Overall bullet length

DsrtRat

DsrtRat

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Just started reloading. I made up 2 batches of .223. They both have 50 gr. Nosler BT bullets.

The first one if 25.5gr Varget COL of 2.245. The second one is 26.0 gr Varget at 2.252. I used different books that had different max and min loads just to get some starting loads done up. I just saw on the Varget website that they list their COL at 2.210 with a 50gr bullet. Why such a short COL? Is that their best test load or should I be seating my bullets in more?

Safety is my biggest concern. My gun is not fussy and am I just learning this reloading game.
 
Use the COL given in your manual. Keep it the same until you've found the most accurate load. The manuals give the max COL for the heaviest bullets they tested. They can be different due to the shape of the bullet. A Spitzer will be different than an HP, for example.
As long as your loads are all the same, it won't matter much.
 
The only manual I currently have is the Lee Reloading. second edition. It gives powders, velocities, (min and max) and the only reference to COL is the .223 diagram that shows 2.260. Assuming my overall length is below that, I should not be at risk of having made a shell too long with a bolt action?

A buddy of mine who does a lot of relaodong gave me some start numbers for varget powders with different bullets but the only COL I was concerned about was the max of 2.260 so we did not discuss making a shorter bullet (too much shorter as I kept myself below the max COL).

I don't have specific reload data for the NOS BT and Varget powder but noticed that all the 50gr .223 loads on the Hodgdon site shows COL at 2.210. Is this to ensure a nice compact powder load with that bullet size? I noticed that the COL for every bullet weight is the same (ie. all 50gr = 2.210, all 45gr =2.240, all 40gr = 2.280 etc...)
 
Hmmm - I have the Lee 2001 edition. It lists an OAL for each load. When I first got the book years ago, I assumed it was maximum OAL for the listed bullet. I was wrong - its a minimum OAL. The reason its there is to avoid pressure increases at a lesser OAL.
The cartridge drawing shows a larger value - presumably the SAAMI maximum.
 
OK, I just looked and the second edition lists a "MIN OAL". For .223 H-Varget, it lists 2.210 as the min and I am assuming that 2.260 is the max? The way I read it is 2.210 is the shortest and 2.260 would be the longest? ANywhere in between is safe (not necessarily the most accurate)?

Just curious as to why they have such short OAL when everything I have read indicates that the closer to the rifling the bullet is, the more accurate they are (generally speaking).

The 2nd edition also list Varget at 26.5 for start and max lood whereas many other books go as low as 24 something and as high as 27 and change. I am assuming that if you play within the safe and printed load data, it just becomes a matter of trial and experiment to find the powder load and seating depth that works best in your specific gun?
 
The max OAL would be what you can fit into your mag...... unless you hit the Lands first.

I am currently shooting Nosler BT out of my Remmy 700 in .223. My OAL for that round is 2.87. I seat my bullets about 2 thou off the lands. I didn't even bother making up a test batch untill I knew what the OAL for my rifle should be for this round. After that I did a ladder test and found 25.5gr of benchmark to be my butter load for my .223.

In comparisson I seat the bullets for my AR at 2.25, because that is the Max for a couple of my mags, I do have a couple of mags that will allow a bit more (about 2.30) but the rest are all in between.

IMHO your Mags or your lands should dictate what your OAL should be, not some number found in a manual because it fits any and all rifles that chamber that calibre.

My $.02
 
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