280 ackley improved 1@8 twist load ?

[varmit_hunter]

I have a new xbolt long range 280ai. Planning on setting it up. To shoot steel out to 500 or 600 yds. I have few powders should work in it.
IMR 4350, 4831 (fixing to buy some 7828.)
RL 19, 22
H4350 4831sc
Pro mag.
I want to shoot a 160 gr or heavier.
Hornady
eld m 162 , 180 gr
eld x 162 , 175 gr
Berger 168 , 175 gr
Nosler ab
160 , 175 gr
Using Nosler 280AI brass. Next brass i buy is going to be Peterson brass.

 

[Wild Bill IV]

I have a new xbolt long range 280ai. Planning on setting it up. To shoot steel out to 500 or 600 yds. I have few powders should work in it.
IMR 4350, 4831 (fixing to buy some 7828.)
RL 19, 22
H4350 4831sc
Pro mag.
I want to shoot a 160 gr or heavier.
Hornady
eld m 162 , 180 gr
eld x 162 , 175 gr
Berger 168 , 175 gr
Nosler ab
160 , 175 gr
Using Nosler 280AI brass. Next brass i buy is going to be Peterson brass.

I bought a Browning X-bolt Speed LR in 280AI for my son to use for hunting!!! RL22 worked great with Sierra 165 Gamechangers w/ around .75MOA groups!!! I will fine tune the loads and finish brass prep after all the Nosler brass has been totally fire formed!! You're going to like the Browning LR!! You'll have to do a little fine tuning (shimming) to avoid barrel/stock contact causing straight line strings!!! The stocks are too soft and any loading will flex the stock into the barrel!! I also have a Browning MAX LR in 6.5PRC!! It too needed shimming!!!

 

[bks22345]

I’ve used 7828, H4831, Magpro and Staball 6.5. I only used the Staball for 168 SMKs. Shot really well but I never went back to it because I wanted to stay in the 180 class bullets. Didn’t really have any luck with Magpro. From memory velocity was good but it just didn’t group. I only used the H4831 with a 180 hybrid. Shot well, velocities in the 2850 range but when I loaded to 10 off the lands the bullets were too long to fit in the magazine. Never played with seating depth, they may have been fine pushed in. My go to is 57.4 gr of 7828SC with a 180 Scenar in Peterson brass. It gets me around 2860 here at 200ft elevation.

My first 100 cases were Peterson. Then I bought another 200 of Nosler. The Nosler primer pockets started getting loose after about 2 firings. Finally found some more Peterson.

 

[gunsandgunsmithing]

The powders you listed can work but all are just a tad faster than what mine likes best. Don't get me wrong, they can work and most likely, someone will come along and tell us how well theirs shoots h4350 or similar. Not doubting them, just saying that I think the best suited powders are more along the lines of n160, n165, h1000, rl-22, etc. with 168 and up bullets.

Mine loves both n160 and n165 with berger 168 hvld's at about 2950 fps, just touching the lands. It shoots a lot of different loads well but those two and that speed, dang thing shoots way better than a hunting rifle has a right to. It hammers! You get lucky like that sometimes. It's nothing really special. Just a 700 LA with a PacNor sporter contour and a brake, in a blem CDL stock. That gun is my workhorse. It fits me well and just flat works. I built it several years ago now but it just gets used for hunting so will hopefully last a lot more years. Great cartridge...one of if not my all time favorite cartridge in that size range.

 

[L.Sherm]

I would stick with the lighter bullets unless the gun has been chambered with something different than a saami reamer unlikely it has been since its a factory rifle.
Freebore is gonna fit light bullets better but it can shoot some heavier bullets just not optimal.

 

[30378]

59.0gr H4831 with Berger 168 VLD, Fed 210M primers, Nosler brass and OAL set at 3.412" produces ragged dot accuracy from my Bartlein 1x8 twist bbl.

 

[TrapperBR549]

Had one built for my wife on a M70 action and a Brux barrel. Set it up to shoot heavy bullets so it has a long enough throat. It loves 7828 with 175 nosler partitions or ABLR's.

 

[Fire Dog]

I have a new xbolt long range 280ai. Planning on setting it up. To shoot steel out to 500 or 600 yds. I have few powders should work in it.
IMR 4350, 4831 (fixing to buy some 7828.)
RL 19, 22
H4350 4831sc
Pro mag.
I want to shoot a 160 gr or heavier.
Hornady
eld m 162 , 180 gr
eld x 162 , 175 gr
Berger 168 , 175 gr
Nosler ab
160 , 175 gr
Using Nosler 280AI brass. Next brass i buy is going to be Peterson brass.

Go for the Peterson, I have retired my Nosler and Norma brass in favour of the Peterson and have had good results in F Open with them loaded with 55.7 grains of 4831SC, CCI 200's, and both Hornady ELD Match and Berger 184's. Jumped .010", neck tension .0015"
Of course this load is for my rifle so sneak up and see but it runs at about 2,850 with an SD of 6-7 over 10 shots. Also I don't have to put them into a magazine so they may be a bit long for your use though as someone else has suggested, go for the 180's, I think you will find that the weight suits the round and even if you have to put them down into the case a bit to get them to fit in the magazine Berger's can also be a winner with a lot of jump, say 80-100 thou jump.
The 180's will drop the biggest elk on the spot and everything lesser...
Forgot, this is through a 1:8.5, 32" barrel.

