# .308 Win Handloading question



## Bax* (Dec 14, 2008)

So I finally broke down and bought a .308. And of course I want to hand load my ammo, but I am not sure what weight of bullet to shoot. I have a 1 in 12 twist barrel. And have loaded up some 130 gr, 150 gr, and 180 gr bullets. But I am wondering what YOU guys prefer to shoot out of yours. 
I know this is a fairly broad topic because each gun is different, but its always nice to know what is working best for others and base my loads off of that and work from there.

Also, I am curious what powders and primers you are using. (I bought Varget, H335, and IMR-4895 and could only find come CCI 200 Larger rifle primers.)

Thanks for the pointers.
Frisco, I'm counting on you here buddy!!!


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## Frisco Pete (Sep 22, 2007)

I don't have a .308 to load for, but I pay some attention to what others do because my situation can change hopefully.
Varget is very popular and has a great accuracy rep. Advantage over your other two powders is that it is temperature-insensitive and they are not. Velocity won't drop when it is cold like with the other powders listed. Another great .308 powder you don't have is Ramshot TAC which is a ball powder developed in Belgium for military use (_think FN_). It is temperature-insensitive and very clean burning (as is Varget) and meters excellently through powder measures. Black Hills Ammunition uses a lot of Ramshot powders. They are good stuff.

H-335 and IMR 4895 are good powders too, but I thought I should point the above out. I would take your H-335 off your hands myself if it doesn't work out. The .308 is such a non-fussy caliber that getting accurate loads with a variety of powders shouldn't be a problem. Picking which one too use might!

CCI 200 primers work as well as any from what I've seen.

I don't know what to tell you on bullet weights. It mainly depends on intended usage. I do have a soft spot for 165-grain bullets in .30 caliber though. They have an excellent blend of high ballistic coefficient (streamlining) and velocity potential. With the excellent premium bullets available in that weight nowadays, I feel that they will kill big stuff as well as the standard 180s used to, but are slightly faster and flatter. 168-gr match bullets are similar and the most used .308 match weight.
Did you notice that I picked the ONLY weight you don't have? :roll: sorry!


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## Bax* (Dec 14, 2008)

Frisco Pete-
great info there. I appreciate the suggestion for the Ramshot TAC as well. The Varget is very inconsistent in my powder measure so I have to be very careful measuring Varget out, so a ball powder would be a great thing to have. I havent seen any 165 gr bullets yet, I have just been buying what I could find and hoped for the best. Oddly enough, the 180 gr A-max bullets I bought were the cheapest (and they came 100 rounds to a box unlike the others that were only 50 to a box and the same price!) But I did find some 150 gr Seirra HPBTs for $35 today and picked those up too. Thanks for your input, its nice to have some guidance on this when you are a novice. _(O)_


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## Frisco Pete (Sep 22, 2007)

As to charge weight variations using Varget, if they vary by only 2 or 3% of the total charge weight you should see no accuracy differences. According to gunwriter and reloading guru John Barsness: "_There isn't any real advantage in weighing each charge rather than using a powder measure, except perhaps in some very small cases with very large-grained powder, an unlikely combination. This is because powder doesn't always ignite exactly the same way from each case, so any tiny amount of charge variation is lost.
Plus, when we are looking for an accurate load, we're trying to match the powder charge with the vibrations of the barrel. Usually a half-grain either way won't affect this much._"

But ball powder _is_ much nicer to meter out even with the above statement easing your worries!


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## NHS (Sep 7, 2007)

+1 on the 165gr weight for 30 caliber. I do not have a .308, but do load for the 30-06. 165 gr bullets seem to fit right in the sweet spot between increased bullet weight and increased muzzle velocity. Look at the Nosler Accubond or Hornady Interbonds for a good all-around big game bullet. Both offer excellent BC and are bonded bullets, so they won't come apart when you hit something big and furry.


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## Bax* (Dec 14, 2008)

Frisco Pete said:


> we're trying to match the powder charge with the *vibrations of the barrel*. Usually a half-grain either way won't affect this much.


Now that is just interesting. I never would have thought/considered that...


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## Bax* (Dec 14, 2008)

One other question:
NHS brought up the Ballistic Coefficient. What is that? I see it in all my reloading manuals but dont know what it means


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## NHS (Sep 7, 2007)

Basically, the ballistic coefficient is a derived number (bunch of math and physics) that describes the bullets reaction to air resistance or drag. All I know is that the higher the ballistic coefficient, the more streamlined or aerodynamic the bullet is. A bullet with a relatively high BC will retain more velocity and thus energy down range than a bullet of equal weight that has a lower BC.


