Has anyone had any luck matching Hornady's 32grn MV?

About the same luck as I have had finding .204 brass. With fire formed .222 rem mag brass I have not gotten over 4050 in a 23" barrel using H322.

as i get it hornady is using a power made for the 304 and not available to us. I"m having best luck with 748 (29.5 gr) its a hot load, but sees to shoot the same impact as factory

read about the /204 at www.riflemagazine.com,iinteresting article.

My problem with the .204 is no one seems to report on the group size they're getting with the various bullets. I would suspect it's a very accurate caliber, especially in a varmint configuration. Maybe someone here who has a .204 can tell us how it's grouping. Best wishes.

Cal - Montreal

I'm getting groups in the low to mid .2's with the berger 40 and sierra 39, using H322.

I little better accuracy with the Hornady 32's but I want to use the heavier bullets.

Have not been able to get the Hornady 40's to shoot better than .5", so gave that up.

I figure the Berger 40 hollow-point will be best on yotes with better penetration. And the 39 Sierra Blitz King (VERY accurate) should explode on ground squirrels.

Rifle is Rem 700 action w/Pac-Nor 24" barrel.

Cal - I am still working on fire forming loads so nothing has been shot for real accuracy. My Contender will shoot those around 1.5" and that is Sierra 32 gr. bullets. I originally had questions about the barrel and sent it back to TC. They sent a hand written message back with "a" barrel that said it would shoot 1/2" groups (three shot I presume) at 100 yd. in their testing using factory Hornady ammo.

my 204 is on a ruger #1 with a pacnor barrel. shoots generally in the .4 range. In blasting away at PD's last summer it was just what I hoped for. While it did not throw dogs around like a swift does, it seemed to have all the attributes that a swift does without blowing your ears apart. Sort of like shooting a 223 with swift velocity and trajectory. At 500 yd type ranges a friend was using a 223 and the 204 just seemed to get there about twice as fast. all I've use so far has been hornadys, I want to try sierra's just as soon as I can find some.

If you study the ballistics of the 204 IMO you will realize its almost a magic caliber. Its here to stay and fills a niche noone else has filled. If you compare it to a 223 it shoots twice as flat and hits with just slightly less energy than the 223 does with a 50grain bullet and the 204 shooting the 32's. The clear advantage to me is when trying to make a hit at 300+ yards the 204 is doing it with a dead on hold the 223 needs about 5". and the 204 is doing it with less wind drift also. at 400 yards the 223 needs 17.5"s at 400 the 204 only needs 7" of elevation. This makes long shots much easier. I am not sure even the swift can match the trajectory advantage.

Hello cummins cowboy,

Thanks for the information on wind drift. That's been my main reservation in buying one. I guess the bullet speed makes up for its lightness. Being based on the .222Rem Mag case I would expect it to be fairly accurate. My .222Rem Mag is a tackdriver. Best wishes.

Cal - Montreal

I'm sort of getting worked up over a .204 myself . The thing about it I like is , you could back off of max loads a couple hundred fps and STILL have the trajectory equal of a hot 22/250 or Swift load .

I visited several large gun shops in Sioux Falls over the weekend , and they all told me the same story , the .204 s are selling very , very well . I think it's going to be a big hit. The customers are loving the performance on prairie rats , and the fur hunters are finding the 32 gr bullets do not leave large exits in the 'yotes .

Anyone shooting the Ruger V/T in .204 , and if so , how is it doing ?

I can tell you one thing I sure wish my CZ kevlar varmit was a 204 instead of a 223. I thought too that the 204 was just hype, but start looking at the ballistics and the 204 is a real hot rod.

quote:

Originally posted by Cal Sibley:
Hello cummins cowboy,

Thanks for the information on wind drift. That's been my main reservation in buying one. I guess the bullet speed makes up for its lightness. Being based on the .222Rem Mag case I would expect it to be fairly accurate. My .222Rem Mag is a tackdriver. Best wishes.

Cal - Montreal

It is not the "bullet speed", but the higher "ballistic coeffecient" that gives the better wind drift charachteristics as well as flatter trajectory than a .224 bullet of similar weight @ similar Mv.

The 40gr .204 bullets have similar BC to most "varmint weight" .244 bullets, hence they will resist wind deflection as well as the larger caliber.

quote:

Originally posted by wildcat junkie:

quote:

Originally posted by Cal Sibley:
Hello cummins cowboy,

Thanks for the information on wind drift. That's been my main reservation in buying one. I guess the bullet speed makes up for its lightness. Being based on the .222Rem Mag case I would expect it to be fairly accurate. My .222Rem Mag is a tackdriver. Best wishes.

Cal - Montreal

It is not the "bullet speed", but the higher "ballistic coeffecient" that gives the better wind drift charachteristics as well as flatter trajectory than a .224 bullet of similar weight @ similar Mv.

The 40gr .204 bullets have similar BC to most "varmint weight" .244 bullets, hence they will resist wind deflection as well as the larger caliber.

It is wind "deflection," not wind "drift." Drift is the effect of rotation on a projectile. Deflection is the effect of an outside force on a projectile. I keep saying wind drift also and it drives me crazy.

