10BA .308 Steath bullet weights

[tenth_gen]

I recently bought a new model 10BA Stealth chambered in .308 Win. Based on your experience with model 10's with a 20", 1/10 twist heavy barrel what grain bullets tend to work the best with my rifle. There's quite a wide range of weights available and it would be nice to narrow it down.

I realize that each rifle has harmonics that are unique to that particular rifle but I was just wondering what a good starting point would be.

Thanks

[Ted_Feasel]

I recently bought a new model 10BA Stealth chambered in .308 Win. Based on your experience with model 10's with a 20", 1/10 twist heavy barrel what grain bullets tend to work the best with my rifle. There's quite a wide range of weights available and it would be nice to narrow it down.

I realize that each rifle has harmonics that are unique to that particular rifle but I was just wondering what a good starting point would be.

Thanks175-178 are what my .308 1/10s like. I've bought a couple boxes of atips that have not worked up yet but I'm reading people are getting impressive results so I'm excited to see what a 250gr does

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[memilanuk]

150-200 gn

308 Win 10 tw ain't that picky.



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[charlie b]

It really depends on how much you want to spend and what your accuracy needs are.

For economy I like the Hornady 168 g AMax bullets. They seem to shoot just as well as the Match Kings and are a lot less expensive.

I started out with 175gn Hornady's and Sierra's. Then went to 155 SMK's. Then to the AMax. If I wanted to spend more I'd try the 155 Scenar's.

But, these days I shoot cast bullets. More fun to play with :)

[Robinhood]

I have found the same as Ted. The 175 Matchkings are an economical accurate bullet that is easy to find a node for with many powders. Depending on distances any thing from 150/155's to 190s + will stabilize.

The 175class is the sweet spot for most shooting though. Go lighter if you are recoil sensitive to the 175's

[tenth_gen]

Thanks for the replies. I live in Vancouver, BC and I just did a quick check and I can get Federal Sierra 168gn, 175gn and Hornady match locally and online. Not cheap at $1.80 a shot but I knew this wasn't going to be like 22LR LoL.

Thanks again

[Ted_Feasel]

Thanks for the replies. I live in Vancouver, BC and I just did a quick check and I can get Federal Sierra 168gn, 175gn and Hornady match locally and online. Not cheap at $1.80 a shot but I knew this wasn't going to be like 22LR LoL.

Thanks againI've had best results with 175 smk and burgers, the eld 178 is a good opinion, i was getting slightly less tight groups with them but that could have been me. If you looking for ultimate in accuracy go with berger pills. 168s seemed to scatter a bit, strange thing is I had some mil surplus 147gr and they were very accurate, as almost as accurate has the hand loads i worked up with smk and berger

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[charlie b]

There is an old story about 168 SMK's losing stability after 600yd. I never tested that and found them good out to 600yd.

[Shooter0302]

Thanks for the replies. I live in Vancouver, BC and I just did a quick check and I can get Federal Sierra 168gn, 175gn and Hornady match locally and online. Not cheap at $1.80 a shot but I knew this wasn't going to be like 22LR LoL.

Thanks again


$ 1.80 per shot, tell us that these are factory loaded rounds ??
As other have asked, At What distance are you shooting at, and what accuracy are you trying to achieve ?

[Ted_Feasel]

$ 1.80 per shot, tell us that these are factory loaded rounds ??
As other have asked, At What distance are you shooting at, and what accuracy are you trying to achieve ?I'm pretty sure he's looking at preloaded since he said federal smk.. my guess would be looking at federal gold metal match@$1.80 a round.

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[tenth_gen]

Should have been clear. I'm not reloading. I'll be using factory ammo. I don't think I'll be trying to go anything past 400-ish yards and I'd be happy with sub MOA

[rjkrumb]

168 gr also 165 gmx work great in mine

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[Ted_Feasel]

168 gr also 165 gmx work great in mine

Sent from my moto z3 using TapatalkWhat load did you use on 165-168.. mine doesn't seem to like those. I get at best 1-2 moa, but 175 smk and bergers I get 1/8moa almost same hole.. i guess to be fair though I have not tried 168 since I rebarreled with a shilen on one and criterion on another

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[Ted_Feasel]

What load did you use on 165-168.. mine doesn't seem to like those. I get at best 1-2 moa, but 175 smk and bergers I get 1/8moa almost same hole.. i guess to be fair though I have not tried 168 since I rebarreled with a shilen on one and criterion on another

Sent from my SM-N975U using TapatalkSo far with 175s in the shilen and criterions, its been harder to find a load they don't like then finding one they do lol

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[CFJunkie]

I have two Savage Model 10 .308s, both with 24-inch barrels.