 

[Willow]

H4350 will work with all of those bullets listed. The 8 twist barrel is on the fast side though and a 8.5 or 9 will do the job comfortably. RL23 is another powder which works very well in the 280AI with 180gr pills.

 

[TrapperBR549]

I also had poor luck with Nosler brass. It was factory ammo that I loaded twice and the pockets were loose. I know they were on the warm side but I had some 30 year old but new Remington brass I fireformed and now have 6 or 7 loads on and haven't lost a single piece. I have some Peterson now so all is good.

 

[L.Sherm]

I also had poor luck with Nosler brass. It was factory ammo that I loaded twice and the pockets were loose. I know they were on the warm side but I had some 30 year old but new Remington brass I fireformed and now have 6 or 7 loads on and haven't lost a single piece. I have some Peterson now so all is good.

I formed some old Rem 280 to 280AI that was really good too

 

[L.Sherm]

RL23 is my choice for speed and accuracy in the 280AI

 

[MTlager]

RL 26 is the cocaine bear in the 280. I’m also getting good results with N 165

 

[Fire Dog]

I also had poor luck with Nosler brass. It was factory ammo that I loaded twice and the pockets were loose. I know they were on the warm side but I had some 30 year old but new Remington brass I fireformed and now have 6 or 7 loads on and haven't lost a single piece. I have some Peterson now so all is good.

Yep, Peterson for me too... going well and retired my Nosler and Norma once I got a hold of some.
Also, picked up a 500pc box of Nosler RDF 185's for a very good price...
Absolute rubbish..!! 174 pcs made weight out of the 500 with a =/- variance of up to 2 grains and an avg of 3/4's of a grain. Didn't even bother with base to ojive and will just use them when fire forming some 7PRCW.
Buy cheap... Get cheap...
During the "Berger Drought" I started up with some Hornady ELD Match 180's and have been very pleased with their performance... Also cheaper and available too!

 

[Rtheurer]

my rifle liked IMR 7828. A LOT. H4831SC was OK. But the former really turned in some great consistent groups!!

 

[kyotekiller25]

Yep, Peterson for me too... going well and retired my Nosler and Norma once I got a hold of some.
Also, picked up a 500pc box of Nosler RDF 185's for a very good price...
Absolute rubbish..!! 174 pcs made weight out of the 500 with a =/- variance of up to 2 grains and an avg of 3/4's of a grain. Didn't even bother with base to ojive and will just use them when fire forming some 7PRCW.
Buy cheap... Get cheap...
During the "Berger Drought" I started up with some Hornady ELD Match 180's and have been very pleased with their performance... Also cheaper and available too!

Those 180g ELDMs are a helluva 7mm bullet. I use them exclusively for long range matches and LR hunting from my 7-300 Win Mag at 3100fps. The results downrange both on targets/steel to 1400 and deer/elk out to 800 have been nothing short of spectacular. Plus as you say, they're cheaper, by quite a bit than Bergers, and in my experience, give a lot more consistent terminal performance on big game than Bergers. Plus they're always available!

 

[varmit_hunter]

My wife went by the gunshop in town. They had IMR 7828sc. She first got 1 can. And 2 boxes of Hornady ELD M 162gr. Had her go back next day. She got me a few more cans. I bought a box of Nosler Accubond 168gr LR bullets. I am going to get some 175 gr or 180 gr eld bullets to try also. I have 50 ct of fire forumed 280 rem brass to 280AI now.

 

[varmit_hunter]

I bought a Browning X-bolt Speed LR in 280AI for my son to use for hunting!!! RL22 worked great with Sierra 165 Gamechangers w/ around .75MOA groups!!! I will fine tune the loads and finish brass prep after all the Nosler brass has been totally fire formed!! You're going to like the Browning LR!! You'll have to do a little fine tuning (shimming) to avoid barrel/stock contact causing straight line strings!!! The stocks are too soft and any loading will flex the stock into the barrel!! I also have a Browning MAX LR in 6.5PRC!! It too needed shimming!!!

I bought a Browning X-bolt Speed LR in 280AI for my son to use for hunting!!! RL22 worked great with Sierra 165 Gamechangers w/ around .75MOA groups!!! I will fine tune the loads and finish brass prep after all the Nosler brass has been totally fire formed!! You're going to like the Browning LR!! You'll have to do a little fine tuning (shimming) to avoid barrel/stock contact causing straight line strings!!! The stocks are too soft and any loading will flex the stock into the barrel!! I also have a Browning MAX LR in 6.5PRC!! It too needed shimming!!!

Can u tell me what I need to do to my stock? One guy said to use a dremel tool trim barrel channel out a little. So the stock won't touch the barrel at any time.

 

[L.Sherm]

If you need to open up your barrel channel find somebody with a mill you use a Dremel and it will look like a 1 tooth beaver with a cavity

 

[varmit_hunter]

If i can run paper around the barrel. Does it still need opened up?