I got out my Sierra BC list and thier 39g .204 Ruger bullets actually have a BETTER BC than all but one of their .243 caliber bullets less than 70g.

Looks like my 6mm needs a little brother...

If y'all want to meet and exceed factory stated speed go to AA 2230 powder!!! Not 2230-C but the original AA2230!!!! Using 39 grian SIERRAS ahed of 26.0 grains of 2230, Rem 7 1/2 primer generated 3796fps.....not to bad in the accurracy dept either.... .125"!!! and using 28.0 grains of AA2230 and the 32 grain Hornady VMax generated 4263fpps and fairly decent accurracy... .406"!!!!! This is posted after no less than 5 range tests with these combos!!!! I've shot the 32 grain VMaxs to over 4500+ using the 2230!!! And they made the trip and actually were fairly accurrate!!!... .6-.7!!! Brass life sucked!!!! Accurrate 2230 is the only powder I've tested that can match the stated factory(and exceed) velocities of the .204!!! 28.3 grains of H4895 will give you about 4100(4089-4111 averages for 8 test dates!!!) and generally from my rifle in the .3's! That's a fairly accurrate load and I'm sure is not a barrel burner!!! HOW DEAD IS DEAD? Is the extra 100-180fps worth it? I don't know!!! There is no data out there on the ACCURATE Powders yet!! I'm working on loads with the AA2520 and it looks pretty good also but hesitate to post it yet!!! GHD :disclaimer!!! I am not responsible for any gun failures or other calamities that may befall one from using these loads!!! Use at your own risk!!! HOWEVER: The loads listed I feel are WELL WITHIN REASON in modern(yea, who's got a .204 made in 1920????) firearms!! Let me know what you find out!! GHD

Colorado ,
Some loads out of an Aussie magazine taken in an M77 Ruger .
32.3 gns 748 for 4293 FPS listed as maximum with 32 gn V Max.
31 gns AR2208 (Varget in USA) with 40gn V Max for 3961 FPS (close to Max.).
29 gns AR2206 (not sure what Hodgdon calls it but is similar burning rate to IMR 3031) for 4016 FPS with 40 gn V Max.
30 gns AR2206 with 32 V Max for 4172 FPS .
28.3 gns BM2 with 40 gn V Max for 3814 FPS .

Not my loads so work up from 10% below with caution .
Note that AR2206 and AR2206H are not the same thing .

Bushchook,
I see 31 gns AR2208 (varget in USA) with 40 gn V max for 3961 FPS (close to max).
Iam not sure about AR2208 But I do know that you cant get 31 gns of varget in a .204's case 28.1 gns of varget is a compressed load, for the 40 gn V-Max at 3647 FPS. Not being a smartass, just looking at those loads and seeing they are way high. Be carefull

Bushchook, The MAXIMUM listed load for VARGET(USA!!!) for the 222MAG and the 40 grain Balistic Tips is 30.0. My 40X 222MAG seems to like that load a bit!!! Only thing is, 30.0 grains won't fit!!! So you can take a margarine tub, dump the VARGET in it, wipe it smooth across the case mouth, compress the load and it likes it!!!! How the hell did you get 31.0 grains of VARGET in the .204? WON'T FIT!!!!! Or is there a difference in how the "cut" the Varget and 2208 in your country??? As far as the velcity deal goes, the AA2230 is the cat's meow!!!! AA2520 ain't bad either!! Another post concerning this will show up soon!! GHD

Cal Sibley: I have two Varmint Rifles in caliber 204 Ruger. Both are factory stock Rifles that shoot very well in my opinion.
My Ruger 77 V/T in 204 shot the Berger 35 gr. H.P.'s into five shot groups at 100 yards of .374" and .595". I settled on this load and now only shoot it at Varmints. Those were my last two test groups.
Then my Remington 700 VLS in 204 shoots the same loading and Berger bullet shot into groupings of .398" and .480" for 5 shots at 100 yards. These were the last two groups I fired with this load before settling on this load also as my go to Varminting ammo in this Rifle. Both of my Rifles are factory stock with no bedding or alterations of any kind. The Remington did get a trigger job by me though.
I have recently purchased some Sierra 32 gr. bullets for this cartridge and will test them once factory brass is available.
Both Rifles also shot the Hornady factory ammo into very respectable groups also.
The lethality of this cartridge and the flat trajectory make for a great Varminting round.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

GHD:

How does AA2230 in regards to temp swings? From what I understand, you don't really have to worry too much about H4895 and hot summer days affecting pressure, but what about AA2230?

Pop

MPG, I didn't start testing the AA2230 until up in the fall of 2004, so I don't have any data from a "hot day". Highest ambient temprature on any range days has been 73 degrees. I'm sure I'll test it in warmer conditions though!! I've gone higher than the 28.0 grains listed(with the 32's) in the post and feel that at 28.0 grains it is a usable load....no need to go any higher!!!! It will be interesting to see if there is much difference due to temp. It has been shot down to 40 degrees without much difference being evident! GHD