22-250 help

S

Scanner_66

Regular
EE Expired
Rating - 100%
78   0   0
Location
Annapolis Valley, NS
I know this is a long post - please bare with me...

I just picked up a Winchester Mod 70 CRF Coyote SS/Lam in 22-250

One of the attractions was 250 hand loaded rounds and extra brass. Finally getting a break in the weather last night I took it (and others) out for a quick shoot.

The first 3 shot grouping made me smile, 2 in an overlapping hole and one right beside it…big smiles and pulled out the 280 for some more testing…

Back to the 22-250, it was so much fun firing the first group that I had to go again…WHAT – a +2 inch group!!!! WTF??

OK so put it aside; back to the 280, still looking for a load ….try the 22-250 again…

3rd group results were just less than 2 inches…

This left me a little perplexed so I took the rounds down to the reloading bench and started weighing them…I found a 6 grain variation in weight on randomly tested samples of complete rounds!!! This made me scratch my head and then I dug out the bag of fired brass that came with the rifle, ignoring the once fired factory primed I weighed the some of the rest…there is a 4 grain spread over the test samples….I then pulled 10 rounds apart and weighed the powder…a spread of 2 grains over the 10 test rounds….the brass showed the same 4 gr spread as the fired brass.

Q1) I found the rounds were extremely hard to pull, some required 30 blows of the kinetic hammer on the concrete floor of the reloading area to separate, possibly crimped?

The load should be 38.5 gr of H380, 50 gr V-maxs, Win brass and CCI LR primers…

Powder spread was from 38 – 40 gr’s.

Brass was 4 gr’s –

Q2) So how much difference will a spread of 4 grains in the weight of the brass make; is this something I need to consider as I rebuild a load for this rifle?
 
4grs? that's a lot of powder if you were 4gr over max you could have a big failure...never shoot unknown loads EVER!!! unless you loaded them or you and a buddy loaded them do not shoot them......If I find a reload in my cabinet that I'm not 100% on I pull the bullet and start over......That's what I would do with the rest of your loads...

A crimp has been proven to improve accuracy.
 
John Barness had an article on handloading accuracy and claimed that he found case weight difference was not a significant factor for most shooters.

However, with a 2 gr. difference in powder (and perhaps more!!) I'm surprised you got groups as good as 2".

I agree with the previous poster and would never use anyone else's reloads. The differences you have noted in powder weight alone are enough to tell me that the person reloading them lacks in the technique department. Pull them and start again.
 
My book lists the charge weight @ 38-41g of H-380 with 40g bullets.
I always sort my brass by brand first, then check weights. It is not uncommon for different brands of brass to differ in weight, and more importantly volume.
4g differences are common.
Consistency makes accurate rounds, something you seem to lac, but from what you say your ammo doesn't seem unsafe.
Did you notice/ check for pressure signs?
 
First off....you should never trust others handloads. For all you know, whoever loaded them could have been loaded themselves when they charged the cases.

Get a collet puller and pull the bullets and toss the powder. There is no way for you to know exactly what powder is in those. Even with the original loaders data, if they had 2 grain differences in the powder loads, maybe they jotted down the wrong powder name too.
 
"...250 hand loaded rounds..." Your's or the rifle's previous owner's? Never ever shoot other people's reloads. Your issue is exactly why.
 
The 2gr spread in powder is what's making the difference in accuracy.

The 4gr spread in the brass - not so much. I wouldn't worry so much about the weight of the brass. Besides, you can't control the weight unless you're weighing it and are after ultimate bench-rest performance and using premium brass in a tight necked chamber etc....

Back to the powder - a 2gr difference has the ability to significantly change your group size. Sounds like you got lucky with the first three you fired. They must have been close in powder charge weight.

Ironically, I just started working up a load for a 22-250 with Varget and 52gr bullets. The sweet spot for this rifle came at 35gr. One or two grains away from this and the groups opened up quickly. So, with a mixture of powder charge weights, it's no surprise you got bad groups.

I'm sure you'll have better luck with your own loads.

good luck and be safe - SD
 
What do you mean by powder Spread 38-40 ?...
You should buy yourself a scale and stop guessing...
No question, you use lousy reloads and therefore you get lousy groupings

Use premium bullets, accurately weight out every single charge and you will see one hole groupings guaranteed...!
 
Last edited:
Assuming brass is all the same manufacture and same lot, 4 grains difference in brass weight will have some effect on acuracy. 2 gr. on a 40 gr. powder charge is 5%, this will certainly have an effect. Get some match grade brass, preferably all from the same lot. I use Lapua brass for target loads, it will take more pressure than regular brass and the primer pockets are cnc machined not punched. Segregate brass so it all gets the same # of firings, trimmiings etc. Now all you have to decide is weather to pull 250 rnds or shoot them, collet style bullet puller will work faste but may mark the bullets. Good luck.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom