I finally got to test some 95 SMK hand loads. I used Winchester small rifle primers, new Federal brass, and Winchester 760 powder starting at 26.0 grains and working up to 27.5 grains. The rifle has a 24″ 1:6.5″ twist Bison Armory heavy barrel and an Elite Iron muzzle brake but I left off the silencer and shot unsupressed for the testing.
I only shot a single 5-shot group at each charge and got the following average velocities with standard deviation below 13 for all and extreme spread no greater than 27:
26.0: 2430 fps
26.5: 2510 fps
27.0: 2555 fps
27.5: did not measure, estimate 2600 fps
I shot the first three loads at 100 yards and shot a near 1/2″ group with the 26.5 grain load:
2510 fps at the muzzle with a G1 BC of 0.60 results in 1318 fps at 1000 yards and 1168 fps at 1200 yards. The speed of sound is around 1130 fps and this load stays above that to 1250 yards according to the G1 BC and available data. The load is definitely a 1000 yard performer in terms of velocity. Hopefully I will get to shoot it at 1000 yards this summer. Pushing to 2550 or even 2600 fps seems reasonable, though accuracy wasn’t quite as good as I pushed the bullet faster. Single 5-shot groups are not sufficient to make a firm determination but more testing is in order.
I am thinking that Federal’s 90 SMK accuracy troubles may result from loads that are just too hot. I wonder if they’re pushing the bullets too hard to get the mythical 1300 yard supersonic performance but sacrificing accuracy. Seems like a lousy trade to me when solid 1000+ yard performance from a 75 to 95 grain bullets is great performance from any AR-15 rifle.
I read the ar stoner mag allows coal out to 2.300 when my upper comes in I can check where the lands fall and if I can benefit from the extra coal.
Anyone have experience in this category with 95 smk
Thanks guys just ordered a white oak 24 in upper
6.5 twist with the val. Profile which is Midway between predator and varmit profile with graphite tube and fluting behind the gas block,
I bought this for the exact use of 95 smk
Note that my max load with Win760 is 26.9 grains.
I set them between 2.280-2.285. Try pouring the charge in slowly with a funnel or use a long drop tube. If you pour in quickly or throw directly from a powder measure without a long drop tube, the powder will not pack in very well and you will appear to have a compressed load.
Hey Ben, thanks for this data. I have this barrel, and am reloading 95 SMK for it. Can you tell me the OAL you have gone with for the 95 SMK reloads? Or if you’ve gotten further, what OAL produced the best accuracy for you? I’ve loaded up the same test loads you did, and I’m getting quite a bit of compression when seating the bullets with 27+ grain of winchester 760.
They run great in the 1:6.5 twist. The difference between 1:7 and 1:6.5 is minimal, so I expect no performance difference with the lighter bullets. We are planning on the 95 SMK, but that won’t be until later this summer.
Glad to see you guys getting out some good data on the 224. How do you think the 75’s and 80’s will run in a 1:6.5 twist? I’m inclined to think they’d hold together fine in a faster barrel but was hoping to find someone more knowledgeable with the Valkyrie. Are there any plans on some heavier 90+ offerings in the near future from you? Should be seeing my 24″ in the mail tomorrow, can’t wait to make some noise! Thanks guys
Looking like first week of June now. Not sure why the delay but that’s how it’s turning out. We will ship ASAP.
Looks good, when are you shipping the 1:6.5 barrels?