165 gr nosler ballistic tips
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Highvoltage
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I shoot the bt in my 300 and it's an accurate bullet. I'm jumping 80 thou, when I shot them in my 308 I shot them at 2.80" tikka mag length with 46 gr varget. This is noslers max from their published online data. Best wishes
Nosler BT's, AB's, ABLR etc may not shoot as well as you would think near the lands. The following is a technical note from their webpage for ABLR's but I have used this thought when loads were not performing as well as I thought they should when near the lands. I have actually reversed how I load BT's and AB's when I am not getting the accuracy I think should be by starting at SAAMI and then lengthening the CBTO or COAL to no more than 0.010 off the lands. And yes, I have found the sweet spot closer to or even at SAAMI for them.
Something to think about when realizing Berger says similar with their CBTO load guidance in some respects.
"TECHNICAL NOTE
*When loading the AccuBond®-LR bullet, Nosler ballisticians have found that loading to the maximum SAAMI cartridge overall length tends to provide best accuracy. "
link to page: Nosler ABLR Page
Something to think about when realizing Berger says similar with their CBTO load guidance in some respects.
"TECHNICAL NOTE
*When loading the AccuBond®-LR bullet, Nosler ballisticians have found that loading to the maximum SAAMI cartridge overall length tends to provide best accuracy. "
link to page: Nosler ABLR Page
Vann Kirkland
Well-Known Member
What powder were you using? I have excellent groups with the 165grain with IMR 4350.
RetiredSniper
Well-Known Member
I personally went through this many years ago with many 308 rifles. I found that the Speer 165 gr. B.T.S.P. #2034 with 42.0 gr. IMR 4064 gave just shy of 2500 F.P.S. if I went higher or lower than that group would open up at 100 yards. I also used the Hornady 168 gr. B.T.H.P. bullet with the same charge and it shot to the same point of aim as the Speer.
This was tested in many 308 bolt action rifles and held true with all. I now have a Howa 1500 Mountain rifle with heavy barrel. Howa was making the Vanguard for Weatherby for many years. The only thing I shoot out of it now are the two loads I just mentioned. Faster is not always better and lighter bullets seem to be somewhat unstable at higher velocities. When I was in the service the 7.62x51 (308) Match ammo we shot was a heavier than standard issue round. I believe it was a 165 or 168 gr. bullet. We shot it 900 meters to qualify and it was awesomely accurate.
This was tested in many 308 bolt action rifles and held true with all. I now have a Howa 1500 Mountain rifle with heavy barrel. Howa was making the Vanguard for Weatherby for many years. The only thing I shoot out of it now are the two loads I just mentioned. Faster is not always better and lighter bullets seem to be somewhat unstable at higher velocities. When I was in the service the 7.62x51 (308) Match ammo we shot was a heavier than standard issue round. I believe it was a 165 or 168 gr. bullet. We shot it 900 meters to qualify and it was awesomely accurate.
Josebigsky
Well-Known Member
+1 on Muddy Boots post. I found the same thing.
John Polk
Well-Known Member
I'll admit that I'm heavens difficulty following exactly what you're saying without punctuation, but it certainly seems to me that you need a good torque wrench. May I suggest you carefully torque all the screws on your stock, bases and scope rings to see if that will change the results you are obtaining and let us know ?
dougduey
Well-Known Member
I learned a few years ago off Nosler's reloading forum that BT's & AB's like jump. Usually from. 0.05-0.100". Partitions like to be closer to the lands. This has held true in 6 different cartridges for me. Play with seating depth and I think you'll dial it in.
baldhunter
Well-Known Member
I have more problems getting the 165gr Ballistic Tip to groups nearly as well as the 168gr Ballistic Tip.Performance on deer seem to be about the same but,the 168gr just seem to shoot a lot better.They are just a little longer and my velocity does drop just a little.In my 30-06 comparison I did,I was getting 30fps less than the 165gr using the same load.They shoot really well in my 308 with Win case,Win. Magnum Primer and 44.5grs of TAC,45.5grs of Varget,or 46.5grs of Accurate 4064
outdoorguy
Member
outdoorguy
Member
Yeah varget is hard to find around here I have a couple pounds. Might be time to just try it
kiwi49
Well-Known Member
outdoorguy - IIRC, Berger's Chief Bullet Designer made a post, on Berger's website, to the effect that heavier Berger bullets in a calibre, are more accurate IF they have a substantial amount of jump - see a post ^^^, where 50-100 thousandths of jump gave excellent accuracy.
xsn10s
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For my 308 in the 165gr-168gr class TAC, IMR4064, RL15, and H4895 have all been performers. But when testing165gr BT's I liked H4895. Also my understanding the Weatherby S2's forearm can have some flex in it so I'd try to rest the forearm closer to the recoil lug so I would flex the forearm too bad.
Vann Kirkland
Well-Known Member
This is from Lyman 49th Edition, specifically for the Nosler 165gr. Partition. I would also check and make sure all of the screws are tight as well as the scope rings.
