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seating depth vs powder charge

Not meaning to be critical but this seems an overly complicated method of load development with an excessive number of rounds to find a path forward especially if you repeat the test twice than add break in rounds.
I think so also. Waaaaay too much for those of us shooting the same old chamberings for years. Things just don't change that much. In an open forum like this, it's too tough sometimes to impart much of any use to someone who isn't trying to do the same things we do.
 
I think so also. Waaaaay too much for those of us shooting the same old chamberings for years. Things just don't change that much. In an open forum like this, it's too tough sometimes to impart much of any use to someone who isn't trying to do the same things we do.

Like I said, it's a TOTAL of 27 shots which covers five charge weights and five seating depths at the same time. Please explain how you would cover this span with fewer shots with any level of reliability?
 
Like I said, it's a TOTAL of 27 shots which covers five charge weights and five seating depths at the same time. Please explain how you would cover this span with fewer shots with any level of reliability?
OK, I shoot 30 BR's almost exclusively. After all the years and barrels I have gone through, I have been able to successfully compete with what I have found in testing over the years. I use .006" in exclusively and only need to match the powder charge to it. only an new lot of powder is likely to change anything. I went to .002" of neck tension a couple of years ago, set with a mandrill and found a little bit of gain there. That came from an extensive test I saw the results from so I tried it. Liked it so much I bought a Carbide mandrill :)

30 BR's are just too easy I guess.
 
Like I said, it's a TOTAL of 27 shots which covers five charge weights and five seating depths at the same time. Please explain how you would cover this span with fewer shots with any level of reliability?
By shooting seating test 1st by itself without the outside noise of messing with powder at same time.
When doing seating if 2 ain't touching 3 ain't getting no better, so move to next depth usually find depth 10 rounds.
Powder I go to 3 shot groups and I'll load 5 charges, 3 shots each.
This 6.5-284 load was done in 19 rounds.20231002_105646.jpg
lmao
Not to shabby for a hunting rig
 
By shooting seating test 1st by itself without the outside noise of messing with powder at same time.
When doing seating if 2 ain't touching 3 ain't getting no better, so move to next depth usually find depth 10 rounds.
Powder I go to 3 shot groups and I'll load 5 charges, 3 shots each.
This 6.5-284 load was done in 19 rounds.View attachment 1607508
lmao
Not to shabby for a hunting rig
Nice shooting Bro.
 
By shooting seating test 1st by itself without the outside noise of messing with powder at same time.
When doing seating if 2 ain't touching 3 ain't getting no better, so move to next depth usually find depth 10 rounds.
Powder I go to 3 shot groups and I'll load 5 charges, 3 shots each.
This 6.5-284 load was done in 19 rounds.View attachment 1607508
lmao
Not to shabby for a hunting rig
Maybe one day in my dreams
 
By shooting seating test 1st by itself without the outside noise of messing with powder at same time.
When doing seating if 2 ain't touching 3 ain't getting no better, so move to next depth usually find depth 10 rounds.
Powder I go to 3 shot groups and I'll load 5 charges, 3 shots each.
This 6.5-284 load was done in 19 rounds.View attachment 1607508
lmao
Not to shabby for a hunting rig
How did you get that seating depth in that few of shots? To be that specific....
 
How did you get that seating depth in that few of shots? To be that specific....
I started at touch, loaded up 20 rounds of a decent middle of road charge of H4350.
I took press,seating die, comparitor to the range, after confirming zero 2-3 shots I start seating in a horizontal format moving deeper into case from touch in .003 increments. Shoot 2 rinse and repeat.
10 shots in .003 covered .0015 of depth.
Remaining rounds were seated to thier happy place and used to confirm and plink with.
Moved to powder and was fortunate to find its happy place without a lot of effort in three 3 shot groups.
 
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Maybe the lesson will be how to make chicken salad out of chicken shit. I’ll have note pad handy
6br shot @200 yards started seating test @.015 ITL, rumor has it this bullet likes .006-.012 ITL
Resized_20240405_104803_1732051249648.jpegout of the gate I got 2 touching @200 after a few fowlers...
2 clicks right.... yup still touching
.002 deeper into case ,oh damn it's smaller!!
Next group of 2 shots was slightly bigger than 1st target so I called it done for that test.
Pushed remaining rounds to its desired happy place and practiced running smooth steady groups.
 
I post earlier on my 6.5 Creedmoor, I took it out over the weekend. since I last shot this rifle all that has been done to it is I put it in an MDT ORYX Chassis, I measured the COAL with a HORNADY gage with a modified case using a 147gn HORNADY ELDM, pushing the bullet out to touch the lands it measures 3.002, I did this measurement about 5yrs ago, I have only fire this rifle less than 200 times, I started at 10k off the touch, I'm now @-2.1695 off the touch, with this group, I have change nothing with the ammo other that the seating depth, <a href="https://ibb.co/ccNVtsH"><img src="https://i.ibb.co/C5nDvSZ/SAM-2124.jpg" alt="SAM-2124" border="0" /></a>
 
How did you determine a decent middle of the road charge ?
Let me ask you how'd you figure out how much 4064 to stuff in a 6bra?

Would you believe the cartridge guide provided on sites main page, reading various threads on the cartridges in question, also conversation WITH @WSMNUT.
Zack built both rifles, He is also responsible for explaining to me what I'm trying to lay out in simplest of terms. Seating 1st charge 2nd I'll a bushing test for neck tension last.
No chronograph or wind flags were harmed or used in development of these loads.
The 6.5-284 is riding on pillars and not bedded
The 6br shot 5 cleans in a row with 70% X count.
 
Anyhoo, according to the Hornady 11edt Manual, they used a 24'' 1&8 twist barrel, using the RL16 powder a max charge is 41.5gns. @2700fps I have been running 41gns out of my 24'' 1&8 I get between 2715 to 2730fps, with the 147gn ELDM bullets, all of my load development has been done with 41gns of RL16 all I am doing is looking for the right seating depth, and as you can see from the pix above I'm pretty close! and I have not noticed any change in pressure on the brass or primers seating the bullets deeper into the case! YMMV
 
Anyhoo, according to the Hornady 11edt Manual, they used a 24'' 1&8 twist barrel, using the RL16 powder a max charge is 41.5gns. @2700fps I have been running 41gns out of my 24'' 1&8 I get between 2715 to 2730fps, with the 147gn ELDM bullets, all of my load development has been done with 41gns of RL16 all I am doing is looking for the right seating depth, and as you can see from the pix above I'm pretty close! and I have not noticed any change in pressure on the brass or primers seating the bullets deeper into the case! YMMV
Read post #77
 
Anyhoo, according to the Hornady 11edt Manual, they used a 24'' 1&8 twist barrel, using the RL16 powder a max charge is 41.5gns. @2700fps I have been running 41gns out of my 24'' 1&8 I get between 2715 to 2730fps, with the 147gn ELDM bullets, all of my load development has been done with 41gns of RL16 all I am doing is looking for the right seating depth, and as you can see from the pix above I'm pretty close! and I have not noticed any change in pressure on the brass or primers seating the bullets deeper into the case! YMMV
The 147eldm is one of the most inconsistent 6.5 bullets out there. Big BC variation, shape, etm...
 
this has all been interesting .I have spent how much time ,bullets and powder trying to find that goto loading the gun likes . then I bought a muzzle tuner . sure it cost me 200.oo but dang i'm not wasting components like I was
 

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