Load Specifications
Load data in caliber 5.56 x 45 NATO with .224 | 62gr | Berger Varmint bullet and 43 powders. The key underlying parameters are shown in the table above. The recommended powders for this cartridge and bullet combination are Hodgdon H335, Hodgdon H322 and SNPE Vectan SP 3.
Important Notice: DO NOT go below Minimum Charge or above Maximum Charge. Since we have no control over the equipment and components used, any responsibility and liability for the results achieved is rejected.
Only powders/loads that match the current filter criteria are displayed: max pressure of a load ≤ 90% of max. standardized pressure, fill rate ≥ 80% and propellant combustion ≥ 95%. Use the sliders above the tables to adjust these thresholds.
Charge: Powder weight in grains. Start with the minimum load and work up carefully.
FR (Fill Rate): Case fill as a percentage. Values above 100% mean compressed loads.
MaxP / %: Maximum chamber pressure in bar and as a percentage of the standardized maximum for this caliber.
V(0): Muzzle velocity in feet per second (fps) at the standardized barrel length.
z (Powder Burn): Estimated propellant combustion percentage at bullet exit.
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Max Load - Barrel Length: 20"
| Powder | Charge | FR | MaxP | % | V(0) | z |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Accurate 1680 | <<locked>> | 88% | 56,086 psi | 90% | 2881 fps | 100% |
| Accurate 2015ᴾ | <<locked>> | 100% | 52,344 psi | 84% | 2904 fps | 99.6% |
| Accurate 2460 | <<locked>> | 98% | 55,274 psi | 89% | 2963 fps | 98% |
| Accurate 2495ᴾ | <<locked>> | 100% | 40,857 psi | 66% | 2769 fps | 98.3% |
| Accurate 2520ᴾ | <<locked>> | 100% | 51,779 psi | 83% | 2943 fps | 97.1% |
| Accurate LT-30 | <<locked>> | 94% | 56,420 psi | 90% | 2890 fps | 99.2% |
| Accurate LT-32 | <<locked>> | 92% | 53,403 psi | 86% | 2844 fps | 97.3% |
| ADI AR 2207 | <<locked>> | 92% | 56,072 psi | 90% | 2940 fps | 100% |
| ADI AR 2219 | <<locked>> | 94% | 54,853 psi | 88% | 2989 fps | 99% |
| Alliant AR-Compᴾ | <<locked>> | 100% | 48,675 psi | 78% | 2936 fps | 100% |
| Alliant Reloder-10x | <<locked>> | 96% | 53,214 psi | 85% | 2943 fps | 100% |
| Alliant Reloder-7 | <<locked>> | 90% | 54,186 psi | 87% | 2897 fps | 100% |
| Baschieri & Pellagri 106 | <<locked>> | 94% | 55,158 psi | 88% | 2877 fps | 99.3% |
| Hodgdon Benchmarkᴾ | <<locked>> | 100% | 55,100 psi | 88% | 2917 fps | 96.4% |
| Hodgdon H322 | <<locked>> | 98% | 56,275 psi | 90% | 3009 fps | 99.1% |
| Hodgdon H335 | <<locked>> | 96% | 54,012 psi | 87% | 2969 fps | 98.1% |
| Hodgdon H4198 | <<locked>> | 90% | 54,795 psi | 88% | 2887 fps | 98.6% |
| Hodgdon TrailBossᴾ | <<locked>> | 100% | 32,285 psi | 52% | 1801 fps | 100% |
| IMR 3031ᴾ | <<locked>> | 100% | 46,383 psi | 74% | 2910 fps | 98.4% |
| IMR 4198 | <<locked>> | 96% | 54,549 psi | 87% | 2923 fps | 100% |
| IMR 4227 | <<locked>> | 86% | 55,071 psi | 88% | 2867 fps | 100% |
| Lovex D073.4 | <<locked>> | 90% | 52,214 psi | 84% | 2927 fps | 96.9% |
| Lovex D073.5 | <<locked>> | 98% | 56,086 psi | 90% | 2969 fps | 97% |
| Lovex S053 | <<locked>> | 88% | 56,260 psi | 90% | 2851 fps | 100% |
