VLD's

[Hombre0321]

I have never been one to just folow the crowd in my reloading. I let the rifle tell me what it wants, this has always worked pretty well but sometimes "MY" own preconcieved ideas do get in my own way.

I started this HighPower shooting coming from BPCR Shilouette and Schuetzen. In Schuetzen the best accuracy has always been to breach seat your bullets. In BPCR while I did not breach seat ( just not enough time in a relay to do so) I did shoot a slip fit bullet with NO neck tension and the bullet seated very deep into the rifling. This for me proved itself over and over on the target. In my last year of shooting BPCR Shilouette my Ram count for 19 matches, 10 Rams per match and shot at 547 Yds was 189 out of a possible 190. To me that proved that the load was working loaded like that.

When I first started shooting F-Class and Long Range Benchrest, I brought that mind set with me. I seated all of my bullets to engage the rifling. Since I was winning a match every once in a while i never tried any other seating depth other than engaging. A little over a month ago I shoot a F-Class match in Tullahoma, Tn. This was a 1,000 yd match and my first at that distance. In the first relay I shot a 197 8X and was thrilled at that result. I then went to the pits and was talking to one of the guys in the pits who turned out to be Danny Biggs. He asked me what bullet I was shooting and in what caliber I told him I was shooting the Berger 130 Vld Target in 6.5x47L. This brought up a conversation as to seating depth, in this conversation he advised me that maybe I should try jumbing the VLD's.

Now when a feller like Mr. Biggs who has had the succes at F-Class that he has talks I am going to listen. Yesterday and again today I seated some bullets deeper into the case ( made me cringe to do so too). I have the targets and the results on paper in front of me now. It does however bring up a question.

What are some of you guys doing as to seating depth with your VLD bullets?

Roland

 

[.260 james]

I have never fired a berger vld that was not in the lands, never had a reason to try anything different. My brother uses mostly weatherby rifles and could not reach the lands if he had to !!!!!! Both methods have proved equally successful and no accuracy problems ever a major issue.

 

[hottshott526]

Might read this article. Pretty interesting and kind of goes against the grain.

http://www.eabco.com/Berger%20Bullet%20Jump%20Seating%20Method.html

 

[timeout]

I'm sort of a newbie without any competiton credentials, but on advice I saw on here from a Berger rep., I went against the grain. I had been seating into the lands about 5 thou. I recently loaded some .040", .080", and .120" from the lands. This really seemed like an odd process at the time. Here is what I found out in my rifle. The bullets seated into the lands were grouping pretty well @ 300. The 40's and 80's were lousy. The .120" s were great. I just loaded a bunch @.120" out today. Unless further testing shows otherwise, this is the way to go in my rifle. I would advise giving it a try. Your results may or may not be like mine.

 

[trailrider121]

Might read this article. Pretty interesting and kind of goes against the grain.

http://www.eabco.com/Berger%20Bullet%20Jump%20Seating%20Method.html

Plus 1. I use this method once you find a node.

 

[Shynloco]

http://www.eabco.com/Berger%20Bullet%20Jump%20Seating%20Method.html
[/quote]

Great article the essence of which is you MUST test in your particular rifle to find what shoots the best. Recomendations by others tells you what works best in THEIR rifle and will not necessarily work in your's as well. Bottom line, test, test, test at varying bullet depth settings until you find the tightest and most consistent groups shooting a minimum of three five shot groups. That is the only way you'll know for sure what will give YOU the best results in your rifle.

 

[DougMH]

What are some of you guys doing as to seating depth with your VLD bullets?
Roland

Don't use them any longer. I switched to same weight (155.5 and 185 in my case) Berger BTHP (non-VLD) and have had much better success at both mid and long range. Most of the long range shooters in our club have sworn off of them. Just one opinion.

 

[Hombre0321]

DougMH, Never tried shooting them in a (.308 by the weights you listed I believe that is what you are shooting, correct me if I am wrong) But I couldn't ask for a better shooting bullet for my 1,000 yd f-class matches. The 130 VLD Berger shoots just fine for me.

I am asking this question to see if "Maybe" there is some consensus as to the best Seating depth for these bullets. I always test for myself, but seek information from any source I can find.......

Roland

 

[markm87]

Never have struck gold using VLDs. My buddy had me load Mag length VLDs for a factory 300 Win Mag.... and I couldn't keep all the bullets on the carboard target backer at 200...

We're going to try some again in his new Krieger barrel.

 

[Hombre0321]

Mark, Don't know anything about your "cardboard" backer but if you can't keep a bullet---ANY BULLET--- on the backer at 200 yards you've got much worse problems than just the bullet ;>).

Roland

 

[DougMH]

DougMH, Never tried shooting them in a (.308 by the weights you listed I believe that is what you are shooting, correct me if I am wrong) But I couldn't ask for a better shooting bullet for my 1,000 yd f-class matches. The 130 VLD Berger shoots just fine for me.

I am asking this question to see if "Maybe" there is some consensus as to the best Seating depth for these bullets. I always test for myself, but seek information from any source I can find.......

Roland

I hear you. When you think of all the variables that may affect accuracy, you just have to do enough trying/testing until it "clicks". I've got my rilfle/reloading/etc. to a point where (under no-wind conditions) all rounds will be in the 10-ring with several in the X. Now I can concentrate purely on the wind.

 

[markm87]

Mark, Don't know anything about your "cardboard" backer but if you can't keep a bullet---ANY BULLET--- on the backer at 200 yards you've got much worse problems than just the bullet ;>).

Roland

The bullet was fine. It was the seating depth to mag length.. combined with the long leade of a factory barrel. The long seated VLDs would shoot so-so. But my short attention span partner never let me work on a good depth.

But yeah... only two of the 3 mag length VLDs hit on cardboard. It was stunning. I pulled down the remaining mag lenth rounds.

 

[spclark]

A few years ago I was anxiously packing for a range session with a new rifle. Built expressly for long-range sling shooting, it was chambered in 6XC. At the time I'd had a Tubb 2000C similarly chambered, always fun to shoot & great accuracy @ 600 yards using Berger's 105VLD.

I grabbed a box of my T2k's ammo in the rush to pack, decided to try it anyway once I got to the club range even though the 105's were seated ~ 0.060" deeper than what I'd prepped my test ammo for.

Having been under a similar illusion as others have related here, I was both surprised and pleased the 'wrong' ammo was the right stuff in that new rifle, far better accuracy than anything else I'd brought with.

I shoot that same bullet still in 6HAGAR also & have found two excellent nodes @ 0.020" and 0.005" off the lands in it where that LR works best @ 0.015" but about 250 fps faster.

Choosing as I do to load with the inevitable 'cease fire!' in mind I'm glad my inadvertent choice that day revealed the inherent accuracy possible with rounds loaded clear of the lands. A real PITA having to brush / blow / pick powder kernels out of bolt lugs, or pull a trigger during a match.