Can of worms - advice on reloading different calibers for target/hunting

Mudduck

Mudduck

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The Kawarthas
Well, after much advice from many of you I decided to take the plunge and begin reloading - especially since I want to get more serious about target shooting
I would appreciate your suggestions/insights regarding bullet selection- type/grain etc, powders, etc

Im using the RCBS reloading package from Prophet River
For Target reloading - dies are LEE Collet, REDDING Body and FORSTER Bench Rest Seater Die (from Mystic Precision)
For Hunting rifles Im using RCBS 2 die combos

Target Rifles
#1
223 cal Tikka 595 Master Sporter with True Flight 32 inch 1-7 twist. This is for long range - out to 1000 yards. Based on load testing results it seems the 90BT with RL15 @ 24.0, 90VLD RL15 @ 27.0 using CCI BR 2 primers is where I need to focus and refine things. I need to try a faster powder so Im considering H4895 or H 4350. Also I have ordered in some Alliant Power Pro 2000 MR but dont know when it will arrive.

#2
308cal Tikka T3 Sporter. I have not spent any time with it - sighted it in at 100 yards with a 5 shot 1/2 inch group using store bought Federal Premium 168 grain Sierra Match king BTHP.

Hunting Rifles
#3
30 06 cal Benelli R1 semi for moose or whitetail where Im in heavy bush - It has been sighted in using some cheaper Remington Core Lok ammo I had - was not overly impressed with the groups

#4
270 WSM Sako 85 SS with synthetic stock topped with a Swarovski 3 10x42 - use this for White tail and Moose. Have used Federal Premium 130 and 150 Grain Vital Shok. 2 inch groups at 100 yards ( it was the end of the day and I was cold so I really dont know how good it will shoot .. yet!)

#5
300 Whby cal Vanguard with upgraded stock, timney trigger, muzzle brake and a Leupold VX-L 4.5 14x56 with a Boone & Crockett reticle. I want to take this one to places like Wyoming for Elk and Antelope - all long range hunting.

Any suggestions about bullet type/ grain and powder combos as well as best places/price to purchase since Im buying for all these calibers at the same time ...
 
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No suggestions on which tips or powders to go for exactly but I can vouch for Higginsons, Budget shooter, and Rustywood.ca. I've done business with them all and they have really good prices and great service.
 
@Mudduck, some nice gear you've got there.

Re: your .223, I find it interesting that your charge weights for the 90VLD and the 90BT differ by so much (3 full grains of RL15). What sort of velocities were you getting with each? If you need a faster powder you could give H4895 a try; H4350 is slower than RL15.


You could probably do a pretty decent job loading for all your rifles with only two different kinds of powder in your cupboard:

RL-15 or H4895 or Varget or N140 or N150 - use this for your .223/90, your .308, and your .30-06 with lighter bullets

H4350 or similar - use this for your .30-06 with heavier bullets, your .270WSM, your .300Wby.


Whatever match bullets you buy for your .308 target rifle, you can always use to make target-like ammo for your .30-06 and your .300 Wby. Not that you'd hunt with it (other than varmints), but you can use it to investigate the accuracy of your rifle+scope+barrel+shooting technique, and have a decent gauge of what that limit is, before you start assessing whether your hunting ammo is accurate enough or if you can improve it.

Selecting hunting bullets is a pretty wide-open endeavour, I'll leave others to advise you and I wish you the best of luck in finding something that works well for you.
 
Well after doing a lot of research I made some decisions on powders and bullets and listed here is what I'm starting with thanks to Mark at Omineca Sports/Nechako Outdoors for his help to provide suggestions and options as I'm testing what will work best in each rifle.

BERGER 224 90GR VLD TARGET. ( its very hard to find anyone with 90 grain bullets)

HORNADY 308 168GR HPBT 250PK
SIERRA 308 168GR HPBT

HORNADY 308 180GR RN

BARNES TTSX 277 130GR BT
NOSLER 277 140GR AB
NOSLER 277 150GR AB LR

NOSLER 308 180GR AB

POWDER HODGDON H4895
POWDER HODGDON H4350
POWDER HODGDON H4831sc
POWDER HODGDON H1000

However the more I look at the time involved in reloading and target practice I may just put my Tikka T3 sporter 308 on the shelf and concentrate on the 223
 
Mudduck You have some suggestions on components to try with several calibres so I'm not going to copy that. What I would suggest you do is start with your 308. The 308 is very simple to load for and almost any combination of components usually give excellent results. Just load that one calibre until you develope a proficiency then move on to another calibre. When starting with the 308 you may want to increase powder charges 1 gr at a time to determine the most accurate combinations. When you start working with small calibres like the 223 you may want to increase those powder charges only 1/2 gr at a time. Just take it slow and safe
 
Rokoro. Thanks for the feedback. The one advantage if I start with the 223 is much of the testing has already been done so my experiments may cost less ... But then again maybe not. good advice so thank you
Just having some fun: re barrel twist. Yes I did consider it especially for the target rifles but maybe less so with hunting rifles where my concern was bullet grain etc based upon type of hunting I'm doing ... However I did check to see if people had any problems with bullet selection and didnt see any problems. Eg. For Benelli R1 I went with standard 180 grain but with round nose for shorter heavy brush. But I guess time and experiments will tell. Did you see something you think might not work?
 
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#2
308cal Tikka T3 Sporter. I have not spent any time with it - sighted it in at 100 yards with a 5 shot 1/2 inch group using store bought Federal Premium 168 grain Sierra Match king BTHP.
Click to expand...

If you set this up for paper only it should be ok
But
If you decide to use this for hunting the match kings are no good
 
just having some fun said:
If you set this up for paper only it should be ok
But If you decide to use this for hunting the match kings are no good
Click to expand...

T3 Sporter is for target only ..... could not imagine carrying around a rifle of that weight with a 8-32x56 sightron and a rifle stock with those bright orange colors. If my hunting buddies didnt fall over laughing at me f i brought it I'm concerned the deer or moose would. :)
 
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