Taking the new Belgian beyotch to a 1K F/TR match in 5 hours...

General Firearms Precision Rifle - Bolt Gun
1

Just finished a load tonight that should work fine as long as I don’t let it get too hot:D

Wound up with 43.0 of Varget in a new Lapua case and a 178gr AMAX seated to 2.800", but primed with a Federal Gold Medal Match Large Rifle Magnum. Gave me a 75fps boost and lowered the ES to under 10. The primers show some pressure signs, but I think it’ll be fine.

Will report back from the range :smiley:

I don’t normally anthromorphosize weapons at all but if she does well tomorrow she’s getting a name.

Later fellas.

QS

2

Good luck, be sure to let us know how you/it shoots. What kind of velocity are you getting from the 178 gr projectiles?

3

My friend helped me brew up a LR reload for the MWS 16" CL, and it walks the damn dog once you reach 800yds and beyond.

After now shooting a cpl. hundred of the following recipe, I can report flawless operation on all reloads, and outstanding performance at both intermediate ranges/heavy winds, and long ranges where the bullet encountered both the transonic transition region, and then sub sonic flight. No pressure signs in the least either. I am however shooting a gas gun, not a bolt fwiw.

Recipe

Once fired Hornady match brass
FGMM primers 210m
43.9g Varget powder
178gr. AMAX
COL: 2.805

I finally got the Oehler 35P up in action, and as always many thanks to fellow member Slomo for his very generous gesture of allowing me to borrow the 35P. I’m gonna add several more Velocity Evals for popular factory loadings, but figured I would start with my new mainstay…the hand loaded 178gr. AMAX. I also shot off a string of Remington 150gr. Corelokt to compare against.

I didn’t have much of the hand loaded 178gr. AMAX, so I had to shoot the single group I collected off the bench with very little support while trying to still shoot the chrony. Nonetheless, I’m super impressed with the velocity data and accuracy of this new LR handload.

Conditions:

Temp: 77degree F
Elev: 481 ft.
Hum: 59%
Pressure: 30.21 <—

Oehler 35P Proof Screen Chronograph…Screen to muzzle = 10ft.

Remington CoreLokt 150gr.

1 - 2616
2 - 2625
3 - 2676
4 - 2598
5 - 2660
6 - 2667

+ 2676
- 2598
E 78
M 2640
S 31

Custom LR 178gr. AMAX

1 - 2461
2 - 2486
3 - 2474
4 - 2481
5 - 2474
6 - 2483
7 - 2476
8 - 2481
9 - 2481
10 -2478

+ 2486
- 2461
E 25
M 2477
S 6

10rd group @ 100yds (this stuff will most definitely shoot smaller 10rd groups when shot in prone with rear supported)

True Dope for a MWS 16" CL barrel with 178gr. AMAX - 1200yds :cool:

I added the above data from another RR thread of mine in the thought that this thread isn’t a tweeter type, and it could potentially help you or others out even though I’m not sure if your just announcing the pre testing of a reload, or seeking discussion surrounding one your going to be shooting. At any rate if this wasn’t meant as a discussion thread than I will edit the data above out.

4

Right at 2600, which at the temp tomorrow should make it fine.

Allons!

5

No, man, thanks for that. I’m still searching for a good load - I finally had to settle on something and just load last night, and what I wound up with was a new Lapua case with 43.0 Varget, Federal GM210M primer, 178AMAX at 2.800". Didn’t even have time to chronograph it because it was 10 PM when I got done loading. I fired a few shots at dusk at a 400 yard steel just so I could look at the primers - they were fairly flat, but I had no choice, so I put them in an MTM box and carried them out to the range in a cooler.

I wound up with a 173-1x and 169-3x, which is meh, but when I stopped and chronographed the rounds on the way home, the velocity was averaging 2560fps and ES was 91.0fps out in the heat (holy shit!), so I think I did better than I should have, by all rights. According to my friend in the pit they were not supersonic at the target but were still flying straight. I’m just going to have to work out a load that doesn’t suck.

I’m going to try some RL15 next and see if I can get that 178 up to 2650 with some accuracy, which I do not seem to be able to do with Varget.

6

Thats fine 1,200 yard shooting. My Varget load is 43.8, ( you had to outdo me :D) . Those AMAX bullets continue to impress. I gotta get back on my LMT and let that boy unleash fury again. Good to see you showing the world the quality LMS doing its thang.

7

Quiet…glad to hear the stuff I posted positively contributed, and in the past Ive refrained from replying in one or another of your threads since I think we’ve ruffled a feather or two of each others in the distant past. Figured I’d let sleeping dogs lie as I navigate M4C very differently today than perhaps even a yr. ago. I did post though given just how relevant I thought it would be for your thread’s topic. You should get the great results your looking for with that reload as I’ve yet to hear someone complain about 178gr. AMAXs at distance.

I wish I didn’t but every single time I’ve made a reply over the last yr. or two I honestly ask…“what would ArmyChief think” :smiley: I tried to hate that man in the beginning thinking he was a internet nazi or something, but he of all folks holds M4C to such a high standard. M4C will remain a true resource for learning and sharing as long as people just take the high road, and it’s rather easy since it’s on the internet. It does annoy me that I constantly write replies only to delete them, but I prefer the low profile these days.

PB…Thanks for continual words of encouragement, and interest in what I post up on here. It certainly always makes any effort I undergo to post up something on here well worth it. For the record the only reason I tried the 178gr. AMAX reloads to begin with was due to PB’s/Mark’s reports on them.

8

Interestingly enough - It appears that me worrying about having the 178 supersonic at the target might be much ado about nothing. My friend in the pit (a world-class F shooter) said at the end of the match that my bullets were going subsonic (his guess) at about 980, but that they were still flying straight and putting perfect holes in the target - and you guys are launching them almost 100 fps slower than I am and getting good hits out to 1200. This tells me two things: 1) the AMAX goes transonic smoothly and 2) quit pushing my loads so hard trying to hit 2650, because it doesn’t fucking matter.

Thoughts?

9

OK - switched to the 178HPBT and poured on the throttle. Got it up to 2730 with a miniscule vertical spread at 400. I shot another 1k 2x20 on Sunday. Miserable fucking conditions, wind fishtailing, flags pointing two different directions, mirage running a third (the mirage was accurate. The flags were doing I don’t know what). The crowning moment of the day came first.

I dialed my 1000 yard range dope, added .3L for spin drift, and held .4 into the mirage for the wind. 10 at 12 o’clock for the cold bore shot. And just to prove it wasn’t a fluke, I went on record immediately and scored another 10 at 2 o’clock. That’s not too damn bad for 85 degrees and varying winds from 4 to 13 mph (as measured by a vintage NM wind gauge my grandpa bought at Perry in the 70s.)

I figure the FN is about good with this load. Landing my cold bore shot into a 10" circle on demand at 1000 yards using nothing more than a standard 24" barrel, a 15x scope, Harris bipod, and a little rear sandbag made from a BDU leg, then doing it again, and several more times after that - I think the rifle and ammunition problem is squared away. I’m probably going to keep shooting these matches just to get the 1k and 600yd wind reading experience, but I think it’s time to get into some more interesting stuff. Yes, a dedicated F-T/R shooter can outscore me…but as I found out on Sunday, the guy who shoots the highest scores regularly around here does not have any dope for his gun other than 600 and 1k, and in fact doesn’t even know the MV of his handload. He concentrates on the game, and he trundles his gear out on a cart and only shoots on this range off of a nice $300 shooting mat.

'snot where I’m headed. I’m thinking the SHC next year.

10

if by SHC you mean Snipers Hide Cup, very cool… hope to see you there!