Need Yor Opinion.... 1/9 twist and 55 gr. bullets

[smokem]

Hey all;
I am interested in a Staggs with 1/9 twist. I have a LOT of 55 g. bullets.
Will the 1/9 shoot the 55 gr. bullets accurately. I know the 1/9 is good up to 68 grains and maybe more. Or should I look for a 1/12 twist I know will shoot 55 gr.
bullets well? Don't want to spend a lot of $ on bullets heavier than 55 gr.
I also shoot .243 Win., .270 W and 6.5 Swede where I can use heavier bullets.
Thanks for your help!
smokem

[Larry Gibson]

Assuming you're talking jacketed bullets(?). If so my two 9" twist rifles and numerous others I've use shoot 55 gr bullets just fine unless they are the very thin jacketed "SX" or HP type. Many of those will spin apart above 2900 fps or so on leaving the muzzle. If you're talking 55 gr M193 FMJ bullets they will shoot pretty good , usually around 2 moa for the better made ones out of ARs. There are numerous 40 - 55 gr bullets now made that hold togenther just fin at 32 - 3400 fps out of 9" twist AR rifles for varmint/social purposes.

Larry Gibson

[NickSS]

I have several rifles with 1 in 9 and 1 in 12 twists and both shoot 55 gr bullets just fine. I have found that the 1 in 9 will work with up to 75 gr bullets but fails with 77 and 80 gr bullets pretty badly. The 1 in 12 works with up to 60 gr round nose bullets but longer spitzers are iffy. The lightest bullets that i have used is 45 gr ones that my brother gave me a 3 pound coffee can full of several years ago and I still have half a can full. They are hornet bulllets and I need to keep the speed down to around 3000 or less with them but they do shoot accurately with either twist.

[jmsj]

Smokem,
I have a Savage 110 tactical and a customized Ruger mini-14, both have 1 in 9 twist barrels.
I was suprised to find that they both like 55 gr. bullets better than 68gr-72gr bullets. jmsj

[Dillon]

55 gr is perfect for 1 in 9. Once you get into the 62 gr and more the 1 in 8 and 1 in 7 are better but still the 1 in 9 will still shoot great 1 inch groups at 100 with it with good ammo. I have heard of 1 in 9 shooting 69 gr bullets well but it really depends on the type of gas system and barrel length that you are getting. The shorter the barrel the lower the velocity and the more twist needed. If your getting a 14.5 carbine then I would opt for the 1 in 7 twist but the 1 in 9 would be fine as long as your not going over the 62 gr. projectile. If your getting a 20 inch barrel with the rifle gas system then it is a little more lenient. Then the 1 in 9 will shoot most bullets up to the upper 60s in grains. Each companies twist rate is different and even different from batch to batch, one barrel that is 1 in 9 and 16 inches may shoot lighter or heavier bullets better than another that has the same specs. With a rifle a 1 in 9 twist is good because you can get away with varmit bullets all the way in some cases shooting of shooting 69s. What it boils down to is get the 1 in 9. It’s a good all around twist rate for the all around, do everything gun.

[Doc Highwall]

You are only going to have a problem if you try to shoot heaver then 68-69 grain bullets. I hear people talk all the time about shooting light bullets in fast twist as being no good for accuracy and I laugh then I tell them that my Remington 40X in 223Rem with 1-8" twist was test fired at the factory with Sierra 52 gr HPBT and shot something like a .375" group. Too fast of a twist only hurts you some at long range 1000 yds plus. I am reading Applied Ballistics For Long Range Shooting by Bryan Litz and he gives an example of a Berger 7mm 180gr VLD with a 1-6" twist vs a 1-9" twist and at 1200 yds the differance is 4" of spin drift.

[jonk]

My Savage 12 likes 55 grainers with H335 just fine. The gun does well with anything from 50 to 69 gr bullets, and has a 1:9" twist.

[Mk42gunner]

Your 1/9 twist should do fine with 55 gr bullets. When I was running range quals for NMCB-5 we shot a lot of 55 gr M193 ball through our M16A2E3's with 1/7 twist. They weren't quite as accurate as the M855 loads, but it was close.

Robert

[Tracy]

My .22 Hornet with a 1:16" twist shoots flatbase 55s fine, as long as I keep it above 2200 fps. The 55 grain (late version) Lyman #225415 also works well in it, as low as 1800 fps. 1:16".
I have a 1:9 Stevens 200 .223 that I am planning to rebarrel to .222, and I haven't decided if I will go with a 1:14 or 1:16.

[ipopum]

My Stevens 200 with a 1-9 likes the vmax 55 grain. I had a cooper with a 1-14 and the 55 vmax was to long and did not shoot well. A old Herters with a 1-14 shot them very well. Possibly the quality of the barrel was the difference. I understand that the length of the bullet is the factor that determines what will shoot well. I have some 50 grain Varmint Grenade (Barnes) that they say a 1-10 or faster barrel is required but do not shoot well in the Steven 200. So things are not always what they should be. always an exception.

