I never tried copper monometal projectiles in my 110BA. Anything under 250gr I used in my 338WM.
Unless you're required to shoot copper, it makes no sense to me to shoot GMX projectiles.
Bullets tried:
Hornady 250gr plinkers / Scenars in 250 and 300gr / Berger OTM & VLD Hunters in 300gr
If cost is a concern, you might want to look into Nosler overruns & blems @ shootersproshop.com
Powders:
RL25 / RL26 / 4000MR / N570 / Retumbo / H870 surplus
Be careful with RL26 and 4000MR - they are higher energy density powders, meaning, for example, 88 grains of RL26 might give you the same boom as 92 grains of Retumbo.
Brass:
Lapua / Hornady / S&B / Black Hills -- Lapua is undoubtedly the best.
For trigger time, I couldn't beat the Hornadys and H870 at less than $1 per round reloaded.
For seriousness, Berger 300 / Retumbo / Federal Mag primers / Lapua brass. N570 is awesome too, but hard to find.
Some advice from loading for a 110BA for years:
- Get rid of your tanker brake. Overly loud and obnoxious on a line. I switched to brakes by Nathan Wright at Muzzle Brakes and more. Much quieter, smaller, and IMO just as effective if not more. Also a heckuva lot easier to mount a magnetospeed with one.
- Get a Magnetospeed (or some chronometer). These are essential for proper load development because at distance, ES & SD really matter. Plus, you can really tell when you are pushing pressure limits with MV measurements.
- Get a 1/4"Ø x 36" aluminum rod at Home Depot, because with the 110BA, you will be hammering out some cases.
- Find a range where you can zero at 300. Find a range where you can shoot 600 or farther. The gun has big balls persona on a 100 yard line, but it's like buying a monster truck and only doing city driving. It becomes really enjoyable at 800 and farther.
Loads development ideas:
- Standardize on a powder, 300gr projectile and primer. Stick with them.
- If in your standardization, you cannot get a bullet to shoot sub-moa at any distance, don't hesitate to change the mix. This gun *will* shoot 1/2 MOA or better if you do your job.
- Start with Lapua Brass / 88gr H1000 / your 300gr projectile / your mag Primer, and make up lots of 3 to 5 cartridges for your load development.
- Load to mag dimensions (too lazy to look up my old notebook).
- Caveat : Berger VLD and OTMs have extremely long tangential ogives. Make sure your seater will accommodate the ogive and bullet point, or you'll wonder why your bullets are giving such irregular OAL dimensions.
- increase by .3 or .5 grains between lots.
- The 338LM case is big enough, you can write the load specs on the case with a sharpie. It comes off in tumbling.
- Keep detailed notes.
- There are lots of good articles on long range load development. Read them. If you can understand ladder tests, good for you. I like KISS - the money is in the readings from the chrony. If you can get single digit SD, you're rocking. Only once, in a 7mag, did I find that the fastest load was the most accurate.
- Once you have set on your powder/projectile load, play with COAL. With super-longs like the Bergers, invest in a Base to Ogive measurement set.
- Learn how to anneal your cases if you plan on firing them more than 2x.
My experience with Savage chambers and actions is that they are sensitive to pressures. At 92 grains you might start to feel bolt lift resistance. At 92.5 you have to hammer the bolt open, and at 93 grains that sucker isn't shooting any more for the day. This is my experience across four different Savage rifles I have owned.
[e.t.a.] IMO Savage extractors are like a 4 cylinder engine in a fast car. In two of them, I've replaced the extractors and ejector pins with the offerings from Sharpshootersupply. Dealing with him is kind of odd in the internet age, but it is good stuff.
