Don't write off factory ammo

[pricedo]

I had a "problem child" Browning BLR "Takedown" (made in Japan as opposed to a "Belgian" Browning) that wouldn't print under 4 MOA with my favorite .308 Win. hand loaded recipes, Winchester factory loaded Ballistic Silver Tips, Remington factory loaded Scirrocos, of any & all available bullet weights come hell or high water.

I realigned & reinstalled the scope & tightened & re-tightened every nut on that rifle, the scope (Leupold 2-7x33 "Rifleman") bases & mounts a dozen times since I bought the gun and if I may say so myself I'm no neophyte at installing scopes on rifles.

I spotted 4 boxes of "cheap as dirt" Remington 150 grain CORE-LOKT PSP (R308W1) cartridges on the shelf at the local "Crappy Tire" on sale today & bought them & took them out to the range & tried them in the recalcitrant BLR.

I had the benefit of my Caldwell lead sled which together with a 25 pound bag of #7 lead shot in the "tray" and another bag over the metal base tube provides a rock solid shooting platform for sighting in rifles, especially ones with heavy recoil.

I fired 2 boxes of "shells" & none of the 5 shot groups strayed over 1.5" (@100 yards) which is udderly fantastic for any lever action rifle of any brand or model. My last two groups punched the "10 circle" right out of the target.

The CORE-LOKT is a good hunting bullet (I've shot moose & deer with them) in standard calibers as long as you don't push them too hard (keep muzzle velocities well under 3000 fps.).

I found that the lead cores of CORE-LOKT bullets separated from the jackets when I used them in my .300 Winchester Magnum (chronographed at 3200-3300fps with my "Shooting Chrony") after I dug them out of the backstop sand & examined them, but in my .308 Win. & .30-06 Spring. they held together & "mushroomed" perfectly.

My BLR from the "Land of the Rising Sun" & that cheap "Crappy Tire" Remington CORE-LOKT ammo will be accompanying me on a Pennsylvania combo Whitetail/Wild Boar hunt this November.

** I would have provided pics but my digital camera happened to be in my pick-up & I took my SUV to the range today so unfortunately no pics.

 

[Eagleye]

You have discovered one of the very interesting facts of life for a shooter. That is, occasionally, you will come across a factory load that shoots better than seemingly anything you have concocted up to that time. Oh, the right combination is there somewhere, but you just haven't stumbled on it yet. The factory did though!! I remember having a similar experience with an old M98 Mauser in 8x57JS. I had tried a dozen loads with several different bullets and powders. The best I could do was about 1.75" @ 100 meters. In searching around, I found a box of Norma 196 grain SP factory loads with only 17 rounds in it. This ammo shot under 1" in that old Mauser, the only load I can ever remember doing that. I shot a couple of moose with it and that Norma ammo. No longer have that 8mm, but I think that box of ammo is still around with about 4 rounds in it. I should try it in my 700 Classic 8x57JS. Regards, Eagleye.

 

[sunray]

"...with my favorite .308 Win. hand loaded recipes..." You have to work up a load for each and every rifle.

 

[pricedo]

"...with my favorite .308 Win. hand loaded recipes..." You have to work up a load for each and every rifle.

Gee...........no kidding!

I own a Remington Model 7, Baikal IZH-94 O/U, Remington Model 7400 auto-loader, Browning BLR & a Remington Model 700 VTR......all in .308 Win. & have bought & sold several more.

I've narrowed it down to 2 or 3 favorite powders & bullet brands & weights which do well in all of them & play with charge weight & seating depth (OAL) to create a "sweetheart load" for each individual rifle.

I'm not into super expensive, heavy barreled, sub MOA, custom built tack drivers with Krieger barrels & Surgeon actions and if I can tweak my guns & loads & get 1-1.5 MOA from my hunting rifles I'm satisfied.

Any bench rest shooter worth his salt can shoot and hand load circles around me.

 

[Tumbleweed]

Yup. I've been there with a fine custom 35 Whelen. It shot bugholes with Remington factory loads, and I couldn't find a hand load it liked to save my life. Downright insulting to a hardcore handloader!

Maybe that Remmy ammo is better than we think...I also have an FN Sporter in .270 that loves their 150 gr. factory loads. I've never tried to work up a load for that one - the factory stuff shoots so well it would be an exercise in futility to try to do better.

 

[pricedo]

Yup. I've been there with a fine custom 35 Whelen. It shot bugholes with Remington factory loads, and I couldn't find a hand load it liked to save my life. Downright insulting to a hardcore handloader!

Maybe that Remmy ammo is better than we think...I also have an FN Sporter in .270 that loves their 150 gr. factory loads. I've never tried to work up a load for that one - the factory stuff shoots so well it would be an exercise in futility to try to do better.

Maybe that Remmy ammo is better than we think...

