Reloading belted magnums

[marlin1]

Originally Posted by rembo

depends on how much IMR 4350 you are running. The first 7 Mag I had about 8 years ago would do over 3300 with 67 grs of IMR4350 pushing a 139 Hornady.

64 grains , about the middle of the range on the scale I was looking at

[Cowtown guy]

Marlin1, which scale were you looking at? Don't panic this is just for curiosity sake.

[marlin1]

actually it was the guy helping me looking at the scale for that powder in particular .

[marlin1]

Originally Posted by Cowtown guy

Marlin1, which scale were you looking at? Don't panic this is just for curiosity sake.

why do you ask ? It may have been a nosler book also I am not really sure but I trust his knowledge

[Cowtown guy]

I was just thinking that 64 grains wasn't middle of the road for a 140 grain bullet. I don't want to state things that I can't for sure back up though. If you have no pressure signs and consistent velocities then blast away.
I did a quick check on IMR's site and they say 62.8 grains is a MAX LOAD for IMR 4350 and a 140 grain bullet. I'll dig up the link in a few minutes. That doesn't mean that Nosler's book won't say something different, or that your load isn't safe. That's why I have 3 books at home. I check each one often and collaborate between them if I am in any doubt.

[Cowtown guy]

Here's the link http://data.hodgdon.com/cartridge_load.asp it is listing a partition bullet so that could affect things a little also.
Like I said don't panic. I just figured that before you jump to 67 grains of powder like the other fella said he was using you should make sure all is well in YOUR rifle.
Did you do any chrony work? Maybe your speed is OK. The velocities aren't obtained by powder measure alone.

[marlin1]

no chrony work , we are old school guys lol. Accuracy is most important to me . I may have to ask the old bugger what chart he was using now though. I know he's cautious and meticulous with his loading . I had to measure all my powder myself. Thanks for the info

[marlin1]

you are right , he showed me the chart though and I picked the middle load range. I am not positive of the powder we used now I'll have to check when I get home. I am not worried too much about it as I've had no problems with first 30 rounds or so. I am in no hurry to max out my loads

[Cowtown guy]

Originally Posted by marlin1

you are right , he showed me the chart though and I picked the middle load range. I am not positive of the powder we used now I'll have to check when I get home. I am not worried too much about it as I've had no problems with first 30 rounds or so. I am in no hurry to max out my loads

If you haven't had problems then don't worry. I am a little surprised though that a veteran reloader just told you to pick a mid range recipe and have at 'er. Was this the case or did you guys work up to it?

[marlin1]

nope I started with this load . I was told he errs on the cautious side though

[Cowtown guy]

Well from now on just start at the minimum loads and work up from there when trying something new.
All the data was derived from someone elses set up. Namely the one listed on the first page of the caliber you are loading for. It will show the type of barrel, type of primer used, COAL and the length of the barrel that was used to obtain their velocities. Remember that COAL is for their gun.
I have a rifle that doesn't like any more then medium from the books. It starts to show signs right away. Certain calibres are prone to pressure spikes as well.
Just to be safe maybe get a book or two and do a bunch of reading. I learned way more from the books than I ever thought I would.
You said before that you wanted accuracy. The easiest way is to play with your seating depth after a safe load has been established. If you know how far off the lands your bullet is seated then you can adjust accordingly. This is also explained in the books. Or you can borrow my OAL gauge if you want. That is way easier and faster than the methods in the books.

[marlin1]

still lots to learn on my end but thanks for your help . Does that gauge measure the total length of the cartridge? the OAL ? if so he measured that

[Cowtown guy]

Yes it measures the OAL. The gauge actually measures to the ogive of the bullet not to the tip. Bullets are subject to human error. By measuring to the ogive you will always remain at a constant distance from the lands as the ogive is the point at which the bullet first reaches is calibrated size. In your case here .284". It is also where the sizing die touches to seat the bullet.
I keep the ogive at a constant distance from the lands. That distance is what you play with when people refer to seating depth. How far from the lands can be a huge factor when tinkering for accuracy. Barnes bullets generally like to jump into the lands. My 7mm rem likes the Barnes set .070" from the lands. The Bergers have to be .003".
That last number is real close to the lands. You could see here that if the bullets vary in size you can run into a situation if you aren't careful.
That is why when I first start working a load up from the minimum, I first measure the distance to the lands for a particular bullet and keep it fairly close. I start at .010" from the lands. This way I know that I am safe. If I were to start farther away, say at .050" and do the pressure testing and reach a max pressure, then I wouldn't be able to safely adjust the seating depth if my accuracy suffered. Who is to say that the pressure is the same when you move the bullet closer to the lands? To safely do this I'd have to drop a few grains then work up at the new closer depth.
Maybe I am too safe also. I just know that I don't want to be guessing while holding a bomb to my cheek.

