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I went to a gun show a few months ago and purchased 1000 rounds of 223 ammo. It came in 50 round boxes. I was loading mags for this comming weekend and I noticed one oddball box that was not like the others.

I have 950 rounds of Hornady 223 55gr fmj rounds. (pretty standard stuff to break in the new toy.)

Then I noticed one box that was Hornady 223 75gr BTHP. It looks to be a mini hollow point. I don't know how it got mixed in with the other 950, but I am trying to figure out what kind of round this is.

I am new to the AR world, so if this is a stupid question, sorry in advance.

Wouldn't it be just like the difference between .40S&W 155 gr., 165 gr., 180 gr.? My Glock will eat all of these without any problem.

SecedeTX wrote:I went to a gun show a few months ago and purchased 1000 rounds of 223 ammo. It came in 50 round boxes. I was loading mags for this comming weekend and I noticed one oddball box that was not like the others.

I have 950 rounds of Hornady 223 55gr fmj rounds. (pretty standard stuff to break in the new toy.)

Then I noticed one box that was Hornady 223 75gr BTHP. It looks to be a mini hollow point. I don't know how it got mixed in with the other 950, but I am trying to figure out what kind of round this is.

I am new to the AR world, so if this is a stupid question, sorry in advance.

A 75 grain BTHP is a "sniping/target" type of bullet, meant for long range accuracy, and usually sold with the designation of "Match" somewhere on the box. Examples of the genre in other manufacturers would be a Sierra Matchking, or a Lapua Scenar. Bullets like the ones in question will perform very well in barrels with a 1:8 or 1:7 twist; but not so much in a barrel with a 1:9 twist which will do better with bullets in the 55 to 69 grain range. All the same, it should be fun to see what they'll do in your rifle.

I have the Rock River Elite

http://www.rockriverarms.com/index.cfm? ... 6834114d21" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

It is a 1:9 twist. I have used Hornaday rounds for all of my deer rifles forever, and trusted the brand. What is the best round to practice with, and the best round for home defence given my barrel twist.

The Annoyed Man wrote:

SecedeTX wrote:I went to a gun show a few months ago and purchased 1000 rounds of 223 ammo. It came in 50 round boxes. I was loading mags for this comming weekend and I noticed one oddball box that was not like the others.

I have 950 rounds of Hornady 223 55gr fmj rounds. (pretty standard stuff to break in the new toy.)

Then I noticed one box that was Hornady 223 75gr BTHP. It looks to be a mini hollow point. I don't know how it got mixed in with the other 950, but I am trying to figure out what kind of round this is.

I am new to the AR world, so if this is a stupid question, sorry in advance.

A 75 grain BTHP is a "sniping/target" type of bullet, meant for long range accuracy, and usually sold with the designation of "Match" somewhere on the box. Examples of the genre in other manufacturers would be a Sierra Matchking, or a Lapua Scenar. Bullets like the ones in question will perform very well in barrels with a 1:8 or 1:7 twist; but not so much in a barrel with a 1:9 twist which will do better with bullets in the 55 to 69 grain range. All the same, it should be fun to see what they'll do in your rifle.

http://www.hornady.com/store/223-Rem-75-gr-FPD/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
The heavier match bullets improve the short-range accuracy as well. Black Hills makes very similar ammo that is sent to the military for uses requiring more accuracy. We have some boxes of Black Hills; I tried some of it one day while trying out different rounds (surplus, et al.) in our new AR. Shot five rounds of the Black Hills, then immediately put it away for safe-keeping because the grouping was less than half the size of any other grouping I shot that day!!

SecedeTX wrote:I have the Rock River Elite

http://www.rockriverarms.com/index.cfm? ... 6834114d21" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

It is a 1:9 twist. I have used Hornaday rounds for all of my deer rifles forever, and trusted the brand. What is the best round to practice with, and the best round for home defence given my barrel twist.

For HD, since you already are a fan of Hornaday, try 55-grain TAP if you can find it at a good price. Academy sells 55-grain Hornady with same red plastic "ballistic" tip under another name that performs about as well in terms of accuracy. But have no data on terminal ballistics.

SecedeTX wrote:I went to a gun show a few months ago and purchased 1000 rounds of 223 ammo. It came in 50 round boxes. I was loading mags for this comming weekend and I noticed one oddball box that was not like the others.

I have 950 rounds of Hornady 223 55gr fmj rounds. (pretty standard stuff to break in the new toy.)

Then I noticed one box that was Hornady 223 75gr BTHP. It looks to be a mini hollow point. I don't know how it got mixed in with the other 950, but I am trying to figure out what kind of round this is.

