223 grooves and twist

tenas

I'm going to rebarrel my Rem 700 in 223 and would like some opinions on twist and grooves. I will be shooting primarily 40 to 45 gr bullets at ranges 300 yds and down. I've heard that the 3 groove is the latest bestest thing around, but would like to hear your opinions on this. A 12" twist would be sufficient for these bullets, but should I go to a faster twist in case I ever want to use a little heavier bullet?
Thanks in advance, Kelly Peterson

dcloco

1:12 will be fine.

My 1:9 Savage 12FV shoots 40 to 69 grain bullets very well. But, not all with the same twist will.

The 1:12 will shoot 55's on down.

juddroy

your best accuracy will be with a 14 twist in the 52,53 gr. pills

temblor

You'll get as many different opinions as there are availible twists and grooves.
If you're going to stay with the light bullets and not shoot longer range where a heavier bullet may be more accurate a 1-12" would be my pick (for 35-55 gr bullets). I usually shoot 40-50gr in 1-12" guns with great success.
My pick for the best all around twist in 223 is 1-9" as it will shoot a wide range of bullets accurately and is more versitile.
There are differences in chamber dimensions for 223 Rem. and 5.56 Nato (which is longer, mainly in the length of throat or "leade") that will at times show pressure problems with some military ammo depending on where it was made (which factory/what country, etc.) and how it is loaded. These problems usually won't show up in a semi-auto gun like an AR, but sometimes will in a bolt action when using 5.56 in a 223 chamber where the lock up is tight and there is no gas system to absorb some of the pressure while cycling.
If you think you may use any of the military ammo in your 700 you might consider a 223 Wylde chamber. It is designed to shoot both, but a standard 223 chamber will normally be more accurate with a tighter chamber and closer to the lands/rifling. It really just depends on your use. I don't shoot military ammo in bolt actions because I'm more concerned with accuracy than price and just stay with the 223 Rem. commercial chamber in bolt actions.
As far as accuracy goes, I've seen exceptionally accurate guns with different twist rates and bullet weights. Accuracy has more to do with how well all the pieces of the puzzle of a gun are mated together than what twist you have. A properly stocked/bedded rifle with a carefully chambered quality barrel will out shoot an average quality gun almost every time regardless of barrel twist.
You can't "overstabilize" a bullet but you can understabilize one so that it won't be accurate. You can spin them apart if they aren't strongly constructed in very fast calibers, but there are so many quality bullets out there today that will stay together that's not really much of an issue these days. If you want to use a certain type match bullet you can always build you gun to suit it too. I find it best to error on the extra twist side. It just gives you more options and increases your chance of success.
There are no guarantees that a barrel will be accurate. They all have personalities and different tastes. All you can do is your best to research what you want to do and design a plan from there.
The problem with a 1-14" twist in a 223 is that you run the risk of it not shooting real well (as with all bbls). So if your not happy with your results you have no where to go as it has little chance of shooting bullets of heavier weight accurately either. With more twist you may be able to use something else with satisfactory results.
Hope this rambling helps.
Good Luck................[^].