300AAC Subsonic load data sources

[Konocti's Wigwam]

I’ve been shooting 300BO for a while, both at the range and hog hunting.

I'm hoping to get some experience hog hunting soon. I got a reply back from CDFW about a specific area in NorCal near property I own. The CDFW told me there are definitely pigs on the public land I inquired about, but that the hunters get moderate to poor results. The area is pretty steep, but I know where some water exists down low, that will be my first area to target.

I found subsonic loads to be fun to shoot at range and with kids. In the field the velocity advantage of SuperSonics (extra 1,000fps - 1,300fps) is significant. With a suppressor the game will return…. No advantage to subsonic in this situation.

Agreed, and even without a suppressor it's a kick in the pants to shoot, just wouldn't be my first choice to hunt with, when you can shoot supersonic and get a lot more bang for the buck.

I was listening to the Hornady podcast today, and Jeff Siewert, he has one of the better books on ballistics. He mentioned in the podcast that 300 blk destroys common logic, which he has no idea why, but he mentioned the faster twist defies common logic. He also mentioned that the width of the lands and grooves defy traditional logic as well. This is a very good podcast to listen to that talks about barrels in general and there's some great info on button and single point rifling. He's on the podcast occasionally, he's a smart dude.

My practical 2cents

Thanks for sharing.

 

[Mike6158]

It's been over a year... Somewhere in that time I installed the 1:5 twist barrel. I checked headspace... someone recommended pulling the extractor. The may very well be what your supposed to do but I can tell you with certainty that whoever Ruger let design the extractor for for bolt that comes in the American rifle is 100% guaranteed to be the spawn of Satan, if not Satan himself (I personally don't know the dude but I wonder if he's a she or she wannabe or supports the DEI movement? sorry... neural ricochet). When you remove it you get to find out how it's installed. You're probably not going to know what the parts look like because they flit off into some other dimension. I didn't find the spring and extractor.

I ordered extra parts from Ruger. Before I did that I asked them if I could send the bolt in for repair. They said send the bolt and rifle. Nope...

The parts came in, I sent the detent (1/8") somewhere... while trying to install the extractor. I found the spring and attempted to install the second and last detent. Gonzo. Thankfully I had measured the diameter. I ordered a detent ball kit from Brownells plus extra 1/8" balls. When those came in I tried again. I didn't lose anything but I was done with that thing. While in the local feed and firearm store I asked if there was a gunsmith in the area. He gave me a phone number. I called and he said he would take a look at it so I dropped it off.

I waited two weeks before I called. Not a good sign. When he answered I asked about the bolt and he said no luck, I lost all of your balls so I restrained my odd sense of humor and told him I was going to come pick it up. That was 3 months ago. This morning, two detents later, I successfully, got lucky, and I now have a functional bolt. Time to test.

I found some H4198 loads, H110 loads, and AA1680 loads to test.
The H110 loads look "finished". By that I mean that there are 50 rounds and the only load data is 17.0gn of H110 and 120gn BarnesTTSX. Barnes data says the H100 load is somewhere between 1,980 and 2,150 so not subsonic. I must've loaded these to go hunting.

The 4198 loads are 11.4gn of 4198 and 190gn Sub-X's. 11.8 gns is 1,050 fps according to a PDF I have. So 11.4 is going to be light. We'll see how it shoots. I think these were loaded to go hunting too since it's one powder charge. We'll see.

Seeing the load data for H4198 got my attention. That stuff has been unobtanium of a while now. Could it be that I had some on hand. Yup... I've been wanting to try it for subs in the 8.6BLK.

Load data PDF's attached.

 

[Walt Krafft]

Sorry! Lmao over removing the extractor. If a spring loaded ejector, that is good to remove when checking headspace. The extractor doesnt hurt a thing and actually makes it easier.

 

[Mike6158]

Ruger bolts are not Remington clones that's for sure. You mean the internet was wrong? Lesson learned...

 

[Mike6158]

H4198: 1,110 fps isn't terrible. ES isn't the best though. It doesn't matter. It's not currently available and hasn't been for quite a while.

AA1680. For the sake of consistency, or the lack thereof, I'll probably move on from this powder.


Neither of these grouped very well. I took a .308 (16" barrel bolt action) and my 8.6BLK AR10 too. I shouldn't have tried to manage sighting in (new scope on the 300AAC) and testing 3 different loads for 3 different rifles. It's one thing if the range doesn't have anyone else there and I have all day, but that wasn't the case today. Onward thru the fog...