I am new to the AR world, so if this is a stupid question, sorry in advance.

Those are typically self-defense or match rounds. Rifle-caliber hollowpoints enable better stabilization in flight. I believe it also aids in expansion, but soft points perform better for that.

You got lucky!

If you're looking for some good self-defense rounds, Hornady TAP 75gr. 5.56 *T2 was considered to top-of-the-line, but very difficult to find due to law-enforcement-only sales. However, Hornady recently released a 'commercial' load with a very similar bullet and 200fps MORE and call it a varmint round. Found here: http://www.ammunitiontogo.com/product_i ... point-ammo

It's about $5 cheaper than the T2 too!

As TAM said... these perform best in a 1/7 barrel, but if your targets are within 50 yards, you won't see a big difference with the 1/9.

Bullets like the ones in question will perform very well in barrels with a 1:8 or 1:7 twist; but not so much in a barrel with a 1:9 twist which will do better with bullets in the 55 to 69 grain range.

Can't speak for the 1:8 twist barrels as I have not shot them, however, both the 68gr Barnes TSX and the Black hills 77gr BTHP match were crap for accuracy out of a 1:9 twist barrel, and I can't imagine 75gr would do much better. They rocked out of a 1:7 twist barrel though...

I'd definitely stick with the lighter rounds in a 1:9 twist if you are looking for better accuracy.

68-69 grain bullets are the LONGEST bullets that will stabilize reliably in a 1:9 twist there are exceptions to any rule of thumb. For home defense it's hard to beat a good 55gr JSP load by any of the major ammo companies. The one load that is hands down superior to most is the CorBon DPX .223 load pricey, but worth it. GI M193 or commercially loaded M193 clones has been reliably stopping BGs since the M16/AR15 first came on the scene. If over penetration is a concern, Black Hills and others, loads a round with the Barnes 36 gr Varmint grenade bullet this is a semi frangible bullet with devastating terminal effects.

Hornady 55gr V-Max Moly are the most accurate thing I have shot with either of mine. At least it was the day I had a 3 shot I could cover with a penny with my HGW, 1:9, Leopold 3.5 x 10 Tactical. That was enough to impress me with the lousy eyesight I have. Most of the other groups I shot that day were almost that good.

I CAN'T BELIEVE no one has informed you. Those 75 grain bullets will not work well in your gun AT ALL. As such, you should send them to me.

Somehow I ended up with some 75gr Hornady too. They don't work well with a 1:9 . I figure I can use them in an emergency or in my Mini 14, it's not accurate anyway.

glbedd53 wrote:Somehow I ended up with some 75gr Hornady too. They don't work well with a 1:9 . I figure I can use them in an emergency or in my Mini 14, it's not accurate anyway.

Everyone says that about the mini's...kinda sux...

I pulled the box out again. Each box of 50 had an individual price tag on it. The one box was priced $8.00 more than the "training" ammunition.

I am planning a range day in a couple of weeks. I think I will take it and see if there is a difference just for fun.

I have the rifle for home defence and have it sighted in at 50 yards with an Eotech sight. It's not a rifle that I am going to use to shoot tight patterns at 200 yards. I have 30.06 and 7mag for that kind of stuff.

danpaw wrote:Hornady 55gr V-Max Moly are the most accurate thing I have shot with either of mine. At least it was the day I had a 3 shot I could cover with a penny with my HGW, 1:9, Leopold 3.5 x 10 Tactical. That was enough to impress me with the lousy eyesight I have. Most of the other groups I shot that day were almost that good.

V-MAX ... that's the one I was trying to think of in my early post. VERY similar to TAP. External ballistics are a bit different (different powder load out I guess), but bullet is same. And it is ACCURATE. I have a 1/8 twist 16-inch Sabre Defense fluted stainless barrel and 55-grain VMAX consistently gives me sub-MOA accuracy. Even better in my particular barrel is Federal 55-grain Sierra GameKing - had one 1/4-inch grouping at 100 yards, and every group was well under 1 inch.

1/8 is an interesting twist and I'm glad I got it. Surprisingly it LOVES 55-grain, but unlike 1/9 it holds its own with heavier bullets too. 69- and 77-grain quality rounds group at about 1 MOA, and about two inches high compared to spot-on 55-grain. And it definitely likes Sierra bullets in those weights too.

Of course, I don't really know what I'm doing with this stuff like I suspect many of you do. I just zero my Nikon 2.5-10mm scope and start punching paper, try to control breathing, squeeze off a round on the exhale, repeat.