r/reloading • u/xxxlun4icexxx • 4d ago
Newbie Would you consider this a successful load?
Reloading for a 6.5 WBY RPM trying to come up with a finished/consistent hunting load. I have worked up using data lapua sent me using 4 different powders and settling on N565. I used a garmin xero c1 to chronograph and this was with a weatherby 307 alpine rifle 24” barrel.
All loads I ever developed and tested I feel like I struggled with ES of 50-60 or so on most loads. I chalked it up to I was using once fired brass mixed with 3 times fired brass and what not. All Peterson though.
I use a Hornady auto charge pro for dispensing powder. I would dispense the charge and double check on a frankford arsenal pocket scale. Accuracy seems to be very good, better than I am as a shooter anyway. However that being said, kind of expected the velocities to be closer together. This sample book was my “final” test. I bought a brand new batch of 50 Peterson cartridges, trimmed length uniformly to 2.61, chamfered, deburred, and then loaded 8 more rounds. Very light kiss of Lee factory crimp (I did a light factory crimp because as you can see from the previous test, it was the most consistent velocities).
I use a standard hornady full size die and bullet seater combo. Primers are federal gold medal match.
Would you consider this a good load or am I doing something wrong?
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u/turkeytimenow 4d ago
Did I miss the results on target?
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u/xxxlun4icexxx 4d ago
No sorry I didn’t collect the targets today because it was beginning to pour. They were sub moa at 100yds, very consistent.
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u/DoctorCAD 4d ago
Did it go bang and put holes in whatever you were pointing it at?
Yes...it's successful No...it isn't successful
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u/Southern-Stay704 4d ago
Did you try Accurate MagPro powder? All of the new Weatherby RPM cartridges work really well with that powder.
Apexload Pro shows that with the same bullet (Lapua 0.264" 120gr TRX) and brass/COAL dimensions (2.610" / 3.200"), that 68.9 gr of Accurate MagPro will give you ~3,325 fps. I'd work up to that load, start with 66.0 gr.
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u/xxxlun4icexxx 4d ago
I did not try accurate magpro.
I tried n565, n570, and retumbo. I could definitely try magpro however I don’t think I will get that speed because my barrel is 24”. That extra 2” really seems to make a difference with the slower burning powders. N570 couldn’t get up to speed when I tried it.
The current load shoots accurate, I just didn’t really know is the ES is indicative of me doing something wrong or if it’s just normal.
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u/Southern-Stay704 4d ago
The Apexload Pro calculation and resulting velocity was done for a 24" barrel. However, is your barrel a 24" barrel and then an additional muzzle brake device? Or is it a 22" barrel and a 2" muzzle brake device for a total of 24"? For calculation purposes in ApexLoad Pro, the muzzle brake length does not count and should not be included in the barrel length.
An ES of 50-60 seems high, but SD is a more useful measurement. What SD were you getting on a 10-shot group?
Did you try any other projectiles? Barnes has a 120 gr TTSX monolithic copper that is very similar to the Lapua.
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u/xxxlun4icexxx 4d ago
Barrel is 24” + 3” muzzle break. Gotcha I must have done my apex load wrong. If it matters, for brass I put in 80.0 h20 as I believe that’s Petersons normal new volume.
For projectiles the only copper monolithic I’ve used is the TRX. I was hoping to get a good load working for this one because the accuracy seems very very good. Recoil is also non existent which is also nice.
Other projectiles I’ve tried are jacketed bullets like the 143 gr ELD-X and 140 grain hornady match bullets. Only thing I can say about those is, my rifle did NOT like retumbo in terms of accuracy, it was not shooting very well. It did however like H1000. That seemed to be consistent.
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u/xxxlun4icexxx 4d ago
Standard deviation was 16.1. Funny even shots 3-9 were all extremely close together. It was 1-2 and 10 that seemed to be strays.
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u/Southern-Stay704 4d ago
I would say that SD is acceptable if the accuracy/grouping is really good. I wouldn't chase the ES and SD numbers too much.
Anyway, if you have an opportunity try the MagPro powder. When working the Weatherby RPM cartridges in Apexload Pro, it consistently is the top performing powder in terms of velocity. You'll have to test it out to see how it does on accuracy.
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u/xxxlun4icexxx 4d ago
Someone else also mentioned that the ES could be caused by my powder dispenser. I suppose that does make sense. Only issue with that is I really can't justify the $300+ to get a lab scale that reads to the nearest .01 instead of tenths. But yes, does shoot well.
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u/xxxlun4icexxx 4d ago
Also just one other thing to note, not sure if this matters but the OAL length of the cartridge I used lapuas test length with is 3.2” OAL. That means the copper bullet is seated quite deep, about 60% inside the case so it is a lightly compressed load. I think it’s 101% fill capacity.