69 gr TMK accuracy?

[B Man]

I have been using 77 gr SMK’s but the TMK’s higher BC has me interested. The 77 TMK’s seem to be unobtainium but I see the 69’s time to time and with the added velocity it would give up very little and should perform better than my 77 SMK’s. Thing is, it seems the 77 TMK’s don’t seem to shoot as accurately as the 77 SMK’s from research in ar’s.

Just looking for experience with them.

 

[Dogtown]

I tried to get the 77 TMKs to be competitive with 77 SMKs and 77 Scenar-L but couldn’t get them to group anywhere near well, strange as that may seem. I haven’t tried the 69 TMK but have shot plenty of 69 Scenar-L with good results, so that’s my backup for precision ARs.

 

[TonyTheTiger]

I tried the 69TMK at the same time as the 77TMK, against both weights of SMK's. They were okay, but not SMK good.

 

[TimK]

I’ve managed to get 77TMKs to perform at least as well as 77SMKs. To be fair, a buddy turned me on to a fantastic load and I just copied it. I’ve never gotten a 69 TMK to shoot.

I sure wish Sierra would run 77TMKs soon!

 

[BuildingConceptsllc]

I have been using 77 gr SMK’s but the TMK’s higher BC has me interested. The 77 TMK’s seem to be unobtainium but I see the 69’s time to time and with the added velocity it would give up very little and should perform better than my 77 SMK’s. Thing is, it seems the 77 TMK’s don’t seem to shoot as accurately as the 77 SMK’s from research in ar’s.

Just looking for experience with them.

My experience with the TMK vs SMK in a 175 for a. 308 was the same. The SMK shot like a laser and I just couldn't get the TMK to get there. The difference in ogive length was more than I initially expected and no matter what I did, I couldn't get it to shoot where the smk would. It seems that is the overwhelming majority of shooters same experience too. They shoot ok, but not in the same league as the smk grouping.

 

[Bantam1]

I had similar results. The TMK were ok, but did not perform as well for me. I tried working up loads for the 77 and they just didn't seem to shoot as well. I've just stuck with the 77 SMK and 75 Hornady. Same powder charge, just different seating depths and they shoot almost identical in my rifles.

 

[Molon]

I tried to get the 77 TMKs to be competitive with 77 SMKs and 77 Scenar-L but couldn’t get them to group anywhere near well, strange as that may seem. I haven’t tried the 69 TMK but have shot plenty of 69 Scenar-L with good results, so that’s my backup for precision ARs.

The 77 grain Tipped MatchKings have been a little more finicky in the barrels I've loaded them for and not quite as accurate as my standard 77 MatchKing loads, but they can still produce sub 3/4 MOA 10-shot groups at 100 yards from a semi-automatic AR-15.

....

 

[Jeff Gahler]

Premium 5.56x45mm Ammo For Sale - 77 Grain TMK Ammunition in Stock by Black Hills - 50 Rounds

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If you’re shooting things that bleed , TMK blows everything else out the water

 

[BuildingConceptsllc]

Premium 5.56x45mm Ammo For Sale - 77 Grain TMK Ammunition in Stock by Black Hills - 50 Rounds

Premium 5.56x45mm Ammo In Stock by Black Hills - 77 Grain TMK Ammunition by Black Hills For Sale Online at LuckyGunner.com - 50 Rounds

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If you’re shooting things that bleed , TMK blows everything else out the water

Yeah they do, and they have a great BC too, just a lot more difficult to get to group to the level that "we" typically expect. Sometimes just have to accept that the group isn't going to be as tight as we'd like but the performance is worth it.

 

[ZA206]

I've shot multiple 1/2 MOA 5-shot groups with the 69 TMK out of my Bartlein AR using 24.5 Grains of Varget, just like the classic 69 SMK load.
What I found odd was that it's BC was really close to the 77 SMK, and for some reason (out of my rifle) it's accuracy node velocities were the same as accuracy node velocity of the 77 SMK. My rifle didn't like it when I pushed the 69 TMK, and due to it's long length, it took up similar case capacity as the 77 SMK.

At the end of the day, it had the same speed, almost the same BC, cost more and was more finnicky to load for than the 77 SMK. I'm sure it's terminal effects are much better than the 77 SMK, but it didn't seem to get me any real advantage. If I could have got it going 100-150 FPS faster than the 77 SMK, it would have been worth it.

