I've been reading the good reviews on blue dot in the .223 (and about every other cartridge that a set of reloading dies has been fabricated for ). My wife bought a CZ 527 carbine at the gun show this weekend and I'd like to build some low cost / low recoil / low rifle stress loads for her to learn with and I've got a gallon baggie that's about 1/4 full of 55gr milsurp bullets I bought for some reason I've since forgotten.

Anybody tried that combination and care to share the recipe?

TIA

Try 12.5gr of Blue dot for starters. works for me. roger

I know some goofball calling himself Seafire that plays with that stuff all the time...

Like Roger, he has used the 12.5 grains of Blue Dot with a 55 grain FMJ in the past for an MV of 2650 fps..faster than a 22 Hornet..

He settled on a load of 13.5 grains of Blue Dot for an MV of about 2900 fps...

This is the max load with this bullet for safety and reliability.. and using Rem 7 1/2 or Win Small Rifle primers...

CCI Small rifle or Small pistol primers also work well as does other small pistol primers..

But he would recommend that you work this load up in your CZ just to be safe...

10 grains will make your 223 equal to a 22 Hornet with 55 grain bullets...

9 grains of Blue Dot will make it equal to a 22 Mag with a heavier bullet than the factory 40 grainers...

charges as low as 4 grains of Blue Dot have been reliably used on a regular basis in a large number of 223s.. and the powder is not position sensitive in the case for reliable ignition...

Thanks guys

I'll work up to a nice mild plinking load for her. Then the deer best beware this November

quote:

Originally posted by Rick R:
Thanks guys

I'll work up to a nice mild plinking load for her. Then the deer best beware this November

Rick,

13.5 grains of blue dot and a 55 grain Ballistic Tip is what my son will be carrying this fall on his first deer hunt... he will be 13.. and carrying a Winchester Featherweight with that load...

It has been quite effective for kids that I have loaded up some in previous seasons...

The combination of 12.5-13 grains of Blue Dot and 55 grain FMJ's is a great turkey load in a .223 as well as a good plinking load. However, if you can come across some inexpensive bulk soft points in anything from 40 to 55 grains, they will be a little safer for plinking and informal targets (less penetration and ricochet potential).

Does your wife's CZ have the single set trigger? I shot a friend's new CZ last month and was more than a little impressed with the SS trigger. Now . . . if they would just do something about the backwards safety and the protruding bolt root so that you could mount a scope down where it ought to be . . .

Seafire,
Sounds like you and your son have a plan My wife already took her first deer with her Marlin Guide Gun in .45-70. She practices with a 400gr cast bullet powered by 14gr of Unique and then hunts with the same bullet pushed by enough Varget to hit 1,600 or so fps. She lost out on the deer last year because she was only using a ghost ring sight on th GG finally admitted that she'd like to use a scoped rifle and fell in love with the CZ at the gunshow. My plan is to let her shoot the light (and cheap) loads till hunting season and by then I'll hopefully have a good load using one of the Barnes TSX bullets.

Mr Creek,
Yes, it has the set trigger, every group I fired with it so far has been under an inch at 100 yds and that's using a 2.5X Leupold scope. And the un-set trigger pull isn't bad either. This is probably the only boltgun she'll shoot much and the "backwards" safety sure mimics cocking the hammer on her lever gun so she caught on to it pretty quickly.

I don't know what we would do without that Seafire guy and his work with Blue Dot. It has opened up a whole new world for me and shooting my mil surps.

I made it to the range today and shot a set of loads from 11.0 to 13.0gr and the 55gr fmj bullet. No chrono data, but the 13gr load hits dead on at 50 yards (rifle sighted in with 52gr Sierra Match bullet @3,200 fps at 100 yards) with five rounds making a half inch bug hole group. No pressure signs and it takes twice as many rounds for the barrel to heat up.

This will do nicely, thanks for the info guys.
(any data for .308 and 180gr cast bullets?)

quote:

Originally posted by Jacobite:
I don't know what we would do without that Seafire guy and his work with Blue Dot. It has opened up a whole new world for me and shooting my mil surps.

Awwww....

I am like Blushing all to hell and back!

Rick.. .just for the record... I may live out here in Oregon... but my birth place and family roots.. I am a West Virginia boy....

for the cast bullets with a 308... work this up, because a 180 is starting to push it.. It performs better with 150s, 165s and down...

however, start out as low as 10 grains and work up from there.. a 308 case will take a max of 22.5 grains with Blue Dot in bullet weights under 165, regardless of bullet weight...

I am thinking a 180 might top out about between 19 and 21 grains...

cheers
seafire

PS Don, thanks much for the recognition! I appreciate it...

Seafire,

Knew there was a reason you seemed like good people. Must be that WV DNA with one strand shorter than the other so we don't fall off the hillsides.

Thanks again for the info.

quote:

Originally posted by Rick R:
Seafire,

Knew there was a reason you seemed like good people. Must be that WV DNA with one strand shorter than the other so we don't fall off the hillsides.

Thanks again for the info.

Yeah Rick,... that one leg shorter than the other comes in handy out here in Oregon also!

you just got to remember to keep the shorter one on the UPHILL side!

quote:

Originally posted by Jacobite:
I don't know what we would do without that Seafire guy and his work with Blue Dot. It has opened up a whole new world for me and shooting my mil surps.

I just wish Seafire wouldn't charge so much for all that data.

Jim

quote:

I just wish Seafire wouldn't charge so much for all that data.

Yeah, I have been pretty obscene on that issue, I must admit...

I make so much off of all of that, that I don't even bother having to change the oil in my vehicles...

I have to go over to Medford tomorrow and order another new Mercedes... this one is about due for an oil change...