Powder choice: 260 Remington and 130 gr Accubonds

[fireroad]

Looking for guidance on powder selection for the 260 Remington using 130 gr Accubonds. I am using Norma brass and CCI BR2 primers loaded to M700 short action mag length and a 24" bbl. My research has shown that H4350 seems to be the go to powder, but it's one of the few that I don't have. My choices are H414, IMR4350, RL17, and H4831sc. I am trying to accurately achieve 2800 fps and only have time to mess with one powder this season. I am leaning towards H414 but would like to hear what others have experience with all powders mentions.

Disclaimer: I understand resurvey may vary by rifle, always start with the minimum load, and no poster is responsible for the data they provide. I have 5 years reloading experience.

 

[navyrad8r]

Fireroad
i am kinda in the same boat. i have a match this weekend and new gun. after hemming and polling the forum and my buddies/ mentors. 42 gr of IMR 4350 with a 123 Amax on top of it jammed .010. 50 rounds in LC Virgin M80 Brass and 46 in Hornady match brass that has all been neck turned to .283. The LC are sparked by LC primer (virgin) and the Hornady by Wolf. the barrel is a 1:8 twist 30 1/2" tube. i have a pretty short chamber and the LC load is almost or slightly compressed. I will try and chrony this week and post some results if i get to. i shoot on Sunday. i Hope this was helpful.
cheers,
Doc

 

[TonyR]

According to QuickLoad, the muzzle velocities at MAXIMUM pressure for your setup and the powders you have are:

RL-17 2916fps
H414 2915fps
IMR4350 2850fps
H4831SC 2784fps

So, except for H4831SC, you should be able to back off the maximum and find an accuracy point close to your target of 2800fps with any of the other three. According to QL, there appear to be some qualitative differences among the other three: RL-17 gives 100% burn but only about 90% case fill, IMR4350, as "Doc" has found, gives 100% case fill but only about 98% burn, and H414 gives 93% case fill and 98% burn. I am not familiar with the temperature sensitivity of any of the powders but Hodgdon does not list H414 as one of its Extreme Powders. All in all, it sounds like H414 would be as good a choice as any of them, but there could be reasons to prefer any of them over the others. Good luck with your project. i hope you will post some results here.

 

[fireroad]

TonyR - Thanks for the quickload info, I will go for H414 first and try one of the others when and as time allows. Temp is not too much off a concern for me as I do most of my shooting between 40 and 60 degrees. Once I figure out the COAL I may bug you to run the QL numbers again if you don't mind. I hope to post my numbers this weekend if the wind ever comes down here.

Could you elaborate of the relevance of the % case fill versus % burn numbers you post? I'm embarrassed to admit I don''t understand their significance or how interpret the numbers.

 

[TonyR]

Glad to help. The % burn is the estimated percentage of the powder burned while the bullet is still in the barrel. I can't prove it, but I am concerned about how turbulence caused by burning powder outside the muzzle might effect accuracy. I don't know but I try to use powders that burns completely while the bullet is inside the barrel. % fill is the percentage of the usable case internal volume filled with powder with the bullet seated. Target shooters I know describe tests they have done and procedures they follow to avoid accuracy loss due to cases being less than full. The issue appears to be uniformity of ignition if the powder column is not in the same place relative to the primer. I talked to a shooter last week who described the changes that occurred if he held the cartridges upright then laid them carefully into the loading tray vervus standing the cartridges bullet down before loading. He said the effects were very noticable. So I try to find powders that meet my velocity goals while filling the case or even compressed a bit. Sometimes that is not possible but there are ways to compensate in a target shooting situation at least. Probably less of an issue with a hunting rifle because accuracy is often less critical than in say 1000 yard F-Class competition.

 

[65BR]

IIRC, my loads ran 44/IMR4350/130AB, 2780 mv 22" Sako
Used in RP 260 and FC 7/08 and 308 brass. Std. primer.

 

[Pendragon]

I should think you would have no particular problem achieving 2800 fps with an appropriate length barrel using a 130 gr bullet. Many people have done so with 139/142 gr bullets.

In my experience with the 260 Rem, keeping the bullet ten or fifteen thou off the lands helps get into the velocity window without impairing accuracy.

I have shot a the 130 gr Norma VLD out of a 26 inch barrel with "a whole lot of Rel 19" (unpublishable load) and was able to tickle 3000 fps. It was probably too hot a load though.

I briefly tested some Rel 17 and have not had time to get back to it, but it showed some promise. I am presently shooting H4350 with 139s or 141s and getting roughly 2800 fps. If you are on a quest for maximum velocity, I think H4350 probably will peak out a little before Rel 19 and, perhaps, Rel 17, but it is a good reliable powder which can achieve useful velocity in my experience and is probably less subject to zero shift or drift with temperature changes than many of the other powders which is a consideration in the area where I shoot.

 

[HTSmith]

H4350 is it for me. Tried R19, I4350, and H4831. H4350 gave me best accuracy. I'm .010 off the lands.