Leverevolution velocity

[hdtramp]

I bought some of Hodgdon Leverevolution to work up a load for my Winchester 94 and noticed on the Hornady site they call out a max velocity of 2300 fps with 37 grns, and on the container of powder it states 2389 fps with 35.5 grns. I'm somewhat of a beginner to reloading and don't like to go above the stated MAX velocity for safety sake and I know the stats aren't really written in stone, but 2389 fps is over max especially when you're 1.5 grains below the max 37 grains. Am I being over cautious, or is this alittle off? I've never seen this much of a discrepancy in data. Any info is appreciated, thanks.

 

[Cheesemaker]

To start:
Caliber?
Bullet brand, model and weight?
Barrel length?

At least we know the powder

 

[GeoDudeFlorida]

Well, first off, are you sure it's bullet-for-bullet? Same exact bullet, by manufacturer, weight and profile? Check the OAL and see if maybe it's a different seating depth between the jug and site. Also, 89fps isn't a real big difference. Is the pressure listed the same?

 

[Targa]

hdtramp, I am running Leverevolution with both my cast 150 and 170 grain bullets for my 94 Winchester.
36 grains for the 150’s and 34 grains for the 170’s and chrono’d them at 2340 and 2260 fps.
Like GeoDudeFlorida said, that 89fps discrepancy is not a big deal.

 

[jmr40]

Two different test barrels gave 2 different results. And that isn't unusual. Once you get your ammo loaded there could be 50-100 fps difference in actual speed when fired from 2 different rifles with the same barrel length. Around 50 fps is very common but 100 fps, or even more, isn't unheard of.

And... more details sure helps. I'm assuming 150's in a 30-30, but they make 160 and 170 gr bullets.

 

[GooseGestapo]

Apples to Oranges!
1. Hodgdons uses a industrial 24”bbl to generate their “laboratory” derived data.
2. Hornady used a 20” bbl Winchester M94 to test their ammo.
3. Hornady only lists velocities to nearest rounded number, and powder charge to attain specific velocity. This greatly limits the usefulness of their data.

If in doubt, use Hodgdons data. They market the powder.
Hornady sells bullets and loaded ammo... but they use LVR...
The Hornady factory ammo uses loads above what they list in the manuals. Just an observation...

I’m reasonably sure we are discussing the 160gr FTX ,as that’s the only bullet the Hornady #8 manual has data for, for LVR. Besides the 170gr FN.

Added; LVR is great stuff! It does amazing things in the .35Rem, and has found a home in of all things, the 6.5Grendel.

Also, pay close attention to the Hornady 160gr FTX,
Hornady makes three variations of it. One for the .30/30, another for the .308ME, and yet another for the .300Savage. The latter two only vary in location of cannelure. The .30/30 variant has a more Blount profile and Much shorter cannelure seating depth.

 

[Hugger-4641]

I chronographed factory Lever Evolution 30-30 ammo at 2360 from my model 94 AE.
I also loaded some 160ftx and 33.7gr of Lever powder and this chrono'd at 2280.
As mentioned, the Hogdon data is more useful than the Hornady 10th that I have

 

[buck460XVR]

Two different test barrels gave 2 different results.

Yep.... that the Hodgdon test and Hornady tests are different is the norm. Odds are your gun will produce results which will have even more variance.

I'm somewhat of a beginner to reloading and don't like to go above the stated MAX velocity for safety sake

What you are seeing, is max powder charge to stay within the safe pressure limits determined by those doing the tests and the velocity obtained by such.......not Max velocity. Max velocity is the point of where velocities go down even tho one increases the powder charge. Velocity is not a measure of safety, unless it starts to decrease with an increase in powder charge.

 

[hdtramp]

Well, first off, are you sure it's bullet-for-bullet? Same exact bullet, by manufacturer, weight and profile? Check the OAL and see if maybe it's a different seating depth between the jug and site. Also, 89fps isn't a real big difference. Is the pressure listed the same?

The data on the powder is for 30/30 160grn FTX Hornady bullets. My Winchester 94 is chambered for 30/30 with a standard 20" barrel.

 

[lordpaxman]

As others have said, different test fixtures are going to produce different results. I haven’t been able to procure that powder yet, but I would start with the Hornady data as it duplicates what you currently have. I almost never get to max charge weights but I do use a chrono to measure V. Good luck.

 

[ArchAngelCD]

I bought some of Hodgdon Leverevolution to work up a load for my Winchester 94 and noticed on the Hornady site they call out a max velocity of 2300 fps with 37 grns, and on the container of powder it states 2389 fps with 35.5 grns. I'm somewhat of a beginner to reloading and don't like to go above the stated MAX velocity for safety sake and I know the stats aren't really written in stone, but 2389 fps is over max especially when you're 1.5 grains below the max 37 grains. Am I being over cautious, or is this alittle off? I've never seen this much of a discrepancy in data. Any info is appreciated, thanks.

I not sure what you mean by max velocity. The data in the book is giving you the velocity achieved with that recipe in their test. It is not a posted max velocity. You need to worry about pressure, not velocity.

Now, the exception to what I'm saying is, if you see excessive velocity compared to the data that's when it might be a sign something isn't right. 89fps is in no way excessive. It's very good to be safe but in this case you seem fine.

 

[Wolfshead]

I hand load for my model 94 carbine.
I use both the Leverevolution powder and the FTX 30-30 160 gr. Bullets.
My rifle likes 36 grains of LVR powder the best for accuracy. I’m don’t know the speed as I don’t own a chrono.