reloader 15, 308 loads

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rozziboy18

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just read on line that some guys are using reloader 15 for the 308, im a 308 guy and this friday i plan to hit the range with some 100 rounds of test ammo, any recipes your guys would recomend?

aslo whats max charge weight on reloader 15 with a 175 smk?

things i have

brass win/lapua/nosler/fed/remington
other powders, imr 4350,
bullets 168 smk, 150 smk, 175 smk , 168 berger vld, hdy amax 168
 
I hate to echo post #2, But never trust a load without verifying it. You can get load data from mfg websites like Alliant. Sierra load data is another source. And of course load manuals.

I use Reloder15 in .308 with 168s. It is a different rifle/bullet (not SMK) and such. I did settle on 44.3 which is between the 40.0 min to 44.8 max. That is just a reference. You still need to verfy the load for your bullet and work up a load. 44.3 is nearing the max. It may not work or be safe in your rifle.

My other loads are not handy but I do like Varget as well as some others. My loading manuals are outside of the house.

No real short cut to load development, you have to work out the details. I do think some generalities show up and they do help to point in the right direction.

Everyone just wants to make sure you aren't going off half cocked. I can't tell from your post if you are experienced or new.
 
ok maybe i should revise my statement?

i have ben reloading for 4 years
real world data versus factory spec data differs greatly sometimes
i have many reloading books, but sometimes i like to talk to humans not pages
lastly, i know there are no real short cuts in reloading, and i test all my load very carefully.

had i known i wouldent get info here but only flack from rhino i would have stayed at ar15.com
but i came here becuse you guys arent dicks, this seem to be changing fast though.

wntfw,
thanks for your help, that is the proper response, unlike the troll coment above yours
 
If what you state about your experience is fact, then:

You should know there is no such thing as a "recipe" for handloading, since guns, lots, and pressure anomalies with brass, chamber, barrel alloy, seating depth, etc vary.

You should know that a reloading manual is a guide.

You should know that working up a load isn't plug and play.

So you come here looking for a handout.

Guy could say 42.5gr IMR 4895 is one hole at 300y. Load that in your rifle it might as well be a shotgun.

Do the work yourself and work the data up with the manuals provided. Nothing on the Internet will tell you how YOUR gun will shoot with YOUR components under YOUR conditions.

Due to the anomalous nature of the Internet, we have no clue who you are, where you come from, what your actual experience is. Reloading for 4 years is one thing if you load a few hundred rounds a year versus tens of thousands per year. There is a spectrum with experience.

Your lack of proper grammar and punctuation leaves me to believe you are either lazy or young; perhaps don't care and think forums are a perfectly good place to butcher the English language. That, coupled with your entrance statement leaves me to believe you aren't as experience as you think you are.

Those questions in your OP seem to be answered by a loading manual, which of course you have several by your account. In fact, Sierra's manual even has a recommended accuracy load if you're into that sort of thing. Fancy that.
 
Rozzi-
I can't speak to 175g loads, but I have had very good luck with using Rel 15 for 165g pills out of my semi custom 700.

With my gun (with 2.5-8X scope), using CCI standard primers and a bit under listed max (depending on what book you look at) has produced an average group of under .600" at 100 yards, plenty good enough for MY goals for this gun (plinking, big game, just to have...)

Hope this helps a little.
 
rozziboi18, Sometimes the High Road doesn't quite live up to its name. The over-40 crowd has mostly been taught that spelling and grammer is as important as the content of your communication. Sometime in the 1980s US schools stopped teaching this and concentrated on expressing onself no matter how gramatically imperfect. Generation Gap!

On the subject of your post, My experience with Reloder 15 in my .308 rifles is that best accuracy is usually nearer the "start" loads (40 grains with the 175 grain bullet) rather than on the Max side. Additionally, the kind of rifle you are shooting matters a lot. I load differently for my M1A (Rx 15 is great!) than I do for my bolt action .308s where Rx19 is better.

Parts of Rinodefense's post have value despite the tone. Usually you can get this kind of treatment at your local gunstore. At least there no one will comment on your grammer and punctuation.
 
Proving once again that every rifle is different, my experience has been just the opposite of Curator's, in that I get the best accuracy w/ R-15 at or near max charges. That said, it is my go-to powder for .308, and I'm sure you can find a load that works for you.
 
An interesting side-point about Reloder15: According to the chemists at Accurate Powder there is a special "additive" in Reloder 15 that reduces copper fouling. This has also been my observation in that I can get 500+ rounds down my M1A before copper foling begins to impact on accuracy whereas 200 rounds with IMR4895 and I have to de-copper the bore or accuracy suffers.
 
In your "Things I have" line, I would work up a load using the Lapua brass for sure, and depending on your twist, choosing your bullet weight accordingly. My 1-10" Savage really likes 155-168gr SMKs, and a mid level dose of Varget. I would just start near the middle of the RE15 data, for the bullet weight you choose, and increase the charge by .5gr, up to near max. Do the same with your 4350. I'd make 5rds of each weight, per bullet chossen. Good luck!! I have always found the accuracy node near the middle, never at max:) (YMMV)
 
The over-40 crowd has mostly been taught that spelling and grammer is as important as the content of your communication.
Only because it makes communication work so well. Too bad they don't seem to teach it anymore.

