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Posted: 7/11/2011 2:40:26 AM EDT
| What sort of accuracy should I expect out of my 2 ARs with factory ammo? one is a 16" bcm m4,the other on the way is a 14.5" psa. I have brown box xm193f,pmac xtac 62gr, some fiocchi 55gr,usa ammo 55 gr vmax,white box ppu xm193,and some pmac 55 gr. At 100 yards is what I mostly shoot at. The 14.5" will have an aimpoint pro,and the m4 im still up in the air about an optic. |
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With the info given your ammo's the limiting factor off a bench or otherwise supported.Either the ammo or your shooting skills when shooting offhand. Assuming the rifles are not worse than average you won't be seeing their potential without more precise ammunition.
The V-Max loads, depending on what they are, could be the exception, but in my experience rifles can be picky about those bullets. In some rifles it's the cat's meow, in others it's a complete waste of time. Basically, pretty much all the ammo you listed is mil-spec, for which accuracy is a minor concern and even then the standard is rather poor compared to other options. Try out some hornady match, black hills.... other premium match grade ammo if you want to see what your rifle can do in terms of accuracy with factory ammo. |
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With the info given your ammo's the limiting factor off a bench or otherwise supported.Either the ammo or your shooting skills when shooting offhand. Assuming the rifles are not worse than average you won't be seeing their potential without more precise ammunition. The V-Max loads, depending on what they are, could be the exception, but in my experience rifles can be picky about those bullets. In some rifles it's the cat's meow, in others it's a complete waste of time. Basically, pretty much all the ammo you listed is mil-spec, for which accuracy is a minor concern and even then the standard is rather poor compared to other options. Try out some hornady match, black hills.... other premium match grade ammo if you want to see what your rifle can do in terms of accuracy with factory ammo. I have some hornady match on the way. I tried some prvi match69 and 75 gr last time I was at the range and stuff was junk  My 16" m4 did shoot the 55 gr vmax very well though.
eta- I just ordered a lee turret reloading kit from midway 
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This is from a 16" DPMS Carbine.. no Free Float or nothing fancy..
PMC XTAC XP193 55gr.. from a bag front rest only.. with MagPul MBUS..my hand is between the bag and the handguard.. 
2" wide and 1 3/8" high (not counting the flyer).. Here is with 3MOA red dot at 100 yards with a bag. 3" group with 10 shots.. PMC XTAC 55gr. 
Here is another with the 3MOA red dot at 100 yards with Federal AE 223 Tactical.. about 4" x 5" DOA
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Accuracy is a fickle mistress. When shooting my RRA LAR15 1 in 9 twist with an EOTech XPS2-0 offhand, or from a bench with fore end support I'm looking at combat accuracy. Using a standard police silhouette target I consider center of mass , or any head shot to be more than accurate at 100 yards regardless the ammo used. My rifle tends to like the 55 grain VMax. It also likes the 62 grain green tipped penetrator surplus ammo. If shooting for accuracy fully supported from the bench depending on the wind and my 60+ year jitters 2 MOA is realistic. I'm talking realistic here, I'm not a pipe dreaming Camp Perry wannabe. I don't reload and my hands are about as steady as a thumper Triumph in bad need of a tuneup. What is it Clint said in Magnum Force I think it was? "A man has to know his limitations." I think that applies here. Is the gun capable of better? Probably. Am I? Not so much. Dead is dead and center of mass at 100 yards will work in most cases. If not it at least gives me a head start in getting away from the sob that is wanting to run me over and use me for target practice. 
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This is from a 16" DPMS Carbine.. no Free Float or nothing fancy.. PMC XTAC XP193 55gr.. from a bag front rest only.. with MagPul MBUS..my hand is between the bag and the handguard.. http://www.executiveprotectionservice.us/forums/556/50yardsirons.jpg 2" wide and 1 3/8" high (not counting the flyer).. Here is with 3MOA red dot at 100 yards with a bag. 3" group with 10 shots.. PMC XTAC 55gr. http://www.executiveprotectionservice.us/forums/556/100yard2.jpg Here is another with the 3MOA red dot at 100 yards with Federal AE 223 Tactical.. about 4" x 5" DOA
http://www.executiveprotectionservice.us/forums/556/71011/100ydRedDot.jpg Thanks for posting real no BS groups. I wish more people did the same. Last night a guy posted a 3-4" group and said his barrel was happily meeting the 1/2 MOA claims. 
3-4" is perfectly acceptable for an off the shelf carbine with non match grade ammo |
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Quoted:
Quoted:
This is from a 16" DPMS Carbine.. no Free Float or nothing fancy.. PMC XTAC XP193 55gr.. from a bag front rest only.. with MagPul MBUS..my hand is between the bag and the handguard.. http://www.executiveprotectionservice.us/forums/556/50yardsirons.jpg 2" wide and 1 3/8" high (not counting the flyer).. Here is with 3MOA red dot at 100 yards with a bag. 3" group with 10 shots.. PMC XTAC 55gr. http://www.executiveprotectionservice.us/forums/556/100yard2.jpg Here is another with the 3MOA red dot at 100 yards with Federal AE 223 Tactical.. about 4" x 5" DOA
http://www.executiveprotectionservice.us/forums/556/71011/100ydRedDot.jpg Thanks for posting real no BS groups. I wish more people did the same. Last night a guy posted a 3-4" group and said his barrel was happily meeting the 1/2 MOA claims.
3-4" is perfectly acceptable for an off the shelf carbine with non match grade ammo Shooting 1'' or less groups is tough. Sure it happens but it takes a good amount of prep. to the rifle and the correct ammo. Even with a very awesome rifle and ammo and a great shooter it is not tipical. It can take several tries to get one sub moa group even with perfect conditions. |
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I'd say anywehre from 2 to 6" groups depending.
If I break out my benchrest rig with good ammo I can run under 1 MOA without too many problems. Its also a custom benchrest gun using a benchrest and good ammo. If I get my beater AR with a EOTech and go from a bench at 100 yards I consistently get around 5" groups using whatever ammo I may have laying around. In your situation I would say expect 4" and dont be at all disappointed if you even get up to 6". |
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alot depends on the gun/sights/shooter but ARs are capable of really good accuracy with the right factory ammo. My built 16" carbine with a 2-7 scope off the bench with horandy match facctory ammo can do 5 shot groups of 1 inch or slightly higher at 100 yards. With low cost PMC bronze ammo, I can do 1 1/2 to 2" groups. My carbine loves PMC bronze ammo which is fine with me since it is easy to find and cheap.
My stock RRA predator pursuit with a 4x16 nikon monarch off the bench is a tack driver. I have no problem keeping groups under 1" from 100 yards when I do my part. Here is a sample target that was .8" and if I could have avoided pulling that one shot to the right, it would have been a half inch group which is the best I've been able to do so far. I consider myself a good shot but not a match shooter so in the hands of a real expert, I think my predator pursuit could regularly do half inch groups at 100 yards with the hornady match ammo. No doubt ARs can be very accurate. 
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This link might provide you some insight:
.223 / 5.56 Ammo Test -Cody |
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