Berger 200.20x Load Developement

[Tony1320]

I did some load developement for the Berger 200.20x today using Virgin Lapua Palma Brass, CCI BR-4, and Varget I tested from 43.0 to 44.0 and decided to go with 43.8gr Varget seated .015 off the lands.

I had 6 primers fail to fire while doing the load development and when I was seating the bullets some of them had no feeling while seating so I set them a side. Neck tension is .002.

What kind of accuracy should I expect at 100m? I'm going to play with seating depth next to try and get the groups smaller but everyone seems to be running the 200.20x .015 off the lands.

Winds were gusting to 20mph today so that probably didn't help

 

[BP1]

I just worked up a load with 43gr of varget,205 match,Palma brass jumping them 18thousandths.Running right at 2600fps that’s where this barrel Kreiger HV likes to shoot.

 

[Zero333]

That 1 grain spread could easily be between nodes.

Before doing any seating depth adjustments I recommend trying different primer(s). If you had 6 failures to fire this tells me your firing pin spring is not very strong and you will most likely benefit from trying Fed 205m primers since they have a much softer cup than the br4's.

99.999% of the time I had a primer fail to fire it was because the firing pin spring was weak. And it's no coincidence the primers were also cci. Fixing the firing pin spring or switching to federal primers always fixed the problem.

There is also a very small chance the primers didn't go off because they weren't seated deep enough in the pockets.

 

[Tony1320]

That 1 grain spread could easily be between nodes.

Before doing any seating depth adjustments I recommend trying different primer(s). If you had 6 failures to fire this tells me your firing pin spring is not very strong and you will most likely benefit from trying Fed 205m primers since they have a much softer cup than the br4's.

99.999% of the time I had a primer fail to fire it was because the firing pin spring was weak. And it's no coincidence the primers were also cci. Fixing the firing pin spring or switching to federal primers always fixed the problem.

There is also a very small chance the primers didn't go off because they weren't seated deep enough in the pockets.

I loaded from 43.0 to 44.0 in .2 increments you can see my notes in the picture

I was thinking switching primers but I feel like my Barnard P should have no issues with the firing pin spring. If it continues I will be trying different primers.

I just worked up a load with 43gr of varget,205 match,Palma brass jumping them 18thousandths.Running right at 2600fps that’s where this barrel Kreiger HV likes to shoot.

I tried 43.0 it didn't work for me. Krieger 1-11 Heavy Palma. What kind of accuracy are you seeing at 100yards?

 

[T-shooter]

I was working up a load at 215 yards with them in Hornady brass using Federal Match primers. (Stock Savage chamber with a 22" barrel) I had to change brass (worn out) and the new brass was 7% larger in volume. Basically it was starting over and I didn't have a chance to finalize the load yet.

The Hornady bullet had to be seated deeper. The 200.20x seemed to like .005" to just touching the lands. I went from 41.4g to 42.8g of Varget so far. Velocity was just under 2,600 fps and they were grouping an average of 1/2 MOA per 5 shots. I'm hoping to cut that in half when I get a chance for more testing.

 

[BP1]

I loaded from 43.0 to 44.0 in .2 increments you can see my notes in the picture

I was thinking switching primers but I feel like my Barnard P should have no issues with the firing pin spring. If it continues I will be trying different primers.




I tried 43.0 it didn't work for me. Krieger 1-11 Heavy Palma. What kind of accuracy are you seeing at 100yards?

1/10” twist at 30” I will be pulling this barrel off and putting it in the safe and putting a bartlein 5r Speedy contour on it as soon as Speedy spins it up.

 

[Tony1320]

1/10” twist at 30” I will be pulling this barrel off and putting it in the safe and putting a bartlein 5r Speedy contour on it as soon as Speedy spins it up.

My next barrel on this rifle will also be a Bartlein 1-10. What kind of groups do you see with the 200.20x at 100yards?

