Could someone with Quickload please calculate some pressures for me. Would love to know the velocities too, actually since my Chrony died. I have worked up a couple of loads in my 50 Beowulf and would like to know what kinda pressure I am generating.

Load 1

case volume - 69.7 gr of water
case length 1.65"
COL of 2.1"
334 gr FMJ Rainer bullet
CCI200 primer & CCI350
Powder charge is 50.2gr of IMR 4227

Load 2

case volume - 69.7 gr of water
case length 1.65"
COL of 2.1"
334 gr FMJ Rainer bullet
CCI200 primer & CCI350
Powder charge is 48 grains of W296

I have fired both of these in my gun without any significant pressure signs.

Thanks for the help.

Kent

I think we have a 'Darwin Award' winner here folks! No pressure signs! That is a good one!

Very helpful, Judy.

Judy, please explain to me how I am a Darwin award winner. I really would like to know. That was my whole point in posting this. I want to know if these loads are really pushing it too much or not. So if you are for real post the results of the Quick load you ran so I know what kinda pressures I am dealing with!

Kent

I thought I was being helpful.

Not going to happen. I don't like you.

Quick Load does not have the .50 Beowulf or the 334 grain Rainer projectile. I how ever adjusted the .499 Lietner-Wise to match the OAL, case length, and case capacity you quoted. I loaded a 325 Speer Hollow point, with a length of 0.725" in place of the 334gr Rainer.

-For your first load QuickLoad came up with a pressure of 46,342 psi

-For your second load Quicklaod came up with a pressure of 36,282 psi

If you tell me the length of the 334 grain Rainer, I can give you a better guess-a-mation.

Your milage may vary,
Kristofer

[ 10-15-2003, 02:36: Message edited by: KBGuns ]

KBGuns, thanks man! The Rainer bullets are 0.75" long. They are seated 0.45" deep into the case. Could you please tell me what the pressure would be with a W296 load of 56.0 gr, also.

Thanks again, I really appreciate it.

Kent

Could you also give me the predicted muzzle velocities? The barrel is 16" long.

[ 10-15-2003, 20:44: Message edited by: Kent in IA ]

Kent,

Do you mean the bullet is seated .300" deap with .450" exposed? As with a cart length of 1.65" and a OAL of 2.1" there is only .300" of the bullet left to be seatd in the case. If that is so, these are your revised figures, with 334 grain Rainer bullets from a 16" barrel:

- 49,879 psi and 2137fps/3386fpe with 50.2 grains of 4227

- 38,968 psi and 2107fps/3292fpe with 48.0 grains of W296

- 66,387 psi and 2442fps/4426fpe with 56.0 grains of W296

I hope that helps some. This forum seems to be lacking in usefull answers lately. BTW, do you know what the max pressure for the .50 Beowulf is? I was under the impression that it was in the high/mid 30,000 psi range, because I have read here that the Beowulf cartridge follows the .50AE case design, for which the SAAMI max is 36,000 psi.

These figures are best guesses, use at you own risk.

Kristofer

[ 10-16-2003, 03:30: Message edited by: KBGuns ]

I think 30Kpsi is about where the .50 beowulf safely operates. After all it uses large pistol primers. I would not be pushing this thing into the 40Kpsi range.-Rob

hey KB... aint seen you in awhile...

how's school!!!

just rust blued some heavy metal last night... pretty neat

jeffe

KBGuns, much appreciated!!!! Could you do one last favor? The load I have been shooting is 44 gr of IMR4227 with the Rainier 334gr. Could you run this through Quick load and tell me what the pressure and velocity is? I have shot several hundred rounds with this load, by the way, it is the most accurate load I have found for my rifle.

You have the bullet seating depth right. Sorry for any confusion.

Thanks again, and big time.

Kent

Kent with 44.0 grains of 4227 you are looking at 33,077 psi and 1878fps/2618fpe according to QuicklLoad. Glad I could help.

Heya Jeffe. I have not posted in a long time. I have been reading almost daily since school started. School is a blast, I have contoured a .35 Whelen barrel for my dad which is going on a vz24, in a stock I am making. I made him a 22" barrel so I had a little more then 5" left off the blank, so I made that into a PPC style barrel for a S&W Model 10. I have tightened the action, faced the cylinder(.0035" b/c gap). I am going to machine a sight rib for it with Bo-mars and install a yoke detent. I have some pics I will email you in when I get them onto a CD.

Kristofer

Kenteosso, you aren't really shooting those loads are you? I seriously hope not!! I wasn't kidding about you being 'Darwin Award' winner!

Quickload is a piece of crap program, you should not bet your life on it. It is notorious for predicting overly optimistic velocities for a given pressure and/or unrealistically low pressures for a given velocity.

So in the hope of keeping you alive, so you may receive your 'Darwin Award', here are the pressures and predicted velocities for your loads, using a 16" barrel. I cannot predict the primer influence, but will say this, according to every handloading manual the hotter primer will increase the pressure. I believe that the large rifle primer CCI200 is hotter than the large pistol magnum primer CCI350. Contact CCI to verify that.

44gr of 4227, 334 gr bullet - 2009 fps @ 52,000psi

50.2gr of 4227, same bullet - 2174 fps @ 65,700psi

48gr of W296, same bullet - 1999 fps @ 50,800 psi

56gr of W296, same bullet - 2207 fps @ 69,400 psi

Again, the velocities are calculated with a 16" barrel.

For the record, Alexander Arms the creator of the 50 Beowulf, specifies this cartridge to be loaded to a maximum average pressure of 35,000 psi!!!!! So Kenteosso, you loads are TOO DAMNED HOT!!!

If you have been shooting these loads and have not noticed any 'pressure signs' then I suggest you would not know a pressure sign if it bit you in the arse.

Things to look for:

1.) Huge fire balls blowing out of the muzzle AND the breech of your rifle!

2.) Pieces of your firearms lodged into various parts of your anatomy!

3.) Cases with the rims removed, but still in the chamber of your rifle!

4.) Primers with holes in them, strangely the same diameter as the firing pin!

5.) The inability to discern where the primer ends and the case begins, excluding the color change of course, if you are using silver primers!

6.) The case, upon removal from firearm chamber by alternative method, has a bottle necked shape. However, the bottle neck shoulder is located way down at the bottom! The technical term here Kenteosso is EXCESSIVE HEAD EXPANSION.

That should be enough to get you started big boy.

For whatever it is worth. The only way I could get the published 1950 fps muzzle velocity out of the 50 Beowulf, with a 334gr bullet, and at a maximum average pressure of 35,000 psi, was to use a 24" barrel. The powder charge was 39 gr of H4227, or 37.9gr of H110. The velocities dropped to 1734 and 1768 respectively with a 16" barrel.

KBGuns, thanks a ton for all the help. I really appreciate it!

Judy, the only one of those loads I have actually shot is the 44 gr of IMR4227! I did not notice any of your over-pressure symptoms, either! My chronographed muzzle velocity was 2023 fps. Are you going to present me the 'Darwin Award' in person? I really would like to meet you just once, if you know what I mean!

Kent

EDITED for purposes of politeness.

[ 10-20-2003, 19:48: Message edited by: Kent in IA ]