In order to fill a need for long range small platform modern sporting rifles, the.224 Valkyrie was developed by Federal by taking their proven 6.8 SPC case and necking it down to utilize a.224 diameter projectile. Prior to this, the ability to compete at long range was dominated in competition by the large-frame MSR's, primarily in.308 Winchester and 6.5mm Creedmoor.
Performance
There are several factory loads available for this cartridge from the factory. Those loads include amongst others:
Federal Nosler ballistic tip with a muzzle velocity of and a G1 ballistic coefficient of.270. This was also one of the original four factory loads offered.
Berger Gold Medal.224 Valkyrie loaded with a Berger boat-tailed target bullet with a velocity of and a BC of.441 in G1 format.
Barnes TSX.224 Valkyrie. This cartridge is loaded with an all copper hollow point Barnes Triple-Shock X bullet with a velocity of and a G1 BC of.383. In states that do not allow lead projectiles to be used for hunting purposes this is advertised as a good choice since it is all copper and is claimed to retain near 100% of its weight upon impact.
Federal Gold Medal Sierra Match King.224 Valkyrie was one of the original four loads offered by Federal Premium Ammunition. The Sierra Match King has a very high ballistic coefficient at.563 G1 BC for a.224 caliber because of the bullet being very long and heavy for its caliber. The high BC allows the bullet to resist wind effects better, while its mass makes it retain velocity longer. It has a rated velocity of. The Sierra Match King had a rough launch however, with reported inconsistencies in the ammunition produced by Federal. Federal has since rectified these inconsistency problems with a second generation of the Sierra Match King load. This load is intended for use in the PRSGas Gun Series and similar small frame AR rifles.
Federal Fusion MSR.224 Valkyrie. This particular load is interesting in the fact that it was originally supposed to have a bullet. However, it had stability problems in 1:7" twist barrels, hence the change to a bullet. Recently there has been a trend towards 1:6.5" twist barrels that may be able to stabilize the bullets, leading to some speculation that the original load may return to production. Its G1 ballistic coefficient is rated at.424 with a muzzle velocity of. This particular load is meant for hunting medium game such as white-tail and black-tail deer, prong-horn antelope, and feral hogs.
Federal Varmint and Predator.224 Valkyrie. This cartridge is loaded with a Hornady V-MAX bullet with a velocity of and G1 BC of.265, and is intended for, as the name suggests, varmints and predators such as coyotes.
American Eagle Rifle.224 Valkyrie. This is the plinking/economy load of.224 Valkyrie with a full metal jacket bullet traveling with a G1 BC of.400. It is one of the original four loads released for the.224 Valkyrie.
Hornady.224 Valkyrie ELD Match. This is Hornady's extended range cartridge firing a ELD Match bullet at a velocity of and has a.545 G1 BC. This bullet is meant for long range target shooting and competition.
Hornady.224 Valkyrie BTHP Hornady Black. This cartridge fires a BTHP bullet at a velocity of with a G1 BC of.395. This cartridge is meant to be used for target and competition shooting.
Hornady.224 Valkyrie V-MAX Varmint Express. This load is not to be confused with Federal's V-MAX, the specifications from both manufacturers are the same.
