Again,I will take the otherside.I gather most competitors use basicly the same load for what are basicly the same rifle.So there is an accuracy load.I played around with six 30.06s at one time,the two with near the same specs, shot the same loads well.The one with 23 1/2"fishing pole barrel with it's 1 in 12 twist sure didn't.

quote:

I believe that this B/S about rifles that shoot 2" groups suddenly shooting 3/4 inch groups with the "magic" reload is just that B/S.

Not at all, if you load for enough different rifles you'll see it w/ time. It has alot to do w/ Barrel Harmonics.

I've loaded for some rifles that would not shoot hardly any so called accuracy loads or anything you'd think would be accurate. Then, after lots of tinkering (And Hair Pulling ), the magic load was found. I've seen rifles that shot some loads into patterns of about 2-3" and then, once enough tinkering had been done they shot remarkable groups of less than an inch and some much less than an inch. Now, it could be the other way around as well, you could stumble onto that perfect load right from the start but, that doesn't happen too often. I've even seen some really good Qulity bbls shoot some bullets/powders terribly but, shoot others into itty bitty groups. Definitely not BS at all.

Have a Good One

Reloader

quote:

Originally posted by downwindtracker2:
Again,I will take the otherside.I gather most competitors use basicly the same load for what are basicly the same rifle.So there is an accuracy load.I played around with six 30.06s at one time,the two with near the same specs, shot the same loads well.The one with 23 1/2"fishing pole barrel with it's 1 in 12 twist sure didn't.

Pretty much confirmed the theory right there. Your load worked in a couple rifles but certainly didn't in another, although some other load probably would. In the world of competitive shooting like benchrest there are loads like N-133 in 6PPC that is very common but your talking about custom reamers and quality heavy barrels and chambers that are very much alike in most competetors guns and usually some variation of the same powder/bullet weight load will very well in most of them. When your talking about factory rifles with chamber/barrel dimensions that vary greatly from one to the other the chances that any one load will work in them all is pretty slim.

Stubblejumper: Lump me in then, there, with your sweeping declaration - I have as yet to find ANYONE I have given the following load to that was DISSATISFIED with the accuracy of this load!
I hope you will try this loading and then rescind or greatly modify your blanket statement!
NO ONE is more aware that EACH Rifle is an individual than I am! BUT this load (as well as several others that I am aware of for calibers 6mm Remington Bench Rest, 6mm PPC and 222 Remington) is in my experience virtually universally accurate in quality Rifles!
The load:
Caliber = 223 Remington
Bullet = 50 gr. Sierra Blitz (#1340)
Primer = Federal 205 Match
Powder = H4895
Charge = 26.5 grains
Seating = close to the leades of the rifling

If your 223 Rifle does not shoot this load at least "well" throw that Rifle away (well actually sell it or trade it off) and get another!
I have been recommending this load for many, MANY years and have as yet to find a competent shooter with a good 223 that was not happy with this loading, accuracy wise!

Long live Sierra!

Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

Of course there is always the other side of the coin. Some people adjust the barrel harmonics to the load instead of attempting to fine tune the load.

I have seen a couple of BOSS equipped rifles dialed in to shoot incredibly small groups and the "Hick's Accurizer" serves the same purpose on a Ruger #1.

Once again there is no magic setting for these devices that works for all rifles with any particular load, but the factory does predict the "sweet spot" fairly closely.

The loading manuals may be able to predict a loading which gives decent accuracy in a lot of rifles. But due to barrel harmonics, they can not predict the loading that will give the absolute tightest groups with the rifle in your gunsafe.

Okay, I'll throw my 2 cents in on this thread also. I had just submitted the following on another thread on this forum. I'm new to this forum, but I've been reloading for my own personal satisfaction since the mid 60's. And I learn something new all the time. I'll share something I had heard, but never fully experienced until recently.

My youngest son is a "tack-driver" with his .223, so I'm often trying different bullet/powder combinations out with him. And recently I had loaded up about 40 rounds of some new "match grade" bullets with 2 different powders that his gun likes. I took both my sons, 5 guns and several hundred rounds to the the range so that we could help to support the Barnes, Sierra, Hornady, Hodgdon, IMR and Accurate employees and their families.

Before I had touched off 5 rounds in my WSM, my young son was over complaining that I had not loaded the new bullets correctly, or something was wrong. He'd gone through 10 rounds and couldn't get any 2 together in the 8 inch ring. I suggested that he try the other batch loaded with the other powder.

Since this caused a break in my shooting, the guy next to me asked what velocity I was getting out of my WSM and we began to chat about it and his new DPMS. My son comes back with the same complaint, so I went down to his station to try a few rounds. They were all over the paper. I pulled out another box with a dozen of 'old' loads we had for his .223 and promtly threw a 2 inch group on the paper. He shot another group with those and that was just under 1 MOA. So we put that rifle away and he started plinking with the .243 we had brought.

When I returned to my station, I shared with my new friend that my son's gun "coughed" on a batch of new "match" bullets I had loaded for him. We chatted a bit and decided to try a few in his rifle, even though I had only neck sized the rounds.

I wasn't shocked when he said he couldn't see the second round he fired anywhere on the paper. But when he fired the third round and it layed next to the first, I was surprised. He fired two more 3 round groups, two of which could be covered by a dime, the other by a quarter. When we examined the paper closely, that second round he couldn't see was almost completely in the hole of the first round he shot. Needless to say, I gave him the remaining rounds, along with the notes I had for the powder loads. He's just found what he wants to "tune" for his rifle, if any at all.

And my point of this lengthy tale is that there are many components involved. In some instances all of those will work in one gun, and perhaps many others. And in other instances there may be only one piece that doesn't work well with one gun. On that day it was that one bullet in that one gun.

Keeping track of the variables enables us to better identify that one piece that may be adversely affecting performance. And keeping records often helps us to keep track of those pieces that almost always work well enough to be tried again and again.

My hope in joining this forum is that I'll continue to learn, from your experiences as well as my own. And to do that we must share with one another, whether we agree on the specifics or not.

Similar rifles shoot similar loads similarly

Hey SilentlySoaring, Excellent first-hand experience post. Welcome Aboard!

Welcome aboard,SilentSoaring,interesting...