southpaw187

Hello everyone, thought I'd share with you a 308 load recipe for my precision rifle that worked great for me. Apparently its the military's M118LR load. Mine isn't exactly the same because I used Winchester brass. Here is the link of where I got the recipe: http://www.700rifle.com/forums/viewtopic.php?id=87 Rifle: Remington 700 5R Milspec 24" barrel, trued action/bolt, Timney Trigger, B&C Adjustable medalist stock. Night Force 3.5-15x50 scope Brass: Winchester (I did not cull any). Flash hole reamed, primer pocket uniformed, full length resized, shoulder set back .002 from fired case, trim length 2.00". Powder: Alliant Reloader-15, 43.1 gr Primer: Federal Large Rifle Match (210M) Bullet: 175gr Sierra Match King BTHP C.O.A.L.: 2.81" (fits in internal magazine) 5 shot 100 yard group = .40" center to center from the prone position off a bipod and rear bag. Group pic is attached I shot 95 rounds of this stuff in one day. The majority of that was at a 500 yard 60 shot prone F-Class match in Mesa, AZ. Out of 5 competitors in the F-T/R division that day, I took first place with a 580-13x. My scores were consistent on all 3 strings. By no means am I an expert shooter, so I'm pretty sure that this load outshoots me. I also had shot about 7 rounds over my chrono , but I couldn't get one reading. Either somethings wrong with me or the chrono, probably me. Once I gather velocity data on the load, I'll update this post. I will say that I did not see any signs of an over-pressure condition and my bolt never got sticky. My goal was to meet or exceed the performance of Federal Gold Medal Match ammo in my rifle, which I have done. I hope others have similar success with this recipe.

Frank Glenn in Phoenix, AZ

I personally do not use an extended cylinder release; although i've never tried one. My hands are bigger than 'average' and I have no issues engaging the factory release with my left hand thumb.

That rack will work OK if you have carbon steel moon clips but magnets don't work very well with the stainless moon clips. They will grab the stainless Hearthco moons very lightly and if you run you will lose most of your moon clips. Carbon steel moon clips will stick very well to the magnets. I second this notion as I have the Johnson Precision Mag Rack for my 45 ACP competition 625. However I don't have a problem of them ever falling off the rack, even if I'm running. But I do agree that they don't stick as well as the carbon steel moons. Perhaps they stick even less on the 8 shot clip versus my 6 shot clip. Otherwise, a great piece of gear that I really like.

i am 6'2 225lb. I shot a 6" 44 Mag S&W with wood grips at the range using full power Mag Tech factory ammo. I quit after one cylinder. Call me a sissy but damn that thing is a beast. I did shoot a guys Taurus Tracker with rubber grips with full power ammo and that was not a problem for me. Cool thing about the 44 mag is you can run it 44 special for practice if the recoil from the 44 mag is "uncomfortable".

I have had a couple guys asking for pics. The tumor on the left side (pic three) fits into the palm of my WH. I also formed the grip to my WH before cure - actually works quite well for WHO. I still do have some finger groove remaining but filled in most with epoxy. I built up back of grip due to my long fingers and to force a high grip on gun. What is nice with the epoxy is that you can make the grip as big and ugly as mine, or just fill in gaps in your hand to make the grip more comfortable. please don't take this the wrong way but I got a real good laugh out of those grips! Looks like something out of a medical text book! I will give you a big dose of credit for creativity and problem solving. Can't beat a custom fit!

almostold, you may also consider Nill Grips from Germany. They are relatively VERY expensive; however they make certain grips in various sizes I think up to XXL and the ergonomics and craftsmanship are supposed to be 2nd to none (CNC machined). I've ordered a pair and will post a review once I receive them.

I think some guys take off the finger bumps with a knife and/or sandpaper, FYI. Glad you like the grips as much as I do!

I tried ordering them from SSS a couple weeks ago and got an email the following Monday saying they discontinued them and had forgot to take them off the website, I think they are now removed. I ordered two pair from S&W the following Sunday and had them on Thursday, I now have 2 625's and 2 686's with X frame grips. Greg hey there Greg, when you say "discontinued": do you mean that SSS has chosen to no longer carrying them or that Hogue has stopped producing them??

Thanks for providing this link. You are correct in that it takes a lifetime and a half to get these grips from S&W in the mail (well, its more like 2 weeks but that can feel like a lifetime). Glad to know there is a small biz we can support.

I know this has been discussed before, but I decided it is worthy to start a new thread. I recently obtained and installed Hogue X-Frame rubber grips on my round butt N-Frame S&W 625. For a guy with larger than average hands, these grips are an absolutely amazing upgrade. The standard Hogue round to square butt conversion rubber grips with the backstrap exposed just did not provide enough gripping surface for my hand and they just never felt "right". I find that these X Frame hogue grips have much better ergonomics (a more natural grip area and grip angle, and better trigger finger placement). Obviously this observation applies to me, your mileage may vary. I ordered them from the S&W official website. I can't remember the price but they are reasonable. Southpaw357

I shoot a 625. I was using mixed headtsamp range brass. The majority of it was magtech since i picked it up from the scottsdale gun club. That magtech brass gives my 625 the fits; i will never use it in my 625 again. I "bit the bullet" and bought 1,000 starline cases. The starline stuff works great in my 625, with either my TK moon clips or my standard moon clips that i bought from Dillon. Therefore I do recommend starline and I do not recommend magtech for the 625.

me too!

Thanks everyone for the replies. I just wasn't sure if that wiggling was a good thing or not. Now that I know it is a normal circumstance I'll stick with the starline brass. It sure is easy to seat the federal primers in the starline brass on my dillon SDB.

I tried my TK Custom stainless steel match clips for my 625 with magtech brass and that wasn't a good fit. i then tried them with starline brass and those dropped in and out of my gun flawlessly; however they seem to wiggle in the clip quite a bit. What brass do you use? I'm looking for brass that will not wobble and will drop in and out of the gun well when clipped.