Federal 210 vs WLR Primer

[bench]

Fellas I am just starting to collect load data for a 240 Weatherby and have found most list loads using Federal 210 primers.
I have a ton of WLR primers and would like to use them.
What do you think??
Joe

 

[ShootDots]

Winchester primers were designed to ignite ball powders that carry the same name.. Because of the load density of ball powders, many shooters choose to use Magnum primers for proper ignition. Winchester answered that demand by making their primers HOT compared other "standard / non-magnum" primers. They are excellent primers for lighting up ball powders and cartridges that use copious amonts of powder. For a 6mm, the .240 WM is one that could benefit from a primer like the Winchester. I would not hesitate to use them..

 

[gaboon]

WLR primers are little hotter. You should have no problems with them. Just start low and work up.

 

[SmokinJoe]

And, of course, nowadays there are 2 different Win LR primers, the WLR & the WLRM. I suspect that the magnum primer is more like the older WLR, which said on the package "for standard and magnum loads".

 

[Laurie]

I'm in the process of doing 16 x LR + LRM primer tests in 308 Win with a load that uses 44gn Viht N140. The Winchester WLR (fairly recent and the package marked 'for standard rifle loads' proved one of the 'hotter' models, and as a result produced one of the largest velocity spreads in the tests. Whilst most models produced 15-shot average MVs in the 2,780s, the WLR increased it to 2,806 fps average, an ~20 fps increase. So, even the WLR remains 'warm'.

240 WBY Magnum is a little different from 308 Win with maximum charges in the 50-54gn band and using slower burning powders than N140 (assuming we're talking 90-100gn bullets anyway), so a 'warm' primer may be no bad thing especially if the cartridge is being loaded for hunting in very cold weather conditions. As others have said, start low (but no lower than published 'starting loads' in reloading manuals or powder companies' data) and work up - they'll be fine.