Loaded my first fifty rounds today

[charlie b]

I would agree. I have put together many hand loads that do not shoot as well as some factory loads. When working up loads I have had some that were really poor groups, worse than standard factory stuff.

It does depend on what your rifle likes. Some do very well with std factory loads, and even excellent with factory premium/match ammo. By reloading I can usually do better than the premium loads, at MUCH less cost, but, it takes some tweaking of the load and being selective of the bullets used.

Once you 'go down the rabbit hole' you can spend a lot of time and resources getting better, for example, going from 1" groups to 1/2" groups is frequently 'easy'. But, going from 1/2" to 1/4" is 'hard' if not impossible with your equipment and your shooting skills.

FWIW, I do very little case prep. Basically camfer the case mouth and load them up. I will sort the brass based on weight/volume. My skills are just not up to snuff to get consistent groups below 1/2MOA so my assembly of ammunition reflects this limitation.

[Dave Hoback]

Like I said, there are always exceptions. But I’ll ask this of you experienced reloaders: if you were to load 10 separate loads using quality components/match bullets, and purchased 10 different boxes of factory match ammunition.. which set of 10 would you BET on having better accuracy? (I mean groups of each different cartridge, not the 10 as ONE group.)

Where would YOUR money be?

[Whynot]

In the example above I would put my money on the factory ammo.... it's difficult to imagine just randomly selecting match grade components and having it out perform Federal Gold Medal. If you look at that ammo it has almost all 5 star reviews- and that shows that a lot of effort went into creating a round that works in a huge variety of firearms. I have had times where the first ammo loaded flat out worked, but it's rare- more rare than having factory ammo that does it. Even with lots of tweaking and tuning I've never been able to match the accuracy that I've got from factory ABM (now burger ammo) in my 300 win mag and when I finally got my hand loads to shoot as good as some sig factory stuff I was thrilled.

[charlie b]

IF it is the 'developed' load for each of those quality bullets, then mine of course. But, if it is just 10 different loads out of the book, even with quality components, then I'd pick the factory match ammo.

Keep in mind a lot of people compete at some high levels with factory match ammo.

One of the main reasons I reload is cost of that ammo.

[CRJR]

Thanks again for the replies . I tried a different bullet and powder , and took two rifles to the range . This time I loaded ELDX match bullets 150 grain with RL22 , following Hornadys load recipe , I tried different loads .
The two guns were a Savage Long Range hunter with a 26 inch barrel and a old 110E with a Criterion 24 inch barrel .
I was shocked to find the stock barrel was more accurate than the Criterion .
The top half of the target was the LRH and the bottom was the criterion . Shooting the same loads , while there was a noticeable difference with the
LRH , nothing performed very well in the criterion barrel . The Criterion is basically new , maybe 50 rounds through . The Criterion is a 1 in 9 twist .

Your thoughts??


https://i.ibb.co/ngS4tsT/IMG-2434-1.jpg

[Blue Avenger]

your second row 61.5 groups, how many shots per group?
You need to do 5 shot groups as you get closer to what you like, to rule out wiggles your your part.
what are you using currently for a bench and rest?

[CRJR]

your second row 61.5 groups, how many shots per group?
You need to do 5 shot groups as you get closer to what you like, to rule out wiggles your your part.
what are you using currently for a bench and rest?
I was doing 5 shot groups , but the last load I divided it between both rifles . the LHR has a bipod and I was using a bag for the rear rest .
The 110 I tried to use bags at first , front and rear , then the plastic rifle rest the range the range provided . The bench is a plywood bench at the range . Pretty stable .

The bench at the range is below

https://i.ibb.co/W6Kw9Tz/IMG-1216.jpg

[charlie b]

The good news is, if you take the upper 61.5 loads and plotted them on the same target, you'd have a nice small group.

Don't discount Savage barrels. They can be as accurate, or even better, than some premium barrels. The downside is they collect copper quite a bit more than a hand lapped custom barrel.

I would not discount the Criterion just yet. I use 0.2gn increments to determine best load. Based on your targets I'd try above and below the 61.5gn load. Maybe 61 to 62 or 60.5 to 61.5 depending on where max pressure is. 0.1 or 0.2 increments, 5 rounds per load. The two rifles will 'like' slightly different loads simply due to the length differences.

PS use the same rest for both rifles until development is complete. I have not had good luck with bipods (Harris) and fine accuracy. I use a std front rest and rear bag. Once you know which load works then practice with the bipod.

[CRJR]

So I went back to the range with a four more loads , and the 7mm Rem Mag LRH is shooting very nice , while I have something going wrong with the old 110 .

The top targets are the 110 LRH with a stock barrel and the bottom the 110 with a Criterion barrel .

url=https://ibb.co/VwGJQV3]https://i.ibb.co/CPymMBW/IMG-2551.jpg[/url]