th, and Nosler's 8th (Lyman's 50th might be under the Christmas tree) before I even built my bench or mounted my press. I've reloaded a few times with friends and family, just to learn the basics and to understand the dangers that come with reloading. I didn't intend to take someone's load, throw it in the chamber, and pull the trigger. I know there are common combinations out there that have worked well for many people depending on caliber and I was simply looking for a starting point. I am fully aware that just because a load is good for one person, doesn't mean the same load will work well in your rifle, but when you read over and over again that a certain powder/bullet combo has been accurate for many people in a certain caliber, I might as well try that first don't ya think?
If it doesn't work, so be it, but hopefully I'll learn something along the way and have fun doing it.
Originally Posted By: pyscodogWhat have you been shooting out of it?
I've tried a few different weights/brands. Seems to like Remington 55gr accutips the best, but still only shoots around 2" groups off a steady sled. In theory it should shoot the heavier bullets better, obviously that's not always the case. Excited to get some brass tumbled and work up some different loads.
I've tried a few different weights/brands. Seems to like Remington 55gr accutips the best, but still only shoots around 2" groups off a steady sled. In theory it should shoot the heavier bullets better, obviously that's not always the case. Excited to get some brass tumbled and work up some different loads.
Welcome to reloading, sounds like you found out real quick that the term "in theory" can be, at times, thrown out the window. I have an older Colt SP1 and it shoots tight groups with 55gr pills using 26.9gr of CFE223. That is a mid range load, my source is Hodgdon.
Another good source for load data is the Lyman book, I believe they are at the 50th edition now. As stated above, its also has a good section on the reloading process.
Have fun and be safe.
Here Kitty Kitty
Another good source for load data is the Lyman book, I believe they are at the 50th edition now. As stated above, its also has a good section on the reloading process.
Have fun and be safe.
Here Kitty Kitty
Last edited:
OldTurtle
Moderator - Deceased
I'm more of a competition shooter than hunter, so while there are different approaches to finding the "Right" load, I've found that starting a full grain below the published powder charge and working up in .1gr increments will usually produce one, or two, sweet spots somewhere between .4gr and .7gr below the published max...
I used to make up ten rounds of each charge weight and shoot five for experimentation, reserving the second five for verification of the best grouping and breaking down the components from the left overs to rebuild the good ones in order to save some of the component costs...
If I'm loading for one of the larger calibers (.270+) then I will increase powder charges in .3gr increments...Spreading out the increments will usually get me in the ball park of a good group and I will tweak my loads as to specific powder charge, bullet seating depth, type of primer, etc...
I used to make up ten rounds of each charge weight and shoot five for experimentation, reserving the second five for verification of the best grouping and breaking down the components from the left overs to rebuild the good ones in order to save some of the component costs...
If I'm loading for one of the larger calibers (.270+) then I will increase powder charges in .3gr increments...Spreading out the increments will usually get me in the ball park of a good group and I will tweak my loads as to specific powder charge, bullet seating depth, type of primer, etc...
2 MOA is a sick rifle or sighting system or something. If it's not even close to MOA after trying several types of factory ammo, I'd quit worrying about loads and start looking at what's wrong with the rifle.
Load tuning for something shooting that bad is almost always a waste of time. Rifle may or may not have anything you can actually "fix", but anything shooting that terrible has issues way beyond what load work can overcome. Kind of like playing with tire pressures to overcome bad handling due to bad shocks. Might help some, but isn't addressing the real issue.
- DAA
Load tuning for something shooting that bad is almost always a waste of time. Rifle may or may not have anything you can actually "fix", but anything shooting that terrible has issues way beyond what load work can overcome. Kind of like playing with tire pressures to overcome bad handling due to bad shocks. Might help some, but isn't addressing the real issue.
- DAA
Campower
New member
Ruger AR556 is the most accurate factory AR I have purchased. TBH I installed a MI Gen 2 SS handguard before I shot it the first time, but with a 3-9 Redfield revolution TAC pushing a 69gr sierra TMK over 23.5gr of AR comp 2700fps im able to average just under 1 MOA at 100 yards, and have repeated easy hits on my 620 yard 10x10 steel plate.
Short clip of my wife going 20 for 20 at the 620 plate. relatively fast rate of fire as well.
Short clip of my wife going 20 for 20 at the 620 plate. relatively fast rate of fire as well.
I hand loaded some .223 cartridges for another AR I own. Was pleasantly surprised when I shot them through my AR556. Right from the start I was getting slightly less than 1 MOA which made me happy enough to stick with those loads since I’ve got about 1,000 of them ready to go. Winchester case, 24.6 grains of Winchester 748 powder, Federal 205M primers and Winchester 64 grain Power Points.
I was so impressed with the accuracy of the AR556 right out of the box I proceeded to upgrade the rifle to my liking. I put a Timney Calvin Elite trigger in it (the factory trigger was pretty heavy) and I eeeked out a 0.80” group with the Winchester Power Points which are by no means a match grade bullet. Got a Burris P.E.P.R. mount with a Leupold 3-9x Freedom Scope and a new forend and a new rubberized grip for those cold winter days here in MN. What can I say, it’s a great shooter. I’ve probably got less than 100 rounds down the barrel. It’s not even broken in yet.
As others have mentioned , the AR556 has a 1:8 twist barrel so it should be able to handle the heavier bullets. I’m currently working up a load for my other AR with Sierra 69 gr. HPBT’s and TAC that just produced a 0.38” 5-shot group last weekend. After I try a few different seating depths for that load to try and fine tune it as much as possible I’m going to load a couple hundred and I’ll definitely be trying those through my AR556. Hopefully they perform.
I was so impressed with the accuracy of the AR556 right out of the box I proceeded to upgrade the rifle to my liking. I put a Timney Calvin Elite trigger in it (the factory trigger was pretty heavy) and I eeeked out a 0.80” group with the Winchester Power Points which are by no means a match grade bullet. Got a Burris P.E.P.R. mount with a Leupold 3-9x Freedom Scope and a new forend and a new rubberized grip for those cold winter days here in MN. What can I say, it’s a great shooter. I’ve probably got less than 100 rounds down the barrel. It’s not even broken in yet.
As others have mentioned , the AR556 has a 1:8 twist barrel so it should be able to handle the heavier bullets. I’m currently working up a load for my other AR with Sierra 69 gr. HPBT’s and TAC that just produced a 0.38” 5-shot group last weekend. After I try a few different seating depths for that load to try and fine tune it as much as possible I’m going to load a couple hundred and I’ll definitely be trying those through my AR556. Hopefully they perform.
Coyote-conquest
Member
My first AR was a $350 DPMS. It shot factory ammo crappy. When I started reloading for it I tried Varget first. It was better than factory but still around 2". I just figured that's about the best it would do.
One day I just happen to pick up a lb of BLC2 to try. When I got around a max load the groups shrunk to about an inch. I couldn't believe it. It was very repeatable.
It just goes to show that barrels can be weird. I tried several powders and the BLC2 was the only one I could find that it liked.
One day I just happen to pick up a lb of BLC2 to try. When I got around a max load the groups shrunk to about an inch. I couldn't believe it. It was very repeatable.
It just goes to show that barrels can be weird. I tried several powders and the BLC2 was the only one I could find that it liked.
Jerryrigged
Active member
I second the 69 TMK (if can find them at the moment) with 8208, H4895, Varget, R15 in that order. The Nosler 69 CC works very well also.