Hey guys, please excuse me as I am new here. I recently inherited a rifle from my grandfather that I know nothing about. He spent a ton of time reloading his own ammo and I had never heard of .223AI previously. It's a remington 700 that it seems like he replaced the barrel on to shoot .223 AI. I know nothing about reloading. I had some round he left behind that I sent downrange today. But I know nothing about acquiring more of this ammo? Is this something I can get factory loaded, or do I need to learn to load ammo.. lol. Again, forgive me as I'm a complete novice in this area. Thanks!
Help please! Remington 700 .223 Ackley Improved
- Thread starter BigAndyK
- Start date
You can shoot regular 223 ammo in that rifle if you can find any to purchase. The shiny gold part that ejects after the shot the brass) will have a different ackley shape to it once you eject it. To keep the rifle safely stored in your home just take the bolt out by pushing the button by the trigger and the bolt will slide out. Store the bolt in a safe locked up place and it will render the rifle useless. Have fun shooting.
thanks for the reply Codie. However, when I loaded a regular .223 into the chamber, the bolt wouldn't close and the round got jammed in the barrel. I had to get a cleaning rod and go in from the muzzle to get the round free.
Okay it got stuck because your barrel is a tight neck chamber. That rifle will be a hand load only rifle. Your only option will be to load the brass that he was using for that rifle. If you want to use other brass it will have to be neck turned. Personally I would have a gunsmith re chamber the rifle or re barrel the rifle for you so that you can shoot regular 223. A gunsmith could chamber the barrel you already have for about $400 or chamber you a new barrel and screw it on to your action for about $700.
Gotcha, thanks for the info. I wonder if it's even worth it to go that route? I don't want to spend that much money on a rifle that isn't worth it, when I could just purchase a newer rifle right?
You would have to set the barre;l back at least an inch and a half to rechamber to 223rem.
The only solution to your problem would be to rechamber to 223AI with a .252 or larger neck (or neck turn your brass)
The only solution to your problem would be to rechamber to 223AI with a .252 or larger neck (or neck turn your brass)
That depends on if you want to keep your sentimental rifle. Honestly a good old Remington 700 with a new custom barrel is going to be a better rifle than 99 percent of the rifles you will find at the store.
This is true. I hit a 4" steel target at 200 yards on the first shot, so I instantly fell in love with it.
The 223AI is an awesome little round. I think it would be worth the effort and once you get the neck size problem fixed youll reall like it. I use mine out to 1500yds regularly.
I don't ever plan to reload. So I won't really be able to shoot the 223 AI right?
Neck turning is tedious but not difficult. If you dont reload it likely will never truly satisfy you.
Neck turning is a process thats done before the ammo is loaded
Neck turning is a process thats done before the ammo is loaded
Ah. So do you think my best bet would be to try and sell this rifle to someone who wants a .223 AI platform?
once you fired .223 in that chamber. you would have .223 AI brass. The AI stands for Ackley Improved. it was designed by P.O. Ackley.
Basically it takes the standard cartridge with a 25* shoulder and blows it out to a 40* shoulder. Just about any cartridge can be blown out to a AI.
Blowing out the case gives you more room for powder and hence more velocity. A 30-06 AI will give you almost .300 Win mag velocity.
If you can find a Gunsmith in your area that has neck reamers. He can open up the neck so that regular .223 will fit the chamber. you will want .003-.004 over loaded round diameters.
.223AI is a great round. I'm shooting 77 gr SMKs around 2900 out of a 26" barrel with mine. With a 1-12 twist and 50 gr bullets you can be +3600 fps. A great round for shooting grass rats!
Basically it takes the standard cartridge with a 25* shoulder and blows it out to a 40* shoulder. Just about any cartridge can be blown out to a AI.
Blowing out the case gives you more room for powder and hence more velocity. A 30-06 AI will give you almost .300 Win mag velocity.
If you can find a Gunsmith in your area that has neck reamers. He can open up the neck so that regular .223 will fit the chamber. you will want .003-.004 over loaded round diameters.
.223AI is a great round. I'm shooting 77 gr SMKs around 2900 out of a 26" barrel with mine. With a 1-12 twist and 50 gr bullets you can be +3600 fps. A great round for shooting grass rats!
Thank you for this info. Sounds like even if i did get the neck opened up, I'd still need to learn to load .223 AI at some point in my life
When posting Don't post full serial number. B767XXX would be proper way to post it.
What would you ask for the rifle? where are you located? I'm in Colorado.
What would you ask for the rifle? where are you located? I'm in Colorado.
I have no idea what a fair price for this would be since it's not a typical barrel that i'm seeing
Any idea how much your grandfather shot it? If it was me and the rifle was my grandfathers. I would take it to a local gunsmith and see if he could 1. open up the neck for you. Then you could shoot factory ammo in it.
2 . set the barrel back and rechamber for straight .223
3. Rebarrel for straight .223
Sold off my grandfathers shotgun and .22 Rifle, Wish now I hadn't done that.
2 . set the barrel back and rechamber for straight .223
3. Rebarrel for straight .223
Sold off my grandfathers shotgun and .22 Rifle, Wish now I hadn't done that.
He was an avid shooter. He had tons of guns. I wasn't very close with him, as it was my grandmother's second husband. But it's still cool to have. I want something I can use moving forward though for sure.
Whatever you do....Dont shoot that rifle with anything that fits tight. It will build excessive pressure and potentially hurt you.
the only one I’ve taken so far
Attachments
If your not willing to reload then get it rebarreled in a caliber you like. At the end of the day you’ll be cheap (500 plus change) into that rifle and have a better barrel than most factory guns. All you would really have in it is 500/600bucks. Douglas is 500 for barrreling/chambering and assembly.