And don't forget the proprietary, non-canister powders & other components that they have access to that we hand loaders don't.

Big Green has been in the business for a while and I'm sure they know their shyt.

Telling all their trade secrets ain't the way to stay in business.

 

[mikeyb]

I've had my fare share of problems with factory ammo but the Weatherby stuff is pretty good (better be for the money) in my .300 and .257. Also, my Savage 7mm-08 loves cheapy Remington green box. I can put 5 140gr Core-Lokts into barely an inch and a quarter off the bags.

 

[M12shooter]

17 fireball...can't get reloads to shoot tighter than factory fodder...nuts!

 

[Rembo]

I was pleasantly surprised when a "new to me" Pre'64 Model 70 Fwt in 30-06 from 1959 printed 1" groups at 100 meters with Federal Premium 165 TSX factory ammo....punched a 2" group at 200 meters, whacked the 300 meter gong twice and called it good,..went back to the store and bought two more boxes of the same lot#....good for a couple years now...I'm tired of reloading.....sometimes factory ammo works well.

 

[H4831]

I always remember a story Jack O'Connor wrote on this subject, some forty years ago. He said he was always amazed at how everybody and his brother handloader thought they could buy a low priced loading outfit, put the compnents together and the ammunition would be more accurate than factory ammo.
He said factories used high quality, precision equipment and constantly monitored the components and pressures. How could a handloader improve on that?
Oh, I forgot, you have to get what your rifle "likes." And if this is the case, then your rifle needs attention, most likely proper bedding.
Before you poo poo this and tell me you have to spoon feed your rifle, just think of this.
For more than a hundred years there have been world class shooting matches, where quite large groups of shooters compete in rifle matches. Every country in the world that does this, will use the same procedure. Their trained shooters will be given well tuned military rifles and all will be given the same ammunition. If there is a rifle that doesn't perform as it should, it is given to the armourer to be tuned, or replaced. But, They all use the same ammunition.
No shooter would say, "My rifle doesn't like this ammunition, I have to have special ammo tuned to my rifle!"

 

[pricedo]

I always remember a story Jack O'Connor wrote on this subject, some forty years ago. He said he was always amazed at how everybody and his brother handloader thought they could buy a low priced loading outfit, put the compnents together and the ammunition would be more accurate than factory ammo.
He said factories used high quality, precision equipment and constantly monitored the components and pressures. How could a handloader improve on that?
Oh, I forgot, you have to get what your rifle "likes." And if this is the case, then your rifle needs attention, most likely proper bedding.
Before you poo poo this and tell me you have to spoon feed your rifle, just think of this.
For more than a hundred years there have been world class shooting matches, where quite large groups of shooters compete in rifle matches. Every country in the world that does this, will use the same procedure. Their trained shooters will be given well tuned military rifles and all will be given the same ammunition. If there is a rifle that doesn't perform as it should, it is given to the armourer to be tuned, or replaced. But, They all use the same ammunition.
No shooter would say, "My rifle doesn't like this ammunition, I have to have special ammo tuned to my rifle!"

A case in point illustration of the saying, "Sometimes a little knowledge is dangerous."

What factors contribute to the inherent accuracy of a rifle (not taking into consideration factors related specifically to sights/scope & shooter) :

1) quality of materials & mechanical components (bedding, barrel, action, trigger)

2) rifle design, engineering & construction (fitting, polishing, matching barrel to action, head spacing, barrel crowning)

3) proper maintenance & tuning of firearm (tightening loose screws & nuts, replace or repair cracked stocks, proper lubrication)

4) selection of appropriate ammunition reloading components (primer, cases, bullets)

5) care & maintenance of reloading equipment

6) individual reloaders care, skill, diligence, & standardization & consistency in reloading procedures (case cleaning & preparation, diligence in vetting fired cases for reuse, inspection of bullets for defects or damage), quality control

7) fine tuning of hand loads to the individual rifle (full length or neck resizing, primer, powder & bullet selection, seating depth & OAL) to take into consideration the individual "character" of each particular rifle & barrel harmonics because factory & even custom built rifle construction standards (tolerances) are not 100% consistent from action to action, barrel to barrel, gun to gun even for actions, barrels, guns from the same make, model & manufacturing lot. **THERE ARE INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES

8) end use of rifle/ammo combo. I always full length resize ( as opposed to neck resizing) any cartridge cases when making ammo I use for hunting or in auto-loading rifles thus sacrificing a little on the accuracy side for more reliability & dependability

 

[Grizzlypeg]

There is good factory ammo in some cases, and it doesn't have to be expensive. I've had great results with Federal blue box (Power Shok) in 308 and 300WM in a variety of rifles. The accuracy seems to be more limited by the rifle than the ammo, although of course you need good ammo to approach the rifles inherent limit. And if reasonably priced factory ammo does it for you, you've got a more options open.