Anyone hand load using 165 Grain Nosler partitions in their .308 win Savage 99?

rci2950

rci2950

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I will be hunting for the first time using my (new to me) Savage 99 in .308 win. I have a box of 165 grain Nosler partitions and don't really want to waste time and bullets working up a load. I was hoping to call out to the community here for anyone who has used these bullets in their .308 Savage 99 in hopes of them sharing their pet load. I know i am being lazy but the shooting range is a day trip to get to and i don't want to make multiple trips working up a load and then sighting in. I have all kinds of excuses. Anyway. Farthest shot will be 300 yards MAX. Most likely will be under a hundred.

I am hoping someone already uses these bullets in their 99.

My 99 is from the mid to late 1970's if that means anything


I really appreciate your help.

Adam
 
Well, in truth a particular load may or may not shoot well in your rifle. You will still have to go out and shoot at some targets to get a feel for what will be most accurate in your particular rifle. For what it is worth, I always used 47 grains of BLC-2 with a 165 grain hornady flat base.
 
My 308 Win has taken many, many whitetail and mule deer, and two elk, with 165 Speer HotCor with enough RL15 to get about 2800 fps from 22" barrel (As per Speer and Nosler loading manuals). Never felt the need to go up to Nosler Partitions, but 2750 to 2800 should be your target speed for 165 grain 308 Win...
 
So if i understand correctly 2800 should be my target speed. I am struggling with this because Looking at the Hodgedon loading data the max recommended loads for a number of powders are going to get me just under 2750. What do?
 
Well, lots of really good men will disagree with me, but unless you are really slow, velocity is just a number and worrying about arbitrary numbers is pointless. The only real benefit to extra MV is drop over distance and 99% of us have no business shooting at game 450m+ anyway. In the real world, neither Bambi nor Bullwinkle will notice the difference between 2,600 fps and 2,800 fps. Far, far more important is accuracy. Put any reasonably good bullet in the right place at a decent velocity and there's a roast in the oven.
 
ATOM said:
Well, lots of really good men will disagree with me, but unless you are really slow, velocity is just a number and worrying about arbitrary numbers is pointless. The only real benefit to extra MV is drop over distance and 99% of us have no business shooting at game 450m+ anyway. In the real world, neither Bambi nor Bullwinkle will notice the difference between 2,600 fps and 2,800 fps. Far, far more important is accuracy. Put any reasonably good bullet in the right place at a decent velocity and there's a roast in the oven.
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This is what i was hoping. I am going to try 3 with a mid range load of 4166. should give me 2600fps roughly what i am thinking you are getting out of the 43 grains of Varget. I hope i get lucky. I am being a cheapskate. But Nosler partitions are $60 for 50... I don't feel like burning up half a box just figuring them out. I would rather put as many of them though deer as possible. Thanks for your help ATOM.
 
rci2950 said:
So if i understand correctly 2800 should be my target speed. I am struggling with this because Looking at the Hodgedon loading data the max recommended loads for a number of powders are going to get me just under 2750. What do?
Click to expand...

You will learn more about your rifle and brass by making a workup loads and reading your fired cases and primers. There is simply far too many variations in firearms and components to pick a load at random. There is a reason why the reloading manuals tell you start low and work up.

Example, I have been reloading for over 47 years and made a mistake on seating the bullets in light 9mm practice loads for a new pistol. The OAL was too short and the seated bullets were too deep in the case. And this mistake on seating and OAL caused extremely high pressure, and I fired 10 rounds and did not see this until I picked up my brass.

Bottom line, there are no shortcuts in reloading and mistakes can happen, so make workup loads or buy factory ammunition.
 
bigedp51 said:
Bottom line, there are no shortcuts in reloading and mistakes can happen, so make workup loads or buy factory ammunition.
Click to expand...

You are right. Either way around it i am going to have to. I will just have to make it worth while over the years of using this rifle. I was hoping for a magic solution where i could just load a hand full of rounds, sight in and hunt. But its not going to work out that way. I will load 3 of each .5 grain charge and go next week when i am off and find the best one. Being a cheap skate isn't always the best.
 
bigedp51 said:
You will learn more about your rifle and brass by making a workup loads and reading your fired cases and primers. There is simply far too many variations in firearms and components to pick a load at random. There is a reason why the reloading manuals tell you start low and work up.

Example, I have been reloading for over 47 years and made a mistake on seating the bullets in light 9mm practice loads for a new pistol. The OAL was too short and the seated bullets were too deep in the case. And this mistake on seating and OAL caused extremely high pressure, and I fired 10 rounds and did not see this until I picked up my brass.

Bottom line, there are no shortcuts in reloading and mistakes can happen, so make workup loads or buy factory ammunition.
Click to expand...

Wiser words never spoken.
 
rci2950 said:
You are right. Either way around it i am going to have to. I will just have to make it worth while over the years of using this rifle. I was hoping for a magic solution where i could just load a hand full of rounds, sight in and hunt. But its not going to work out that way. I will load 3 of each .5 grain charge and go next week when i am off and find the best one. Being a cheap skate isn't always the best.
Click to expand...

I spent half my life working on aircraft and the other half as a inspector and the first thing they taught us was the following.

"97% of all aircraft accidents are caused by human error and only 3% are caused by mechanical failures."

And I seated bullets too deep in the case for a brand new SIG 2022 9mm due to human error by reading the wrong line in the reloading manual.
 
I am in the same boat. I am loading test rounds in the 165 grains Nosler ballistic tip for a savage 99 and win 88. As well as my browning 81.
Now the savage 99's there is no two alike. They where never designed for high speed rounds. I would never go even close to a hot load in any of my 99's.
Increased recoil may just crack the tang on the stock, which if yours is a collector item. And, you should cry if that happens. You are going to have to play a lot to find the right candy for that girl. Flat out I think they are fastest and smoothest lever action out there to keep line of site while cambering a round. The perfect 200 yard and under gun. Don't get me wrong, I have seen 99's shoot fine at 300 plus, but that is very rare. And it's gonna take a lot of powder to fine out if yours can do it. I would say knowing my 99's that going from 150 to 165 might give you a extra 50 yards if you have the right load for that gun, and perfect conditions. As you said this gun is new to you. So, you have no idea what the poor girl has been through before you.

Keep postings your results.
 
I have owned a couple of Savage 99 .308's and several bolt action .308 rifles. Neither Savage would take loads as fast or high pressure as the bolt actions. I would also observe that 2800 fps is a very hot 165 gr load in any .308, not safely achievable in any of my rifles anyway. My 99's would fail to extract with > 2650 fps loads using IMR 4064, IMR 3031, and Win 748. while 2600 fps was accurate and safe with those powders.
 
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