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308 / VV N150


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Gentlemen, loading now 308 using this combo N150 and Hornady 168 on  550would , would you consider plus/minus .1 gr of powder drop a big inconsistency?, and about N150, with 44grs the powder is already on the neck level, is this normal, ? this is my first attempt to load 308, was limited with 223 before. so I back out my load to 42.grs pretty in the mid 

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+/- 0.1gr drop is as good as I would hope for on any powder measure throwing 44gr.

Whether it matters for your load depends on your ladder test.

Does your OAL put the bullet into the powder column?  I'd have no trouble with loading the right powder to the neck on a 110gr load, but wouldn't tolerate it on a 180gr at mag length.  It depends on how much crunch you're willing to tolerate and what the pressure signs were leading up to that amount of compressed load.

Don't treat this like a pistol load where you can pick a recipe off the net and run with it. You're dealing with 10x the powder and 2-3x the pressure in a 308 case. You owe it to yourself to do the long due diligence of real load development. Buy and read a real reloading manual.

edit: Is this for a gas gun or a bolt gun? Vihtavuori says the starting load for N150/168gr BTHP is 38.6gr and max is 44.5 but doesn't break that down by gas/bolt.
Also, whose brass are you using? Whether you can push the limits, and what the limits actually are, may depend on brass quality.

Edited by belus
missed a detail in OP's post
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Hornadys manual for 168gr  starts 36.3 and max 46.1

VV doesn’t have published load for the Hornadys 168, instead they have Sierras 168gr 38.6- 44.5

Berger 168gr 39.5-42.8

I started with 42.5, 43.0, 43.5 grs- this load produced the better accuracy. 
these was shot from a Tikka T3X Varmint 20”, Coal 2.800“, will try 2.810” if it fit in the mags. 
belus thanks for the feedback 

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A baffle can help somewhat and some people claim they get their Dillon powder measures to throw N140/150 with a spread of 0.2 grain or less but I never achieved that myself.

 

Only way to find out is to try it.

 

😉

 

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I have a xl650.  I also load 308 but I use H4895.  My load is 42gr,  I used to weigh every load and hand trickle to get exactly 42gr.  For my load which is similar to yours, I found that my throw was consistent enough if it was +/- .01 grains from my desired load.  I just loaded up 30 hunting rounds for my son.  I weighed each case and zeroed out my scale between cases.  Every single load was either 41.9gr, 42gr or 42.1gr.  For hunting loads, this is very much within normal expectations.  

My hunting load is 42gr of H4895 behind a 150gr Hornaday SST

 

If you want more consistency than that, I would suggest you buy a automatic chargemaster or a auto charge pro.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Following this thread and these very important discussion points as I have bullets (150gr FMJ-BT) in route to load up 200 rds for my M1A...Going to load 5 rounds at a couple of different charges to check for cycling, pressure signs, and also to check 100 yard accuracy....  no intent on going close to the top end of any load range and intend on using H4895 as my go to powder....

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16 hours ago, Sigarmsp226 said:

Following this thread and these very important discussion points as I have bullets (150gr FMJ-BT) in route to load up 200 rds for my M1A...Going to load 5 rounds at a couple of different charges to check for cycling, pressure signs, and also to check 100 yard accuracy....  no intent on going close to the top end of any load range and intend on using H4895 as my go to powder....

Hi P226,

 

FWIW, when I still had a M1A NM this article from Glen Zediker was very helfpful. (I still regret selling the rifle...)

 

http://www.zediker.com/downloads/14_loading.pdf

Edited by RGA
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