Varget lot variation

[Straightshooter1]

It gets a bit faster as it dry's out a bit from my experience, the moisture content and humidity play a big part. Ive seen this with other powders as well.

. . . especially here in Arizona where everything can be really dry. I feel I have to take active monitoring to keep my powder stable.

In states that are really humid, it's just the opposite where powder can actually become slower.

 

[SteveOak]

What scale are you using?

Fellas....switched out to a new 8lb lot of Varget as I finished the last....started out .4 under my previous load of 29.6 gr.

I am at a whopping 130 fps differance...same bullet (75 vld) same seating depth. same neck interference, same primer, everything the same but different lot # in powder.

Anyone ever seen a huge swing in difference like this...have shot a whole bunch of Varget in many calibers and have never seen such an extreme swing.

Bottom is my usual load...top was the 6 test rounds I made with new lot.

View attachment 1694285

What scale are you using?

 

[NF1E]

Been using varget as my mainstay for years. I do “ blend” a few 8 lb jugs as I get them as mentioned above and have never notice anything as extreme as the OP. Whatta Hobby!

 

[Shifty6br]

Been using varget as my mainstay for years. I do “ blend” a few 8 lb jugs as I get them as mentioned above and have never notice anything as extreme as the OP. Whatta Hobby!

Yes...this is the first time I have seen such an extreme spread, in the past 40fps or +/- is workable.....100+ fps is ridiculous.

 

[Shifty6br]

What scale are you using?

What scale are you using?

Chargemaster...I confirmed again yesterday...hell, I let a lb sit in the hopper a few days to see if any acclimation would help...nada..nothing just dissapointment.

I really don't think its a scale issue, I loaded up for some other calibers the same day when I discovered this mess, different powder type same everything else, no problem no issue same exact fps average across 2 other different cartridges loads.

 

[Shifty6br]

I guess I'm going to attempt to hit my upper node by increasing charge weight..I'll have to venture to 30.5 to even get close but that sounds mucho risky..

I do have a little bit of wiggle room seating a tad further out but will have to work slowly. Where I sit right now my numbers (sd/es) are not very good vs hitting that upper end.

 

[Shifty6br]

Maybe it's a combination of things??? Like, certainly their can be a difference from one lot to another. But in addition, there could be a difference in moisture content. Do you happen to know the moisture content of the old powder just before it was use up?

No, no previous reading of moisture content..just the usual storage routine I've been doing over the past few decades, no issue, no problem like this lot. Heck I opened up another 8lber of 4350 a month or so ago..and was just a little faster,, this specific lot if Varget is throwing me way off.

 

[Shifty6br]

I've never had more than 40-50 fps variation with different lots of Varget. A hundred fps is huge!

Ya..this is something else....

 

[Shifty6br]

It gets a bit faster as it dry's out a bit from my experience, the moisture content and humidity play a big part. Ive seen this with other powders as well.

You are right on this and I have seen it..sometimes I will start out slower on a new lot and after a little while I 'll have to bring my charge weight back to pretty much where it was at with the previous lot or just a few tenths here and there.

I 'm not quite confident tho that I will see that 100+ fps return less I bump up the charge weight indefinitely.

 

[Shifty6br]

Tracked down purchase date...12/23

 

[JFrank]

Tracked down purchase date...12/23
View attachment 1695225

Look on the side of the jug, the date code should start with 8 / mm/dd/yy

 

[Shifty6br]

Look on the side of the jug, the date code should start with 8 / mm/dd/yy

10/31/23

 

[Shifty6br]

Lot #7610

 

[Shifty6br]

Previous #5765 2017. ...older the better

 

[JFrank]

Lot #7610

When I called Hodgens they told me this was a package / pallet number.
FWIW

 

[Larryh128]

I recently got some RL-26 which was like Christmas as a 10 year old, all they had was 1# cans but glad to get them. I have very good loads with 26 for both 6.5 & 7 Saum. My new 6.5 Saum only has a 20Inch barrel keeping the total length with a can down and that one will never shoot game over 300 yds so I don't need every bit of velo. My velo with a 127 gr Barnes LRX was 3225 which I consider good for a 20 in tube. I opened a new can and loaded a few test rounds with the same charge. 2984-2989 for 3 rds. ?? I then decided to do an experiment, so I opened all of the 1# cans and let them sit for 2 days. Then transferred to an empty 5# jug and let sit open for another day. Loaded 4 test shots and shot yesterday, Velo was back to 3225, actually averaged 3228 and 1 hole at 100. Jug is still open and hope it normalizes more. I wondered if this wasn't the authors issue and well could be.

 

[4570rules]

I have seen 70 fps changes between lots on powder purchased within a month. Lot numbers varied only on the last digit. Both Hodgdon and IMR as well. Sometimes faster, sometimes slower. Now I purchase 8lbs at a time and work up charges on each new jug. I know better now than to assume all will be good with a new lot of powder no matter who makes it! Even the manufacture will tell you to expect up to 10% variation in pressure between lots!

 

[Shifty6br]

I recently got some RL-26 which was like Christmas as a 10 year old, all they had was 1# cans but glad to get them. I have very good loads with 26 for both 6.5 & 7 Saum. My new 6.5 Saum only has a 20Inch barrel keeping the total length with a can down and that one will never shoot game over 300 yds so I don't need every bit of velo. My velo with a 127 gr Barnes LRX was 3225 which I consider good for a 20 in tube. I opened a new can and loaded a few test rounds with the same charge. 2984-2989 for 3 rds. ?? I then decided to do an experiment, so I opened all of the 1# cans and let them sit for 2 days. Then transferred to an empty 5# jug and let sit open for another day. Loaded 4 test shots and shot yesterday, Velo was back to 3225, actually averaged 3228 and 1 hole at 100. Jug is still open and hope it normalizes more. I wondered if this wasn't the authors issue and well could be.

I've been experimenting a form of your technique. I let some sit in the hopper on the 1500 with lid off the past few days and loaded some more yesterday at my usual previous load. Did see a slight increase but not much. I am hoping that it may catch up some over time.

I'll give your technique a whirl, anything is worth a shot at this point.

 

[Shifty6br]

Well I was able to work myself back up to 30.4 gr. at 3115 fps avg keeping ny same seating depth. I think I'm just going to hold there for now, I still lost a bit of speed but at least my sd is back in the singles and accuracy is good. In truth this barrel was pretty easy to work with from the start.

Did 4 rounds at 30 and 30.4t he later being the lower group, they're not too far off from each other it appears. No pressure signs, but there is a bit more of slight resistance rechambering the spent cases at 30.4 vs 29.7.

Damm you science.



edit - shitty spelling

 

[JFrank]

Well I was able to work myself back up to 30.4 gr. at 3115 fps avg keeping ny same seating depth. I think I'm just going to hold there for now, I still lost a bit of speed but at least my sd is back in the singles and accuracy is good. In truth this barrel was pretty easy to work with from the start.

Did 4 rounds at 30 and 30.4t he later being the lower group, they're not too far off from each other it appears. No pressure signs, but there is a bit more of slight resistance rechambering the spent cases at 30.4 vs 29.7.

Damm you science.

View attachment 1695794

edit - shitty spelling

Hard to fantom that much speed from 30.4 gr of Varget