 

[supercorndogs]

My Kreiger barreled LRI built 308 shoots the 175 TMK great. Shoots about dozen other bullets great too. No love with 155g nosler CC thought with 5 diffrent powders. You just never know.

 

[PappyM3]

I have been using 77 gr SMK’s but the TMK’s higher BC has me interested. The 77 TMK’s seem to be unobtainium but I see the 69’s time to time and with the added velocity it would give up very little and should perform better than my 77 SMK’s. Thing is, it seems the 77 TMK’s don’t seem to shoot as accurately as the 77 SMK’s from research in ar’s.

Just looking for experience with them.

Similarly to others, the 69gr TMK hasn’t grouped quite as well as the 69gr SMKs for me.

But I have had great luck with Hornady 73gr ELD-Ms. They’re my 200/300 yard load now.

My 77gr TMKs were pretty good in my Shilen stainless barrel, but not quite as good as 69 SMKs or the 73s. In my Criterion chrome lined barrels, the factory loaded TMKs are ~1 MOA so I keep them around as a contingency ammo since their terminal ballistics are great. The 69gr TMK terminal ballistics are not great (unless you want a varmint bullet), and they’re not better than the SMK or the 73 ELD for precision. So the 69gr TMK are in a weird position.

 

[Hoody2shoes]

My best group out my a gas gun with factory ammo was with black hills 69tmk
5rnd group
.54moa

Shot with
12.5 core
Sup arms piston kit
Nx8 with the fc-mil reticle in badger 1.93
Front and rear sandbags

 

[B Man]

Y’all have pretty much confirmed what I’ve read. I was looking for a cross over bullet to hunt fur and bang steel with at range. I’ve read the 77 gr TMK’s did perform really well on deer sized game, but nothing much on the 69’s. My go to game load has been 65 gr sierra gamekings and work well out to 300 yards on game with good terminal performance. I just like the idea of one load all the time, and the 65 gr sierra’s can’t handle the longer ranges like the 77 SMK’s and I’m skeptical to try them on game. I tried 73gr eld’s but couldn’t get them under 1 moa and that same gun will shoot the 77 SMK’s 1/2 moa.

I may just wait for 77 TMK’s to come available again and give them a shot.

 

[Ernest 5.56]

I wonder if the tubb nosering tool could make the SMK expand enough for use on game.

From what I understand that's the reason it was designed so bullets like the SMK could be used for hunting

 

[richard6.5]

Nice try. Do it again and you will be banned.

 

[FLIGHT762]

Sierra 69 TMK shoots really well with 24.5-25.0 gr. of Varget out of two of my rifles.

 

[Ape_Factory]

I did a 69 TMK load a few years ago with H335 and it hovers around an MOA or a bit under and has worked with two different rifles and three barrels. Just did another load using TAC that's definitely sub-MOA now that my loading technique attention to detail is better. Loaded up a few hundred of them today on the Dillon.

I've tried to produce a good load with the 77 TMK with mild success but was never happy with them and didn't purchase more. They're better than the Nosler 77's but the Berger 77's are far better in that regard.

 

[B Man]

I did a 69 TMK load a few years ago with H335 and it hovers around an MOA or a bit under and has worked with two different rifles and three barrels. Just did another load using Tac-X that's definitely sub-MOA now that my loading technique attention to detail is better. Loaded up a few hundred of them today on the Dillon.

I've tried to produce a good load with the 77 TMK with mild success but was never happy with them and didn't purchase more. They're better than the Nosler 77's but the Berger 77's are far better in that regard.

Tac-X ?

 

[Ape_Factory]

Ha! Sorry sitting here shopping for Barnes Tac-TX. Meant Ramshot TAC. Fixed.

 

[sinister]

I loaded 69TMKs for my ROTC cadets to shoot during the summer vacation season when they didn't have access to M855A1. It shoots straighter than GI ammo (out of an M4A1), but not as good as 77 MatchKings.

M855A1 bullets and 69TMKs are just as long as 77 Match Kings, but lighter.

 

[B Man]

Order placed for 500 Sierra 77 tmk’s to play with. We will see how they shoot

 

[MtnHillbilly]

Sierra 69 TMK shoots really well with 24.5-25.0 gr. of Varget out of two of my rifles.

I just loaded some at 25 and they were super compressed charges set at 2.6 col that just barely fits in the mag. are your 25 grain loads pretty compressed?

 

[FLIGHT762]

I didn't notice any issues. They shot fine @ 2.250".