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I’ve got an Armalite AR-10 .308, 16” barrel with either a 10” or 11.25” twist ( I haven’t decided which yet). I’ve been testing 165gr bullets, with decent results. A couple loads will produce 1-1.5” groups, but most are 2-3” groups. I am tempted to try 150gr and see what happens. What weight bullets do you guys shoot in your AR-10’s?
JTD
For my DD5V1 I like to shoot either Federal or LC brass, 168gr Sierra MK with IMR 4064.
I will be trying 168gr and 175gr Sierra MKs with LC brass through my new SCAR 20S.
Every rifle is different, you just need to find which one works best in your rifle.
. . . . . and you will be using this gun for what ?? --- SAWMAN
Deer and hogs. I have a couple 165gr loads that are very adequate for the intended purpose, but am amazed at how most of my groups look like a shotgun pattern instead of a group.Quote:
Originally Posted by SAWMAN
JTD
Share the loads you are unhappy with, it may shed some light.
The load(s) I finally arrived at to use for hunting purposes in my Remington 750 in 308 with an 18" barrel may surprise you.
Everything, including factory ammo would give me a 2 1/2" group.
Of all things, I arrived at a load that gave me 3/4" groups at 100 yards using 150gr Remington PSPCL with 48.0gr of BL-C(2).
One of the most notorious short barrel semi/auto firearms reputed for jamming and poor groups using a so-so bullet with iffy powder is giving acceptable groups and function.
I tried the same powder/volume with 150gr Remington SP round nose and got the same groups but 1 1/4" higher and 1 3/4" left.
The short barrel "may" be a problem with certain powders. Not so much as to velocity loss but to even powder burn. BUT not necessarily needing a "fast burning" powder. Simply backing off of the volume may help dramatically.
My load is well below the max, I even dropped down near the minimum suggested (45.0gr) and still maintained the good groups.
By the way, the Remington 150gr PSPCL is published to have a muzzle velocity of 2820fps (probably in a 24" barrel). In my 18" barrel it averages 2630fps.
The same bullet with 48.0gr of BL-C(2) is averaging 2625fps, 45.0gr is averaging 2465fps.
Just a thought. - - -> Loading for my guns chambered in 308Win,I have gone to a lighter and lighter bullet over the years.
As bullet developement has progressed,with much better bullet design and materials,I find that I can drop down in weight to obtain a better trajectory.
Out of my AR/308's,I now shoot a 130gr Barnes TSX. I also have a bolt gun that likes this same formula.
You really do not need to go heavy for hogs or deer at the reasonable ranges. Bullet makeup/design is the key.
Look low and see what you find. --- SAWMAN
So far, all my loads have been with 165gr SST. I’m using LC brass and CCI primers. Powders have been W760, IMR4895, H4895, IMR4064, Varget, and RL15. I can’t remember exact charge weights at the moment (at work), but what seems funny, is that, let’s say, 40.5gr of varget will be a 3” group, 41.0gr varget will be a 1” group, 41.5gr will be 2.5”. With RL15 41.0gr 2.75”, 41.5gr 2.25”, and 42.0gr .75”.Quote:
Originally Posted by Benny
JTD
That’s kind of what I was thinking. I don’t want to go with the barnes bullets, but was wondering about going lighter.Quote:
Originally Posted by SAWMAN
JTD
Well, that shoots a lot of my theories in the ass!Quote:
Originally Posted by JeffreyDeGraff
This appears to be working on the realm of rpms per bullet length. Which I'm not up on.
Hey, if you want to know how to get a .223, .308 or 300aac to key hole, I got great experience with those!
I may hit you up for that one day. Lmao.Quote:
Originally Posted by Benny
JTD
I think this is just turning out to be a finicky rifle.Quote:
Originally Posted by Benny
JTD
One thing I was thinking about trying is loading the bullet to 2.750”. Hornady book says load that bullet to 2.750”, I’ve loaded all my test loads to 2.800”. Maybe just maybe that might make a difference.
