Finally time to do some reloading for my Savage Model 110 Long Range Hunter in 300 WSM.

[VikingsGuy]

Thanks everyone with the advice and discussion. I have reloaded 20 rounds so far. 5 each of IMR 4350 starting at 62, the one grain increments, 63, 64, and 65. The Nosler book said MAX of 66, but I didn't go that far. I decided to switch powders out of my manual RCBS powder dispenser from the IMR 4350 to the H380 which is a ball powder. I ran the arm multiple times, around a dozen or so, but I still got some IMR granules in my powder, not a bunch with each throw, but I tried to pick them out because I am worried. Should I throw all that powder away or take it slow and pick out the granules and when I put it on the scale and not worry about it? Ugh I hate messing up like that.

First, 1.0 grain increments seems to "coarse" you may skip right over an "accuracy node", I would do every 0.5 gr increment at most (I do 0.3 grain increments myself).

Second, attention to detail is essential for effective and safe handloading. I encourage you to be very careful with a process where you ended up with mixed powders. A few granules here or there probably won't be the end of the world, but it does suggest a certain lack of attention to detail in the set up that gives one pause.

 

[VikingsGuy]

Thank you very much. I will try the H4895 if the IMR 4064 that I got (last bottle at the Walmart I worked at). I should have picked up the CCI primers there too, my brother got a 1000 primer pack of the Federal 215 LRM primers since he was trying to get his 7mm Mag to shoot consistent and my Dad used them in his .300 Win Mag. Down the road I may try Nosler unfired brass, especially if I can get a deal on it. How does the Tikka recoil? That was the one I was looking at forever, but wasn't sure about magnum recoil in a 6-6.5 lb rifle, not that I am recoil shy or sensitive. Wow that is a nice group indeed. Hopefully I can get there.
I just did 35 rounds of the Nosler 165 grain ABs tonight 20 for IMR 4350 and 15 for the H380, I almost forgot that I only had 50 bullets in the ABs, so I didn't make a 4th group of 5 for the H380. I might have made a mistake and set them all at 2.860 OACL (which is the MAX SAAMII length) instead of the 2.830 OACL as tested in the Nosler book, I didn't see that column just the 2.860 in the diagram. Hopefully I will be fine.
I plan on loading the Barnes tomorrow or very soon and will let you all know how it works out for me.
Thanks for all the help everyone.

I wouldn't worry about primer brands - any of the main ones will work. Just remember that if you change brands in the future you should re-work the load up from a grain less.

As for 300WSM recoil, for me it was fine for hunting but a little sharp to get a bunch of range practice (and load development) in comfortably so I added a little weight to my B&C stock. The was just enough to take the edge off for me, but recoil sensitivity vary by shooter. When my son started shooting it, he wanted to add a brake so we did, now it's like a .243. If you are recoil sensitive my guess is you will have trouble with consistent shooting of a 300WSM - You may want to look into extra slip over recoil butt pad, muzzle brake or suppressor.

Seating bullet to SAMMI spec shouldn't be a problem as you are "working up" from lower charges, so any pressure difference between the 2.860 and the 2.830 should be fine. But in the future, if you work up a load near max at a given seating depth be sure not to more deeply seat the bullet in error or that can give pressure problems. What is the max OAL that bullet can fit in your magazine?

 

[WVgoodguy22]

Understanding these terms and being able to calculate them for a given rifle and a given bullet is a useful handloading skill, but in many factory rifles with drop box magazines and with many of the longer high BC bullets, you can't get close enough to 0.010" or 0.050" from lands for that to matter. Often a good place to start is OAL 0.015" less than max magazine length.

Yeah I will have to dig more into such terminology and techniques. My .300 WSM has a drop floor plate, but I know what you mean about making sure that the round fits in a mag so I don't have to single feed them. I was right at the SAAMII Max of 2.860 and didn't realize that until my brother pointed out that I was suppose to be at 2.830 for the 165 gr. Accubonds. I will keep those numbers in mind. Thank you very much.

