Benchrest Primers

Powderfinger61

Powderfinger61

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I may be wrong with this but I hope for a explanation. Is it possible that the BR primers Im using are not really recomended for small case cartridges(.223)

Ive been doing some load development and decieded to try the BR primers...not a good move. I find it very difficult to get consistancey on the target.
Same powder, bullets, seating, brass and loading procedure, but i have lost accuracy with these primers. The groupings are bad enough that i wont take a picture, embarrasing actually....lol

Anyone experience this with BR primers (CCI)
 
If you normally shoot that same case / load / bullet with standard primers of the same brand and you've now switched to BR primers I highly doubt it would change your groups very much. It should be more like changing lot number.

In other words I think if it all of a sudden shoots more than 1/2" larger groups than it did then primers are not your problem.

Mike
 
Bench rest primers are not all that different, just made with more care to ensure consistency and reliability, at least that's what I gather from reading. In fact I've read by some they are exactly the same just put in a different box and its just marketing. I don't know If I believe that but......

CCI BR primers were all Wholesale had when I bought my supplies, so that's all I've used for my .223.

Besides, from my understanding when you switch any part of the equation you should work up a new load. Maybe you just need to find a new sweet spot.
 
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BR primers tend to be a little bit hotter. They also seem to work better in small capacity cases.

When I was shooting Hunter Bench Rest, a very good friend, now deceased Albert Forsland and I did a few experiments.

I was using a full sized 308Win cartridge with Win748 powder over CCI BR2 Large Rifle primers, 135grn Robinette bullets. Previously I had been useing normal CCI 250 Magnum primers. There was virtually no measureable difference in accuracy at 100, 200 or 300 yards between them. They chronographed within 50fps over close to 100 rounds. The bullet weight was 135grains. I won't give the load because it is well over max for rifles that don't have the tight tolerances of bench rest chambers.

Alberts rifle was a totally different story. He was shooting a 30BR with 125 grain bullets. I don't rember the powder he was using, other than it was ball powder. To make a long story short, he shot 5x5 round targets, over a chronograph with both CCI small magnum primers and CCI BR1 small rifle primers. There was a noticeable difference in velocities between the two. The small magnum primers produced velocities that were consistent but around 100fps faster than the BR1 primers. Normally, with the 1-15 twist rates we used, the higher velocities produced better accuracy. Not in Alberts rifle. The CCI BR1 primed cartridges did produce lower velocities but tighter groups or in our case, the shots were closer to the 10X center dot.

Now, just understand. Each rifle is an entity unto itself. Find a combination your rifle likes and stick to it. Most often, especially if some components are unavailable, you can make them work acceptably through trial and error. The problem with that is it takes valuable time and sometimes resources.

Many of us are luck enough to have more than one set of components to try in our rifles. Most aren't. If you want a real learning curve as to accuracy and what it takes to get the best, get into some venue of bench rest shooting. That isn't always possible and it's expensive.

If you can only afford one rifle and the components that make it work. look for a different supplier that is more reliable to get your components. You don't mention how you buy them either. Do you buy your components in lots large enough to make up 1000 rounds or just enough to make up 100 rounds. Some people go to gunshows and buy part boxes of components. Not really a good idea if you're looking for ultimate accuracy.

Bench Rest shooters buy their components in large quantities. Often if they find a combination that works, they buy up enough to shoot out the best accuracy potential of their rifle. That way, it's all from the same lot and won't throw a curve ball at them when they switch to a new lot. The same goes for powder, primers, bullets and cases.
 
Update!

Not to be discouraged by my groups getting larger, as opposed to the ultimate bug hole shots. I ventured out again today to try a little more fine tuning as suggested earlier. All the reading says BR primers are great and shouldnt hinder my groups.

I guess Ive got a bigger problem.

To give you a better perspective of the issue, here is a group I shot on Oct 6/2011

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Here is a 20 rounds I shot today. 200 yard target.
All strings were the same bullet, powder, primer, brass etc....
As i hit String 3(bottom right), I deceided to adjust the scope to center POA.
By the time I hit string 4, (center target) my groups were showing great potential again.
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My conclusion, the scope is not holding up inside, the cross hairs are moving.
I am confident that I can make reloads accuratly and that Im able to produce good groups with the firearm I have.
That being said, the scope is off the rifle and heading back to the company.
I will provide pictures and a letter and see what they come up with for a solution.
The scope;
Vortex Crossfire 6x24x50
It will take awhile, but lets see how the VIP UNLIMITED Warranty works for me.
 
BR primers are built by the factory workers who choose not to drink when not at work.

Regular primers are made with the same components but by individuals who do drink in the evenings and weekends when not at work. :p
 
External screws on bases and rings all tight?

It does look like it could be the scope. Before you ship it off, do you have another scope, preferably a known-good scope, that you could throw on the rifle and shoot with?

It can take a fair bit of work to decisively nail down a scope as a problem.
 
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