JTD
I just ordered some 150gr sst. After I’m done playing around with the 165’s I’m going to give these a whirl.
JTD
Just thinking . . . I have a bunch of the Sierra 155gr "Palma" bullets that I got way back when. They shoot great in any 308Win that I have tried them in,no matter the twist rate.
They are just not a hunting bullet. --- SAWMAN
I try to stay away from any type of match bullet, stick to just hunting bullets. As quirky as this gun is being, i sure have been having fun trying different things. Besides the 165 sst that I have been using and the 150 sst that I just ordered, I’ve got some 168 combined technology silver tips and 168 Speer Gold dots to try also.Quote:
Originally Posted by SAWMAN
JTD
I am also going to try a different scope mount than what is currently on it. This is what I have now. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...6b3837d423.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...db8905922b.jpg
JTD
I bought a new scope mount today. It is very similar to the one in the picture above, but a much better quality product. I feel like the errant shots in my groups were due to the scope mount, so I will give this dnz one a try.
JTD
I just finished an AR308 build with an 18” barrel and an adjustable gas block.
I tried a number of bullets with Varget as a powder. The best I found was 42gr of Varget with Hornady hp/bt 168gr match bullets (1” groups @ 100yds). I understand this wouldn’t be a hunting round, but it was the most accurate I got. Most everything else was 3” @ 100yds. I will be trying other bullets to find a hunting round.
I finally got my hands on some more varget. I’m hoping this new scope mount cures my woes.Quote:
Originally Posted by Scorpion Rider
JTD
I would be REALLY surprised if any combo of scope,rings,or base,would produce any degree of accuracy if mounted to the top of the carry handle.
Plus . . . the scope will be positioned waaaay too high for proper cheek weld. You need to get yourself a flat top for the longer range targets.
I remember the Colt scopes that they gave us for our different Colt "Commando Carbines". They were better than open sights . . . but not by much. --- SAWMAN
I had a trijicon acog mounted on this rifle (on the carry handle) for years before this adventure. It would shoot “groups” with the acog. The acog mounts directly to the carry handle without any rails or anything, exactly how these scope mounts I’m trying mount to the carry handle. The best groups I shot with the 4x acog were around 2” with factory ammo. Now with the scope I occasionally shoot a group, but most times it will cluster 3 shots together with 2 shots Willy nilly at random places. So I know the rifle is capable of 2” groups, and feel like the scope mount I was using was the culprit with my crazy fliers. I’m not going to drop the $$$ on a new upper, armalight is way expensive. I typically use 3/4” risers on all my flat top ar’s, so the carry handle actually puts the scope in perfect position for me. I’m not expecting match type accuracy out of this pencil barreled monster, I’ll be happy with 2” groups with a decent hunting bullet.Quote:
Originally Posted by SAWMAN
JTD
Got the new scope mount on my rifle. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...9379959726.jpg
On the left is the el cheapo utg Mount that I had on originally. On the right is the new dnz mount. They are the same type of mount, just much different degrees of quality. I will post the results after the next time I get to the range.
JTD
I got to shoot 3, 5 shot groups today. All three were loaded with varget and 165gr sst (2.750”). 40.5gr 2.868”. 41.0gr 1.540”. 41.5gr 1.182”. Seemed to be getting better as the powder charge went up. Now here is the kicker. When I went to put the rifle back in the case, the scope mount was loose. HA! I have no idea when it started loosening, so those 2 good groups could just be bullshit. I’ve got 3 more loads loaded up with RL15 that I will try tomorrow. The scope mount now has thread locker on it too.
JTD
I shot the RL15 loads today. The scope mount stayed tight, and got sub 1.5” groups with 41.0 and 41.5gr RL15. 42.0gr opened up quite a bit and had substantially more recoil. I’m going to retest those loads and shoot over the chronograph. Next time I get a chance. Fingers crossed.
JTD