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## Loke (Sep 7, 2007)

Bax* said:


> [quote="Frisco Pete":2er78u2l]we're trying to match the powder charge with the *vibrations of the barrel*. Usually a half-grain either way won't affect this much.


Now that is just interesting. I never would have thought/considered that...[/quote:2er78u2l]

A way to visualize this is to compare your barrel to a whip or fly rod. At the top and bottom of each oscillation the barrel is stationary. That is when you want your bullet to exit the barrel. You can tune you load to match your barrel, or tune your barrel to match your load if you have the Browning BOSS (Ballistics Optimizing Shooting System), an adjustable barrel weight that alters your barrel harmonics.


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## Bax* (Dec 14, 2008)

You guys are teaching me some things that I have never even heard of. Very interesting in informative! Thanks for sharing the knowledge!!!


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## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

The .308 is a fine weapon, one of my favorites. It's known to be very forgiving as far as reloading goes. 

For years I used IMR 4895 or 4831 for 150gr Core-Lokts in both the 30-06 and 308. The guns were Remington models 788, 700, and a 760 pumps. Note that compared to the 30-06 the .308 uses 10 gr less powder for only 100 fps less in muzzle speed. Barrel lengths varied from 24" to 18" and twists were 1 in 10" and 1 in 12".

Then I changed to 150gr and 180gr Nosler Partitions pushed by IMR 4064. It is a very accurate combo in my bolt action .308s, but not the best in my pump. My 180grs are most accurately loaded with a moderate amount of powder. I use the load mostly for hunting dark timber, my preferred way to hunt elk. 

I'm shooting BL-C2 in the pump now.

I have reloaded some 165gr Nosler Partitions with RL15. On paper its a very fast and accurate combo, but I haven't shot many yet. Varget is a favorite of many 308 fans, but I just haven't got around to trying it.

Experiment, have fun.


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## bwhntr (Sep 12, 2007)

The .308 is a ton of fun and extremely deadly. Here is the recipe I am currently using with great results.

Federal Brass, CCI 200 Primer, 46.3 Gr of IMR 4064, topped off with a 165 gr. Hornady SST.
This offers 2767 fps, and 59,700 psi, the Hornady SST has a ballistic coefficient of 0.447.

Good luck!


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## James (Oct 7, 2007)

> A bullet with a relatively high BC will retain more velocity and thus energy down range than a bullet of equal weight that has a lower BC.


Add to that, it will shoot flatter. Assuming it can be launched at the same speed. Of course this is because it retains velocity better as stated. The problem is that the heavier bullet cannot be shot as fast.

In 30 cal bullets assuming the same general shape, the heavier the bullet, the higher the Balistic Coefficient.

I do not presently have a 308, but did at one time. I preferred to shoot 150 gr bullets in it. 
You can push those up to around 2800 FPS. This will be a flatter shooting bullet than the heavier ones, not because it has a better Balistic coefficient, but because it can go faster starting out.

Ok, heavier bullets mean heavier recoil too. Maybe that is no problem?


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## Bax* (Dec 14, 2008)

I am glad that I started this thread. You guys are pointing out things that never crossed my mind. Thanks for the education guys!


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## NHS (Sep 7, 2007)

One of the best ways to learn about ballistics is to play around with some ballistic software. There are many programs you can purchase and many you can download for free. Here is an example of a free one. It is called Point Blank and can be down loaded from here:

http://www.huntingnut.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=3

Using software like this allows you to see what happens down range when you change variables such as bullet weight, BC, Muzzle Velocity, Temp, Altitude etc.

Having some sort of ballistic software, along with a chronograph to accurately know your muzzle velocity will give you a fairly accurate picture of what your bullet is doing down range. All of this doesn't help you shoot any straighter though. :mrgreen:


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## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

NHS said:


> One of the best ways to learn about ballistics is to play around with some ballistic software. There are many programs you can purchase and many you can download for free. Here is an example of a free one. It is called Point Blank and can be down loaded from here:
> 
> http://www.huntingnut.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=3
> 
> ...


That's cool, uncpmplicated. I did my new load for 25-20, a 75 gr flat-nose Speer. Should go out of my old pump at 2008 fps. A friend of mine gave me some (pirated my guess) reloading software but I couldn't open it.

I have all my recipes in a home-made excel program.


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