Ok, come back with some real world premature failures stemming from Varget and we’ll talk. I’ve shot tens of thousands of rounds loaded in Varget over the last 20+ years, all of that theory sure sounds scary online, but in practice, the reliable function and undeniable performance of Varget in 223/5.56 AR’s has proven its worth.
And the whole “it burns too slow for short barrels” thing is a spotlight on your inexperience. Short barrels do not benefit in speed by running faster powders - that’s a pseudoscience wive’s tale propogated by guys who haven’t ever loaded for short barrels. No, a short barrel won’t ever achieve the velocity of a long barrel, and yes, a shorter gas system will have a higher port pressure than a longer gas system, because that’s how physics and thermodynamics work... that’s not a problem caused by Varget. Your statement Varget needs 24+ inches to burn is patently incorrect - 5min with Quickload proves over 97% combustion with a 20” barrel. So either your short barrel pontification is inexperience, or it’s a pointless straw man - all short barrels are slow, regardless of powder choice.
You can call out “everybody knows it,” but I’ll turn the same coin on you. Varget is highly recommended by experienced reloaders far and wide, ESPECIALLY Service Rifle shooters who run NON ADJUSTABLE GAS BLOCKS in 16-20” barrels (24” and AGB’s not allowed) to deliver top performance loads in 5.56.
Maybe all you have ever fired in a 5.56 gas been 35-45grn bullets which don’t give enough resistance to make use of Varget? ‘Cuz from 50’s to 90’s, I haven’t seen a consistently more accurate and versatile powder, nor a powder which comes recommended more often.
Well, I see this has taken a turn for the personal here...
First of all, you have no idea at my level of experience. I started shooting at 6 or 7, reloading by 10 or 11, served in the Marines shooting high expert 245+/250 multiple times, and shoot about 15,000 rounds a year between rifle, pistol, and shotgun. Im almost 44, so you do the math. So I think that is plenty of experience.
Second, I said nothing about outright failures. What I did state was "gas port erosion" which is a reality in any rifle that uses a gas port drilled in the barrel. Shorter length gas systems are more prone to this due to the heat source being closer to the port. Using a powder that burns slower moves that distance further down the barrel and increases gas port pressure causing wear. If you really wanted to measure this you could use a infrared thermometer and measure the temp of the barrel and gas tube at given intervals. Higher temps equal more wear. That is a law of thermodynamics. I also never said anything about performance levels of Varget. Its very acceptable, but I maintain that its less than perfect in shorter barrels.
Third, I somewhat agree with you, however matching the correct powder to the barrel length does make a difference. You can see that pretty simply by building a load with three different burn rate powders, say H4198, 8208, Varget, and then shooting it in several barrel lengths, say 16, 20 and 24 inches. Velocity wise, the longer burning powders will fare poorly in the shorter barrels, but do better in the longer barrels and the opposite is true for the longer burning powders. So what is causing this? Incomplete burn for long powders in the shorter barrels, and the shorter burning powders simply running out of gas in the longer barrels. Also, Quickload is a great resource for building a load but isnt all knowing of every variable even with its myriad of options. The only true proof is what we can measure on paper and with a chronograph. Ill trust my targets, and my LabRadar because those are really measurable scientific results, not a simulation. You have two types of data. Theoretical and physical. Quickload is theoretical. Paper and chrono data is physical. Physical > theoretical every time.
Forth, High Power is a different animal. Most of these guys shoot a barrel for a season, then rebarrel in the off season. Most of us dont do that. They dont worry about shooting out a barrel. I dont personally shoot high power, and dont know anyone that does, so I cant comment beyond that other than I have looked over the rules so I have an understanding of how it works. I do know that most shooters are using 20" barrels so they can squeeze the extra velocity out for longer range performance.
Fifth, I shoot a ton of 55gr FMJBTs and SPs, because they are cheap at 7 cents a piece in quantity. My match ammo, in other words the stuff that will shoot around a 1/2" if I do my job, is all loaded on 68-77gr bullets. I have played with some 50 and 53gr VMax's as well, gotten some good results, but they arent my favorite. Ive tried every powder from H4198, H335, H4895, IMR 8208 XBR, CFE 223, and Varget in my ARs behind various bullets from 50 to 77 grains.
Like I said before, Im not disputing that Varget is a great powder. However, I dont feel its the best powder for this particular application unless a certain set of guidelines is met. Blindly saying "just load Varget" which is a common thing I see today just because its been around a long time and does have a good track record doesnt mean its the best for the application.