 

[Papa Charlie]

I have a new Benchmark barrel being made for my FTR rifle. Calib .308, 1:10 twist, 30", with 1.25" for 5" then straight taper to 0.950" at muzzle . Should be done by the end of this week, I hope.
I will be doing development for the 200.20X and the 185 Juggernaut. Not sure which I will end up with.
Great thread, thanks very much for sharing.

 

[Tony1320]

Went back out today to do some more testing. 43.8gr Varget but tried different seating depths in .003 increments stuck with .015 off the lands.

This is the same load as the picture above but with only 12 mph wind today

Had another 4 primers fail to fire today

 

[Jdne5b]

Is this new brass?

 

[Tony1320]

Is this new brass?

Yes its Virgin Lapua Palma brass

 

[barefooter56]

Went back out today to do some more testing. 43.8gr Varget but tried different seating depths in .003 increments stuck with .015 off the lands.

This is the same load as the picture above but with only 12 mph wind today

Had another 4 primers fail to fire today

Tony,
Very nice group here. With new LAPUA brass seating the primer can be hard enough that you may be thinking the primer has bottomed out but it hasn't. Have you tried firing the round again to see if it fires? What make of priming tool are you using? Also don't discount the previous poster who asked if you checked your rifles ignition system (firing pin and spring). With the colder temps it could just be that the grease in on the firing pin and spring assembly is stiffening up and affecting the firing pin velocity.
Take care,

 

[Tony1320]

Tony,
Very nice group here. With new LAPUA brass seating the primer can be hard enough that you may be thinking the primer has bottomed out but it hasn't. Have you tried firing the round again to see if it fires? What make of priming tool are you using? Also don't discount the previous poster who asked if you checked your rifles ignition system (firing pin and spring). With the colder temps it could just be that the grease in on the firing pin and spring assembly is stiffening up and affecting the firing pin velocity.
Take care,

Thanks. Ya I tried firing twice in my rifle and it didn't go off. I pulled the bullets and my friend tried in his rifles and 3 went off and the rest still didn't

That's what I thought after it happened the first time so before I loaded for my second test I seated all the primers again to make sure. I used a Lee auto hand priming tool

 

[T-shooter]

Went back out today to do some more testing. 43.8gr Varget but tried different seating depths in .003 increments stuck with .015 off the lands.

This is the same load as the picture above but with only 12 mph wind today

Had another 4 primers fail to fire today

Which primers are you using? Is it possible you have a problem with a weak firing pin spring? What about a bent firing pin which may rub inside the bolt slowing it down?

 

[Tony1320]

Which primers are you using? Is it possible you have a problem with a weak firing pin spring? What about a bent firing pin which may rub inside the bolt slowing it down?

Im using CCI BR4 primers. It might be but I want to replace the firing pin spring as a last resort. Ive never had issues with BR2 primers

 

[Jdne5b]

I would bet the new cases are too short (base to shoulder). Measure a fired one and a new one. I know of multiple people this has happened to recently with new Palma brass.

 

[T-shooter]

Im using CCI BR4 primers. It might be but I want to replace the firing pin spring as a last resort. Ive never had issues with BR2 primers

I usually use Federal primers. Never had a problem with them. I tried soaking one in water for 24 hours using a Q-tip to force any air out of it. Blew it out, put in a case, and it fired. A friend had an older Savage 30-06 that had issues. Sometimes 2-3 retries wouldn't set off the primers. About 25% of loaded ammo wouldn't fire. The firing pin was rubbing on one side. We took it out and polished it, cleaned the inside of the bolt, and replaced the spring with a Wolff extra pressure and it has never failed since. Hope you find the problem.

 

[barefooter56]

Thanks. Ya I tried firing twice in my rifle and it didn't go off. I pulled the bullets and my friend tried in his rifles and 3 went off and the rest still didn't

That's what I thought after it happened the first time so before I loaded for my second test I seated all the primers again to make sure. I used a Lee auto hand priming tool

Try another priming tool if you can.

 

[savageshooter86]

Had same issues. It was firing pin spring

 

[lawrence97]

Maybe excessive headspace? Or primer contamination with solvents, oil or anything else?
I’ve never had an issue with cci primers. I’d be suspect of the equipment being used.