dicehorn

Lucky there are a few alternative powders for the 308. I can only guess from the limited information given but H414 with a case fill of around 100% would only give you about 41000 psi against a max of 60000 so will guess you are using around 51 gr of H414 giving around 2800 fps for the 125 gr bullet. Other powders to consider would be RS50 which will give approx. the same results to H414. N140 and Reloder 15 are a possible 2 others. What would govern your choice for these 3 alternative powders would be how easy are they to obtain locally. Peter

Sir - I'm not inferring you are a dipstick, actually I am on your side. Its just your original post gave no indication of what you intended to mean.

No...………..are you looking to buy or sell these items. If you are wanting to buy or sell perhaps stating what model the RCBS scales you want/have for sale as from memory, there are 5 beam models and 4 electric models.

As above sensible consider,ed Would you care to add a bit more meat to the bones so the rest of us have some inkling what this post is about

The problem is that to ensure compliance with his insurance a gunsmith should send it for proofing - the Proof House would verify this (but then they would) For a gunsmith to attend to this without going to proof is left to his own risk assessment re his insurance. Most people will hang on to their rifles but in the event of a sale a shortened barrel without re proofing could cause a problem for the RFD if he spots it at the time of purchase. Subtle barrel changes are in reality a very grey area as far as litigation is concerned. It may be worth stating that the visible pitting to the OP

I suppose the question is - How does it shoot in this condition? I have seen rim fires worse than this still shoot very well. The above options seem the best plan as, if you were to have the rifle re crowned (shortened) technically it would have to be re proofed and the cost of the work + reproof + transit costs both ways would have to be set against the value of this old rifle.

In that case I would go along with (as suggested) the Hornady 87gr BTHP #2442 as the bullet is for mainly deer. Virtually all powders have a different burn rate although some makes are similar to other makes. If I had your rifle in front of me using these 87gr bullets, I would be looking to do an OCW test using a uniform COL of 2.710" (SAAMI spec). I would chose Reloader Swiss 60 and make up 6 batches of 3. The first batch of 3 would weigh 42gr, the 2nd batch of 3 would be 42.5gr right up to the 6th batch of 3 weighing 44.5gr. It is essential when testing ammunition that as you

Tyla - perhaps I should ask what you intend shooting with your 243. If it will be exclusively fox, then I would suggest the 75 gr Hornady V max. If a combination of fox and deer then Riohog's suggestion may well fit the bill. Also, as Riohog has stated the majority of American made powders will no longer be able to be imported into the UK (and EU) from this June. Your reloader friend should consider powders that will be compliant - powders like ReloaderSwiss, Vihtavuori and Alliant Reloder - all three brands are excellent and in the main are as good as if not better than US brands.

You wont find the recipe as in all probability the powder used by Sako has been specifically formulated for their rounds. In any case you will need to buy Sako bullets so that the BC is the same - do a search and see who sells them. FYI there are plenty of the more popular bullets around within that weight criteria that will shoot as well as the Sako provided your reloader friend has the necessary experience.

What powders does your friend already have? One of the main criteria in powder and bullet choice is having a ready supply of each. Sometimes you will find that the average gun shop selling bullets may only stock the more popular makes - ie Sierra, Hornady or Nosler.

Hello Ian Yup shows promise. However you mentioned that it is a compressed load at 26gr of Varget - well according to QL assuming the following: The rifle is a European make (Tikka Sako etc) as opposed to USA make (Ruger, Winchester) the barrel is 22" and you are seating at standard COL of 2.260" at the lowest charge of 25.4 the fill ratio is 110% so even that is compressed - at 26 gr the granules are being crushed - broken granules will burn differently - the result 26gr Varget = Fill ratio 112.5% Burn rate only 90.6% Pressure 53197 psi (max if European rifle 62366 psi) 3200 fps

Hi Matt Trust you found yesterday useful - sorry I burnt the soup - window cleaner's fault!!! On your journey with reloading please refer back to me at any time. Hopefully if you are looking for a foxing rig in the future, you wont dismiss the 20 Tac! Peter

Email replied to

Oh blast it would not let me put the word doc in for me - if you email me exmoordeer@gmail.com I will send a copy that you can print off.........or anyone else for that matter! Peter

Well done you!! There is nothing on those targets that should worry you. The 6.5 is a very tolerant calibre when it comes to reloading. I assume you will be full lengthening each time? I have just run the info you have provided through Quickload at a guess of a 22" tube and at a weight of 45gr predicts 2704 fps (1948ft lbs) with a case fill of 103.9% (so pour your powder into the case slowly) Please bear in mind that the amount of powder burnt on ignition is predicted at 92.21% and whilst not really an issue, you may find that upon extraction you will occasionally see sooty marks down the wal