Need load date for Mil-Spec 5.56

[Lawdog-1]

I plan on start loading Mil-Spec 55 gr. and 62 gr. and want get my own loads up Mil-Spec powerand speed like Federal and LakeCity power. What is the most common powder and primers to load with? I will be using a D550 press and shooting them thourgh a Colt LE6920 and a LMT 14.5"/16.1" , 1/7 twist uppers.

[UVvis]

A good fall back load is something like H335 and CCI 450 primers. I'd start around 23.5 gr and work up till you get the velocities you are looking for. Which will probably be in the 25+ grain range.

The thing is, I generally find most 55 and 62 grain FMJ loads shoot better when they aren't as hot. For general use/blasting ammo it is just wearing your brass more, and burning just a little more powder.

[nationwide]

The thing is, I generally find most 55 and 62 grain FMJ loads shoot better when they aren't as hot. For general use/blasting ammo it is just wearing your brass more, and burning just a little more powder.

Don't forget blown primers too

[taliv]

i can't attest to accuracy, but if you go to hi-techammo.com and scroll to the bottom of the page, they sell a booklet with the technical data for nearly all small arms ammo.

it's probably a LOT more detailed than you want to know, and good luck finding most of the powders they list. but hey, you asked for milspec

i definitely enjoyed reading it, but saw no real point in attempting to duplicate their loads. matching the published velocities so the BDC on my acog works is all i need.

[PALADIN-hgwt]

xxxxx

[toddackerman]

The main problem with attempting to get "mil spec" velocities when reloading is the lack of crimped in primer capability, as well as the higher pressures leaving you very, very little margin of error for things like the normal powder charge variation when dropping the charges. As mentioned already but worth repeating is that accuracy is often better when pressures are below maximum. Use milder reloads, and save the factory ammo for times when military velocities are truly needed.

I equate chamber pressure to an analogy of revving your truck engine. If you run at redline every day, it definitely will NOT last as long. Why beat up your weapon unneccesarily? Taken to an extreme are reloaders who load powder charges over the published maximums. No reasonable objective analysis would infer the gun would last longer under those conditions.

Paladin

+1

I use 27.2 Gns. of WW748 Ball Powder behind a 55 Gn. FMJBT with Cannelure. Very accurate, and not as hot as M193.

IMHO...All you really need for training is a load that cycles the weapon and has similar recoil as whatever your SHTF ammo has so you are use to the feel. YMMV

Tack

[markm]

The thing is, I generally find most 55 and 62 grain FMJ loads shoot better when they aren't as hot. For general use/blasting ammo it is just wearing your brass more, and burning just a little more powder.

I completely agree.

I've found similar results as toddackerman. 27.0 gr of 748 avgs me right at 3200 fps. But I don't load that hot ever. Why put the wear and tear on your brass and weapon?

I run 26.5 gr which gets me around 3100 fps, and that is still hotter than I really need to be.

[toddackerman]

I completely agree.

I've found similar results as toddackerman. 27.0 gr of 748 avgs me right at 3200 fps. But I don't load that hot ever. Why put the wear and tear on your brass and weapon?

I run 26.5 gr which gets me around 3100 fps, and that is still hotter than I really need to be.

I also agree with Demigod, and am going to start downloading a bit to 26.0 gns. of 748 Ball Powder. I'm sure it will still cycle the weapon, and I really only practice CQB with my carbine out to 50 yds, so i don't need to worry about "Bucking the Wind" at 200 to 399 yds. I also get one free round worth of powder for every 26 I shoot.

I've had so much brass laying around that I finally started measuring it to see if it needed to be Re-sized, Trimmed and deburred, (I'm really bad about this because I hate the process and can't afford a Dillon trimmer and vacuum right now)... and found a lot of flattened primers, and a few cases that wanted to separate in the middle on the next load after only 3 reloadings. I then knew I was on the borderline, and if they were being flattened, that the weapon was taking more than it needed as well. But man that load shoots!

I have 6,000 rounds of brass to process. Anyone want to help???

Tack

[markm]

26 grains will EASILY cycle a properly built AR. When I was working up my loads back in the day.... I started well below that, and never had a short stroke.

I think I may start running 26.0 grains too.

[Kurt Reifert]

Do you guys really like WW748?
I tried it and didn't care for it at all.
Ramshot TAC gives me superior accuracy, it's a little cheaper (costs less per pound and I use less to get the same velocity) and burns cleaner.
If you haven't tried it, pick up a pound and see what you think.