I have recently had an experience with reloads for my .454 Casull that seems a bit strange.
I have been loading for the .454 for some time and have established several loads (both full-power and reduced) that have worked flawlessly for nearly
a thousand rounds.
Recently though, I decided to load a box of Hornady 250 gr. XTP's that I got as part of a private lot purchase. I used a suggested load of
27.5 gr. of 296 (from the Hodgdon site) which supposedly gives a MV of 1700 fps. At the range, the first 3 shots were VERY mild - clearly no where near
the recoil/muzzle blast one would expect from this load. The 4th round didn't even light the powder in the case - the primer just pushed the bullet into the
barrel about 3/8ths of an inch. There was powder in the case; I found it wadded up behind the bullet in the barrel. This powder was from the same can
as many of my "good" reloads, so it is not the problem.
After this incident, it occurred to me that 27.5 gr is rather light for a 250gr jacketed bullet - after all, a 240 gr jacketed works nicely with
37.5 gr of the same powder. So is it reasonable to back off 10.0 grs of powder when going up 10.0 grs in bullet weight?
Subsequent research into starting loads for a 250gr jacketed using Win 296, suggest anywhere from 27.5 (like I tried) to 28.8 and even 34.0 (although one manual
shows 34.0 as the max, which I believe is accurate).
So my big question is: can too low a charge of 296 fail to ignite or only partially ignite? I have seen many warnings about not reducing starting loads
of 296 or H110 more than 10%, but they don't say what will happen if you do. While it is hard to believe that the manufacturer's load data would
suggest a load that be in this "too light" category, I'm at a loss as to why these loads of mine failed to perform normally.
For anyone who wants the exact load details, it was Starline brass, Winchester small rifle primers, Hornady 250 gr XTP jacketed, 27.5 grs Win 296,
and a moderate crimp into the bullet groove.
Any help or insights would be appreciated!
I have been loading for the .454 for some time and have established several loads (both full-power and reduced) that have worked flawlessly for nearly
a thousand rounds.
Recently though, I decided to load a box of Hornady 250 gr. XTP's that I got as part of a private lot purchase. I used a suggested load of
27.5 gr. of 296 (from the Hodgdon site) which supposedly gives a MV of 1700 fps. At the range, the first 3 shots were VERY mild - clearly no where near
the recoil/muzzle blast one would expect from this load. The 4th round didn't even light the powder in the case - the primer just pushed the bullet into the
barrel about 3/8ths of an inch. There was powder in the case; I found it wadded up behind the bullet in the barrel. This powder was from the same can
as many of my "good" reloads, so it is not the problem.
After this incident, it occurred to me that 27.5 gr is rather light for a 250gr jacketed bullet - after all, a 240 gr jacketed works nicely with
37.5 gr of the same powder. So is it reasonable to back off 10.0 grs of powder when going up 10.0 grs in bullet weight?
Subsequent research into starting loads for a 250gr jacketed using Win 296, suggest anywhere from 27.5 (like I tried) to 28.8 and even 34.0 (although one manual
shows 34.0 as the max, which I believe is accurate).
So my big question is: can too low a charge of 296 fail to ignite or only partially ignite? I have seen many warnings about not reducing starting loads
of 296 or H110 more than 10%, but they don't say what will happen if you do. While it is hard to believe that the manufacturer's load data would
suggest a load that be in this "too light" category, I'm at a loss as to why these loads of mine failed to perform normally.
For anyone who wants the exact load details, it was Starline brass, Winchester small rifle primers, Hornady 250 gr XTP jacketed, 27.5 grs Win 296,
and a moderate crimp into the bullet groove.
Any help or insights would be appreciated!
