I posted this over on the long range site as well.

Is this more marketing hype than truth?

From what I can read, a lot of people are saying that RL22 is one of the most temperature sensitive powders there is, yet I did a poll on this site to see what the favorite powder is for the .300 Winchester Magnum and as of the time I am writing this post 61% of the voters preferred RL22. The other 39% was spread out over 3 other popular powders (H1000, H4831/H4831SC, and IMR 4350) in pretty equal distribution. It is not a large sample, but it mirrors what I have read on these sites for a long time.

So, if RL22 is so sensitive, why is it so popular in comparison to the so-called temperature insensitive powders such as H1000 and H4831?

I am tempted to buy a jug of RL22 to try, but want to sort through some of the mumbo jumbo first.

Thanks.

Hello,
Believe Varget is one of if not the most stable of powders available on the market, temperature wise that is. It is said that if you started shooting a long range match at say 9am and the temp. was 65F, and by 2PM it was 95F, or a 30 degree increase in temp. the resulting impact or change in point of impact could be as much as a moa per 15 degrees increase or in this example two minutes. At 1000 yards that is 20 inches. A bunch and therefore, powders as Varget, and sure there are others, that is very stable temperature wise is desireable.

All powders are tempature sensative for the most part.Some more than others.From what i have read and experienced myself that ball type powders are a lot more sensative to weather changes,more so to cold. van

300 Winnie,

That's a good question. I think some people see lot to lot variations and blame it on weather at times.

I shoot R22 a good bit in the 7RM and velocities seem to be the same in the cool early spring as they are in the hot summer w/ the same lot. If there is any fluctuation, it's not enough to gripe about.

Lot to Lot variation is a whole nother' story, Reloder Powders can vary quite a bit from lot to lot. Much more so than the competitors it seems. The best thing to do is buy a 5lber if you get onto a smokin' load.

It doesn't work as well for me in 300WM. I've tried it in two and neither rifle did all that well w/ R22.

H4831 has been my powder of choice in 300WM w/ 180s and 190s and despite it's touted reputation for being insensitive to weather changes to cool temps, I find myself having to up my charges .5 grains or so to get the results I had during the warmer mos.

I really don't expect any powder to perform exactly the same year round but, usually the fluctuation isn't enough to write home about.

Go ahead and try that R22 out, you may love it.

Good Luck

Reloader

I gave away an unopened pound of RL22 because I believe the temperature sensitivity issue to be real. I was noticing group size, POI, and pressure changes just from having the loaded cartridge in the hot chamber of my extremely accurate 6.5x55. I'm now 100% Hodgdon Extreme, though I'm considering trying Ramshot next.

Jaywalker

Ok! I'm going to play with this one a bit. First off I'm using this online ballstic calculator...

http://www.handloads.com/calc/

Now, I'm going to set this up for me and my home range. 30-06, 22" Rem 700 barrel, 180 gr Nosler Ballistic Tip (.507 BC) doing a nominal 2700 fps on a 90 degree day at 5500' elevation with the scope 1.5" over the bore and a nominal 200 yd zero. I can easily achieve this with R22.

+1.98" @ 110 yds
0" @ 200 yds
-7.84" @ 300 yds
-22.29"@ 400 yds
-44.08"@ 500 yds

Now if the same gun/load is fired on a late season hunt in December or January I'll change the temperature to 1 degree and the velocity to 2600 fps which may simulate a lower/slower velocity in cold temps with R22. I have zero ideas if this is real world but what the heck.

+2.25" @ 110 yds, a diff of +.27"
0" @ 200 yds
-8.87" @ 300 yds, a diff of -1.03"
-25.36"@ 400 yds, a diff of -3.07"
-50.57"@ 500 yds, a diff of -6.49"

Out to the 400 yd mark I'm not going to sweat a thing. At the 500 yd mark I'll think a bit more when it comes to deer or antelope; elk or moose.....not even! Beyond it's a whole new ball game.

Just some thoughts.

Big Al

300winnie ---- I have been shooting RL-22 in my .300 Win mag for many years, I also shoot it in my .358 STA, .257 Wby, .340 Wby, .415 Rigby, .270 WSM. I have taken some of the above rifles to Colorado, Alberta and Alaska where the coldest I have hunted was 20 below zero and noticed no noticable difference in performance. I have also shot them from 95 degrees in Kentucky and 100 plus degrees in Tanzania. In my opinion you are making a mountain out of a mole hill. Yep, with extensive testing there may be small differences, but at the distances I shoot at game, from 350 yards down to 10 yards, I have not encountered problems and will continue shooting RL-22. I think I have 23 pounds on hand at the moment. Good luck and good shooting.

The only place I've ever encountered temp issues with my loads is in South Dakota shooting P-dogs at temps over 100 deg and no shade!!!!

Since then I just keep the rounds in the cooler.....and ice isn't required either.....just keep them out of the sun.....darn things can actually get so hot that they can burn the hands just picking them up!

For the rest of my hunting needs I have completely given up on the issue as a useless point.....I won't venture out deer hunting when the mercury drops to -20 F and then it don't matter.

If you're hunting polar bears maybe this is something to think about.