 

[VikingsGuy]

Not entirely. This is what my brother told me yesterday: You can take a fired case and a bullet, color it with a marker and put it in the case then load it in your rifle. Then unload it. There will be a distinct line on the bullet. That will show you the maximum length you can seat your bullets. That is the bullet touching the lands of your barrel. Then you can back it off from there.

Remember with mono-metal bullets (like TTSX) you would wouldn't start it just of the lands, they need a little "jump". Barnes suggests 0.050" off the lands and I have found that to be about right with my rifles - but for many it is irrelevant given the shorter magazine limits.

 

[VikingsGuy]

Oh and when I was reloading the Nosler Accubonds, I easily got it to the COAL the first try, but when I run the arm with the loaded brass, and I lower the arm you can see a little bit of copper shavings. Is that an issue or not? Its been a while since I reloaded with my .270 and the .223 and I don't remember it doing that, but my memory could deceive me.

Copper shavings are not "normal". My first guess is that you didn't sufficiently champfer the inside of the case neck.

 

[WVgoodguy22]

First, 1.0 grain increments seems to "coarse" you may skip right over an "accuracy node", I would do every 0.5 gr increment at most (I do 0.3 grain increments myself).

Second, attention to detail is essential for effective and safe handloading. I encourage you to be very careful with a process where you ended up with mixed powders. A few granules here or there probably won't be the end of the world, but it does suggest a certain lack of attention to detail in the set up that gives one pause.

I was thinking of doing the .5 which is what I usually do or did when I was developing one for my brother's AR-15 in .223. Of course I only bought ONE powder and ONE bullet for it. I should have just done either IMR 4350 or H380 and see what works in there, then move to the next afterwards. Not load two different powders in one night. Hence the worry with the mix of granules, I should have inspected the old manual RCBS dispenser more, even though I did run it at least a dozen times.
The set up is a small 4x3 counter top with shelving underneath stuck in a corner of an outside unattached garage. Has a RCBS rock chucker, a Lyman case trimmer and RCBS manual powder dispenser screwed down to it. I know for one, we really need a better scale that Hornady one kept turning off on me and I would have to reweigh.

 

[WVgoodguy22]

Copper shavings are not "normal". My first guess is that you didn't sufficiently champfer the inside of the case neck.

Yeah I missed the step of running it through the case trimmer, they all measured the exact same length that was noted on the page from Nosler of 2.100. They necks could have been sharp etc... since they are were once fired brass whether mine or the ones I bought from a fellow HTer.

 

[WVgoodguy22]

I wouldn't worry about primer brands - any of the main ones will work. Just remember that if you change brands in the future you should re-work the load up from a grain less.

As for 300WSM recoil, for me it was fine for hunting but a little sharp to get a bunch of range practice (and load development) in comfortably so I added a little weight to my B&C stock. The was just enough to take the edge off for me, but recoil sensitivity vary by shooter. When my son started shooting it, he wanted to add a brake so we did, now it's like a .243. If you are recoil sensitive my guess is you will have trouble with consistent shooting of a 300WSM - You may want to look into extra slip over recoil butt pad, muzzle brake or suppressor.

Seating bullet to SAMMI spec shouldn't be a problem as you are "working up" from lower charges, so any pressure difference between the 2.860 and the 2.830 should be fine. But in the future, if you work up a load near max at a given seating depth be sure not to more deeply seat the bullet in error or that can give pressure problems. What is the max OAL that bullet can fit in your magazine?

Okay thank you for the reminder on that one.

I figured that it would be sharp and probably even sharper on the factory Tikka stock, at least that is what I have read in reviews. My brother added a brake to his .7mm Rem Mag, along with pillar and glass bedding and a 1" Limbsaver pad and when we got it back my Dad and I shot a couple rounds to show him how the recoil and muzzle rise was in comparison. He was serving overseas so we sent a video. I made the same remark about recoil like a .243. The Long Range Hunter comes with an adjustable muzzle brake and being 8.4 lbs I would imagine it tames the recoil. I shot some factory rounds through it like I mentioned, but it was on a lead sled and I couldn't feel anything recoil wise.

