Relatively new reloader looking for feed back

[25WSM]

I shoot a 6.5 creed in 1000 yard competition. It's not fussy and can shoot real tight. You need to chronic your loads first and find your nodes. Then work your loads that are near the top of the node. Look up Scott Satterlee load method. I use it on every rifle I start loading for. It hasn't failed to produce the correct powder charge yet. Really low SD/ES numbers. When you get the node use 1 tenth increments above and below. Then do your seating depth test to get smaller. I do it in this order every time.
1) shoot 10 rounds in 2 tenth increments up to your max. You will normally see 2 nodes.
2) nodes will usually be 3 charges wide. If shots 6. 7. And 8 are a node concentrate on 8 it will have the best SD/ES normally.
3) load 1 tenth above and below and 8 and do 5 shot groups.
4) take the best and do a seating depth test.
5) once I have my seating depth test I take the best of them and repeat step 3.
You are done for that set of components. So for a total of 55 shots you have the best load. But I have to do more because a 1000 yard tune is not a 100yd tune. So I shoot above and below again at 1000 yards to find my tune. Seating is normally good for all loads once you find the depth it likes. Shep

 

[Buzzsaw]

i'm the only one who thinks all this ladder testing is such a waste of bullets, powder and barrel.
Until you put your gun in a MACHINE rest, like the old Ransom, no one will, I should say (MOST) people cant shoot 5 rounds exactly the same.

in my worthless opinion, you're there. The Havoc is a great rifle and should shoot factory match ammo in .75 or less. If you REALLY want better, you should have saved up another $2-3K and built a complete custom rifle. You might get to .50 MOA or less

I wound find a range out to at least 500yrds, see what she does then. If you can CONSISTENTLY shoot MOA groups you will be fine for any game you want to play

get your muzzle Vel, build you ballistic drop chart and start twisting turrets,

just my .02

 

[GonehikinginAz]

My Tikka 6.5 Creed shoots best with Lapua brass and I've tried Hornady, Federal, Prime, and Nosler. Lapua was the most consistent and by a considerable margin, plus if you are like most you'll get more reloads which helps reduce the cost. Seems like most of the best PRS/NRL and accuracy oriented competition shooters use Lapua if it comes in the cartridge they are shooting. Some even apparently select their cartridge based whether there is Lapua brass available or Lapua brass can be modified for a particular chamber. You've gotten good advice on CBTO and have a good rifle plus a desire to learn, so you are on a good path. Only been reloading for a few years, but it's a great hobby if you are detail oriented and into consistency. Keep up the good work! You can try other powders and I have especially back when H4350 was nearly impossible to find, but for your purposes, H4350 will be really hard to beat so I'd stick with it if I were you. Finally, don't chase velocity and with over book loads, accuracy and ES/SD consistency trump velocity every time.

Best wishes!

 

[Clyde 2467]

Yes always one variable at a time ....record changes, then move to next variable, etc etc etc but only one change at a time...very important or things get confused quickly...

Hi hi guys heres a comment from over the pond
Im an ex master sniper from the gb forces dont get lost in the numbers the one rule is consistency
Only change one thing at a time and it take hundreds sometimes thousands of rounds to build up your knoledge of weather temps and windage plus all the other variables we deal with
There is a hell of a difference between the "range shooters " and outdoor shooters
Practise practise
Build the memory muscles
And if you buy cheap and load badly then reap what you sow

 

[Clyde 2467]

Been asked what i shoot
Well i have a fully custom 338 lap mag sat it ax furniture using lapua brass and sierra bullets in 250 gamekings
Ase moderator
And an rpa hand built using aw furniture in good old 308 win
Sierra 165 gamekings
Lapua brass
338 goes to 2000 and is a thug
The 308 does to 800 with super accuracy is my everyday worktool

 

[Lee Goodwin]

I like the 40.9 smiley face one. Keep your ammo out of the direct sun. Looks like great fun. My most accurate loads seem to be lower middle of the grain charge range.

 

[Code4]

If your limited to a 100 yard range for testing then chronographing is one way to help develop a load. There is only one thing that matters though ... what happens down range ......... with all the variables that you can't control. I hope you never shoot a five round string at one game target. Pick a load you like and test at the ranges you plan to shoot at. Adjust from there.

