223 reloading question

[dangerranger]

Im loading up some varmit grenades with Ramshot TAC. barns load data shows a load density of 97%. with 27.5gr[ min load] when I drop the powder into the case it fills to the very top. I can tap the cases and the powder packs down to the shoulder. my question is should I pack them down first, or compress it with the bullit? or does it matter? DR

[necchi]

that's almost one for the Handloaders forum, I'd contact ramshot them selves, this is from thier website;

" Please feel free to email (powder@midrivers.com) or call toll free at 1-800-497-1007 to receive a free Ramshot Load Guide. Thank you for your patience."

[dangerranger]

 I called them and had to leave a message. it was 3pm pacific time. I guess they were already closed for the weekend.

[quickdtoo]

Just download it, it's less than 2Mb. 

Tim

http://www.ramshot.com/powders/loadguide/Ramshot%20Load%20Guide%20V4.3b.pdf

[trotterlg]

You will find lots of loads listed that will not fit in some cases.  Tap it down and seat a bullet on it.  Larry

[dangerranger]

You will find lots of loads listed that will not fit in some cases.  Tap it down and seat a bullet on it.  Larry

I can do that. DR

[cwlongshot]

OK couple things...

While compressing the powder charge with seating a bullet is one thing. Jambing something the the case full of powder is another... Breaking up the powder kernels so more will fit changes the burn rate... Burn rate is a big part of the pressure that amount of powder produces. In other words NOT a good idea.

What cases are you using? When is the last time to checked your scales accuracy? When something like this occurs, double and triple check everything . More often than not, you will find a little something you have overlooked and assumed was fine.

Military cases have less volume than commercial cases and will not hold as much powder.

 Unfortunately I haven't used Ramshot to offer exact personal experiences, but at that powder charge, its very close to powders I do i use. My all time favorite 223 powder is H322... Its a ball powder and meters beautifully.

Load densities near 100% generally offer the best accuracy thru the highest consistency. I too look for them when searching for a new load.

Check these things out and respond back.

Good luck,
 CW

[bikerbeans]

Hi,

I loaded up a few Barnes VG 36 grains into once fired military 5.56 brass resized to 223 REM.  I loaded 27.5 grains of Ramshot TAC (min. load) and the powder level was at the bottom of the shoulder.  I did not tap the case to try and get the powder to settle.  I check my scale fairly frequently and believe it to be accurate.  I did not load a heavier load because when loading military brass I stay at the bottom of the reccommended range because of the reduced capacity of the military brass.  Good luck with your reloading.

thanks

Bikerbeans

[necchi]

atta boy bikerbeans, that's a good answer.
I guess i've read compressed loads ain't a good thing. if I read data that said it's a 96% load,,then actually saw that I hafta shake, jiggle or compress the powder to get it in my case,,m' i'd question my data, and or procedure trying to find out why 96% look's like more.
 there is something going on, that ain't right.

[dangerranger]

 this is the first time Ive ever had to settle any smokeless loads. but I have some weights that I check my scale with and that checked out OK. Ramshots data gives a lower min charge at 26gr so I may start there and work up. after settling the powder its no longer touching the bullit. so I feel a little better about it. I have a call in to ramshot and will wait till then to load these.  Im loading into Rem brass but the rest of it is once fired millitary stuff.thanks guys.

[cwlongshot]

Don't read me wrong. Compressed loads generally provide some of your most accurate loads. Dropping powder from a long tube as BP shooters have done for decades is fine. Setting them on a vibrator to help them settle is another tip. I am speaking against PACKING or CRUSHING down the powder in the case forcefully so the powder kernels break up and compress that's a bad idea. Load densities near 100% ARE top accuracy potential loads, simple fact.

My own loading has a number of excellent loads that compress the powder. My RL7 375Win loads with a 220 bullet are one of them. The powder is damn near to mouth of the case then you add the bullet!!!!

CW

[Rustyinfla]

 As I was reading down through these posts I'm thinking a drop tube for a .223

  What would that be a 1/8" copper tube?
 WOW! that's a mental picture I'm trying to see.

  I'm used to seeing it on a bench where a guy is loading a big load of Holy Black in a buffler gun.

[carbineman]

dangerranger, If you have a chronograph check the velocity of the starting load and see what you get. That would help determine if you could run into a pressure problem.

Back in the day when I reloaded many more calibers than now, I can remember using WC872 (Hodgdon marketed it as H870) for 7mmSTW and 7mm Rem Mag. In the Rem 7 Mag I would put an ice cream pail under the powder thrower and put about 79-80 grains in the case, with any overflow from the case going into the pail. Then my buddy would take the case and strike off the top and seat the bullet compressing the powder fairly well. This was a slower than normal round and with a chronograph it was about 350 fps slower than anything else listed in the book. The load worked fine and we loaded and shot many practise rounds with proplellant that cost under 4 dollars per pound. We used any magnum primer we could get the cheapest.

So if you got it, find a way to use it. My buddy use to tell me I was so cheap I could squeeze the buffalo so hard on a nickle that I could make it crap out a dime. Seems it was the way I was raised. We were so poor in our neighborhood growing up, even our rainbows were in black and white.