I am not sure about the MAX overall length for my magazine, it doesn't state on Savage's website. I hope that it holds the 2.860 that is the max OACL and what I mistakenly went with.

 

[WVgoodguy22]

Remember with mono-metal bullets (like TTSX) you would wouldn't start it just of the lands, they need a little "jump". Barnes suggests 0.050" off the lands and I have found that to be about right with my rifles - but for many it is irrelevant given the shorter magazine limits.

Okay thanks I will remember that, Std7Mag mentioned the same thing. I have never done any seating depth changes or off the lands type adjustments, just the suggest OAL for each bullet/cartridge that is in the reloading manual for each brand.

 

[VikingsGuy]

Yeah I missed the step of running it through the case trimmer, they all measured the exact same length that was noted on the page from Nosler of 2.100. They necks could have been sharp etc... since they are were once fired brass whether mine or the ones I bought from a fellow HTer.

Even if you don't trim, after re-sizing it is good to champfer to assist in bullet seating.

 

[std7mag]

Savage tends to be generous on magazine length.
I am worried about your scale now!
Get a beam type scale! They don't need power or batteries.
Remember to zero your scale each use.

 

[WVgoodguy22]

Savage tends to be generous on magazine length.
I am worried about your scale now!
Get a beam type scale! They don't need power or batteries.
Remember to zero your scale each use.

I was thinking the same thing about a beam type scale. That Hornady one has been giving us issues like I mentioned. I zero or tare after each load, both because it turns off sometimes before going to the second one, but if it doesn't I always hit the zero/tare button. Thank you for the reminder.

 

[WVgoodguy22]

Savage tends to be generous on magazine length.
I am worried about your scale now!
Get a beam type scale! They don't need power or batteries.
Remember to zero your scale each use.

Oh and I checked the magazine, it is a drop floorplate and I have tons of room. I could probably loads some HEAVY Bergers or Hammers and be fine. I measured the GMX 180s that I got factory and they are 2.830 and for some reason the Federal Berger Hybrid Hunters in 185 were 2.810 in total cartridge length. Of course those are not the VLDs which are crazy long, I am sure there are some others similar to those that would be really long.

I put 3 rounds in the magazine and ran the bolt 3 times and the reloads I did fed perfectly.

 

[FLS]

It sounds like you are all over the place with your reloading process. Your results will be the same.
Be consistent with everything you do. Pay attention to detail.
Learn how to set up your dies and prep your brass for long life and consistent neck tension.
Using the same brass, primer, powder and bullet, find your optimal charge weight. Once you’ve found it
then play with your seating depth to fine tune your load.
If t was me, I’d buy a bag of new brass and start over. Prep your brass, pick one bullet, one powder , one primer and work up a load.

 

[WVgoodguy22]

It sounds like you are all over the place with your reloading process. Your results will be the same.
Be consistent with everything you do. Pay attention to detail.
Learn how to set up your dies and prep your brass for long life and consistent neck tension.
Using the same brass, primer, powder and bullet, find your optimal charge weight. Once you’ve found it
then play with your seating depth to fine tune your load.
If t was me, I’d buy a bag of new brass and start over. Prep your brass, pick one bullet, one powder , one primer and work up a load.

Thank you for the advice. I was looking into new brass, I had those once fired I shot and found a deal on once fired range brass. I may get some new brass soon and just start over. I could pull 50 bullets and dump powder in their proper containers and start over. I haven't fired anything yet. After talking with the helpful folks above, I did put away the other bullets and powders and just went with the 165 Accubonds and IMR 4350. I made sure I deburred and champered the other empty brass I had left. I also measured every single one before I started that first time and they were all the same length and the length the book said they should be. I also loaded 15 more rounds to fill in the .5 increments between 62-65 grains and measured each one OACL. I currently only have one box of Accubonds and those Barnes that I pictured, nothing else. I have been watching some videos on YouTube by Johnny's Reloading Bench and Panhandle Precision. I also am keeping notes of what I have done so far.
I may have to pull all 50, but I was hoping not too, but to be safe and more precise I may have to. I hate my hammer bullet puller.
I was looking on some sites for new brass; Norma, Nosler, Federal, Hornady, etc.... Starline doesn't make .300 WSM or even Win Mag for my Dad.
Thanks again for those pointers, you and the others are very helpful and have got me back on track. One careful step at a time as they say.

