Savage Axis .223 1:9 range report

[Hi-wall]

I have been trying to get my Axis to shoot a bullet over 55 grs. I have tried 60's and 69's (all I had) and while decent 1" or so groups I can get 55's around a .5" and 50 grs under a .5". I really wanted to shoot these 69 Gr SMK's as I have several boxes

[Pawatch]

I didn't group bad with Federal Premium 69gr Sierra BTHP. It shot about 3" lower than the 53 gr.

[phoenix1151]

I have a .223 Axis and have tried 45g Winchester Varmint & Predator, 55g Hornady VMAX and 75g Hornady BTHP. The more I review these forums, the more it seems commonplace that the Axis POI shifts quite dramatically (way more than I would expect) between different bullet weights. I found that if I zeroed with 45g, the 55g hit WAY right. If I zeroed with the 55g VMAX (the load I expect to use because it suits the Burris Ballistic Plex reticle), the 75g hit 3-4 inches to the right. These differences, mostly along the horizontal axis, seem extreme to me.

[Hi-wall]

I did some more shooting and the 55 Sierra shot OK but the 52 gr Sierra match and the 50 Speer TNT shot to same POI and smallest groups of .75

[phoenix1151]

Information I have read suggests that the Axis 1:9 barrel twist should be more suitable to heavier bullets.

[Hi-wall]

Information I have read suggests that the Axis 1:9 barrel twist should be more suitable to heavier bullets.

In theory this is correct but in practice anything can happen. I can't get ANYTHING over 55 grs to group worth a dang

[Hi-wall]

After I finish my Axis .308 tactical I will replace this barrel

[cowboy318]

My .223 likes the 62gr. Handloads i feed it :sly:

[phoenix1151]

I have reviewed the Hornady site again and looked at their various bullets and find that the 55g HP or SP and the 68g BTHP fit the Burris Ballistic Plex reticle very well, so I'll get around to testing these two cartridges and see what kind of POI difference I end up with.

I guess I'll probably get around to doing the forestock rigidizing as shown on another thread but it really annoys me that this kind of bubba-izing is even necessary.

[cranebird]

After I finish my Axis .308 tactical I will replace this barrel
Is it too early to call first dibs on the barrel when you get around to replace it ? Lol. I've found that my axis likes the 55 gr bullets as well but I am good with that.

[Hi-wall]

Is it too early to call first dibs on the barrel when you get around to replace it ? Lol. I've found that my axis likes the 55 gr bullets as well but I am good with that.
I'll keep you in mind but with my budget it may be a year before I get to it

[mech1369dlw]

I am using the Hornady 75 grain BTHP match bullets with 22.5 grains of Benchmark shooting off a lead sled. At 100 yards, I can keep them in a quarter sized space all day long. I have tried 40 grain up to 62 grain bullets from 3 different makers with a variety of powders and charges and it looks like I am patterning a shotgun. Numerous factory rounds with the same results. I did the front stock rod and epoxy thing and it didn't do anything for me. Thinking about a fat barrel change. The ones I see have a 1:14 twist but I don't know if that will hurt my 75 grainers or if it will help with the smaller bullets. Gonna have to read some more in this section to help make my mind up.

[phoenix1151]

Went to the range again today with my Axis .223 (all shots using the bipod) & my Vanguard 30-06.

I got minute-of-coyote groups but have confirmed the drastic POI shifts between bullet weights as described before. Even the Vanguard showed a 3 inch horizontal POI shift between 150 & 180 grain Winchester Super-X. I can understand vertical POI shift between bullet weights (maybe not so much at 100 yards) but this horizontal shift and the magnitude of it surprises the hell out of me. I'm no precision bench shooter, just a hunter looking for decent accuracy. Is such large shift in POI "normal" or is it just me? I'm going to hopefully have at the forestock stiffening bubba-izing this weekend and give the range another go next week or so.

[phoenix1151]

OK, following up on my previous post, I have reviewed a few other forums for various calibers and types of rifles. I find many others posing the same surprise at the magnitude of POI shift between bullet types and weights. So the conclusion is to try a variety of different ammo specs looking for good grouping and don't worry about POI at first. Once the preferred ammo is chosen, then the sights can be adjusted to get POI on the bull. I feel better now.

If you are fortunate to find more than one ammo that gives you the same POI, so much the better as it gives you a bit of flexibility. On that note, a good suggestion was to maintain a log of your trials with the various ammo so you can reference back later. I'm sheepishly embarassed to have bought a new scope that may not have been necessary. On the bright side, that means I have to buy another rifle for the original scope n'est pa?

[sixonetonoffun]

Find 55gr American Eagle and 55gr Federal Bulk pack best plinkers. 62gr Federal Fusions decent hunting rounds.

55gr Hornady if ya want to break 3000 fps.

Note where I bought my Axis it was labeled 1:8 twist always wondered if that was bs? Spose should try n figure it out sometime.

[Mike Vegas]

69 grain bullet + Winchester case + 24.5gr Varget + CCI BR4 primer = .5" or smaller groups... based on my experience...

[phoenix1151]

Reloaded up some .223 Federal brass using 55g Hornady VMAX and 55g Hornady SPSX (OAL 2.250). I made up four batches in total, with combinations of those two bullets and two different powders, Varget and H4895 (powder charge for the Varget was slightly higher than the H4895). I targeted a muzzle velocity of 3175 fps so as to fit the ballistics to the holdover reticle of my Burris Fullfield scope.


I shot some of all four last Friday at about 100 yards, just laying the rifle on top of the range bag. I expected fairly equal POA/POI between the two bullets since the bullet weights were the same and bullet shapes were very very similar (although bc differs). However, I found the SPSX hit about 1" lower but about 4" to the left, while using the VMAX bullets (which were used previously (factory loads) for sighting in the scope), and the H4895, I got 1MOA groups with POI 1/2 - 3/4 inch to the left. This POI shifting around is way more than I would have ever expected, but coupled with my recent experiences (posted previously) with factory 45g VMAX, 55g VMAX and 75g BTHP, I'm getting the message, lol. So, with the reload data, I'm ready to punch paper until winter when I'll have a go for coyotes for the first time.

[phoenix1151]

Went to the range again on Wednesday with my 55g VMAX reloads. Got groups of 0.6 and 0.8 MOA just laying the rifle on the range bag, no sand bags, lead sleds or anything like that. I'm getting more comfortable with the rifle and the two reload powder combinations (Varget & H4895) both seem to be right on for what I want. I really need to get out somewhere where I can stretch things out beyond 100 yards. I'll also be interested in seeing what change in POI occurs with a very cold barrel as this rig is going to my coyote poker this winter.