Jumped into the Blackout pool

[hobbesgunner]

And now that I've got my feet wet.....think there's a few more variables at work here than a standard 556 carbine..... parts list:Dan Def upper, SI Def bolt carrier, YHM Todd Jarret handguard, Doublestar gas block, AR Stoner SS 16" bbl ...got couple boxes of Rem 220 gr. (Only thing available)..... test fired ok.cycles and locks back.....few things I noticed though....dents case mouth pretty bad.can see the marks on deflector..if this will never have a suppressor on it, do I need an adjustable gas block?? Recoil impulse seems heavy, should I have a heavy buffer and or spring in it??? Has standard carbine setup now...thinking about an ACE rifle stock for it,that would be heavier buffer. Is factory blackout brass any better than making my own out of Lake City...picked up a 300-221 Redding form die set for couple bucks at a flea market few yrs ago .Is there any difference in the 2 cases??? ...I rather ask than buy stuff for trial and error testing...pretty big pool of knowledge on this sight..may as well use it and learn

[Jgun]

I have only put one together so far, and my configuration is different so my results are definitely different than you should expect, but the other members, survivalshop, and now 6132expert, seem to have setups similar to what your describing, so theirs advice will probably be more useful. But anyway, I have an 18" barrel, adjustable gas system, lightweight BCG, using a CTR stock. On mine I have the gas system adjusted down so that the bolt just locks back on an empty mag. I'm using a standard spring and 3oz buffer. I find that this gun shoots softer than my .223 carbine with the mid length non adjustable gas system and H3 buffer. If you think your gun is recoiling too hard, you can either add the heavier buffer, or you could try lightening your powder charge a little. obviously, the adjustable GB allows you to tune your gas impulse so that you only use enough to cycle the gun without any extra recoil more than you need to cycle the gun. Question is, how important is 100% reliability to you with this gun(is it going to be for home/self defense)? if so maybe the adjustable GB is not the best way to go.

[survivalshop]

Making your own brass is one of the things for the 300BLK ,that makes it OK that factory brass is still not available.

I have no problem with making my own . I have used just about all of them out there ,.223,5.56 & it seems you can stuff a little more powder in the .223 cases because of brass thickness campared to the milspec fodder.

There is plenty of loading data here & elsewhere. You dies should be fine ,but be careful ,there are some out of spec dies out there for these wild cat cal..

Most I've heard they will work fine . I got my Forster dies because I read they have the correct neck tension & indeed they work fine ,I have not needed to crimp any so far .

Don't have a crimp die for the 300BLK any way.If they come out with a taper crimp die ,I may pick one up.

Heavy recoil may be the heavy bullet. You can play around with your gas adj. or go to a heavy buffer.

I get some case deformity also ,some can be severe, just use a round dowel or some thing like it to put the case mouth back as best as you can & it will re-size with out a problem ,because it you don't it could damage the case upon resizing.

I like that YHM hand guard , photo's please or you don't have one .

[hobbesgunner]

I've got a few rounds through this thing now and have a few observations..heavy bullets, 220 Rem and 175 CMMG factory ammo won't cycle reliably with Wolf buffer spring...125 Nos BT and 150 Sie GK using H110 work great with Wolf spring but feel a little heavy handed with stock spring....I'm gonna try this on a rifle stocked lower to see what heavier buffer does ....never shot anything with such a spread in point of impact using different bullet weights....even at 100 yds its 18-20 inches

[hobbesgunner]

Forgive the background. Laid it on the bed.

[survivalshop]

I've got a few rounds through this thing now and have a few observations..heavy bullets, 220 Rem and 175 CMMG factory ammo won't cycle reliably with Wolf buffer spring...125 Nos BT and 150 Sie GK using H110 work great with Wolf spring but feel a little heavy handed with stock spring....I'm gonna try this on a rifle stocked lower to see what heavier buffer does ....never shot anything with such a spread in point of impact using different bullet weights....even at 100 yds its 18-20 inches

18-20" seems kinda odd ?

I have used 150's,125's, 130's & 135's & don't get but an inch or two difference in zero , some of these bullets do group better , but we are talking MOA .

[Robocop1051]

...even at 100 yds its 18-20 inches

I think you have something else wrong with your rifle besides buffer weight and spring strength. Maybe check your crosshairs, scope mount, and barrel nut. I have never seen a spread that wide that couldnt be attributed one of those issues. Also check the end (crown) of your barrel. I couldn't enlarge the picture you posted enough to identify what you mounted as a comp/brake/hider.

In my limited experience;

One friend swore his rifle was broken and asked me to repair it. I could find nothing wrong upon inspection. I got it to the range and found that the top of the crosshair had broken loose inside the scope.

My brother-in-law wondered for months why he couldn't dial in a scope mounted with a $5 e-bay mount. He stole my GG&G and suddenly he thinks he's a sniper.

Lastly, my cousin couldn't keep his hbar rifle on the paper at 100 yards... till I found that his barrel nut was only on hand tight (no torque).

[hobbesgunner]

Everything is solid and tight...no muzzle device....zeroed with 125 Nosler BT over 18 gr of H110.... factory Remington 220 gr loads were hitting the dirt and bottom board on target stand...my 150 and 125 gr handloads are about 3" apart....  scope is Bushnell 3-10 3200 Elite swapped off my Rem 700 with Leupold 6.5-20.....AR Stoner 1 piece mount...first one pf those I've tried but seems like s sturdy setup ...just got another 6.5-20 from friend at work..maybe I'll put that onto make sure it's not the scope....be nice for load development anyhow ...

[Robocop1051]

Now I understand...

I think someone else here was having similar problems. Zero'd with supersonic rounds and then hitting extremely low with subsonic rounds.

The 1,000+ fps and 75gr difference is making an exagerated drop.

I think Jgun was right about making his rifle to shoot a certain range of bullets. If you are going to swap between loads often/fast, you might have to run dual optics, like a 2 o'clock red dot??

[survivalshop]

The way I read your post , it seemed you were getting 18-20" spread with different bullet weights ,meaning group wise . Of course you will get more drop with a subsonic loaded bullet in just about any weight .

The lower velocity will make any of them drop compared to a supersonic velocity.

Now if they are indeed getting large spreads , some thing is not right.

[hobbesgunner]

Guess in my brief explanation I lost meaning....I was referring to point of impact  between light and heavy bullets...guess I'll find one bullet it shoots well and stick with it...the idea of shooting 220' s and 125' s seemed kinda cool to me....dual optics might be the way to go though..scope for for one, compact red dot for other....always wanting my cake and eat it too

[survivalshop]

Well, if you have a Mil Dot scope or a scope with ranging dots, lines or circles , you can use them for adj. drop of different bullet weights .

A Mil Dot scope with turrets for adj. you can dial any range with any bullet with the proper doping .

You can zero it for the one you use most & have the settings ,written down or in your head for any thing else.

[98Z5V]

I like that YHM hand guard , photo's please or you don't have one .

That statement was truly awesome, SS...  <thumbsup> <laughs> <lmao>