Range Report Questions on Lake City M118 173 grain match ammo

[mjh30]

Guys, I basically built a M40 clone with a 24 inch barrel, 1 10 twist. When shooting 168 grain FGGM or Blackhills, the rifle easily groups less than a 1/2 moa even out to 200 yards. Using Norma and federal deer loads the rifle shoots sub moa. I was lucky enough, I thought to get several hundred rounds of 1978 and 1982 M118 Lake City match, (173 grain) well whatever I do at 100 or 200 yards I cannot get this ammo to shoot well, every round seems to have a different point of impact, I can't even get the stuff to zero within 3 inches. Could it possibly be just bad ammo, should I just pull the bullets and reload the primed brass, any suggestions would be appreciated.
Marty

 

[KNIGHT11B4]

Re: Questions on Lake City M118 173 grain match ammo

Im no expert on the M118 173 gr, but ive used it more than once out of 2 rifles and never had good results. Not 100% sure why, but it just sucked.

Your better off going with the M118LR 175gr

 

[NukeMMC]

Re: Questions on Lake City M118 173 grain match ammo

A couople questions on that ammo:
- Is it LC Match M118 or M118 Special Ball? Both used 173gr bullets. The Special Ball stuff nominally sucked. I always had excellent results with M118 Match, but I always shot it out of 1:12" barrels. I cannot see a quality 10" twist not shooting it well, but stranger things have happened.

 

[mjh30]

Re: Questions on Lake City M118 173 grain match ammo

Lake City match, I have a few boxes of the other stuff and have never used it. Perhaps I was just unlucky and got some bad ammo, I am just going to pull the bullets and reload with 175 grain or similar, and see how that goes .
Marty

 

[Grump]

Re: Questions on Lake City M118 173 grain match ammo

I have a firsthand (to me) account from a person retired from the arsenal/ammo system that some brass genius over LCAAP in the later years ordered the segregation of bullets from the four dies in the machine into separate lots each day STOPPED.

Before this (like 1967 and 68, when the ammo selected for Camp Perry in both M72 and M118 flavors was the most accurate out of test barrels ever produced), production during any single run (sometimes more than a day long) would all use 173-gr bullets from one die in one lot, and the ammo using bullets from the other three dies would go into three other lots.

Even then, the 173-gr bullets shot well under MOA most reliably out of test barrels and bolt guns. In the gas guns, it was rarely better than MOA, always better than 2 MOA, and usually about 1.5 MOA.

Wish I could tell you--quantify--what was expected out of M40-types, but I never knew anyone who shot M118 out of one.

 

[mjh30]

Re: Questions on Lake City M118 173 grain match ammo

Thanks Grump, I figured the ammo shot well for a number of years and I know that in the late seventies and early eighties that there was a period of change with the developement of the newer cartridge, I guess this stuff was loaded just like the brown box special ball and thats not saying much.
Marty

 

[USSR]

Re: Questions on Lake City M118 173 grain match ammo

mjh,

The problem is the method of bullet construction. A FMJBT bullet simply cannot compete with a modern, commercially made HPBT. In my experience with thousands of the M72/M118 bullets, they are a 1.25MOA bullet at best.

Don

 

[MJC]

Re: Questions on Lake City M118 173 grain match ammo

They tend to shoot better out of 4 groove vs. 6 groove barrels.

 

[JSTARSZ]

Re: Questions on Lake City M118 173 grain match ammo

I have loads and loads of Special Ball from Matches. It is at best 1-1.5 MOA in rifles that shoot consistently 1/2 MOA. A lot of people would pull the bullets and put in match bullets. It was called 'Mexican Match." It is decent practice ammo but you know that it is not of match quality.

 

[95LTZ]

Re: Questions on Lake City M118 173 grain match ammo

I have a suggestion, if you already have a reloading press & dies. Try seating the bullet .020 deeper in the case. By doing this you will break the "seal" between the bullet & case. While it won't turn it into world beating ammo I think it may improve your results. All it will cost is a little time behind the press.
Semper Fi

 

[DHDeal]

Re: Questions on Lake City M118 173 grain match ammo

I did this very thing on 95LTZ and DoninSC's advice. Worked in my rifle. It improved enough to make it interesting, but not "match grade" still.

This was SB ammo btw.

 

[S4B]

Re: Questions on Lake City M118 173 grain match ammo

M118 Special Ball- 173 gr
M118 LR- 175 gr

There is a big difference in the performance of both. We avoid shooting the Special Ball as much as possible. Your almost better going with M80 Ball rounds.

 

[sgtusmc_nc]

Re: Questions on Lake City M118 173 grain match ammo

ive got 4 boxes of m118 lr.. and it shoots under an MOA out of my remington 798 at 100 yrds. thats prob as good as that gun is capable. 3/4 inch. some of the veterans at our dept. say the problem with some surplus ammo is that it gets tumbled to make it look new and that messes up the round big time. I know for a fact our Dept. but some indian surplus 308 that was tumbled for our practice ammo for m1a. great ammo shot about a 25 MOA group at 100yrds LOL. looked like a shotgun with bird shot.

 

[Rapidrob]

Re: Questions on Lake City M118 173 grain match ammo

I've shot M-118 Match ammo out to 1,000 yards using a match grade M1A with very good results.The ammo was made in the early 80's. Now let me say this about that, in the 70'- early 80's, the ammo was loaded using a powder we would call IMR-4895. The later years were loaded using Reloader-15. Most of this ammo has been pulled down and the components sold as surplus.
Hitechammo has the powder and bullets now for sale. No one knows for sure why the ammo has been pulled down. The brass we bought has a 2003 headstamp. I know the Army likes to shoot up ammo as it reaches 5 years of age.
I have heard of poor accuracy out of M-118 loaded ammo. No one knew if it was special ball or Match ammo.