Reloading question.

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DavidABQ
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Reloading question.

Post by DavidABQ »

How to decide on a bullet for a first time reloaded?

It is my understanding that a person needs to decide on a bullet an then but a reloading data book from that manufacturer. Then they can see what powder was tested and recommended.

So, how to decide on a bullet?
Last edited by DavidABQ on Tue May 02, 2017 5:23 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Reloading question.

Post by Another Dang 9 »

Fisrt you need to know what is its application. Then choose a bullet that fits it.
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Re: Reloading question.

Post by OldRanger »

For silhouette Dave its find the right bullets. Most folks shoot one for the front 3 and a different one for rams. What caliber?
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Re: Reloading question.

Post by ywltzucanrknrl »

With all the bullet designs, it's best to only use data published for the bullet you are using. That doesn't mean you have to get the data only from the manufacturer of the bullets, as companies like IMR, Alliant and Lyman will publish data for many manufacturer's bullets. The IMR and Hodgdon web sites have good information also. Quickload is another option, but has quite a few variables that need to be considered. In other words, powder companies will publish data for many brands of bullets, but bullet companies generally only publish data for the bullets they manufacture. So if you settle on using a Sierra bullet, a Sierra loading manual will serve you well. But it is best not to apply Sierra's data to bullets made by other bullet makers like Barnes, Lapua or Berger.
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Re: Reloading question.

Post by DavidABQ »

It is a cheap Remington 700 chambered in .308. I know everyone recommends a Tika in 6.5x55 or 6.5 Creedmore with a lot of people using 7mm-08 but it is what I have sitting in the safe.


Initially I will banging away at steel plates up to 600 yards at the gun club I belong to. There is another gun club nearby that has a 1000 yd. range but they do not have any silhouette matches at all so I don't belong to them.

Fortunately for me when I have a load that works decently I can take nice day trip up to the Whittington Center to get some practice in and elevation adjustment numbers but I am no where ready for that yet. I am still making room and putting together a bench in the garage so there is no rush yet but I am getting close to get everything set up.

I guess I want a sort of a centerfire plinking bullet for now with the thought of maybe someday shooting in both Silhouette Nationals at Whittington and upgrade when the time comes for that.
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Re: Reloading question.

Post by Merlin »

Just buy a keg of H4895 and some high BC bullets and load away.... H4895 is super in just about any loading...
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Re: Reloading question.

Post by jask »

I had a very accurate load in .308 using IMR4064. Note that in a heavy barrel, you will get a "null point" with every .5 gr increase in powder. With a hunting weight barrel, it is .4 gr. If you use a spread of half grain increments in testing, you may never see the best grouping.
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Re: Reloading question.

Post by ywltzucanrknrl »

I've had several "cheap" and some not so cheap Remington 700's and Savage's in 308. Everyone of them shot (grouped) very well. Most any bullet weight, most any powder similar in burning rate to 4895. Both the H4895 and 4064 are very good suggestions. FWIW, the first high power silhouette rifle I bought was a 308 Savage silhouette model 110J in Raton in about 1987---it is a good silhouette rifle---I should have stuck with it and practiced more with it instead of chasing other guns and calibers. Nothing wrong with a "cheap" 308 for sure. Best of luck with yours!
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Re: Reloading question.

Post by topclass »

Jask: what do you mean by "null point"? when I am working up a new load, I might start at .5 grain increments to get a rough idea, then ladder at .2 grain increments starting at about +/- .5 grain from what looked good on the first go round. This has been effective for me, but maybe there is a better way?
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Re: Reloading question.

Post by jask »

If you examine the vibrations of a barrel, the end is not in a vibration node. It actually whips a lot. If you take a metal rod, fix the bottom end and shake it, you will see the exact nodes you see in a barrel being fired. What you want to find is the at rest or "null" mode of the barrel when it is in a straight line. That is the point when you want to have the bullet exit the barrel.

The main selection for a powder is load density. The case needs to be at or almost at capacity (load density) for best accuracy. That is why I like the large extruded powers because they can be at max capacity without as much powder as the smaller size powders.

Once you select the amount of powder based on case capacity, then load 3 rounds each in .1 grain increments over the selected 1 grain area. Draw a grid on the back of a target with 10 crosses. Fire 3 rounds each, slow fire, at each cross. Pause and wait for the barrel to cool. Continue for the 30 rounds. Don't adjust the sights once you begin.

When you examine the crosses, you will see 2 nulls with the group of 3's expanding and contracting between. Every fifth cross for a hunting barrel and every 4th for a heavy barrel. Select one of the nulls and that will be your load. Also, you will see center of the groups vary in a sine wave as you proceed through the 30 rounds.

This is the best way to find an accurate load in one trip to the range. Also, your brass needs to be virgin.
Last edited by jask on Wed May 03, 2017 8:34 pm, edited 3 times in total.
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Re: Reloading question.

Post by topclass »

Interesting! thanks, Jask. It's a good day when one learns something useful.
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Re: Reloading question.

Post by speedy »

My apologies in advance if this is a dumb question, why the virgin brass?
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Re: Reloading question.

Post by jask »

No, it is not a dumb question. The most accurate brass is virgin. Unless you are using really good brass, Lapua, Norma or other brass with little variance in case wall thickness, it will affect your groupings to use once fired cases. I have seen Remington, Winchester and Federal brass that have as much as .020 or more variance in case wall. When the brass contracts back after firing, the thicker side contracts more and leaves the case in a banana shape. I used Lapua brass and I even sorted that for zero deviation to use for match rounds. You can compensate for that with a custom reamer with a tight neck but for a factory chamber, you need to index the thin side of the brass and always fire it in the same orientation. I just notched the rim with a file. I also got fairly decent at loading a clip so the notched cases entered the chamber at the 12 o'clock position for my hunting rifle.
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Re: Reloading question.

Post by jask »

"For silhouette Dave its find the right bullets. Most folks shoot one for the front 3 and a different one for rams."

To have two loads certainly complicates matters. You need to work up two loads and keep the brass separate because the ram loads are going to "work" the brass more than the light loads. Also your zero sight settings for left/right will be different. I just used a really soft shotgun pad and lived with the one load. If you are diligent and well organized, you can deal with two loads but IMO, it's a lot of work.
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Re: Reloading question.

Post by DavidABQ »

Thank you everyone. Reloading is going to be a more involved and complex project than I originally conceived.
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