Axis II

[MPH1]

Yesterday I ordered an Axis II XP (.223). Just wondering if anyone has good or bad things to say about ammo they've used in the Axis. I want to order some to sight in next week.
Thanks,
Mark

[Rosco]

Since no one has chimed in, here I go. If you asked 10 different people here about the ammo they use and what works and what doesn't from factory to hand loads you would probably get 10 different answers and they may all be right. I suspect if you stick with the usual suspects, Hornady, Winchester, Remington, Fiocchi etc.. that it won't take to long to find a load that your rifle really likes and some that it doesn't, and then if you decide to hand load you can tweek even further.

My only suggestion would be not to break your barrel in with garbage ammo. Why? It just makes me feel better.

[cranebird]

Next you will want to start a post on how to properly break in a new rifle .

Fwiw,I shot Tula to get the scope sighted in. Walmart sells it for $5.00 a box.

[Elgin]

I usually use better ammo to sight in, just so I'm not chasing inconsistency in the ammo (only my shooting). May be a waste, but it's seemed to work for me.

Try a few different types, and see what your rifle likes best.

[MPH1]

Thanks for the replies....that's what I was expecting but hoped some manufacturers were clearly better. We'll try a few different loads this week and see what works best.

[Elgin]

You usually can't go wrong with Federal Gold Medal Match. I have yet to have a rifle shoot that bad. I've also had pretty good luck with PPU match. Not the greatest, but excellent for the price.

[FW Conch]

I agree with Elgin. For factory ammo, you can usually get a real good base line from a new rifle with Federal Gold Metal Match.
And then you can very often improve with reloads.

[MPH1]

Got out to the range today for the first shooting. Used Remington UMC 55gr and PMC Bronze 55gr. If the gun was in fact bore sighted at the factory, it didn't travel well. First shot missed paper and the target backing at 100 yards...off by 13-14 inches. Couldn't tell which direction it was going so I dropped back to 50 yard targets. Sighted in there and moved back to 100 yards. Wanted to get to the 200 yard target but had a minor scope problem so I stayed at 100 yards till that was fixed. I was running out of time but was determined to get some shots at 200 yards. I did with a heated barrel. The groups weren't bad but they were all off right. Wondering if this was due to the heated barrel...would a heated barrel push poi to one direction? I didn't want to adjust the scope on a warm gun, so I called it a day.

[LoneWolf]

A hot barrel can cause all kinds of things to go on, sometimes all shots to one direction and sometimes a shot gun pattern.