new to reloading 204 and 223

[khrhunter]

lookin for what yall are loadin for handies in 223 bull barrel and 204 ruger bull fluted and a standard. lookin for a place to start and what has worked best for everyone else

[Catfish]

I don`t know the twist in the Handy`s, but the 32 gr. Sierra bullets seem to shoot real well in most of the .204`s. Great bullets for groundhogs ect., but to thin skinned for coyote. I like the 50 Sierra Blitz King for the 223 for groundhogs but would go to the 55`s for coyote. As for powder H-322, H-335, BLC2 or any other powder near these in burn rate should work well. Rem. 7 1/2 primers are my go to primers for rounds in this size class. Neather of these rounds are hard to load for and you should have no trouble finding a load that will serve you well.

[dieselman]

My .204 handi likes rl-15 and the 34gr varmit nightmare's lit off by cci srm primers. bl-c2 and varget are not to bad but, rl-15 has worked best for me.

[KansasPaul]

I don't have any experience with .204 caliber but I have played around with .223 for a while. I believe that the rate of twist of your Handi rifle is 1/12 which limits you to lighter bullets. I would start with 50 grain Hornady V-Max or Sierra Game Kings (if available in 50 grain). Good powders for .223 are W748, H335, BLC-2 and Varget.  I've had great success with W748 and Varget. 

Paul

[Uncle Harry]

My 204 likes  Berger 40 gr. over Varget. Had no luck w/V-Max 32 gr.  .223 is new but so far likes V-Max 55 gr. over TAC. Still working with the .223 though. Gonna try Sierras next.

[khrhunter]

thanks everyone . I got my new Lyman manual in today so Im ready to start playin. I had already picked up some 50g V-Max for 223 and wouldnt you know it they are not listed...

[KansasPaul]

What powder do you have?  I'll be happy to provide some info if needed. Also, if you use W748 or H335 there is load data available on the Winchester web site.

[khrhunter]

Varget so far

[KansasPaul]

The only load data for a 50 grain bullet using Varget is as follows:

Starting load: 26.5 grains of Varget yields a velocity of 3242 FPS and a pressure of 40,800 CUP

Maximum load: 27.5 grains of Varget yields a velocity of 3383 FPS and a pressure of 44,800 CUP  Note that this is listed as a compressed load.

PS: This information comes direct from Hodgdon.  You can go to the Reload Data Center at Hodgdon.com

Have Fun!

Paul

[cwlongshot]

Can't help with the 204... but I haven't seen a 223 that dosent shoot H322 powder with a match primer and a 52-53Gr match bullet well!

I agree, both 748 and 335 are also good choices. Sorry, I don't use Varget much.

CW