5.56/223 1:8 Rifle Twist

[RustyJr]

I am looking into picking up a AR15 Carbine (16" barrel) for a patrol rifle. My question is will the 1:8 twist stabilize and shoot the 55gr bullets accurately?

Thanks in advance,
RustyJr

[Griff]

My 1:9 does well with a pretty large range of bullet weights, including 50 & 55 grain weights. From what I've read, avoid the less tha 50 graim projectiles in the 1:7 and the over 62 in the 1:10. But as usual, velocity can play a big factor. Hopefully someone with more practical experience will chime in with facts vs. what I've just read.

[MrMurphy]

1/8 will stabilize 55s but you may have to play around some, various loads will have different performance.

1/8, much like 1/7, prefers heavier loads, 60-70+.

[stew71]

It should. My Rock River Arms has a heavy 1in9 barrel that seems to do fine with the 55's. It prefers 62's but the 55's are accurate enough to be entertaining on the steel range.

[MrMurphy]

1/9 stabilizes 55 to about 65 well. Going below or above that tends to lead to odd results.

[JohndeFresno]

RustyJr,
Here is my experience with a Ruger Mini-14 Ranch rifle, 18.5 inch barrel, 1:9 twist:
Some factory 50 or 55 gr. rounds at 3300fps (per the box) were all over the place.
I worked up a slower load and it proved very accurate:
55 gr. Hornady #22271 V-Max,
IMR 4895 24.3 gr. (25.1 is max per Hornady),
WIN WSR primers,
COAL 2.250 in.
2,952 fps per QuickLoad data (Not chronographed)

Various articles researched also emphasized that around 3k fps might give the best accuracy for this combination.

The owner of the Ruger took out a coyote on the run with iron sights in a quartering shot, distance not certain, and dropped it quickly. He loves this round. Sorry my data is not more specific!