Favorite .223 Rem Prairie dog loads?

Greasegun

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I built a .223 varmint AR, 24" white oak barrel, for prairie dog hunting. I have never been, to be honest. Trying to figure out what components I want to try out that would be great for PDs. What are your preferred loads? What velocity do you see and what is your maximum distance you typically shoot PDs?

The HDY 53gr V-Max looks good with a .290 G1 BC. That would be pretty good around 3300 fps. I have 1000 nosler 77 hpbt bullets on hand. .340 G1 BC. Assuming I could get those up around 2750-2800 that wouldnt be bad but its not a varmint bullet. I think the nosler 40gr ballistic tip would be decent also if I could push it to 3800, provided it doesnt come apart at that speed out of 1-8 twist.
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More specific question, Is anyone using TMKs or EldMs for prairie dogs? The BC advantage is hard to overlook
 
After around 40 years of prairie dog shooting I have narrowed down my ammo choices,40 grain vmax and the 55 grain bulk soft points from Mid-South. I use benchmark powder for both bullets and full length size all my cases because I use the same load in three 223 rifles. I like to keep things simple
 
After around 40 years of prairie dog shooting I have narrowed down my ammo choices,40 grain vmax and the 55 grain bulk soft points from Mid-South. I use benchmark powder for both bullets and full length size all my cases because I use the same load in three 223 rifles. I like to keep things simple
Makes sense. Thanks for the input. How far do you shoot?
 
I used Nosler 55gr BT's in my 22-250 and 16" M4 build. Worked okay, pretty explosive out to 300 yards. Killed chucks really well to there but at bit heavier constructed so less explosive out at 400 in my 22-250. It did account for a coldbore headshot at 400 yards on a chuck (16" M4). Last year I started using 50gr vmax's and found them more explosive. I didn't get to play with them as much because I built a 20" HBAR and was testing my 22-250. Figured out the 22-250 barrel was burned out. The 50gr vmax's killed two big badgers out to 200 yards through the HBAR and Remington both at 3200 fps. I'm going to try the 53gr vmax's this year through the HBAR. I'm hoping they'll be reliable killers out to 500-600 yards.
 
Depending on area, time of year and wind will dictate what i use. The ARs dont get used much...unless coyotes are the main target.
Tac, 2230-c and 2200(fussy ar powder) powders (cheap!) With 55grain sp will get used to 400 yards out of the four 223.
R10 and 40 grainers get used when the pups come out......only one 223 prefers them but is a real killer to 400 if the wind aint blowing.
Got a 7 twist ar that loads are getting worked out for now...75 bthp, trying h4895,2230-c,tac and Varget to see what does best
For me long rang doggin gets done with other rounds 22-250 fast twist,243,25-06,6.5 Grendel, 6.5 sweede and the 338 Edge
 
Depending on area, time of year and wind will dictate what i use. The ARs dont get used much...unless coyotes are the main target.
Tac, 2230-c and 2200(fussy ar powder) powders (cheap!) With 55grain sp will get used to 400 yards out of the four 223.
R10 and 40 grainers get used when the pups come out......only one 223 prefers them but is a real killer to 400 if the wind aint blowing.
Got a 7 twist ar that loads are getting worked out for now...75 bthp, trying h4895,2230-c,tac and Varget to see what does best
For me long rang doggin gets done with other rounds 22-250 fast twist,243,25-06,6.5 Grendel, 6.5 sweede and the 338 Edge
Thanks for the input.
Im looking at the new Sierra 60gr TMK for a possible good PD bullet in the .223. .323 BC would be pretty good at 3100-3150 fps. Was thinking of trying H4895 with it. Have you actually loaded any with 4895 yet?
 
I've loaded H4895 in my 5.56's with 55gr BT and also 77gr CC. I liked TAC and H4895 but lean towards TAC because it's a ball powder and flows easy. About 3139 fps through my chrono. But I didn't spend much time developing that load. Please mote that I'm loading for 5.56 so it's a bit hotter than 223.
 
Ok, this probably isn't your typical prairie dog bullet - but my most accurate .223 load BY FAR is 24.0 gr of RL-15 under a 77gr. SMK. Cloverleafs out of my 1-8 24" bull barrel everytime.
 
After around 40 years of prairie dog shooting I have narrowed down my ammo choices,40 grain vmax and the 55 grain bulk soft points from Mid-South. I use benchmark powder for both bullets and full length size all my cases because I use the same load in three 223 rifles. I like to keep things simple

This is off topic but I notice those who go after prairie dogs tend to call it "shooting" vs "hunting". I like that. When people ask me to take them prairie dog hunting i don't want them to picture something other than live target practice.

To answer the original question, I pick up cheap .223 and .204 (generally the lighter the better) bulk bullets and reload in the winter. I'm not too concerned with teensy groups as most of my shots are sub 400 yards. Cost is my biggest concern.

I will pull out my .243 and collect data to about 1k but not a ton of rounds.
 
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