Best Rifle Powder

[beekeeper]

OK here I go again.
I have been shooting for more than 50 years and have never solved the problem yet.
I shoot 7MM Mauser , 308 ,30/06 , and 8MM Mauser.
Not always but it seems more often now I find unburnt powder in the barrel when looking through it at the range and find I am taking longer to clean than I used to.
Part of it I know is I now only shoot lead bullets and am not getting the pressures I used to get when shooting jacketed. I can live with that part.
The question I guess is there a good all around powder for the calibers mentioned when shooting lead only?
I find the most unburnt powder and powder fouling when using IMR 4895.


beekeeper

[Missionary]

Howdy Beekeeper
What velocity range you looking at ?
2400 can usually get to near 2100.
I used to shoot more 3031 for around 2400 fps. But with the advent of the Accurate powders I stopped getting 3031. 2015 seems about like 3031 and I have over 8 pounds of it so it gets used alot now when I am up north.
Are the 06's any of the m1 Garand ? 4895 seems the powder of choice there with that port pressure issue. With 180 GC RCBS FN I use that and 2460 with no real trash issues in the barrel. Soon as the next round gets popped air pressure off the boolit nose pushes the clinkers on out.
Mike in Peru

[62chevy]

I would like to know the answer to that issue too. IMR 4064 is all I have but no data for lead boolits. Of course powder is scarce around here too.

[Missionary]

Greetings
If 4064 is all I had I would make it work.
A heavier bullet (especially with cast) would cause a better resistence to movement at ignition and the powder will get up to optimim burn pressure. Also seating the lead bullet to "bump" up against the rifling will resist movement just that bit so 4064 gets cooking good. But you must start the load testing using these variables... not just inserting as you approach max loads.
Back off the load start over and work up. A few grains of powder left in the barrel is nothing. Blown primer pockets are disconcerting and better tell ya to cease.
Mike in Peru

[62chevy]

I have the Lee C309-180-R but when I cast a few with pipe lead they out at 172 not the 187 I expected. Size was .310 so was happy with that and will cast at a lower temp to see how that works. Think the mold may have been to hot also.

[sthwestvictoria]

I could use H4895 (AR2206H for us Australians) for most jobs. It is very versatile for bottle neck rifle cartridges and importantly for cast bullets the Hodgdon 60% reduction rule can be used to arrive at a cast bullet load for almost any weight if there is jacketed data.

[Steve]

I could use H4895 (AR2206H for us Australians) for most jobs. It is very versatile for bottle neck rifle cartridges and importantly for cast bullets the Hodgdon 60% reduction rule can be used to arrive at a cast bullet load for almost any weight if there is jacketed data.

Could you explain that reduction rule a little more. It sounds interesing and helpful to me, but I need to get the picture a little clearer in my mind.

Thanks,
Steve

[sthwestvictoria]

Could you explain that reduction rule a little more. It sounds interesing and helpful to me, but I need to get the picture a little clearer in my mind.
Thanks,
Steve

Have a look at this from Hodgdon:
https://www.hodgdon.com/PDF/H4895%20Red ... 0Loads.pdf

The rule is that if there is jacketed data using H4895, you can take the max jacketed load and reduce safely as low as 60% of that max load (ie if max jacketed load is 40grains the 40x0.6=24grains) So in that example you could go as low at 24grains. In reality you will get case position sensitivity at the lower loadings, making itself known with flyers and irregular velocities. I don't use fillers, some people do use fillers to reduce this. I just increase the load until I get reliable loads that are still reduced. For example ADI gives a max load of 53.0grains of AR2206H (H4895) for the 250grain jacketed in 35 Whelen. My accuracy load so far has been 40.5grains of AR2206H with 250grain cast which is 76% of the max.

There is another method that Richard Lee suggests in his book - the 1grain reduction method.

In the Lee Modern Reloading 2nd Ed book, Richard Lee provides a method of reducing jacketed data. He does this by providing a reduction factor that you multiply the jacketed data by for each one grain reduction. For example if the Load for 250grain jacketed is 60grains of powder ABC for 2400fps and the reduction is 0.994. you multiply 2400x0.994=2385fps at 59 grains. then multiply 2385x0.994=2371fps at 58grains then 2371x0.994=2357fps at 58grains.
So you continue down the page until you arrive at the rough velocity you are aiming for then start loading. I feel safe using this method with H4895 only as we know that Hodgdon tell us it is safe to reduce up to 60% of max jacketed data. In real life you will experience position sensitivity before this.
For the Whelen I arrived at a start load that was at 74% of jacketed max (39.5grains). Therefore I felt safe to start loading. I then worked the load up and it is currently at 76% of jacketed max for H4895 (40.5grains).

The Lee book is useful. The 1grain reduction method is not the be all and end all and I would not use it with powders slower than H4895, some people may. Many people disagree with Lee and cast bullets but his information is useful if you see it as just part of the puzzle and bring in other information. His book is low priced and easily available.

[Steve]

Thanks sthwestvictoria. I will make use of this.