Both shoot accurately, with a variety of weights, but when you measure lots of groups, I discovered what I didn't expect.
One shoots 150 to 168s better than 175s and heavier and the other shoots 175s to 200s better than the lighter 150s through 168s.
Both shoot 168s about the same.
Both with Federal GMM SMKS and with hand loads using Sierra SMKs with different powders.
The rifles show a preference for weights and the weights are different.

I have three Savage 6.5mm Creedmoor rifles. Two shoot 142 to 147 grain bullets the best and the third shoots 130 and 140 grain bullets slightly better.

It depends on the barrel in an individual rifle, IMO.

Better try different weights to be sure.

[Ted_Feasel]

I have two Savage Model 10 .308s, both with 24-inch barrels.

Both shoot accurately, with a variety of weights, but when you measure lots of groups, I discovered what I didn't expect.
One shoots 150 to 168s better than 175s and heavier and the other shoots 175s to 200s better than the lighter 150s through 168s.
Both shoot 168s about the same.
Both with Federal GMM SMKS and with hand loads using Sierra SMKs with different powders.
The rifles show a preference for weights and the weights are different.

I have three Savage 6.5mm Creedmoor rifles. Two shoot 142 to 147 grain bullets the best and the third shoots 130 and 140 grain bullets slightly better.

It depends on the barrel in an individual rifle, IMO.

Better try different weights to be sure.I know the steel type is a big factor as 416R has a whip frequency thats different from say 4150 but each alloy givin that it is compared to the same alloy resonates at the same frequency. Are both barrels you are talking about the same steel?

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[CFJunkie]

Yes, both are Savage factory barrels made of their standard 3% carbon steel (reflection speed of 19,107 fps).
4140 or 4150 stainless steel has a reflection speed of 19,969 fps and 416R stainless steel has a reflection speed of 20,014 fps.

The Savage 6.5mm CMs also all have Savage factory barrels with the 3% carbon steel as well.

It is possible that there could be slight differences in the % of carbon in the steel each barrel because their manufacturing dates are each more than 1 year apart, but interestingly, they all shoot best at the 19,107 fps calculated exit times so I don't believe that minor variations in the steel alloys are the source of the preferences.

[Ted_Feasel]

Yes, both are Savage factory barrels made of their standard 3% carbon steel (reflection speed of 19,107 fps).
4140 or 4150 stainless steel has a reflection speed of 19,969 fps and 416R stainless steel has a reflection speed of 20,014 fps.

The Savage 6.5mm CMs also all have Savage factory barrels with the 3% carbon steel as well.

It is possible that there could be slight differences in the % of carbon in the steel each barrel because their manufacturing dates are each more than 1 year apart, but interestingly, they all shoot best at the 19,107 fps calculated exit times so I don't believe that minor variations in the steel alloys are the source of the preferences.I think it was you in a different thread that was explaining some of the science behind exit time and load dev. I've been doing ALOT of research on it and it occurred to me (because music inclination runs strong in my family) that even on barrels that are the same alloy that there will be slight variations in them. I was thinking about a way to account for that and I think I have hit it. A light strike from a stick or rod will reveal a specific pitch that is purely a result of the alloy make up. We have instruments that can pick up pitch differences that are nearly infinite. There should be a method of plugging in the pitch or note your barrel produces to get the exact frequency at which it resonates and in theory that you allow finer control of figuring timing.. what are your thoughts on that?

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[charlie b]

Should have been clear. I'm not reloading. I'll be using factory ammo. I don't think I'll be trying to go anything past 400-ish yards and I'd be happy with sub MOA

Most of us reload for cost reasons. The only rifle I don't reload for right now is my M1 Garand cause I don't shoot it much. I bought a bunch of surplus military ammo for it a while back and was satisfied with the accuracy since the Garand is not an MOA rifle.

If cost is not an object then use Federal Gold Medal Match or Black Hills match ammo. Some of the other mfgs may be getting better with their match ammo as well. Some have had good luck with some of the foreign brands.

If cost is an issue, and if you can in your country, try some surplus 7.62 ammo first.

[Robinhood]

I think it was you in a different thread that was explaining some of the science behind exit time and load dev. I've been doing ALOT of research on it and it occurred to me (because music inclination runs strong in my family) that even on barrels that are the same alloy that there will be slight variations in them. I was thinking about a way to account for that and I think I have hit it. A light strike from a stick or rod will reveal a specific pitch that is purely a result of the alloy make up. We have instruments that can pick up pitch differences that are nearly infinite. There should be a method of plugging in the pitch or note your barrel produces to get the exact frequency at which it resonates and in theory that you allow finer control of figuring timing.. what are your thoughts on that?

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Stress/stiffness can change harmonics also. Diameter and length obviously does as well.


Get yourself a accelerometer and an oscilloscope and do a ring test. Good time to start that research and develop a system that can integrate to the popular loading software.