.308 and 168 gr A-max

[Rkez]

I bought some Varget to try with the 168 gr A-max. The Hornady book says maximum load is 44.0 gr, the Varget bottle says 46.0 gr. Which is it? A two grain variance seems large. Are any of you shooting this combo? What is the sweet spot for your rifle? If not, what are you using to push your 168's?

Thanks

 

[liliysdad]

I tend to rely more on the powder manufacturer's recommendations than the bullet maker's.

 

[criticalbass]

I tend to rely more on the powder manufacturer's recommendations than the bullet maker's.

Agreed. Aditionally, I like to check multiple references, and I never start with any load at or near the maximum recommended level.

Older published data tends to show hotter loads than current data. Some say this is because of liability considerations, but pressure measuring equipment is better now, and that is more likely why recommended loads tend to be a bit lighter. CB

 

[mavrick]

My old SPS liked 43.5g of Varget and the Amax.

Dustin

 

[DRSNINER]

I load 44grn of varget behind a 150 grn Hornady #3031 soft point for my Marlin XS7 .308, max listed in the Lyman book is 47.5 grn. Start small work up slowly,watch for pressure signs.

 

[Ksmirk]

Our go to loads are 44.5 with a 168SMK and believe it or not 44.5 with a 175SMK, both loads are right at 2650fps the 175SMK runs in at 2670fps. Best way to figure out a load is to load 3 or 5 each say starting at 44.0 then load 44.5, 45.0, 45.5, etc. then shoot, figure out which groups better and look for pressure signs. I normally drop 1.5gr below printed Max then work up from there. You could always use the ladder test! if you can get it to work out for you then you have accomplished something! I've never been able to get it to work out. I have found that if you can shoot further than 100 yards you will find a much better load. I try to do my load work at 200 yards since I don't use real high magnification scopes. 100 yards is ok to get a good idea but step it back to find out what really works well. Later,

Kirk

 

[Rkez]

Thanks for the replies. I have been reloading for years, but just started long distance shooting so any help will be appreciated. I started my loads at 42 gr and worked my way up to 46 in 0.5 gr increments. Hopefully I will find the sweet spot tomorrow. One more question though, I read that good 100 yard groups do not always mean good groups at a longer distance. What is that? In my thinking, the tightest group at 100 would be the tightest at longer distance also.

Thanks,

 

[SDarkRage]

I haven't started using the AMax yet, been happily running the Nosler Match 168grs BT's pushed by 44grs of Varget in my Federal cases and 42grs of Varget in my thick walled NATO cases. I've been happy with the results at 400 yards. With the 42 gr NATO loads I was getting exactly 2700 fps out of my 26" barrel Savage 10FP. Haven't chrono'd my 44gr Federal cased loads but I know the Federal reloads hit 2" higher at 400yds so I'm thinking its just a little bit faster.

 

[HiredHand]

Thanks for the replies. I have been reloading for years, but just started long distance shooting so any help will be appreciated. I started my loads at 42 gr and worked my way up to 46 in 0.5 gr increments. Hopefully I will find the sweet spot tomorrow. One more question though, I read that good 100 yard groups do not always mean good groups at a longer distance. What is that? In my thinking, the tightest group at 100 would be the tightest at longer distance also.

Thanks,

I believe its because boat tail bullets haven't fully stabilized at 100yds. Flat based bullets will actually shoot better groups at shorter ranges when compared to boat tails.