I just bought one in a Rem 700. What are your pet loads? What is accuracy and velocity like?

[ 06-14-2003, 05:41: Message edited by: POP ]

Pop: I have two Model 700 factory stock 17 Remigton Rifles. One is a Remington Classic with the 24" sporter barrel. The other is one of a special run of 1,000 Rifles. It is a stainless 26" heavy barreled Varminter. The neat thing about the two Rifles is they both shoot the Berger 25 gr. MEF's very well. I learned to like this bullet when I got my first 17 several years ago. I used it back then in a 17 MachIV. Love this bullet it is very accurate and lethal on Varmints. Be sure and try this bullet in your 17. I use the Federal 205M (Match) primers in all 3 of my 17's also. I use Remington nickel plated brass in one of my 17 Remingtons to keep the brass dedicated. I use the regular Remington brass in the other.
Good luck with your new Remington and be sure and try the Bergers.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

Pop, Six or eight months ago the monthly reloading article in "Shooting Times" was about the 17 Rem and there were several loads listed in addition to some pretty good tips. If you can't find the magazine email your address and I'll make a copy of the article and mail it to you.

POP,
I've got a 700 Classic, with 24" barrel and 1 in 10" twist.
I use Federal 205M primers, and seat the bullets .020" off the lands.
I also moly coat all the bullets for my .17 and .22 Hornet. I've fired 50 rounds thru the .17 without cleaning, with no deterioration of accuracy whatsoever.
Anyway, 21.2 grains of VihtaVuori N-133 behind a Starke 20 grain HPFB averages 1/2" @ 100 yards.
23.3 grains of N-140 behind a Starke 25 grain HPFB averages 3/4" @100 yards.
I tried Varget, too, because my .243 likes it. I've gotten about 5/8" with 23.0 grains behind the 20 grain Starke, and 22.5 grains behind the 25 grain Starke.
My .17 isn't too crazy about Bergers or V-Maxes though.
Regards, George.

Hello Pop,

I have a Remington 700BDL, and honestly I'm rather ambivalent about it. It will shoot indeed, whenever it damn well wants to. It's quite common to get a group (5 shots/100yds.) of .440" preceded or followed by one of 1.3" or so. My best results come with Varget or IMR320 and Hornady 20 and 25gr bullets. In my rifle accuracy heads south after about 10 rounds. I stop and clean it, then waste a fouling shot to get back on track. Still, I tend to like the little rascal. It's a fun rifle that will teach a shooter all about humility! Best wishes.

Cal - Montreal

I believe that the .17 rem is one of the few cartridges that moly bullets are useful. Pre moly my results were much the same as Cal Sibley's. Maybe 15 rds fired before it became a 1.5" gun.

Thanx guys! She is coming in tomorrow. Anyone else? What speeds are you getting? I will use the 20 gr v-max first.

I used the Hornady 25 grain hollow points and an old standard load- 25 grains of IMR4320. Check the manaul to be sure, I'm going from memory here. Mine would shoot right at 4130 fps and would print at about .3-.4 on a regular basis.
Before I started molycoating with the Midway kit, about 10-20 rounds was all I could get before accuracy really suffered. After moly coating, groups stayed pretty consistent for around 80-100 rounds.
Hope you have better luck with the 20grain Vmax than I did. They wouldn't shoot worth a darn in my rifle. About the best bullet I ever shot in mine were the Hornady Hollow points, but the Remington factory hollowpoint bullets shot pretty well too. And you can buy them in bulk from Midway I believe. Have fun with your .17!- Sheister

[ 06-18-2003, 20:19: Message edited by: Sheister ]

Small correction here. Thr Rick Jamison article on reloading the 17 Rem was in the August 1999 "Shooting Times" not six or eight months ago. Time passes pretty fast when you're an old fart. Sorry.

Pop, I tried shooting the 25gr HPs that Hornady makes for a while, and my 700 absolutely hated them. When I switched to the 20gr V-Max, my groups came in considerably. I now shoot the 20gr V-Max with 24.0gr of IMR4320 and CCI 400 primers. This gives me 0.4" or better groups at 100yds. I haven't put it on a chrony yet, so I can't give info on that. It's 1gr below max though. When I loaded max, groups started opening up on me. Good luck working up a load and remember one thing about this caliber, be patient with it.