300 Weatherby

[Nick Jones]

I've got a Vanguard I'm about to start loading for and want to start with 200gr Accubonds. I have IMR7828 and RL22 on hand. Are these good starting powders, or do I need something slower? I've never loaded for a Wby before, are there any quirks to the radius shoulder? Also, is Hornady or Remington brass any good for this, or do I need to get Wby brass? Thanks in advance for any tips...I love this site!! More info here than I ever expected to find in one place.
Thanks
Nick

 

[James Jones]

The IMR-7828 is a good powder , I have never used the R-22 in that round but it may be a little fast for the 200gr pills since its burn rate is close to 4350.
The weatherby brass is gonna be the best as far as accuracy goes but for a bone factory gun I woulden't waste the money and its pretty soft so it doesn't last long.
As for reloading it I personaly like to use a FL sizing die and set it to just bump the shoulder that way it doesn't get to bad of a bulge above the belt. The Weatherby chamberes are desgined to have freebore so you most likly won't be able to seat the bullets out far enough to touch the lands and still feed from the mag , but if you can you MUST back off the charge a bit or your gonna get pressure spikes.

The Vanguard/Howa rilfes are good guns and make a great base to build a custom later , if you rig doesn't shoot up to par try having it bedded , the trigger worked and the crown recut. Another option that I did on a buddies 300Wby was cut the barrel back a bit (1/2") and rechamber it for 300Ackley without the freebore , makes for a more accurate and reloader friendly gun

 

[kraky]

You've gotten great advice. Try the start with 7828. I have a 300 wby that loves the stuff in all bullet wts. But I also have a 300 wby ultralight that is really fussy and is now liking retumbo. 86 grains (work up) is working great under the 200 ab and 88 is working really well under the 180tsx. This is being tested in 25 degree Wis weather so don't try these loads in 90 degree Arizona heat!
Also be sure to test at longer ranged than 100 yds. Some of my loads that shoot 1.5" at 100 yds will do 3" at 300 yds. (Thats about as good as I can do in 5-15 mph winds with a 3-9 scope off sandbags.)
By the way...if you use rem brass drop the loads back at least 2 grains over and above wby brass....it has quite a bit less capacity. Don't bother with the Hornady brass. I used to buy it when it was $23/50.....now it's as expensive as wby brass and the primer pockets go to heck really really quick.

 

[Nick Jones]

Thanks guys. I'll try 7828 first. I haven't bought brass yet...I got 2 boxes of Hornady and 1 box of Rem factory loads with the gun. This is the first cartridge I've ever loaded for that Winchester brass wasn't available for...that's always been my preference. I'll get some more rem. and start with that. I bought this gun as a replacement for my 7stw that the barrel was shot out of. It was a DM action Remington and the longer I owned it, the more I hated the DM. I was gonna have it rebarreled after deer season '05, but it got swiped from behind the seat of my pickup the night before opening day. No STW's to be found, so I bought this. Very happy with it so far with about 45 rounds down range. If I can't get it to shoot like I want with some tweaking, it'll be a STW!
THanks again,
Nick
PS
anyone else got some good recipe's to try out?

 

[Hired Gun]

With anything but Weatherby brass you will be leaving 100 fps on the table due to the less case capacity. Rem nickel brass comes close as it is much harder but you need to back off the charge and work up. I use 85.5 grains of IMR7828 or 83.5 of IMR-7828SSC in real Weatherby brass with CCI-250 primers. Be carefull, across the board I have found the 7828SSC powder makes more pressure. OAL is 3.700". Velocity is right at 3100+/- a few depending on the temp. In a 24" Vangard and non Weatherby brass you should still be able to get close to 2900 to maybe 3000 fps with 200 grain bullets. Mine is a real shooter. I only PFL size after 10 or more firings. The rest of the time the Lee Neck die is all I use. Never seen a bulged case or ever had any issues due to the belt. Be sure to back off my load and work up. Every rifle is different.

 

[Nick Jones]

Thanks Hired Gun, I had wondered about the 7828ssc.
Nick