| Norma 200 | <<locked>> | 92% | 53,766 psi | 86% | 2930 fps | 100% |
| Norma 202ᴾ | <<locked>> | 100% | 47,224 psi | 76% | 2861 fps | 96.8% |
| ReloadSwiss RS 14ᴾ | <<locked>> | 100% | 31,836 psi | 51% | 1837 fps | 100% |
| ReloadSwiss RS 36 | <<locked>> | 86% | 54,984 psi | 88% | 2897 fps | 100% |
| ReloadSwiss RS 40 | <<locked>> | 98% | 55,970 psi | 90% | 2979 fps | 97.4% |
| Rottweil R 901ᴾ | <<locked>> | 100% | 51,648 psi | 83% | 2904 fps | 97.5% |
| Shooters World AR Plus | <<locked>> | 90% | 52,214 psi | 84% | 2927 fps | 96.9% |
| SNPE Vectan BA6 1/2 | <<locked>> | 90% | 53,969 psi | 87% | 2667 fps | 100% |
| SNPE Vectan SP 10 | <<locked>> | 94% | 55,187 psi | 88% | 2986 fps | 98.2% |
| SNPE Vectan SP 3 | <<locked>> | 96% | 54,679 psi | 88% | 2956 fps | 99.4% |
| SNPE Vectan Tubal 3000ᴾ | <<locked>> | 100% | 51,155 psi | 82% | 2831 fps | 97.4% |
| SNPE Vectan Tubal 5000ᴾ | <<locked>> | 100% | 40,973 psi | 66% | 2664 fps | 96.2% |
| Somchem S335ᴾ | <<locked>> | 100% | 49,443 psi | 79% | 2825 fps | 98% |
| Vihtavuori N110 | <<locked>> | 82% | 55,259 psi | 89% | 2759 fps | 100% |
| Vihtavuori N120 | <<locked>> | 92% | 56,101 psi | 90% | 2890 fps | 100% |
| Vihtavuori N130 | <<locked>> | 98% | 53,867 psi | 86% | 2887 fps | 99.9% |
| Vihtavuori N133ᴾ | <<locked>> | 100% | 50,169 psi | 80% | 2838 fps | 99.3% |
| Vihtavuori N135ᴾ | <<locked>> | 100% | 42,047 psi | 67% | 2782 fps | 98.4% |
| Vihtavuori N140ᴾ | <<locked>> | 100% | 44,512 psi | 71% | 2782 fps | 96.5% |
Recommended = one of the top powders for this cartridge and bullet combination.
Start Load - Barrel Length: 20"
| Powder | Charge | FR | MaxP | % | V(0) | z |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Accurate 1680 | <<locked>> | 80% | 43,236 psi | 69% | 2677 fps | 99.1% |
| Accurate 2015 | <<locked>> | 84% | 31,734 psi | 51% | 2500 fps | 95% |
| Accurate 2460 | <<locked>> | 90% | 42,250 psi | 68% | 2743 fps | 95.2% |
| Accurate 2495 | <<locked>> | 92% | 31,154 psi | 50% | 2552 fps | 95.3% |
| Accurate 2520 | <<locked>> | 96% | 45,049 psi | 72% | 2831 fps | 95.5% |
| Accurate LT-30 | <<locked>> | 80% | 36,811 psi | 59% | 2536 fps | 95.2% |
| Accurate LT-32 | <<locked>> | 86% | 44,599 psi | 72% | 2694 fps | 95.3% |
| ADI AR 2207 | <<locked>> | 80% | 38,334 psi | 61% | 2651 fps | 100% |
| ADI AR 2219 | <<locked>> | 84% | 39,160 psi | 63% | 2707 fps | 95.7% |
| Alliant AR-Comp | <<locked>> | 82% | 27,195 psi | 44% | 2444 fps | 95.6% |
| Alliant Reloder-10x | <<locked>> | 80% | 32,256 psi | 52% | 2533 fps | 96.5% |
| Alliant Reloder-7 | <<locked>> | 80% | 40,103 psi | 64% | 2654 fps | 99% |
| Baschieri & Pellagri 106 | <<locked>> | 80% | 34,998 psi | 56% | 2510 fps | 95% |
| Hodgdon Benchmark | <<locked>> | 96% | 49,211 psi | 79% | 2822 fps | 95.1% |
| Hodgdon H322 | 21.1 gr | 86% | 38,101 psi | 61% | 2684 fps | 95.3% |
| Hodgdon H335 | 23 gr | 88% | 40,973 psi | 66% | 2740 fps | 95% |
| Hodgdon H4198 | <<locked>> | 80% | 40,538 psi | 65% | 2635 fps | 95.7% |
| Hodgdon TrailBoss | <<locked>> | 80% | 23,554 psi | 38% | 1608 fps | 100% |
| IMR 3031 | <<locked>> | 92% | 35,926 psi | 58% | 2690 fps | 95.5% |
| IMR 4198 | <<locked>> | 80% | 34,171 psi | 55% | 2543 fps | 98% |
