I have a Barns #1 book that lists Accurate 2015br powder. I also have a contemporary (1990) Accurate Powder publication that lists loads comparable to those found in the first Barns book for this powder. The most recent publications (2004) list much different loads for their 2015 powder. I'm confused. Has the powder changed? Was everyone wrong in 1990? I still have 2015 powder from years ago. What's going on?

Loading manulas change all of the time as powders do cahnge over time. The manuals from the 70s show very diff. loads w/ H4831, etc. than todays manuals. It's always good to get a new manual every few years.

Lawyers change, test conditions change, firearms change, components change and the shooter changes.

Reloading manuals are a guide, not a bible.

In addition to the other comments, better equipment now exists to more accurately measure chamber pressure. Adhering to SAAMI pressure standards may dictate a reduction in some loads listed in older handloading manuals. Those that publish loading manuals have to toe the line to avoid silly litigation, even though all manuals warn handloaders to begin at the recommended starting loads and to work up carefully from there. This is for very good reason. Every rifle is different.

I really don't blame lawyers for lighter recommended loads for some cartridges in the newer manuals. It reflects a great deal of common sense. Maximum listed pressures are generally pretty close to the upper end of where we should be going anyway. In most cases, hot loads that raise chamber pressure beyond SAAMI standards show diminishing returns in higher velocity for the corresponding increase in pressure. At the upper limits of pressure, it is also a lot easier to hit substantial pressure spikes with very little added powder. Hot loads also shorten brass life considerably and unnecessarily erode barrel throats . In most cases, it simply isn't worth it for a few feet per second that most game animals won't even notice.

Yhere is quite a bit of difference between the old 2015BR and the 2015 that is preceded by three letters and sold today. I am not sure just what the difference is, but guns that shoot the old BR well, preform all together different with the new stuff.

While I agree that technology has advanced, and, in some cases for the better, our colleges and universities spewing out thousands of greed driven little ambulance chasers each year, looking for the BIG hit against a deep pockets victim, certainly hasn't improved our quality of life. Not to hijack this thread but we desperately need tort reform. And right soon.
Okay, back to the loading bench...........

A few years ago, I was doing load development with 180 grain bullets in a 300 Win Mag. A methodology I had used many times successfully involved going to the Nosler Manual and finding a powder whose lightest load was shown with an asterisk denoting it was the most accurate powder charge for that powder. The theory was that I could substitute bullet freely at this minimum load and find which one the barrel liked best without wooring about pressure, and then try different powders with that bullet.

That day I chose 69.0 grains of IMR-4831 ( the lightest charge for that powder and 180 grain bullet). I went to the range and shot a few. I could barely get the bolt open on at least two different 180 gr bullets. Reviewing the data at home and checking other manuals I found that the lightest charge in Nosler was a Maximum load in the Hornady manual. A factory load showed no pressure signs so I felt the rifle itself was not the problem.

I don't blame the Nosler manual. Indeed I blame the powder manufacturer for the variation in their powders over time from lot to lot. Lawyers are not the only problem with reloading manuals today. Equally at fault, in my opinion, are the suppliers (not just IMR or DuPont) whose quality control has been so bad over time. In this day and age, there is no excuse for such wandering of specifications over time. My feeling that this has not been an accidental thing over time, but intentional changes over time, occurring many times over time, and a little bit at a time at that.

I couldn't agree more! We also need medical, insurance, and energy reform!

The purpose of a reloading manual is to provide some guidance into suitable powders and reasonable powder charges for said powders for individual cartridge/bullet combinations. As has already been mentioned they are a reference not a Bible.

ASS_CLOWN

All a loading manual is good for is to give you a place to start...Their have always been big discrepencies in loading manuals since the beginning of gundome...

Todays manuals are diluted because of litagation policys, the whole country is plagued by a court system that has sold us down the drain to support their own selfish and greedy cause in many cases.

I e-mailed Accurate Powder and they said today's 2015 is the same formulation and burn rate as 10 years ago. Who knows?

dude 70 wrote:

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I e-mailed Accurate Powder and they said today's 2015 is the same formulation and burn rate as 10 years ago. Who knows?

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All I can say to that is, if I didn't feel I could trust the compmany to supply correct info, I wouldn't use the powder.