If you haven’t heard about the newest Federal premium round, you may be living under a rock. Released in December of 2017, the .224 Valkeryie is slowly gaining traction with long-range precision shooters. The cartridge is based on an .30 Remington/6.8 SPC case. The cartridge will work in your typical bolt-action rifle but it will also work in an AR.
Federal Premium .224 Valkeryie is available in multiple grain weights. We tested the 90-grain offering.
Overview
As of right now, several manufacturers have stepped up to the plate and begun offering factory rifles. Savage is offering its new lineup of Savage 224 Valkeryie MSR, which we spent time on at the range at SHOT. Other noteworthy manufacturers are bringing rifles to market are LWRCI and It’s true that the cartridge is .224 and will fit in your AR-15, but it’s imperative that you note that the case is bigger. This means you’ll need to change the barrel and the bolt to use it in your beloved AR-15. Or, you can buy a new upper and call it a day.
Federal has produced a cartridge that may come close to a 6.5 Creedmoor, in terms of ballistic performance, but fits inside a .223/5.56 package.
Current.224 Valkyrie’s Offerings:
- 224 Valkyrie 90-grain Gold Medal Sierra MatchKing / $31.95
- 224 Valkyrie 60-grain Nosler Ballistic Tip / $26.95
- 224 Valkyrie 100-grain Fusion MSR / $28.95
- 224 Valkyrie 75-grain American Eagle TMJ / $12.95
SPECS— Savage 224 Valkryie MSR-15
- MSR 15 Recon platform built around the new 224 Valkyrie, which offers the best performance of any MSR 15 cartridge
- Elite Series Cerakoted upper & lower
- Two-stage trigger
- Hoge pistol grip
- UBR Gen 2 Buttstock
- 18-inch barrel with 5R Rifling
- Adjustable Gas block
- MSRP: $1,499
Federal’s new MSR15 Valkeryie. MSRP: $1,499
The Savage 224 Valkeryie MSR-15 features an aluminum stock, Hogue pistol grip and the barrel is made of carbon steel.
Impressions
Savage’s claim is that the .224 Valkyrie is the first supersonic 1,300-yard MSR-15 cartridge. So far is our initial review and testing on the range was positive. I’ve got several uppers set to arrive at my home base while we’re on the road covering SHOT.
I look forward to seeing how far we can push this cartridge and how accurate it remains. If this cartridge performs as advertised, it may just give the .22 Nosler a run for its money. It’s nice to see innovative cartridges coming to market, this may be a real game-changer for long-range precision shooters and AR-15 aficionados.
Check out our full review and range time of the .224 Valkyrie.
For more information about Federal ammunition, click here.