High velocity rifle test loads, first attempt..,

waco

Springfield, Oregon
Ok. My first go. I'm pretty new to this. Feel free to give advice if you'd like. I have not shot these yet. Just loaded them. Hope to get out in a week or so. I'll post results. The load.
Fire formed neck sized FC .308 brass. It's had all the normal prep done. image.jpeg The bullet is the Lee C312-155-2R
Cast from WDWW alloy. Sized to .311" lubed with a mix of BAC and 2500 and a Gator check. It was also rolled in BLL. image.jpeg
WW LRP spark the 45gr of H4831
image.jpeg The round is loaded to an AOL of 2.680"
I'm exited to try this out. I took a page from Fiver on this load. We will see.....
image.jpeg
 
F

freebullet

Guest
I'm gunna be pushing that boolit too. I'll be happy to see your results.

My advise- dress warm!
 

Brad

Benevolent Overlord and site owner
Staff member
Looks like a good start point. I will be interested to see how it does.
I need to get my rifle out and do something.
 

yodogsandman

Well-Known Member
I'd bet that shoots real well! I was amazed last summer when I shot a similar load in my 7.62x51 Mauser using 308 brass. I just wanted to put BLL up to a torture test. Loaded up 20 rounds with magnum primers, W760 up to the neck junction and the same HT'd Lee 312-155-2R with just 3 coats of BLL. Shot fast, one right after another to beat the impending darkness, they shot into about a 2" group using all 20 rounds at 100 yards. I plan to go back and check that out again for the "challenge".
 

fiver

Well-Known Member
watch for unburnt powder in the barrel.
45grs is just on the edge of the powders happy pressure zone.
I was starting to get good groups right about there, another .3 grs brought everything together, another .3 grs seemed to really settle things down a bit better.
45.3 shot some good, very good, groups but had a few little issues.
45.6 gave me slightly larger groups but better consistency.
I think there is another higher node to be gained before I have to try another powder.
45 is a good place to start and would also give you a clue as to your next step with a half grain of dacron.
 

waco

Springfield, Oregon
Really? I wouldn't think the Dacron would be needed with the amount of powder already in the case.
 

Ian

Notorious member
Really? I wouldn't think the Dacron would be needed with the amount of powder already in the case.

It's not a matter of need, it's a matter of applying a technique that slightly affects the ignition rate of the powder and observing the result. Lots of these little tidbits will help you understand the fine points of the little things that make or break this sort of undertaking. A primer brisance change or swap to brass with a smaller internal volume, or tightening the neck tension, or seating a few thousandths deeper (or shallower), or raising the heat treat temperature for two more BHN points are all examples of similar adjustments which will have greater or lesser effect on burn than a little pinch of Dacron on top of the powder, but also give you clues about what's going on and what to try next. Try the 45 grain charge with and without Dacron and observe the groups. The results should tell you what you need to do next.

My load was 43.5 grains and ground poly buffer at 120% compression and 20 grains more bullet, but that's not the whole story and those little details you really have to work out for yourself with your rifle and components.
 

fiver

Well-Known Member
something else to think about.
34 grs of 4831 will burn clean under the 311041 in the 30-30 case and give about 1800 fps In a 20" barrel.
the sound of the round going off is almost whisper quiet more like a whoosh than a boom or crack of a normal rifle round.
a 250gr boolit in the 357 max on top of AA-2230 in an 8" barrel gives almost the same sound and burns clean too.

in this case you have less neck touching a somewhat lighter bullet gliding into the rifles throat.
without the initial spike in pressure the powder is a tick harder to get into the higher pressure zone.
look at what happened to Bjorns loads when he used a mechanically fit hard alloyed bullet versus my softer statically scuff fitting boolit.
I have more initial contact with the barrel and a sooner pressure rise before full engraving and acceleration.

the initial powder spike from boolit engraving is a timing event, too soon and you mush up the base, too late and you get poor powder performance.
the bright side is you have clues to follow.
poor powder performance?
add more, switch to a step faster powder, or trick the powder into thinking the case is slightly smaller.
lead streaking, poor accuracy, are both clues to boolit damage.
slow things down, step back in powder speed one or two steps and come back at it again.
 

Brad

Benevolent Overlord and site owner
Staff member
Fiver, the below quote has to be some of the most useful information yet.

the initial powder spike from boolit engraving is a timing event, too soon and you mush up the base, too late and you get poor powder performance.
the bright side is you have clues to follow.
poor powder performance?
add more, switch to a step faster powder, or trick the powder into thinking the case is slightly smaller.
lead streaking, poor accuracy, are both clues to boolit damage.
slow things down, step back in powder speed one or two steps and come back at it again.


Knowing this makes it far asker to determine WHAT is wrong when accuracy goes south or isn't there in the first place. Understanding what to look for as clues to the possible solutions is key.

Thanks for posting that.
 

JWFilips

Well-Known Member
the initial powder spike from boolit engraving is a timing event, too soon and you mush up the base, too late and you get poor powder performance.
the bright side is you have clues to follow.
poor powder performance?
add more, switch to a step faster powder, or trick the powder into thinking the case is slightly smaller.
lead streaking, poor accuracy, are both clues to boolit damage.
slow things down, step back in powder speed one or two steps and come back at it again.

Brad You beat me to it!

fiver……..That is a quote to Save to my Reloading "Words of Wisdom" Files! Nice!
Jim
 

fiver

Well-Known Member
I thought everybody knew that stuff,,, pursing my lips here.
I maybe lucky in how I think and can slow down motion and think things through that take micro seconds in real time.
in my head the first 1/2" of bullet movement takes about 5 seconds.
 

Rick

Moderator
Staff member
That's how I try to visualize things also, freeze frame pictures frame by frame. Helps me understand what might really be happening.
 

Brad

Benevolent Overlord and site owner
Staff member
Ok fiver, care to type out those five seconds of thought?
I bet it will be extremely helpful to most of us.