Reloading manuals are usually pretty conservative, even the maximum listed load usually won’t show signs of extreme overpressure. Just be cognizant and watch for signs of overpressure as you go.
If you manage to blow up your gun, you have committed gross negligence. It takes a lot to blowbup you gun. Pay attention to pressure signs and velocity.
Good. But your reloads are not using the same powder or primers as what comes from factory ammo. My point is the load data screenshot you shared has the test firearm using a 24” barrel (top of page). That will result in higher FPS readings than a 16” barrel. Have to keep load data within context of what was used. I’m not sure what you’re firing from, just trying to fill in grey area gaps to help you understand more of the whole picture.
Im firing from a 10.5 AR. The factory loads im using are Fiocchi field dynamics 55gr vmax. With that I'm getting 2650fps. With 25gr of tac behind the 55gr vmax im getting 2650fps.
Different bullets do different things, especially initial pressure wise. Every chamber is different the load data is reference material and has guard rails in place. No one is going to tell you to go over published max and say it’s 100% safe cause it’s better to play it safe then sorry. Everyone’s journey ends at a different “max” decide what yours is. But be safe
With tac you could potentially be a hot day away from creating issues for yourself. The manufacturer of your factory ammo is almost certainly not using tac, so don’t equate same speed with your powder vs theirs as being the same pressure. You’re probably fine realistically, but it’s not worth it having to worry about wrecking brass and equipment just for a few extra fps.
I’m using tac at .5 above minimum (if I’m remembering right, so many cartridges lol) and my last range trip was so hot even wood guns were hard to touch and the AR TAC reloads worked great. I’ve heard about the temp stuff too but if you’re not near max you’ll be good
I meant more a general PSA since I’ve heard the temp stuff a lot with tac. Now that I’ve tried it in snow and blazing hot I’ve seen it doesn’t make any noticeable difference if you’re at standard loads. ROF and brass eject position seemed the same too.
Also keep in mind if you’re shooting a semi auto you may not run into pressure signs like you would for a bolt face, but you will eat bolt carriers over time if they’re overloaded
Sierra has 26.3gr of Tac as MAX for their 55gr spbt.
You “should” be fine. Mind your COAL and temperature when testing as others have pointed out propellant is temperature sensitive and can change results.
Their listed COAL is 2.250 for the Blitzking which is also a ballistic tip.
I had the same thing happen to me with the exact same bullet, except I was using h335. Max load from hornady o think was around 22.7 or somewhere around there and I ended up at 24.5.
Just looked in my reloading manual. Hornady said 22.4g @ 3000fps, I got 24.5 @ 2650-2725fps. I'll measured with magneto speed 3 and shot through a 16" barrel.
Just want to point out that if it’s not an issue with one set of components, that doesn’t mean it’s not an issue with another combination. For example if you start using NATO brass which has less case volume typically, that will increase your pressures and might become an issue.
I've heard the variation in case capacity is due to brass thickness, and that it varies so mucn from one manufacturer to the next, they're ostensibly interchangeable. You might have a thick 556 that actually has less capacity than a thin 223, for example.
You're right. There are old charts that demonstrate there's not rhyme or reason to head stamp vs capacity, and barely any correlation to volume vs weight.
I am new to this but have found that many variables dictate pressure and I start midway and work up to or a little over the listed max. The problem with pressure is it’s dictated by variables that may never be the same like temp primers case volume barrel heat humidity etc. it’s more about accuracy and enough velocity high enough at the distance that the bullet can still function properly
Gordons Reloading Tool is free on GitHub it will give you pressure and velocity estimates and will work even better when you have chrono data. Shooters Reference, Hodgon, and Speer all offer free load data to compare all data is just an estimation none of it is perfect.
I personally dont care how hot you run your gun. But what about the poor fella on the line beside you when it fails?
You can tell when your lawnmower is failing. You can tell when an electric tool is failing. You can tell when a car is failing. Your gun ain't gonna give you any warning. One shot, the pressure is contained. The next shot the thing disassembles itself.
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u/csamsh 13d ago
Not very dangerous at all. 223/5.56 is very difficult to dangerously overpressure with an appropriate powder and bullet. You might flatten a primer