TXGunNut said
Chuck-

I’ve only used that powder a time or two, was wondering how you selected it. 

I have an early Labradar that works 70-80% of the time, will often fail to pick up a bullet. I thought maybe it was my old school lead bullets and lube smoke but a friend borrowed it to check some modern ammo and had same results. I just never have taken the time to return it for repairs. When I contacted them they were trying to figure out what I was doing wrong. Maybe I’ll have better luck this time. Do you have a contact there?

 

Mike

  

I picked the powder just like I did the primers.  I have enough to get through the process.  Also I’ve used this powder in several other cartridges.

Jack O’Connor and Townsend Whelen both liked the 130’s.  That’s why I bought some too.

As far as the chrono.  It can be finicky if not aimed properly, and the rifle is not placed in the right position.  When it does pick up, how many bars are you getting?  Mine works OK with at least 3.  Is the chrono set up for rifle, what is the set distance, and is it set on doppler, what is your trigger level? 

I stand back about 5 or 6 feet behind the unit and look over the top of it to make sure it is aimed at the target. The face of the unit needs to be parrallel with the target and if shooting up or down hill it must be tilted into the same plane.  Right now my project offset is 6″ but 1′ works too.  The tigger source is set on doppler.  Trigger is used when you add a trigger devise.  My trigger level is set at 4.  Any muzzle blast will cause the unit not to record. So make sure the muzzle is out in front of the unit.

I need to go back and clarify a few things.  First for Chris.

About Post 47 I talked about the process to find the length of the loaded round where the exact spot along the ogive of the bullet touches the lands.  For the 270 that is at .270″ on the .277″ bullet.  Once you know this you can adjust your seating depth anywhere you wish during testing by measuring base of the case to the ogive of the bullet.  So lately I have been seating the bullets .010″ off the lands. That’s .010″ of jump. Later I will test depths at .005″ jumps to see which is best.  You should find a node here too where the groups are the best even with a .001″ or .002″ of variance in seating depth.

As for testing for Optimum Charge Weight or powder ladder testing there are 2 things I’m looking at.  One is the node where the speed levels off for a couple of charges.  The other is the point of impact.  You do not want to pick a flat spot that the POI on each side of it is not the same spot on the target.  You need both.

We could get rain as early as tomorrow but the worst is supposed to be Thursday.  If it is not raining at my house Tuesday morning I plan to shoot.  Out here it just depends on which cloud you may be under.

I loaded anther 5 groups using powder charges in the 53 and 54 grain areas.   I’m hoping these lighter loads may help my dispersion issue.

A few weeks back when seating bullets I was having a hard time getting them to seat where I wanted them.  I measured a bunch and found out that the base to ogive of the bullets were as much as .010″ different in the same box.  So I sorted another 100 round box this morning.  All of them were within about .002″ range of each other.  I did have 18 left from the last box.  These were all about .002″ of each other.  The thing is, these were at least .010″ different than the other 100.  Primers, brass, bullets and powder vary batch to batch.  The better stuff does not vary as much as the cheaper stuff.

Professionals with money and connections/sponsors buy enough to last the life of the barrel.  No changing lots for anything.  I just got a new 6.5 barrel so I need about 16 lbs of powder, 2,000 primers, 2,000 bullets and 500 cases.  Anyone want to be my sponsor?   All joking aside, I usually buy 8 lb jugs of powder, 1,000 primers, 500 bullets and 200 cases at a time.   But not all at once.  Sometimes I save an 8 lb jug and make my own batch of powder.  As I buy small amounts of powder I mix them in the jug.

Latest forecast is not good.  May be windy too.

I’m not fussy when loading my old guns.  In a lot of cases I just feel lucky to be able to find the components to shoot them.

