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308 powder selection

moe africa

Hi all
I'm currently trying to source and stock up on components for a 308 rifle build whilst I wait
The most available powders down here are varget currently and Vihtavuori N540 followed by N150 which is rather rare ( for perspective Varget goes for around $75 to $85 here)
I'm primarily going to be shooting 175gr in the prs limited division out of a 24"
And the odd F class and 1 mile match with 200.2x or 208s out of 28" ( which will arrive after a few months )
I've had good success with n540 in a 30-06
Yet I am a student and cannot really afford to burn out barrel quickly if that is a concern
I also do not have the disposable funds to do a lot of testing with various combinations I'd rather pick something and try and stock up on it
Any insight from those who have used varget and N540 in a similar context
 
The 308 Win is pretty much an omnivore when it comes to powder - it'll eat about anything in the same general burn range. Especially with a general-purpose bullet weight like that. People might swear by one flavor or another, for 'best' accuracy or 'max' velocity, but if you can't get it - or can't afford it - that doesn't do one much good.

Best advice is to look in a few loading manuals, see which powders are common between their respective entries for .308 Win, and go from there. H4895, IMR 4895, IMR 4064, N140, Ramshot TAC, etc. are all good options if you can find them.
 
I appreciate the difficulties of supplies in SA. I suggest, that you want your 308 to last, avoid double base powders - so no ball powder, Alliant, Winchester etc. and certainly no 5 series Vihatvouri. I stick to single base - Varget, H4350, and IMR8208 - all made in Australia by ADI as AR2208,2209 and Benchmark8208. VV N140 and N150 are good choices too. Your barrel should last up to 4000 rounds with moderate loading and good cleaning. Varget/2208 is the preferred powder for the 175g and up. Produces good velocity without wrecking cases..

If you are sticking with 175g projectiles a 1-11 twist is ideal. For heavier, use 1-10.

If you are having a barrel made, you should be looking at the 2013 US FTR Team reamer - or as close as possible - drawings are on the net - it has a .340 neck diameter and 175 thou of freebore.

Choose you dies to move as little brass as possible and set proper neck tension. Dont use the expander ball --rather use a mandrel to expand the neck, if necc. They are available in SA from the company that sells all the PRS stuff (cant recollect their name...)

I use Lapua, Norma and Starline Match brass. I have junked only a handful of cases in the last 3 seasons. I only use Lapua Palma for competitions..

I think that H380 is discontinued - it was a ball powder based on milsurp 30-06 powder burn rate and density.

My 25cents. Hope this helps.
 
NZ_Fclass said:
If you are having a barrel made, you should be looking at the 2013 US FTR Team reamer - or as close as possible - drawings are on the net - it has a .340 neck diameter and 175 thou of freebore.
Click to expand...

If he's shooting PRS, why would you recommend a chamber with a tight(er) neck and longer freebore? Although my original 2013 team reamer cuts a 0.343 neck, with a 0.169" freebore... but still, it'd not be what I'd choose for running mag length ammo in less-than-tidy field match conditions.
 
NZ_Fclass said:
I appreciate the difficulties of supplies in SA. I suggest, that you want your 308 to last, avoid double base powders - so no ball powder, Alliant, Winchester etc. and certainly no 5 series Vihatvouri. I stick to single base - Varget, H4350, and IMR8208 - all made in Australia by ADI as AR2208,2209 and Benchmark8208. VV N140 and N150 are good choices too. Your barrel should last up to 4000 rounds with moderate loading and good cleaning. Varget/2208 is the preferred powder for the 175g and up. Produces good velocity without wrecking cases..

If you are sticking with 175g projectiles a 1-11 twist is ideal. For heavier, use 1-10.

If you are having a barrel made, you should be looking at the 2013 US FTR Team reamer - or as close as possible - drawings are on the net - it has a .340 neck diameter and 175 thou of freebore.

Choose you dies to move as little brass as possible and set proper neck tension. Dont use the expander ball --rather use a mandrel to expand the neck, if necc. They are available in SA from the company that sells all the PRS stuff (cant recollect their name...)

I use Lapua, Norma and Starline Match brass. I have junked only a handful of cases in the last 3 seasons. I only use Lapua Palma for competitions..

I think that H380 is discontinued - it was a ball powder based on milsurp 30-06 powder burn rate and density.

My 25cents. Hope this helps.
Click to expand...
Really appreciate the advice
VV has pretty consistent availability here
But these days varget as well
I'm using lapua palma brass
Whidden fl bushing die
Wilson seater
I've used expander mandrels before never seen much of a difference
I would need a shorter freebore than the 2013 Ftr reamer especially with the 175s to mag feed
I also think the .200 thou line is a bit on the smaller side especially with off the shelf dies
I would also go for the saami neck dimension just without the neck taper
 
memilanuk said:
If he's shooting PRS, why would you recommend a chamber with a tight(er) neck and longer freebore? Although my original 2013 team reamer cuts a 0.343 neck, with a 0.169" freebore... but still, it'd not be what I'd choose for running mag length ammo in less-than-tidy field match conditions.
Click to expand...
The OP suggests - "And the odd F class and 1 mile match with 200.2x or 208s out of 28"
200g pills are not going to shoot well at distance with mag length loading - Theres no reason not to chamber the 2 barrels differently.
 
