17 Remington reloading

eurosport

eurosport

Member
Just got Remington 700 BDL in 17 Remington not fireball. I owned one 30 years ago but shot factory ammo then. I am buying new remington brass and Hornady dies due to bullet seating collar should help with finger pinch with these tiny 25gr pills.
Any advice on loading for this speedy cartridge. I reload for many cartridges but never for this small cartridge. Any advice is appreciated. Bob
 
First all you need a bit of patience. You need powder funnel with a tiny hole in the end of it. You need (not hard to find) special cleaning rod and jag and patches. And, you need to have the ability to have plenty of fun. Thirty years of shooting them and when all goes well, it is SUCH a hoot taking 300 yard ground squirrels with them. Or even a 400 yard praire dog or two. No kick, shoots fast, things die quick. The little 20 grain Vmax is almost all I shoot but I have been playing the the little 20 grain bullets from Mid South as of late. They are showing lots of promise here lately. Just got my .221 Furball dialed in,my .223 AI dialed in, my .223 AR dialed in, and my .220 Swift dailed in. Once I get that .17 Remmy shooting the way I want it to there is certainly going to be some fur flying soon. Literally.

PM me if you want any proven loads. I have a few.
 
Bob, while it's not a .17 Remington, my .17-.204 really likes IMR4320. My 3rd Edition Hornaday Reloading Manual noted what a good powder that was for the .17 Rem. Good luck and have fun with the new gun, Dave.
 
BE VERY CAREFUL in all your reloading technique, .001ths in this small package matters alot more proportionally..BE EXTREMELY CAREFUL in you powder charges, much more so than in other cartridges..a 1/10 here means a big difference in velocity.. love the idea of no recoil, blistering speeds and accuracy out to 300 or so..after that you really must keep an eye on wind.. neat little rifle, some custom bullet makers are making bullets in the 35+ grain area..they are so long it almost looks funny in this little tube..
 
Howdy!!

I have been shooting the .17 Remington for several years, but recently got into loading for it. Since I have no chronograph, I am not sure what velocity I am getting, but it does not matter. Accuracy is superb with BL-C2 (or IMR 4320) Hornady standard bullets and a CCI milspec #41 primer.

As Frank stated above, little things mean A LOT in the .17s, and they truely are addictive!!

Not to mention what they do to a crow......

thanks,
burt2506
 
In Illinois it is illegal to shoot crows with rifles!! What the heck dead is dead. This state has some messed up ideas on game management. Politics I guess!
 
I would agree with your decision to get the Hornady seater. That thing makes loading the .17's WAY easier. The RCBS dies I was using before would load the Vmax fine, but would catch on the hollow point bullets and ruin a bunch. Also, as previously said, get a very accurate powder measure as 1/10 or 2/10 of a grain of powder can make a difference with these little guys. Find what she likes to eat and you will be rewarded for sure. I shot a starling tonight with my .17FB at 237 yards off a fence post. Not bad for a factory barrel. The .17's are addicting for sure and very accurate to say the least.
 
I have CZ varmint rifle in 17 center fire and it is one of my favorite rifles to shoot. I shoot a 30-grain Berger, Moly-coated hollow point and it devastates coyotes. It turns their innards to soup. It cuts Jacks in half and explodes crows. It is one fun caliber to shoot.

I have not experienced any of the negatives (quick to foul, looses accuracy fast, etc.) that you so often read about. That sucker is nothing but fun and that 30-grain Berger (long & lean) rocks. You're gonna get hooked, for sure.
 
I think alot of the negatives were generated by shooters who got bad rifles.

I got a box of 17 sized goodies today from Midway. Harry Potterfield should be happy.
Crazy Hoppes Elite cleaning rod has male 5 x 40 threads my brushes and jags have 5 x 40 male threads. That is not going to work! I called Midway and they do not sell any female threaded jags or brushes. So now I have to get a Dewey or Tipton cleaning rod with female 5 x 40 threads. Bob
 
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It will help you to put a very heavy chamfer on the inside of the case mouth acting as a "guide" in seating bullets.

I shot a load of 22.5g of H322 with the 25g Berger Match Hp with amazing accuracy at 3850 fps.

In the 700's that I have had, when velocity goes over 3900 fps, the copper fouling accelerates.

Use thick cup primers ONLY! such as a Rem 7 1/2, CCI BR-4, CCI-450, or CCI 41.

Shoot three shot groups in load development, watch your copper fouling.

De copper your rifle every 20-25 shots during load development until you establish how many rounds your barrel will take before it starts slinging bullets sideways (usually 60-75 rounds).

Use first quality cleaning brushes (good for 75-100 strokes) available from www.sinclairintl.com and a world class copper solvent such as Monatana Extreme Copper killer.

Good luck!
 
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