| IMR 4227 | <<locked>> | 80% | 45,542 psi | 73% | 2720 fps | 100% |
| Lovex D073.4 | <<locked>> | 86% | 45,556 psi | 73% | 2812 fps | 95.3% |
| Lovex D073.5 | <<locked>> | 94% | 48,254 psi | 77% | 2844 fps | 95.3% |
| Lovex S053 | <<locked>> | 80% | 44,976 psi | 72% | 2684 fps | 100% |
| Norma 200 | <<locked>> | 80% | 36,622 psi | 59% | 2621 fps | 98.5% |
| Norma 202 | <<locked>> | 96% | 41,307 psi | 66% | 2746 fps | 95.2% |
| ReloadSwiss RS 14 | <<locked>> | 80% | 23,293 psi | 37% | 1640 fps | 100% |
| ReloadSwiss RS 36 | <<locked>> | 80% | 45,759 psi | 73% | 2753 fps | 100% |
| ReloadSwiss RS 40 | <<locked>> | 92% | 46,021 psi | 74% | 2812 fps | 95.2% |
| Rottweil R 901 | <<locked>> | 94% | 43,149 psi | 69% | 2753 fps | 95.5% |
| Shooters World AR Plus | <<locked>> | 86% | 45,556 psi | 73% | 2812 fps | 95.3% |
| SNPE Vectan BA6 1/2 | <<locked>> | 80% | 41,510 psi | 67% | 2487 fps | 100% |
| SNPE Vectan SP 10 | <<locked>> | 86% | 42,119 psi | 68% | 2759 fps | 95.3% |
| SNPE Vectan SP 3 | 19 gr | 82% | 34,882 psi | 56% | 2585 fps | 95.3% |
| SNPE Vectan Tubal 3000 | <<locked>> | 94% | 42,351 psi | 68% | 2680 fps | 95.4% |
| SNPE Vectan Tubal 5000 | <<locked>> | 98% | 38,290 psi | 61% | 2612 fps | 95.4% |
| Somchem S335 | <<locked>> | 92% | 38,711 psi | 62% | 2628 fps | 95.4% |
| Vihtavuori N110 | <<locked>> | 80% | 52,243 psi | 84% | 2720 fps | 100% |
| Vihtavuori N120 | <<locked>> | 80% | 38,493 psi | 62% | 2618 fps | 100% |
| Vihtavuori N130 | <<locked>> | 80% | 30,908 psi | 50% | 2444 fps | 95.7% |
| Vihtavuori N133 | <<locked>> | 86% | 32,343 psi | 52% | 2487 fps | 95.1% |
| Vihtavuori N135 | <<locked>> | 92% | 32,401 psi | 52% | 2569 fps | 95.5% |
| Vihtavuori N140 | <<locked>> | 96% | 39,552 psi | 63% | 2684 fps | 95% |
Recommended = one of the top powders for this cartridge and bullet combination.
ᴾ possible press load - work up slowly to this load while watching for signs of excessive pressure.
This overview compares 72 powders for 5.56 x 45 NATO loaded with the .224 | 62gr | Berger Varmint. Alliant Power Pro 1200-R delivers the highest muzzle velocity at 3,064 fps; across all powders the maximum-charge window runs from 1,801 fps to 3,064 fps. Accurate 2015 gives the best case fill at 100 %, and 72 of the 72 powders fall inside the usable 80–100 % fill window.
Relative to the caliber's maximum pressure (430 MPa), the top charges use 51–90 %, leaving at least 10 % headroom. The 62.0 gr projectile in 0.224" calls for a 1:11.0 twist; slower twists will usually not stabilise this weight. Accurate 2015, Accurate 2495, Accurate 2520 reach 100 % fill or more at maximum charge, so these are compressed loads: they need a long drop tube to seat cleanly and react sensitively to the case capacity of your own brass lot. Hodgdon H335, Hodgdon H322, SNPE Vectan SP 3 rank at the top here: for 5.56 x 45 NATO with the .224 | 62gr | Berger Varmint they combine a high case fill with complete burn and sit in the upper velocity band. As outliers, Accurate 2200, Accurate 2230, Accurate 4064 burn incompletely and react more sensitively to barrel length and temperature. Always begin at the start load and work up in small increments while checking case and primer for pressure signs.