Inflammatory responses from the OP are not going to help him here. A courteous and properly punctuated reply to the suggestion of reading some load books and working up a load would have gone over much better.

All we can really do is throw out something that worked for us, and hope the OP double checks it in load books and goes from there.

Paragraphs without capitals, improperly punctuated, and with misspelled words is annoying to read and decipher for those impressed with learning proper grammar when they were young. Fact of life. Unfortunately, everything these days seems to be "close is OK".

Arfcom is full of annoying posters with no manners. Good for info, but not so much for hanging out.

i came here becuse you guys arent dicks, this seem to be changing fast though.
Does one actually believe that will help?
 
Gotta +1 on Walkalong's post. The only thing that irks me more than having to figure out where one sentence ends and other begins is txt msging. However, I will respond to even a badly punctuated post/question if it seems to be made in good faith. Text messaging, I ignore almost without exception.

On Reloder 15...and that isn't misspelled...I haven't used it, but a friend who is an avid rifleman with many years of reloading and handloading under his belt swears by it. Once a die-hard IMR proponent...he tried Reloder 15 in his .308 rifles, and he has become something of a poster boy for the powder. Don't have a clue what his data is, but it's hard to go wrong by taking an average of the starting loads from several manuals...and then go from there. That's part of the fun. Be careful. As a wise old man said:

"The pressure required to accelerate a 150-grain bullet to 3,000 fps in 22 inches of rifled barrel is more than sufficient to blow your eyeballs through the back of your head."
 
Rozzi,
RhinoDefnse was not inappropriate or trolling in his response. I did consider that I had to word my response carefully. Nobody will take the time to do that every time. I like to talk to other guys in addition to the manuals, but the manuals come first. I did wonder if you looked at a manual myself.
In defense of THR it is as good as it gets on the net. The Mods do a great job. What ultimately makes THR is how each member here conducts themself.

If anything you owe Rhino an apology.
 
ScratchnDent said:
my experience has been just the opposite of Curator's, in that I get the best accuracy w/ R-15 at or near max charges. That said, it is my go-to powder for .308

Me too!! My match load is a 178gr A-MAX, 44.2gr of Reloder 15, Lapua cases and CCI 200 primers. My MV is around 2,650 fps and the load is accurate out to 800 yards. I'm trying everything possible to get the SD as low as possible to get this load into the 1/2 MOA range at 600 yards but I could post numerous targets showing how well this load shoots. Ultimately, any shortcomings may be down to me rather than the load but I'm fairly sure that I need to improve neck tension consistency. I'll be shooting at 800 yards a week from Friday so I should know if I'm heading in the right direction soon enough.

:)
 
I run 43.8 grains of IMR 4895 behind 168 SMK's and it's more consistent than I am. Lapua brass is always a plus. CCI BR-2 primers work for me. I'm currently debating moving to the 175 SMK's just to cut the wind a little more efficiently.
 
My 20" R700 likes the 168 Hornady BTHP at the light end of the load data, but none of the loads I've tried have been over 1" at 100yds.

Best so far has been 39.9 RL15; neck sized Remington brass, CCI200, 168gr. Hornady BTHP @ 2.800". It's consistently under .6". I just picked up some BR primers and am working on the seating depth.
 
your all right. im a 24 year old male, high school only, and im dumb to the ways of the world.i had no idea that spelling was so important in a reloading fourm. i do love when the "over 40 crowd" gets all up in arms with grammer and bustes on my spelling due to my lack of a "proper" education. long story short, i realy dont care in any way shape or form. but when you open up with a coment like rhinos, thats just assholish<another made up word>and rude. im sorry rhino if i made you mad, ill stay in rifle country and no longer waste all of your time.
 
i'm a big fan of r15 and 168g SMKs. my load was 42g, lapua brass, fed gm primers. very, very accurate.

my recommendation would be to call sierra's hot line 800 223 8799 and ask them what their accuracy load is


edit: and i disagree with the 'there's no recipe' crowd. otherwise, there's no explanation for federal GM match shooting so well in almost every rifle.
 
taliv said:
my recommendation would be to call sierra's hot line 800 223 8799 and ask them what their accuracy load is

and take a look at this ...

Sierra308Win_Page_6.jpg


Sierra308Win_Page_7.jpg


:)
 
Last edited:
Taliv,
My take on the "Recipe" vs "No Recipe" is that there are some general guidelines that work pretty well across the board for a given cartridge. It is just when you try to pick the optimal recipe for a particular rifle that the slight differences show up.
If you ask what powder for a .308 at the local F Class, the answer is "Oh you can use both of them." The choice being Reloder15 or Varget. One guy goes so far as saying he uses the same charge weight for both powders. I started with Varget and then went to RL15. Availability being the driving force.
My best loads tend to have the next higher & lower incremental charge shooting almost as well as the best.
 
rozziboi18....My experience with the 308 in reloading is much the same as curator's. That is, my more accurate loads tend to be the starter or just above starter loads. The round seems to work better at the lower velocities.
What I find with the 308 is that even the less accurate loads are pretty damned accurate. The good ones are just better.

I load 125 grainers and 165 grainers both using RL 15.

Good luck
 
The bad grammar etc I can overlook. I may ignore it and not answer as it is annoying and hard to read, but I can get over it. What I won't "get over" is nasty remarks lashing out at people. That does not make friends or encourage help.

Just sayin'
 
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