My shooting buddy came home with a new toy last week. It's a S&W AR with I believe a 1:12 twist. To me that says start with 55gr bullets. I have thousands in the stash so that's not an issue, assuming the rifle likes one of them. 90% of the .223's I have loaded in the past have been for Contenders and bolt actions and I've always been satisfied with 4198 and have a few pounds in the cabinet, but as I've never really been a big AR fan I figured I'd ask for some opinions on what you've found works best in other AR's with 55gr bullets. From the powder list in Sierra's .223 AR loads I also have on hand RE7, 3031, H335, 4895, Varget, and 4064.
He'll be using the rifle mostly for target shooting but he has a working farm so it will always be kept ready to deal with the usual varmints, nothing standard cup&core Sierra's can't handle, and the longest possible range is maybe 250yds. I'm going to have him order a few other different bullets, too, just to give the rifle a chance to voice its opinion and a few suggestions on those won't hurt either, but mostly I am interested in other powders that work well within the AR's operating envelope as I am a bit lacking in experience loading for them.
What has worked well for others so I can decide on my order of testing and which other powders should I start trying to locate that should go on the list?