My target and hunting rifles are a different story.  I don’t sort brass.  If you weight sort them you really don’t know where the extra or less weight is really located.  If you volume check them it does give you some better info.  I use Lapua brass when available.  This brass is so consistent you don’t have to worry.  I would have used Lapua for the 270 but they aren’t making it right now.  270 brass is longer than 30-06, which they make, but I would loose too much neck length and couldn’t put the bullet closer to the lands where I may need it.   The Norma brass is not consistent in many areas.  The primer pockets are not the standard large rifle depth.  I am using a uniformer to get them to the standard depth.  The neck wall thickness is not the same, case to case.  So I am getting different neck tensions.  I have a neck turner but I’m not going to use it.  Neck tension is a really big deal and is often overlooked.  I am using match primers because I had a bunch but even these are not the same thickness.  So it takes some effort to get them all seated at the same depth especially so because of the pocket depth variance.  I have a concentricity gauge than can check case and bullet run out but I’m not using it.  The presses I use all allow the case and in some instances the die to float too.  This allows things to float and find center for better concentricity.   The concentricity tool is one of the things that most people really should not buy.  There is not that much room in the chamber to allow for a lot of misalignment.  Then when the cartridge is fired the bullet is immediately aligned by the bore if needed. Spend your money on the barrel, brass and bullets.  

There are certain tools you should have.  A set of digital calipers accurate to .001″.  Case shoulder and bullet ogive comparator bodies with the appropriate case and bullet comparators.  Use some full length bushing dies or at least use expander mandrels to get the best neck tension.  A very accurate scale. .1 grain scales are not accurate. You need to do some testing and find out what the seating depth of your primers are when the tin cup is bottomed out.  This will make sure the anvils are all touching the bottom of the pocket.

If you want some suggestions just ask.  The tools I use aren’t cheap but believe me they are cheaper than going through a few to eventually find the ones that work.

My borescope came with 3 different mirrors.  I attached one and have never changed it.  You know screwing it in and out adjusts the focus.  Move it where it looks the best and then tighten the lock ring.

Got to shoot most of the ammo I loaded before the rain hit.  Looks like I’m finally making some progress.  Groups got smaller and the ES was better.  Groups are still over 1″ but not 2″ like before.  I am getting fps in the low to mid 2700’s.  I’m still getting more fps than what the manual says I should. Bipod mount loosened again.  I’m going back to a front rest.  The bipod has a really wide stance that adds a lot of stability, when it stays tight.

Mike, I wanted higher velocities but when I tested them all the way to 3,000 fps the groups were not good and the ES/SD was bad too.  That’s why I went to lower charges.   Seems this combo likes 2,700 to 2,800.  I should have a better idea after my next shooting session.  I’d like to get on to the bullet seating tests.

I didn’t miss all the rain.  All my equipment was wiped down and is laying around drying up.  I don’t want to close anything up until it has dried for a couple days.  The way these weak storms are I probably could have stayed for awhile and it would have stopped raining but I was ready to go.  I had no idea how bad the traffic would be for my normal 60 mile, 1 1/2 hour drive home. Worst part of the rain is that it ruins the targets and if wet enough the cardboard backing warps badly.  I scavenge pieces of cardboard to cut to size for my 26″ x 26″ frame.  This is just big enough to get 2 targets stapled to the cardboard.   These canyons get some bad wind so I don’t use tall target stands.   The tall ones get blown up all the time.  The storms come off the ocean and blow from the south to the northeast. Almost at our backs.  When we get the hot winds off the desert the wind comes from the northeast and blows almost in our face. 

These were the winds we got when the bad fires hit So Cal.  Came off the desert through the mountain passes right toward the communities near the base of the mountains.  It only takes one spark or arsonist.  And no matter what the Media says the local electrical companies can not build anything that Mother Nature can not destroy.  At least 25 years ago they started putting a lot of power lines underground.  The major problem is the cost and the rate payers don’t want their bills increased.  The utilities are governed by the PUC, (Federal Public Utilities Commission) and the CPUC (State) and can’t raise rates without their approval.  As a former Project Mgr for one of the largest electrical utilities in the country, Southern Ca Edison, I have a lot of experience with this issue.  I’m truly sorry for anyone that was impacted by these fires. This is the worst natural disaster of my lifetime.