Thread: Has anyone had this problem?

i tried factory hornady 162gr in my rem 700lr. they worked ok. then i went and played with loads of 62.5 grains of ar2213sc and nosler 140 grain partitions and the groupings are fantastic.

Could be atmospheric also

Re 17 is temperature sensitive.

Latest update on this powder problem and it is a different batch, I loaded up 3 rounds with 71.5 gr of powder from my old container and it had a velocity of around 2901 fps average down a bit on last time I went to the range, then I loaded up some from my new batch starting with 70 gr of powder and it had an average velocity of 3009 fps.
I had to back the load off a bit and the groupings were better once I started getting down to 2960 - 2920 fps so 69.5 gr and 69 gr, although I was getting 2 of the 3 shots going down the same hole with 69 gr's of powder I always seemed to get a flyer so I settled on 69.5 gr's for now with the 162 gr ELDX.
I did try some 160 gr SMK's tipped with 69 gr's of powder and had success at 100 meters however at 200 meters they seem to wonder around a bit and as they are a target bullet I decided to stick with the 162 gr ELDX as the groupings at 200 meters were not hugely different and I want to use a hunting bullet out hunting.



The top 2 are the 162 gr ELDX at 100 meters 3 quarter inch and 1 and a quarter inch, I may have pulled the shot to the right on number 2, the third one is the SMK's at 100m under half inch but have decided to go with the hunting bullet.
Still work to be done but I suppose a factory Tekka with a very narrow sweet spot I can't expect too much more. On the up side the Swarovski Z5 seems to be performing well and I am enjoying the good clear optics

Originally Posted by ebf

Sounds like different batches of powder to me.

Other thing to consider is if there were major differences in atmospherics between when you shot last and this test.

What you want to record for a barrel is the muzzle velocity for a particular powder batch / weight combo.

When you get a new batch, load some test rounds to make sure you are still in the velocity band that worked previously (called a node).

Depending on how much you shoot, buying powder in bulk is well worth it for consistent results. For fullbore I tend to buy powder in 4kg bottles, and that is not exactly a busy season...

I just ordered another 2 containers of powder today and I checked with them to make sure it is the same batch and it is. Thanks for the heads up