Reloading for a Remington 700 AAC PICS

StrelokRussia

StrelokRussia

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I want to start reloading .308 for my Remington 700. It's an AAC model with a 20" heavy barrel with a 1 in 10" twist.

I've read that it likes heavier bullets around 168 grains. Other than that I don't know what bullets, primers, powders to use. I don't have any reloading equipment.

I've collected all my brass from the range but some of it might be 7.62 NATO.

My goal is to shoot up to 600 meters and maybe, a long time down the road, at 1000m.

I also want to hunt with it so I'd like to reload and have the bullet deliver good stopping power at that distance, not just holes in paper.

I'm sure I can do it. Here's the gun:

Remington 700 AAC .308 20" heavy barrel
Trigger Tech trigger
20MOA EGW rail
Bell & Carlson 700 BDL light tactical full bedded stock
Bushnell Elite Tactical 6-24 x 50mm FFP scope
Bipod (don't know what kind but it's solid)

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Your 1:10 twist can go heavier than 168 grain. I run 175/178/208 in my 10 twist savage. You should probably start by picking up a couple manuals and read them. Lyman is good. Lots of threads in this section about beginning reloading and recommended setups. Youtube is a good reference as well. Alot of smart people with beginning guides to reloading
 
Add a good rear bag if you don't already have one. If you mean the action is bedded, all good but if you're referring to the full length bedding block, bed it or have it bedded. I wouldn't change anything else myself. As for reloading:
Segregate your brass by headstamp and if long range or tight groups are the goal then sort them by weight or volume. Consistency requires consistency. For bullets for big game, .308 can't drive hunting bullets fast enough to need a premium bullet but a premium bullet can still provide benefits. With a 10 twist you can drive most any weight but 165 to 180 are about ideal for velocity vs weight. Go with a bullet that shoots well whether it monolithic or cup and core really doesn't matter under 2700 fps mv that your .308 may be capable of. Varget or H4895 would be my powder choices with a handful of others working well like IMR 4064, CFE 223, IMR 4895 etc. Consider match primers for itty bitty groups, though standard primers will still deliver excellent accuracy potential. As for your distance goals, 1000m with a 20" .308 might be fine for a sniper but to reliably make clean kills I'd cut that distance atleast in half and thats assuming you have a good base of skills. Once you start reaching out you have factors stacking up against you making a first round hit a very difficult accomplishment. Wind drift, mirage, cosine, human error, data error resulting in correction error (distance to target, judging the wind between you and target, environmental factors, known MV and BC etc etc). The best advice is to practice practice practice. Start where your comfortable then move out gradually. Work up a good load then take it out at 500+ on a windy day. You'll quickly see why a 1km shot at an animal is a pot shot at best.
 
supernova said:
Add a good rear bag if you don't already have one. If you mean the action is bedded, all good but if you're referring to the full length bedding block, bed it or have it bedded. I wouldn't change anything else myself. As for reloading:
Segregate your brass by headstamp and if long range or tight groups are the goal then sort them by weight or volume. Consistency requires consistency. For bullets for big game, .308 can't drive hunting bullets fast enough to need a premium bullet but a premium bullet can still provide benefits. With a 10 twist you can drive most any weight but 165 to 180 are about ideal for velocity vs weight. Go with a bullet that shoots well whether it monolithic or cup and core really doesn't matter under 2700 fps mv that your .308 may be capable of. Varget or H4895 would be my powder choices with a handful of others working well like IMR 4064, CFE 223, IMR 4895 etc. Consider match primers for itty bitty groups, though standard primers will still deliver excellent accuracy potential. As for your distance goals, 1000m with a 20" .308 might be fine for a sniper but to reliably make clean kills I'd cut that distance atleast in half and thats assuming you have a good base of skills. Once you start reaching out you have factors stacking up against you making a first round hit a very difficult accomplishment. Wind drift, mirage, cosine, human error, data error resulting in correction error (distance to target, judging the wind between you and target, environmental factors, known MV and BC etc etc). The best advice is to practice practice practice. Start where your comfortable then move out gradually. Work up a good load then take it out at 500+ on a windy day. You'll quickly see why a 1km shot at an animal is a pot shot at best.
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I wouldn't be hunting at 1000m for sure, that's just a goal to say I put one on paper at 1k. I doubt I'll ever hunt at 600m either but If I have the stopping power at 600 I definitely have it at 200-300 which is the longest shot I'd be comfortable taking on a game.

I want to get tight groups at 600m. I don't have a lot of experience shooting that far but I want to build a rifle/load combo that can do it and then I'll be practicing to bring my skill up to that level.

I've read a bit about reloading but I wanted to get opinion on my rifle setup and if I can do anything better with it.

Rear bag makes a big difference? I put my palm on my shoulder and rest the buttstock aganst my shoulder and between my thumb and index finger to get a stable hold.