 

[NeedForSpeed]

My Tikka 6.5 Creed shoots best with Lapua brass and I've tried Hornady, Federal, Prime, and Nosler. Lapua was the most consistent and by a considerable margin, plus if you are like most you'll get more reloads which helps reduce the cost. Seems like most of the best PRS/NRL and accuracy oriented competition shooters use Lapua if it comes in the cartridge they are shooting. Some even apparently select their cartridge based whether there is Lapua brass available or Lapua brass can be modified for a particular chamber. You've gotten good advice on CBTO and have a good rifle plus a desire to learn, so you are on a good path. Only been reloading for a few years, but it's a great hobby if you are detail oriented and into consistency. Keep up the good work! You can try other powders and I have especially back when H4350 was nearly impossible to find, but for your purposes, H4350 will be really hard to beat so I'd stick with it if I were you. Finally, don't chase velocity and with over book loads, accuracy and ES/SD consistency trump velocity every time.

Best wishes!

Thanks for the advice and encouragement. Im really enjoying it . Love the technical , science, and precision. Crafting and refining the cartridge that takes your game makes the kill all the more satisfying

 

[halfmile]

spend a C note and get a Chrony or Prochrono, forget the fancy stuff. record the speed of each shot and see if deviation makes a shot go awry.

The RPM of the bullet is important, I feel not enough attention is given to that factor.
Most bullets "like" certain RPMs. I have a 22-250 that can't stand being pushed but it makes nice cloverleafs at about 90-92 percent of max charges. I feel this is due to "RPM Happiness" with the Sierra Match King I use.

My $.02

HM

 

[Clyde 2467]

I agree every barrel has a sweet spot
Bullet weight
Velocity and barrel lenght
Moderators
All make a difference
Mine loves 165gr but spits 150gr all over like a drunk using a spitoon

 

[The Oregonian]

So many variables.

1) a good bullet, with good BC measurements over velocity. Berger. People want to mess with powder. It only covers up other mistakes.
2) same brass - fired or re-fired? It changes.
3) excellent scale - measure carefully.
4) same primer of good quality
5) have a micrometer that measures down to 1/10,000" $75 bucks.
6) one change at a time.
7) are you a shooter? No matter how good the gun, pulling the trigger should be as natural as a heartbeat.

What are you shooting? A bad gun, no matter what you do, won't hit. Harmonics, etc. Study Brian Litz. Look up tibouriesrex on Youtube. If you study these guys, you'll be a sniper.


Temperature? don't leave your bullets sitting in the sun. Increases velocity. A "hot" round decreases accuracy, don't go with hot round. An old .308 is still hard to beat at less than 1000 yards.

If you can't drill 1 hole at 100yards, somethings wrong. Either equipment or the human factor.

Then if you want to really go long range and drive nails:

1) get the wind right. If you're shooting over 500 yards, it's the big factor. It changes over distance.
2) Air density, spin drift,, coriolis effect.

Just focus on the basics. If you can't drill 1 hole at 100 yards, something is wrong. Focus on the basics. IMHU.

I would disagree that you have to shoot one hole at 100 yds. Let's say you shoot 1 MOA and go to 500 yds and get a 5" group...with normal distribution, these would be scattered within a 5" circle with POA in the middle, so 2.5" off of center or better. That will kill a deer. Accuracy is important, don't get me wrong, I just don't want OP to feel like he has to shoot .4's consistently as a new hand loader, and shooter it sounds like, doing his own development. Just mho.

 

[jdavistx]

I think 1 hole is the goal. If you're hunting whitetail in Texas, 1MOA, 500 yards? How many animals get wounded and run off? In your example, you have not taken into consideration wind or shooter error. Now you have a 10" circle. This is a hunting forum and I don't like chasing wounded animals. I prefer 1 shot, 1 kill. Aim small, miss small and all or those cute sayings that remind us of our purpose. Just my thoughts.

 

[aushunter1]

There are so many elements that make up accuracy apart from your handloads
The rifle itself-
*Should have good bedding of the action with the barrel free floating.

*Action torque does have an influence on accuracy, you need to find the sweet spot & make sure it stays there
*Have a nice clean/crisp & lightly weighted trigger
Then everything you do with the handloads like using quality components, being pedantic about your case prep, using quality dies to reduce runout & doing it all consistently every time, annealing to get consistent case neck tension, it makes all the difference

Aside from all that in the end what your trying to do with your powder type(burn rate)/incremental charges/projectile choice/fine tuning seating depth is to align this all up with the timing as it travels & exits the barrel.

Some interesting reading on this-
https://www.varmintal.com/amode.htm

https://www.shootingsoftware.com/barrel.htm

http://www.the-long-family.com/OBT_paper.htm

Then of course there is the person behind the trigger that has to do their part

So when you think about trying to get tiny groups, think about all these things & what you have done to eliminate any potential errors before pulling the trigger
​

 

[jdavistx]

You are correct, sir!!! Look up Phil Hartman on the web if you haven't seen it. It's funny.