[Combat Diver]

smokem,

The Stag with a 1:9 will be fine for your 55 gr pills. My 16" 1:9 Oly normally shoots either 55 or 62 gr pills. My Colt 14.5" 1:7 I have for long range shooting with 77 gr SMKs. Yes, I compete with a 14.5" carbine with irons out to 600yds.

CD

[zomby woof]

My 1-12 loves 55 grain bullets, go to 62 and they don't even hit the target. My 1-9 loves 60 grain bullets. They will shoot 55's just fine. The 1-9 barrel is the most versatile. If you want to shoot heavy match bullets for distance, you'll need a faster twist.

[Larry Gibson]

The 12" twist is more versatile if you want to shoot cast bullets.

Larry Gibson

[45r]

I shoot hornady 55 sp's with 25 grains h-4895 in my colt h-bar elite with 1 in 9 twist and they go under an inch.I seat them to 2.255 col and put a light lee factory crimp on them since they're past the cannelure.They are bad news for woodchucks.My accuracy load for the colt is 24 grains Vit -133 under sierra 52 grain match kings.Bughole groups now and then,half inch are common.I use the 55 hornadys because they're cheaper and they are quite lethal on varmits.

[Moonie]

If you were going to use any cast in it I'd recommend 1-12" but for just jacketed 1-9" is fine.

[dualsport]

The 12" twist is more versatile if you want to shoot cast bullets.

Larry Gibson

Me and my Weatherby Vanguard agree.

[82nd airborne]

There is some magical variable involved here that I cant pinpoint. I run a 1:8 bbl on my truckgun because I shoot almost all 62-69g stuff through it. My 1:12 will not shoot 55g and under. A friend brought over a tikka t3 .223 1:12 over, and it would put 5 55g well under an inch. At the same time, my 1:8 shoots 69g better than on of my 1:7, yet the 1:7 will shoot some lighter bullets better.
Even if you run all the same bullets in them the results can confuse me.

[felix]

Probably nothing more than the vibe, grain characteristics of the barrel metal itself. I've seen brand NEW barrels taken off BR guns after only THREE shots. I assume once a barrel passes through several guns, it is then sold as a varmint barrel or rebored/refitted to a hunting caliber. ... felix

[Larry Gibson]

There is some magical variable involved here that I cant pinpoint. I run a 1:8 bbl on my truckgun because I shoot almost all 62-69g stuff through it. My 1:12 will not shoot 55g and under. A friend brought over a tikka t3 .223 1:12 over, and it would put 5 55g well under an inch. At the same time, my 1:8 shoots 69g better than on of my 1:7, yet the 1:7 will shoot some lighter bullets better.
Even if you run all the same bullets in them the results can confuse me.

My 21" Contender 12" twist barrel won't shoot most any M193 ammo (55 gr FMJBT) under 3-4" or any other 55 gr BT bullet for some reason. My 12" twist AR, M70 and M700 will put the same M193 into 2 moa or less. Put a 55 gr FB commercial bullet with just about any load and that Contender barrel shoots sub moa as do the other rifles. Sometimes it's just "FM".

However, put a thin jacketed Speers 52 HP, an SX or Blitz type bullet in the 9" or faster twists and you'll have troubles above 2900 fps or so hiting a traget much beyond 25 - 40 yards.

OP was mostly interested in 55 gr or lighter bullets. The 12" twist was/is standard for those in an AR.

Larry Gibson

[82nd airborne]

Maybe barrels are female? In that case we should give up now, and get one of each, just dont let them know about each other!

[felix]

You got it, Aaron!!! Lloyd and Jim will agree right along, and actually, deep down, I do too but do not like affording a harem these days. ... felix

[Good Cheer]

Do longer bullets with borderline instability tumble on impact? I could see that as a possible usefulness if sufficiently accurate to the intended distance.

[DJ1]

82nd I like your plan.... Just use the onr that is working on that day. LOL

[NickSS]

Actually the original AR 15 barrels were 1 in 14 but the army found during cold weather testing that the <193 55 gr load was unstable in cold weather So they set the twist at 1 in 12. A 1 in 9 twist will stabilize the M855 round but some of the other rounds fired by out army need a faster twist at longer ranges. The Army chose a 1 in 7 twist and standardized it as it works with all ammo that could be fired in the M 16 as well as the SAW. Most target shooters have gone to 1 in 8 for match shooting out to 600 yards with up to 80 gr bullets.

[82nd airborne]

Do longer bullets with borderline instability tumble on impact? I could see that as a possible usefulness if sufficiently accurate to the intended distance.
No, tumbling is completely irratic and unpredictable, though it has become quite the internet sinsation.