09-25-2022, 10:35 PM
(This post was last modified: 09-26-2022, 02:15 AM by Burt Gummer.)
Hey Folks
I’ve been pretty hard at work scavenging a bunch of components since late 21 and have finally put enough of my own rounds down range to post my results with some confidence. First things first.
Barrel: CLE 18” Criterion
Upper: Vltor Mur
Lower: Aero M4E1
Trigger: TriggerTech Diamond
Bolt: JP Enterprises Enhanced 6.5 Grendel
Stock: MDT SCS (skeleton carbine stock)
Scope: Crimson Trace 6-24x Hardline Pro
To start I ordered hundreds of Hornady 108 Match and and 105 Black to not only shoot for fun but to harvest the brass. Both of them shot terribly in my barrel and would normally be 1.5-2 MOA which is exactly my luck. Velocity was better than expected at an average of 2609 fps with the 108’s and 2669 fps with the 105’s. I was simultaneously getting into reloading for this reason since I don’t expect to see other Manufacturers jumping in anytime soon.
After sighting in the scope with factory rounds and collecting brass it took some time but I collected enough Lever, CFE223, Accurate 2520, and Winchester 748 to start my load development. I wanted to start off using the Barnes 112 gr Matchburner because the price as well as the BC’s were just too good to ignore. Not to mention they’re always available!
A few weeks ago I took a batch of my loaded 112’s to the range. The best loads with each of the following powders were as follows on a 77 degree day and 5 shots per group:
LEVR: 28 gr @ 2500 fps = 1.04 MOA
CFE223: 27.8 gr @ 2463 fps = .86 MOA
A2520: 27.8 gr @ 2505 fps = .89 MOA
WIN 748: 27.3 gr @ 2493 = .75 MOA
In my opinion the results aren’t spectacular but not terrible. I was shooting for .75 MOA as the minimum accuracy I wanted to achieve in order to have a long range steel plinker. I wanted to see just how capable this barrel could be and tried something new.
My brass is in the tumbler as I type from my range time today. I was confirming the accuracy node with the 748 and 112 Matchburners which went well but the main reason for making the trip out was to see if Berger 109 Hybrids could live up to their reputation. I’m still trying different powder charges with the bergers so I can’t speak to which is the best loads yet but here’s the results I’m comfortable with sharing:
LEVR: 28 gr @ 2528 fps = .89 MOA
Win 748: 27.1 gr @ 2520 fps = .5 MOA
I couldn’t wipe the grin off my face after realizing I had a .5 MOA gas gun with just a little tinkering and experimenting with components! Leaning heavily towards the 748 now. I also feel that 748 doesn’t get enough exposure with the 6 ARC but I can tell you in my case it can’t be beat. My LabRadar missed 3/5 shots so I’m extrapolating from other data to come up with the velocity stated above but with the Barnes 112’s my ES was 12 with SD’s of 4. Hope this was informative for you guys and just wanted to contribute something to the community.
I’ve been pretty hard at work scavenging a bunch of components since late 21 and have finally put enough of my own rounds down range to post my results with some confidence. First things first.
Barrel: CLE 18” Criterion
Upper: Vltor Mur
Lower: Aero M4E1
Trigger: TriggerTech Diamond
Bolt: JP Enterprises Enhanced 6.5 Grendel
Stock: MDT SCS (skeleton carbine stock)
Scope: Crimson Trace 6-24x Hardline Pro
To start I ordered hundreds of Hornady 108 Match and and 105 Black to not only shoot for fun but to harvest the brass. Both of them shot terribly in my barrel and would normally be 1.5-2 MOA which is exactly my luck. Velocity was better than expected at an average of 2609 fps with the 108’s and 2669 fps with the 105’s. I was simultaneously getting into reloading for this reason since I don’t expect to see other Manufacturers jumping in anytime soon.
After sighting in the scope with factory rounds and collecting brass it took some time but I collected enough Lever, CFE223, Accurate 2520, and Winchester 748 to start my load development. I wanted to start off using the Barnes 112 gr Matchburner because the price as well as the BC’s were just too good to ignore. Not to mention they’re always available!
A few weeks ago I took a batch of my loaded 112’s to the range. The best loads with each of the following powders were as follows on a 77 degree day and 5 shots per group:
LEVR: 28 gr @ 2500 fps = 1.04 MOA
CFE223: 27.8 gr @ 2463 fps = .86 MOA
A2520: 27.8 gr @ 2505 fps = .89 MOA
WIN 748: 27.3 gr @ 2493 = .75 MOA
In my opinion the results aren’t spectacular but not terrible. I was shooting for .75 MOA as the minimum accuracy I wanted to achieve in order to have a long range steel plinker. I wanted to see just how capable this barrel could be and tried something new.
My brass is in the tumbler as I type from my range time today. I was confirming the accuracy node with the 748 and 112 Matchburners which went well but the main reason for making the trip out was to see if Berger 109 Hybrids could live up to their reputation. I’m still trying different powder charges with the bergers so I can’t speak to which is the best loads yet but here’s the results I’m comfortable with sharing:
LEVR: 28 gr @ 2528 fps = .89 MOA
Win 748: 27.1 gr @ 2520 fps = .5 MOA
I couldn’t wipe the grin off my face after realizing I had a .5 MOA gas gun with just a little tinkering and experimenting with components! Leaning heavily towards the 748 now. I also feel that 748 doesn’t get enough exposure with the 6 ARC but I can tell you in my case it can’t be beat. My LabRadar missed 3/5 shots so I’m extrapolating from other data to come up with the velocity stated above but with the Barnes 112’s my ES was 12 with SD’s of 4. Hope this was informative for you guys and just wanted to contribute something to the community.