Ammo Test

I went to the range over the Thanksgiving Holiday. While there, I conducted an ammo test. The point of the test was to determine the different points of impact of different ammo choices.

For this test, I used my M16A4 clone with a stainless steel heavy barrel. The quad rail is free floated. I used a bipod to steady the rifle, and fired all rounds from 100 yards. An ACOG - TA31F was the optic of choice. The POA was the center of the center circle for all rounds.

Federal American Eagle 55-gr
The circles marked "1" were Wal Mart Federal American Eagle 55-grain. This is cheap ammo, but as you can see, it groups well. I'd say it is sub - 2 MOA ammo. 

PMC X-Tac
The circles marked "2" were PMC X-Tac 62 grain penetrator. This 62 grain ammo has an unusually high ballistic coefficient, which would make it great for long range (especially at the then-price of $7 per box!). However, as you can see, the ammo just is not as consistent. I was surprised by this 3.5 MOA group. That's why I never stocked up a lot of it.

However, the point of this test is not to measure the accuracy of the ammo, but to measure how far off the point of impact would be from ammo type to ammo type. Safe to conclude that I'd need to adjust the point of impact down 2" and to the right an inch compared to the FAE.

Hornady Steel Match
Shots labeled "3" were Hornady Steel Match 75-grain ammo. After firing the first two, and noting they were 4" high, I intentionally held my point of aim at the bottom of the circle. Again, the shot was 4" high.

On my ACOG, I later zeroed with the Hornady, and it needed 4 clicks to be zeroed.  So much for the ACOG having 1/3 MOA adjustments! No bother, though. I love the ACOG, and I know it is a combat style optic, not a precision optic. That said, it is not bad in the precision department.

PPU 75-grain Match
For my fourth and final test, and marked "4" on this sheet, I fired PPU 75-grain match ammo. My rifle loves this ammo (though I am confident now that the Hornady is just as accurate). I showed off a bit; point of aim for the first shot was dead middle. POA for the second shot was one square to the left. POA for the third shot was a square low.

This ammo is easily sub-MOA. It also has the exact same point of impact as the Federal American Eagle.


Lessons Learned:
1. I didn't expect a steel case load to perform that well. Hornady is definitely the torch-bearer of commercially manufactured match grade ammo. There's not a thing wrong with their steel cased ammo. I've seen other reports suggesting it is easily as accurate as their brass cased ammo.

2. PPU match ammo is just as good as the Hornady. They cost about the same. However, the PPU is loaded about 150 fps slower, so it does not match my ACOG's ballistic reticle at longer ranges. Never mind that, if I have to take a longer shot with an ACOG, I'll just use the Hornady Steel and give it 4 clicks of elevation correction.

3. I wish there was a 62-grain ammo with a .304 ballistic coefficient that was under 2 MOA.

4. Federal American Eagle will surprise you. I heard a while back that they use boat tail bullets, which is likely the case, given the accuracy I see in them.


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