ETA bolt face might a problem but there are plenty of good rounds that use a 223 bolt face 22-250, 222, etc
ETA bolt face might a problem but there are plenty of good rounds that use a 223 bolt face 22-250, 222, etc
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Can't really tell from the picture but it doesn't appear there would be enough shank, big part of the barrel where it's threaded and screws into the receiver, to set it back and rechamber it to standard 223. If that is the case you really only have two options.
1) Have a gunsmith open up the neck so you can shoot standard off the shelf 223 ammo. This would be the cheapest option but IMO since you don't reload it would also be the least appealing option as well.
2) Purchase a new barrel and have a gunsmith chamber it in standard 223 and maybe even talk to the smith about throating it with minimal freebore since all factory ammo generally has the bullets seated deep and a pretty short OAL. IMO, this would definitely be the best option.
If you do decide to rebarrel it make sure you tell the gunsmith you want the old barrel back, who knows you may decide you want a tight neck 223AI some day and you'll already have a barrel for it.
1) Have a gunsmith open up the neck so you can shoot standard off the shelf 223 ammo. This would be the cheapest option but IMO since you don't reload it would also be the least appealing option as well.
2) Purchase a new barrel and have a gunsmith chamber it in standard 223 and maybe even talk to the smith about throating it with minimal freebore since all factory ammo generally has the bullets seated deep and a pretty short OAL. IMO, this would definitely be the best option.
If you do decide to rebarrel it make sure you tell the gunsmith you want the old barrel back, who knows you may decide you want a tight neck 223AI some day and you'll already have a barrel for it.
If I re-neck to shoot .223 regular, would the gun still be able to shoot .223 AI? If that's the case, I will probably just have it re-necked.
All they will do is open up the neck diameter so you can shoot unturned neck ammo like factory 223 ammo but be aware the gun likely will not shoot factory 223 ammo nearly as well as it does the hand loaded 223AI ammo you've been shooting.
It won't change anything about the guns ability to shoot 223AI ammo.
Remington 700 223 Barrel 24” New Unfired! | eBay
<p>Remington 700 223 remington barrel</p><br><br><p>Factory sporter contour</p><br><br><p>24 inches long</p><br><br><p>1:12 twist</p><br><br><p>Matte black finish</p><br><br><p>Brand new unfired - take off, only handling was to remove from action.</p><br><br><br><br><p>20% restocking fee on all...
www.ebay.com
Can’t I just buy this and screw it in?
No, it would need to be headspaced by a gunsmith.Remington 700 223 Barrel 24” New Unfired! | eBay
<p>Remington 700 223 remington barrel</p><br><br><p>Factory sporter contour</p><br><br><p>24 inches long</p><br><br><p>1:12 twist</p><br><br><p>Matte black finish</p><br><br><p>Brand new unfired - take off, only handling was to remove from action.</p><br><br><br><br><p>20% restocking fee on all...www.ebay.com
Can’t I just buy this and screw it in?
No, barrels with a shoulder need to be precisely cut to fit correctly. But since you seem confident enough to even attempt unscrewing barrels youre probably more than capable of doing it another way. If your action itself hasnt been adulterated you use a shoulderless barrel set up for a barrel nut(jam nut) such as in a "remage" you can set that yourself.Remington 700 223 Barrel 24” New Unfired! | eBay
<p>Remington 700 223 remington barrel</p><br><br><p>Factory sporter contour</p><br><br><p>24 inches long</p><br><br><p>1:12 twist</p><br><br><p>Matte black finish</p><br><br><p>Brand new unfired - take off, only handling was to remove from action.</p><br><br><br><br><p>20% restocking fee on all...www.ebay.com
Can’t I just buy this and screw it in?
“REMAGE” Remake — Converting Remington to Barrel Nut System « Daily Bulletin
Barrel nut system allows Pre-Fit barrel installation on a Remington action. CLICK photo to zoom. REMAGE Project Report by Bill, Rifleshooter.com Editor Installing a new barrel on your Remington 700 (especially without a lathe) may seem like a daunting...
IMO your two options are to have your smith open up the throat in your current barrel to accept the factory 223 ammo or to put a new one on and just keep that old one since you wont get much for it.
No, barrels with a shoulder need to be precisely cut to fit correctly. But since you seem confident enough to even attempt unscrewing barrels youre probably more than capable of doing it another way. If your action itself hasnt been adulterated you use a shoulderless barrel set up for a barrel nut(jam nut) such as in a "remage" you can set that yourself.
“REMAGE” Remake — Converting Remington to Barrel Nut System « Daily Bulletin
Barrel nut system allows Pre-Fit barrel installation on a Remington action. CLICK photo to zoom. REMAGE Project Report by Bill, Rifleshooter.com Editor Installing a new barrel on your Remington 700 (especially without a lathe) may seem like a daunting...bulletin.accurateshooter.com
IMO your two options are to have your smith open up the throat in your current barrel to accept the factory 223 ammo or to put a new one on and just keep that old one since you wont get much for it.
thanks for the reply. My current gameplan is to see if my cousin's stepdad can load some .223 AI for me and let me pay him for it. If not, my next plan will be to have a gunsmith open the neck.
Open the neck up and shoot the thing and stock pile brass. Reload or not the regular 223 will be accurate in it and you ever decide to reload you will have the brass for it or sell the brass.
I found a good bit of brass for .223 AI in the grandpa's garage. So I will have that loaded I think.
Make sure it fits that rifle. From the sound of it there's a chance he could of had others.
Cycle them through the action. It would be difficult for you to determine but the primer pockets maybe expanded making the brass unsuitable for reloading. If you have someone to reload for you they can determine whether the brass is useable.
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