Is this safe?

[glenliz87]

I was going over my load manual (Lyman 48th) & discovered that using a 200gr lead bullet in a .303 british calls for a starting load of 11.0 grs Unique or 15.5grs of 2400. I presently have 185gr & 205gr lead bullets. Can I safely use this data or should I +/- 1gr to start with?

I also have a listing for .308 Win using a 190gr lead bullet. Starting load is 10.5 grs Unique, or 11.5grs SR4756 or 17.0grs 2400. I presently have 185gr & 187gr lead bullets for this rifle also. Can I safely use this data or should I +/- 1gr to start with? There is also a listing for 180gr lead for this rifle that states 1.5gr less of Unique & SR4756 starting load. This is a slightly lighter bullet. Can this data be used? Any help would greatly be appreciated. Thanks!

 

[joe-nwt]

You should be able to use the starting load for a given bullet with a lighter bullet with no problems. If you were going heavier, then you may want to consider a slightly lighter load. Weight variances of 10-15 grains shouldn't make any difference using a starting load.

 

[Splatter]

Yup, Joe's got it right. Also, the cast bullet loads, even the top loads are probably not at max pressure for a modern rifle; but probably starting to lead the barrel badly, so in general, very small overloads will not ruin brass or rifles, just make cleaning a bigger chore.

 

[kodiak1]

glen with only a 5 GRN difference between your 205 and the recommended 200 I wouldn't loose a whole bunch of sleep you could easily cast that much difference from batch to batch depending on your mix.
Ken.