[Mike0295]

I FS all my belted mag cases from 30 06 to 375 H&H. I do allot of loading for wildcats IE 270 Gibbs, 30 Gibbs , 8 mm Gibbs and many more and found that full sizing was the only way to go. I do not full size them to fact specs. I size them so the casing just gets snug as it reaches the bottom of the throw so not to change the head space otherwise you are creating a expastion and head space problem

[Dean2]

Originally Posted by Mike0295

I FS all my belted mag cases from 30 06 to 375 H&H. I do allot of loading for wildcats IE 270 Gibbs, 30 Gibbs , 8 mm Gibbs and many more and found that full sizing was the only way to go. I do not full size them to fact specs. I size them so the casing just gets snug as it reaches the bottom of the throw so not to change the head space otherwise you are creating a expastion and head space problem

Are you just trying to get your post count up? This is the second ten year old thread you are posting on, and resurrecting 10 year old threads is not a real useful endeavor.

[marky_mark]

Originally Posted by Dean2

Are you just trying to get your post count up? This is the second ten year old thread you are posting on, and resurrecting 10 year old threads is not a real useful endeavor.

Hahaha
X2

[YYC338]

Originally Posted by Dean2

Are you just trying to get your post count up? This is the second ten year old thread you are posting on, and resurrecting 10 year old threads is not a real useful endeavor.

Hey at least we learned a 30 06 is a belted magnum!

[obsessed1]

Originally Posted by Mike0295

I FS all my belted mag cases from 30 06 to 375 H&H. I do allot of loading for wildcats IE 270 Gibbs, 30 Gibbs , 8 mm Gibbs and many more and found that full sizing was the only way to go. I do not full size them to fact specs. I size them so the casing just gets snug as it reaches the bottom of the throw so not to change the head space otherwise you are creating a expastion and head space problem

What are you even talking about?? 30-06 belted mag? Full length size but not to factory spec?? So you just bump the shoulder back? The case just gets snug at The bottom of the throw? Full length sizing creates expastion and head space problems?? Um......

[6.5 shooter]

WHY, OH WHY OH WHY do people always try to take short cuts when they are fooling around with 50-60 thousand PSI next to their face.......

[Cheyenne 1]

Originally Posted by marky_mark

Hahaha
X2

Really. Be interesting to watch this.
Likely have something for sale soon

[marky_mark]

I wonder what page this thread was on before?
10 years between comments might be a record

[Salavee]

Originally Posted by 6.5 shooter

WHY, OH WHY OH WHY do people always try to take short cuts when they are fooling around with 50-60 thousand PSI next to their face.......

Likely because they don't understand what 50-60 thousand pounds pressure is is, or what it can do. Chasing the last fps velocity is a really silly practice anyway and not following the loading manual to a tee is even sillier. They should try standing next to a tire when it blows at 60 lbs. That'll learn'em.

[elkhunter11]

Originally Posted by YYC338

Hey at least we learned a 30 06 is a belted magnum!

[Bushrat]

Originally Posted by YYC338

Hey at least we learned a 30 06 is a belted magnum!

So I been using the wrong cartridges all these years??

[6.5 shooter]

Originally Posted by Salavee

Likely because they don't understand what 50-60 thousand pounds pressure is is, or what it can do. Chasing the last fps velocity is a really silly practice anyway and not following the loading manual to a tee is even sillier. They should try standing next to a tire when it blows at 60 lbs. That'll learn'em.

Safety meeting for a big oil company they showed us the effect 17 PSI has on a vessel coming apart. Heck of a mess you would have thought they had dropped a 500# bomb on the lease. (yes I know massive volume difference etc. but the same idea)(wish I could remember the name of the video "tiger" something)

Also know of a couple guys beat to death by a blown union at only 300 PSI.

Or a Massive well head valve spinning off into the lease because the crew who installed the bleed off value piping put it on facing the wrong direction. (maybe 200 psi)

But hey I might save a couple grains of powder and a couple extra projectiles if I just jump right to the max load...Can't fix stupid.