• This Forum is for adults 18 years of age or over. By continuing to use this Forum you are confirming that you are 18 or older. No content shall be viewed by any person under 18 in California.

.243 and RL-17 charge weight min. and max?

BigBamBoo

Silver $$ Contributor
Hi gang.
Searched around but could not come up with anything. My question is I have a jug of RL-17 and a bunch of 107 SMK's and 115 DTAC's. Can anyone tell me what the min. and max charge weights?
Or what charge they are using and I can go from there.


Thanks a bunch,Stan
 
I'm out of state and don't have my notes in front of me so I can't give you the numbers I have. I can tell you to use H4350 data less .5 grain for safety and it'll be a good starting point. You can also do some guestimating using Alliant's reloading guide: http://www.alliantpowder.com/reloaders/default.aspx

The closest thing they have though is a 100 grain.
.243 Win.
100 grain Speer
Winchester case
2.625" COAL
Fed. 210
40.8 grain R17
= 3044 FPS

If you're going for velocity you're using the right powder though, I'm getting almost 3200 FPS out of a straight .243 with a 105 VLD and I haven't had any issues getting single digit SD.
 
Thank you for the input. In the past I have had really good luck with H4350 and have a jug of that as well.
My rifle has a 25" barrel so I thought I might be able to get a little more velocity from the RL-17 and compensate for the short(er) barrel. I will be using this rifle for 600 and 1000 yard matches.

Take care,Stan
 
Hi Stan,
I have only shot 115 DTAC's. During the winter months 41.0grs RL17 & 47.5 RL25 both were very accurate and shot to the same point of impact. In the summer months those two loads were a little to hot for my liking. (slight ejector marks) I just finished summer time load development. The top three loads with the 115's was #1 47.5 grs. Retumbo #2 41.5 grs. H4350 & 44.5 grs. WMR (discontinued). Tomorrow I plan to chrono the Retumbo load so I can make my Ballistic card. Since all rifles are different please start lower and work up.
Semper Fi
 
When I was shooting a 6XC I started with 107's SMK's and then went to the 115 DTAC's. Never saw much of a difference in accuracy or POI.
I did try RL-17 for the 6XC but H4350 worked much better for me.

Thanks for the info...I plan on starting load development next week.

Take care,Stan
 
Not exactly a speed demon load but in my rifle it is very accurate for me. Wolf primers, 115 DTAC BN & 47.5 grs. Retumbo. I fired 30 rds. over an Oehler 35P. Avg 2,851 fps SD 13. I was hoping for a little more velocity but I'll keep this load. Temp. was in the high 90's.
Semper Fi
 
I have found that 45.5 grains of re-17 is about max load for my rifle. My load info is as follows: berger 88's, winny brass sorted to 158.0 grs +-.5, wolf large rifle primer, .002" neck tension, bullets jammed .020" Also, the bullets are coated w/ HBN. This gives 3400 fps w/26" barrel, sub .5" at 100, and low ES and SD. Also, not sure it will make any difference as case capacity is virtually identicle to .243 win. but, my rifle is chambered for the .243 BR-K. I plan to try the 105 berger vld bullets as soon as I can.
 

Upgrades & Donations

This Forum's expenses are primarily paid by member contributions. You can upgrade your Forum membership in seconds. Gold and Silver members get unlimited FREE classifieds for one year. Gold members can upload custom avatars.


Click Upgrade Membership Button ABOVE to get Gold or Silver Status.

You can also donate any amount, large or small, with the button below. Include your Forum Name in the PayPal Notes field.


To DONATE by CHECK, or make a recurring donation, CLICK HERE to learn how.

Forum statistics

Threads
166,310
Messages
2,216,134
Members
79,543
Latest member
drzaous
Back
Top