Opinions on 69gr sierra match king

556 · Apr 3, 2012

Does anyone use the 69gr seirra matchking ammo and what is your opinion of this grain?
I have a 1:8 twist barrel so I think 75-77gr is a little big for 1:8 twist or does anyone run 77gr out of a 1:8 twist barrel?

Otter · Apr 3, 2012

I use them in a Savage LRPV, 1:9 twist. I think a .223 in that twist would handle up to about 75 grain provided it was a short bullet for that weight. Your 1:8 should handle up to the 77 with no problem. Sierra makes 90 grain bullets for 1:7 twist, which I don't think the 8 twist would stablize.

My rifle never shot them all that well though. I dropped back to 52 grain match bullets and it shoots them much better, even though with the deep throat I can't get close to the lands.

556 · Apr 3, 2012

i was just reading comments from another forum and most say 1:8 does shoot 75-77gr others say 68-69 max.
guess i will have to just take all of them out for some long range shooting....darn it now im gonna have t go shooting!

Blitzkrieg · Apr 3, 2012

For a bolt action fine but I never load any non channelure bullet into an autoloader

Flopsweat · Apr 3, 2012

224 cal 69 gr Matchkings with 24.5 grains of IMR 4895 will give me sub MOA groups all day long with a 1 in 10 twist barrel.

556 · Apr 3, 2012

Blitzkrieg said:
For a bolt action fine but I never load any non channelure bullet into an autoloader

what does channelure mean?and why would you not use it in an auto loader?
i have not heard this yet so just curious.

556 · Apr 3, 2012

Flopsweat said:
224 cal 69 gr Matchkings with 24.5 grains of IMR 4895 will give me sub MOA groups all day long with a 1 in 10 twist barrel.

so 1:10 barrel....must also be a bolt gun?
does the bolt gun have a longer chamber or something?i did hear of guys running these in ar's though on ar15.com

Flopsweat · Apr 4, 2012

556 said:
so 1:10 barrel....must also be a bolt gun?
does the bolt gun have a longer chamber or something?i did hear of guys running these in ar's though on ar15.com

It's an AR, so it probably does have a longer throat than a typical bolt gun. My best results with the 69gr Matchking so far are at 2.265" COL, which is longer than the recipe. Hodgdon lists a 2.380" COL for a 90gr Sierra for a couple of different powders, though, so I don't think length is an issue. You could always chamber a round, extract it, and look for marks from the lands on the jacket. You'll see right away if it's too long.

There is some great info on reloading 223 at 6mmbr.com: 223 Rem + 223 AI Cartridge Guide. BTW, they say that you can go up to an 80gr boat tail with a 1 in 8 barrel.

Blitzkrieg · Apr 4, 2012

556 said:
what does channelure mean?and why would you not use it in an auto loader?
i have not heard this yet so just curious.

Here is a channelure on a bullet.. it allows you to crimp the case mouth into the groove so the bullet will not set back into the case under feeding pressures

<broken link removed>

Standard smooth bullet designs make it difficult to ensure the bullet will not set back on a bottle necked rifle cartridge, which can cause feeding problems and even more important, a possible overpressure situation

It's super important for duty type rounds that will be chambered and then ejected to be rechambered again. For most bolt gun shooting it's not an issue

coyote223 · Apr 4, 2012

Bought a few to try in my 1 in 7 twist upper. They shot pretty well, I plan on experimenting with them some more. Lee factory crimp die,,,

Otter · Apr 4, 2012

Nosler makes a 69 grain match bullet worth trying. They shot out of my Savage with equal accuracy as the Sierra 69 grain bullets. The advantage of the Nosler is you can buy them bulk 1,000 at a time from Midsouth for about $140. Best I've ever seen the Sierra 69s go for is about $100 per 500. That is a pretty good savings if they work!