Im getting a Savage 10FP .223 Tactical and the twist rate is 1:9 twist. For a .223 is this amount of twist too much. What is the affects of this kind of twist. Thanks in advanced for all the help!!!

The 1:9 twist is perhaps the most versatile of all the .223 twists. It can shoot bullets up to the 75 gr. Hornady A-Max; and still group pretty well with bullets in the 50 and 55 gr. weight range. Obviously if you were going to shoot only 55 gr. and lighter bullets, you would choose a 12" or even 14" twist. But I have been amazed at how well 9" guns will often shoot bullets like the 50 gr. V-Max.

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My 1:9" on my AR15 grouped all ammo from 40-60gr very well. It really shined with Sierra 52gr HPs. My 1:12" on my bolt 223 shot everything equally as well. My 1:9 on my Ruger Mini14 is just a spray an pray type weapon.

The savage will shoot great with that barrel, hope this helps your decision!

In answer to your original question . . . . the affect of having more twist than you need is usually a slightly less favorable pressure/velocity ratio. A 14" twist .22-250 might be able to get 3750 fps out of a 55 gr. bullet before it shows any pressure signs, and a 10" twist might start showing pressure signs at 3700 fps. And, at least in theory, the closer the twist is to optimum, the better the accuracy will be. In practice, this seems to be whatever the individual barrel likes.

The only cardinal rule about twist rates is that if you don't have enough, you are absolutely screwed - no exceptions.

you cannot over stabilize a bullet

1. The effect of a 1/9" twist in the ,223 is to enable you to effectively use the heavier .224" bullets now available. The original twist rate in the .223 was too slow for any bullet longer than the dervice ammo's 55-grain FMJBT. Believe me, I had one of the first .223's and could not get it to accurately shootbullets suitable for larger animals than woodchucks!

2. The reason for this problem is NOT the 1/9" twist, it is caused by the fact that the rifleis a Mini-14, which is noted for being "like lightning". It seldom strikes twice in the same spot.....

It sounds like everyone has their own opinions.... Im going to but hunting coyotes, groundhogs, prairie dogs and things of that sort. Would a 1:9 twist be a good one for all of this kind of shooting? thanks

Ha Roskoe, I am going to order a RR arms Varminter. I want it to shoot 52 grain bullets out to 300 yards. What twist, and possibly what barrel length do you recomend. I posted this here because I thought the author might also be interesed in your thoughts. Tom.

Unless you need/want to shoot bullets heavier than 60 grains or so, the 1:12 twist is probably ideal for just about all bullets in the 50 to 55 grain range. These are overwhelmingly the best varmint bullets, so for a varmint rifle that is what I would pick. For the regular 52 gr. Sierra HPBT only, a 1:14 should be adequate but somewhat limiting. The 9" twist allows you to do shoot varmints as well as do some long range match shooting.

Barrel length: at least 20" but not over 24" - 22" would be about ideal in my book.