It's an aluminium bedding block I was referring to. I haven't bedded it yet. I also need to check the rail for bends but I don't think it was when I installed it or I would have shimmed it.

Thanks
 
Rifle looks almost identical to mine minus the cheek bag!

Mine tends to like 168gr SMKs behind 41.3-41.5gr Varget. I've had good groups with 43.5gr varget and 168gr SMK as well.

If you're hunting with it, man, that's a hefty combo to be walking around all day in the bush with. :p

As others pointed out, try and keep it in the 200-300yrd range unless you're UBER good at longer distances to make a humane kill.
 
StrelokRussia said:
I wouldn't be hunting at 1000m for sure, that's just a goal to say I put one on paper at 1k. I doubt I'll ever hunt at 600m either but If I have the stopping power at 600 I definitely have it at 200-300 which is the longest shot I'd be comfortable taking on a game.

I want to get tight groups at 600m. I don't have a lot of experience shooting that far but I want to build a rifle/load combo that can do it and then I'll be practicing to bring my skill up to that level.

I've read a bit about reloading but I wanted to get opinion on my rifle setup and if I can do anything better with it.

Rear bag makes a big difference? I put my palm on my shoulder and rest the buttstock aganst my shoulder and between my thumb and index finger to get a stable hold.

It's an aluminium bedding block I was referring to. I haven't bedded it yet. I also need to check the rail for bends but I don't think it was when I installed it or I would have shimmed it.

Thanks
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Well thats good to hear. Some see lr hunting shows and seem to think its just point and shoot and the gear does the rest. I think your goals are very reasonable. About the rear bag, it makes a very big difference over just your hand. You may go through a few before you find one thats ideal for you. I keep a TAB rear bag in my pack and like it. A decent rear bag will help tighten groups especially your vertical dispersion. You'll see the difference through a high magnification scope pretty clearly when trying to hold on your target. Regarding bedding, a full length bedding block offers great rigidity but if the action is a sloppy fit it will show up on the target. As pressure applied to the action changes so does how everything vibrates while firing. This causes the barrel to move in an inconsistent manner and the result is groups opening. A properly bedded action in a solid stock is a key point in any accurizing of a rifle. Its easy enough to do yourself but a gunsmith can take care of it for a fee as well. IMO a good barreled action, a good trigger and a properly bedded solid stock are all you could ask for in a platform to learn on. You've got good optics on top of that so add a rear bag and bed the action then you can't blame the rifle when things don't go as planned at the range. This is important for learning as it answers a question regarding fliers and poor groups. The less possibilities you have to blame the better you can focus on where to improve. Questioning your gear, yourself and your ammo is very frustrating. Eliminate the rifle and you've only got two options to blame. Yourself or the ammo. Eliminate the ammo and now you can focus on yourself without question. You'll never be wondering where to look for problems with a good rifle and ammo. As for ammo there are a few tried and true .308 loads that shoot well in any good .308 rifle. A 168 or 175 match bullet such as a Sierra Matchking 168 or 175, Hornady AMAX 168 or 178 or the more affordable Hornady 168/178 HPBT, Nosler custom comp etc. Varget is a good powder for mid weight .308, H4895 is one of my favourites too. Any of those bullets and powders will turn in excellent MOA or better accuracy in a good rifle. There are other bullets and powders but for simplicity stick to whats popular and widely available. Pick 1 bullet and 1 powder and work up a load. Constantly switching components means constantly working up new loads. No combo is really going to blow the others out of the water so focus on one and get good with it. Then when you're turning in consistent good results pick a hunting bullet, work up a load and practice your ass off to find your comfortable limits. If you can't hold it together at 600m the set your max to where you shoot well. If that ends up at 300m that hunting season then stick to that.
 
I have 2 of these, both the 16.5" version, one .223 and one .308, both bone stock with the Hogue OEM ghilly green stocks except Timney triggers. Both shoot great when I hold them steady, hard to find a load they don't like...
 
I have the same rifle bedded in a h&s stock, 20moa nightforce rail, trigger tech trigger and mickulec brake.
I'm running norma brass with CCI large rifle primers and 168gr Hornady hpbt match and 44.5gr varget
More than capable of .75 moa @100yd 5 shot groups.
At 250yd I can keep it at moa
This rifle eats everything well though. Even fusion 150gr was shooting at moa
 
I have the same rifle bedded in a Boyd's Pro Varmint, Stiller DBM, Badger 20moa rail, Insite Heathen brake, rifle Basix trigger. My load is a Hornady 178gr Amax over 43.0 gr of Varget in a PRVI case with CCI BR2s (or 200s). It shoots very reliably around .75 moa. Got a nice 5 round .877 moa group at 830 the other day. There was another accuracy node in my testing at 45.0 gr but I was getting pressure signs.
 
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