 

[VikingsGuy]

Thank you for the advice. I was looking into new brass, I had those once fired I shot and found a deal on once fired range brass. I may get some new brass soon and just start over. I could pull 50 bullets and dump powder in their proper containers and start over. I haven't fired anything yet. After talking with the helpful folks above, I did put away the other bullets and powders and just went with the 165 Accubonds and IMR 4350. I made sure I deburred and champered the other empty brass I had left. I also measured every single one before I started that first time and they were all the same length and the length the book said they should be. I also loaded 15 more rounds to fill in the .5 increments between 62-65 grains and measured each one OACL. I currently only have one box of Accubonds and those Barnes that I pictured, nothing else. I have been watching some videos on YouTube by Johnny's Reloading Bench and Panhandle Precision. I also am keeping notes of what I have done so far.
I may have to pull all 50, but I was hoping not too, but to be safe and more precise I may have to. I hate my hammer bullet puller.
I was looking on some sites for new brass; Norma, Nosler, Federal, Hornady, etc.... Starline doesn't make .300 WSM or even Win Mag for my Dad.
Thanks again for those pointers, you and the others are very helpful and have got me back on track. One careful step at a time as they say.

Norma is pricey and probably overkill for what you are doing. I primarily Nosler good quality not top shelf price, but it is not the cheapest either. Hornady is a decent compromise of cost/quality. Federal and Winchester run a little soft for my preference.

 

[WVgoodguy22]

Norma is pricey and probably overkill for what you are doing. I primarily Nosler good quality not top shelf price, but it is not the cheapest either. Hornady is a decent compromise of cost/quality. Federal and Winchester run a little soft for my preference.

Thanks for the review on those different brass manufacturers. It seems that Norma and Nosler are in the same price category around $1.80-$2.00 a piece, at least according to the MidwayUSA, Brownells. Not sure which other site offers them since they are out of stock? I know there are non mainstream places that sell them online, do you have any favorites that you use? I can get a 50 pack of Hornady at my local Cabela's for $59. You are not the only one to say that about Federal and Winchester, Std7Mag said that and a guy that I met up in Idaho that was in our hunting group has Winchester brass that he said he would sell me (probably once fired) and he said it was soft too. Thanks for the heads up there as well.

 

[VikingsGuy]

Thanks for the review on those different brass manufacturers. It seems that Norma and Nosler are in the same price category around $1.80-$2.00 a piece, at least according to the MidwayUSA, Brownells. Not sure which other site offers them since they are out of stock? I know there are non mainstream places that sell them online, do you have any favorites that you use? I can get a 50 pack of Hornady at my local Cabela's for $59. You are not the only one to say that about Federal and Winchester, Std7Mag said that and a guy that I met up in Idaho that was in our hunting group has Winchester brass that he said he would sell me (probably once fired) and he said it was soft too. Thanks for the heads up there as well.

www.ammoseek.com is a good place to find components.

 

[WVgoodguy22]

www.ammoseek.com is a good place to find components.

Thank you once again. I have checked that site before, but found it a little confusing. I will have to spend more time on it and figure out how to read the results.

 

[zach_destroys]

I've tried H4350, IMR4350, H4831sc and have had the best results with it. Yesterday shot a 1/2 moa 3 shot group with 67.0 gr H4831sc and 180gr accubond loaded to 2.875". 1st and 3rd round were in the same hole. Haven't shot across the chronograph yet to find es. Have heard the velocity can be a little below norm with this powder so also loaded 69, 69.5, 70 grs because other guys seem to find another node in this area.