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Re: IMR 4350

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05 February 2004, 16:34
Snider700
Re: IMR 4350
i have a redding powder measure and i agree with the other posts. stroke it slow and it'll stay within 2 tenths or so. trickle the rest. wait till he has to buy matching rifles for those twins. custom rifles with those leupolds mounted on them.
05 February 2004, 16:11
Savage99
Almost any stick powder will not measure perfectly in my Saeco measure. This is a measure like many others with a round adjusting cylinder about an inch in diameter in the rotating cylinder. When a grain catches it seems that the charge is a few tenths of a grain high.

This why I measure first and weigh every charge. Then if necessary it's adjusted with a trickler.

I just weighed up some loads for the 375I with 86 grs of IMR 4350 and most of them were within +-.001 grs which is my standard. A few needed some extra powder and this is the pattern with other powders as well.
06 February 2004, 07:11
snowbound
I get good results with IMR 4350 in a variety of calibers. I have built many accurate loads with this and other powders by using Dippers that throw the charge I want. If a commercial dipper is not available, I make my own out of cartridge cases and solder a handle on it..I weigh the charge that I am looking for, pour it in a case, mark the powder top on the case and empty and cut the case with a tube cutter or fine tooth saw a little above the mark. Once the dipper is made, I recheck the scale load ten times and adjust the dipper accordingly......example of a dipper load accuracy---175 grain bullet .280 Remington Hornady Roundnose, 5 shots in an NEF into .75" at 100 meters...I am not a bench rest shooter, I am a hunter..and this appears to me to be acceptable accuracy using dippers..IMHO of course...
06 February 2004, 06:45
Ricochet
Gen. Hatcher told a story in his "Notebook" about one year at the National Matches when the Army staff in charge were roundly criticized by someone who'd been pulling bullets and weighing charges from the supplied match ammo. They varied by something like (off the top of my head) 1.6 grains either way. Hatcher still had a tone of annoyance at the long-ago criticism from the shooter who claimed they were incompetent. Hatcher said that they'd done extensive accuracy testing and got the best groups with a particular very long grained powder despite the fact that the weight variation was much greater than with the finer-grained powder they'd used before.
06 February 2004, 05:41
Savage99
How close would you "like" it? And does it matter? Bench rest shooters just use measures! My IMR 4350 loads don't vary much at all in term of a grain of weight.
06 February 2004, 05:35
Whelen35
Thanks for the responses. I have been doing the throw short and trickel thing for many years, but I like volume. As far as guns for the twins go, I have been already starting that. We will see if my girls will be hunters/shooters. I hope they will. I have been getting spoiled by progressive presses the last few years, and would still like to use 4350 powder. Have any of you used the lyman unit with the auto dispenser and scale? It is a single unit that would be good for this.
06 February 2004, 11:00
Holmes
This is where that OCW concept comes into play.

The 4350s are my mainstay and in my 375 I use a Redding measure to throw my charges. I generally check every dozen or so just to make sure. Variations are small enough to be acceptable.

I also made an oversized handle for my measure that really helps consistency. Developing a repeatable throw is, in my opinion, more important for consistent charge weights than anything else.

For my long range quarter bore loads, I must confess to anal retention as I measure every charge!

I think developing a good OCW for your application in combination with good powder measure techniques will give you the results you seek.

Good luck.
06 February 2004, 03:47
beemanbeme
Yup, you're gonna need a measure and a trickler.
06 February 2004, 03:07
<allen day>
IMR 4350 is one of my long-standing favorite, standard powders. I especially like it in the .338 Win. Mag., but I also favor it in the .30-06 with 150 gr. bullets, plus the .375 H&H.

I've never found it to be an unduely inconvenient powder to use, and I also use a Redding measure and set it about two-tenths less than my desired charge, then trickle in the balance with a Redding powder trickler.

If necessary, I'll swap some inconvenience for superior performance. It's a good trade!

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