Quote Originally Posted by 82boy
... will have a hard time finding load data for this bullet do to Sierra designed this bullet for 1 in 9 twist AR15's, and the load data is for them.
I'm confused. I thought Sierra specifies 1:8 or faster twist for .224 77 gr Matchking.

When I talked to Rich Macholtz at Sierra, he told me "They never thought anyone would use this bulet in a bolt action," so they never printed any load data for it. I used the AR15 data, but I dont recamend it and if you do you do so on your own.
Are you saying .223 rounds for AR-15s don't work well in bolt actions for some reason? Does this have to do with cartridge overall length? Would a 77 Matchking loaded to a custom length for a bolt action work fine?


The other problem with the 77's is they come in boxs of 50, and if you figger the price they are quite pricecy.
What motivated my original question is I have a lot of Black Hills .223 77 gr Matchking, which is designed for AR-15s. I was wondering if these rounds would work well in a Savage Lightweight Hunter .223, with 1:9 twist.

I know Sierra specifies 1:8 but I've heard anecdotally that 1:9 often works, too. I'm trying to decide if it's worth the risk of getting the Lightweight Hunter in .223, knowing that Sierra says 77 gr Matchking requires 1:8 twist.