NZ_Fclass said:
I appreciate the difficulties of supplies in SA. I suggest, that you want your 308 to last, avoid double base powders - so no ball powder, Alliant, Winchester etc. and certainly no 5 series Vihatvouri. I stick to single base - Varget, H4350, and IMR8208 - all made in Australia by ADI as AR2208,2209 and Benchmark8208. VV N140 and N150 are good choices too. Your barrel should last up to 4000 rounds with moderate loading and good cleaning. Varget/2208 is the preferred powder for the 175g and up. Produces good velocity without wrecking cases..

If you are sticking with 175g projectiles a 1-11 twist is ideal. For heavier, use 1-10.

If you are having a barrel made, you should be looking at the 2013 US FTR Team reamer - or as close as possible - drawings are on the net - it has a .340 neck diameter and 175 thou of freebore.

Choose you dies to move as little brass as possible and set proper neck tension. Dont use the expander ball --rather use a mandrel to expand the neck, if necc. They are available in SA from the company that sells all the PRS stuff (cant recollect their name...)

I use Lapua, Norma and Starline Match brass. I have junked only a handful of cases in the last 3 seasons. I only use Lapua Palma for competitions..

I think that H380 is discontinued - it was a ball powder based on milsurp 30-06 powder burn rate and density.

My 25cents. Hope this helps.
Click to expand...
I would think since H380 was Bruce Hodgdon’s powder of choice for his 22-250’s would be the last powder they would ever discontinue,… they still show it on there site,…. When did the discontinue it?….
Wayne
 
bozo699 said:
I would think since H380 was Bruce Hodgdon’s powder of choice for his 22-250’s would be the last powder they would ever discontinue,… they still show it on there site,…. When did the discontinue it?….
Wayne
Click to expand...
The local agent tells me that it has been crossed off the order for some time, despite it still being shown as current.. However - I stand corrected, as it is shown in stock on Hodgdons website. I won't be buying any, however.
 
Bob3700 said:
Good choice with the Palma (spr) brass. Pockets will last longer.
Click to expand...

I've read that they'll last like pistol brass... very long. My issue was that with a medium burn primer, the equivalent charge of Varget lost me a pretty good chunk of velocity compared to a Fed 210M in a large rifle primer pocket brass load.

I sidelined the Palma brass because of that.
 
markm87 said:
I've read that they'll last like pistol brass... very long. My issue was that with a medium burn primer, the equivalent charge of Varget lost me a pretty good chunk of velocity compared to a Fed 210M in a large rifle primer pocket brass load.

I sidelined the Palma brass because of that.
Click to expand...
about .5 grain difference between the two.
 
Shooters World Precision powder, 2495 also run very good in the 308w.

Stick with single base powders if you can.

As has been said, Varget, 4064, H4895 etc…

Bullet and weight will also be a factor but powders are going to be tougher to get I’m afraid.

Later, Frank
Bartlein Barrels
 
memilanuk said:
If he's shooting PRS, why would you recommend a chamber with a tight(er) neck and longer freebore? Although my original 2013 team reamer cuts a 0.343 neck, with a 0.169" freebore... but still, it'd not be what I'd choose for running mag length ammo in less-than-tidy field match conditions.
Click to expand...
I'm looking at the print for the Manson 2013 FTR Team Reamer ; and the Neck diameter is .343 ... The Freebore is .170 ! I checked mine on a Digital comparator and it is right on those dimensions .

As far as using that Reamer for a PRS Rifle ; why would you ? It is not compatible for Mag-length ammo . And certainly not for loading a 200.20X at Mag-length . The base of the bullet would be below the shoulder .
 
I'll add a few powders I use in my M1-A, as in my rifle, they are far more accurate than others. Would be good additional options, depending on your availability. They are Reloader 15 and Accurate LT32
 
Can never go wrong with Varget and H-4895 when it comes to stick powders for the 308win.

Ball powders can also work. I personally love Win-748 for plinking with gas guns. H-335 is also a good one.
 
Not sure how VV powders have historically compared to the others in regards to price where you are at, but here in the states the VV stuff normally costs about 20% more. That said, currently I can get an 8lb keg of N150 for $294 (+S&H +hazmat), but an 8lb keg of Varget from the same place is running $390 which is in line with a lot of other rifle powders (ie TAC, 8208, BLC-2). In Dec of 2022 I bought kegs of TAC for around $220. I picked up a keg of N133 at the same time for around $275 (only a little below the current price). Over the last 30 years, I've seen the cost of bullets, primers, and manufactured ammunition rise and fall (mostly rise) depending on the political environment, and world events, but I can't EVER remember seeing the price of powder go down. My guess is that as soon as the current stock of VV powder is consumed, their prices will go up as well. In other words, if you want VV powder, NOW might be a really good time to purchase a lifetime supply if you can.
 
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