My 204 OCW test with 39 gr SBK's *UPDATED*

KyleWoods

New member
Well I took advantage of yesterday's unseasonably warm weather, it was 75 here in western PA! I made up some loads for my 204 using H4895 and 39 gr SBK's. Needless to say I am very please with my results. I am thinking of using 26.1 gr as my load, not only did it shoot very well but 26.0 and 26.2 have almost identical POI's. I also noticed that there really isn't much POI change from my lowest load to my highest. If you guys have any opinions on what you would pick for your OCW load feel free to chime in, I'm open to suggestions. I am planning on loading 1 round of 26, 26.1, and 26.2 and shooting at my max range I plan to shoot groundhogs at which will probably be 400 yards (had a 370 yard kill last year with 32 gr vmax factory ammo). I expect MOA results with those three shots. Here are a few pics of my setup and targets:

Savage Model 12 FCV
Mueller Eraticator 8.5-25x50


Top left target was my sighters with 24.1, 24.6, and 25.1 gr of H4895. I also used these to look for pressure signs.


Top left I used 4 shots of 32 gr Hornady factory ammo to foul the barrel.


Again, any input is welcome. I am new to reloading and am willing to learn from guys that have been reloading longer than I've been alive.
 
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If those are one inch spaces between your target rings, you may be miscalculating your group sizes...That is some pretty good test results and shooting...
 
Originally Posted By: OldTurtleIf those are one inch spaces between your target rings, you may be miscalculating your group sizes...That is some pretty good test results and shooting...

Those are 1/2" squares, the smallest circle is 1" diameter. I measured from outside to outside of the farthest spread then subtracted .204"
 
Might help if you put you rifle on the right side of the bench ;^) Looks good to me, the 39 gr Sierra is my magic bullet in the 20 Cal.
MB.
 
Originally Posted By: MasterBlasterMight help if you put you rifle on the right side of the bench ;^) Looks good to me, the 39 gr Sierra is my magic bullet in the 20 Cal.
MB.

Dang I knew something didn't feel right!
 
Would anyone try 26.2 and play with seating a little to see if can tighten that group up.. Then try 26.1 and 26.3 to see where POI is afterwards.. That way if off a tenth either way all would still be good?? Dan
 
Great shooting! Not sure if you are shooting groups with the bipod or not. If you are I would try it with bags or a rest. That Savage can shoot and so can you! Good job!

Robert
 
Your groups look good. It depends on how hard you want to push them since you are on the lower end of Hodgdon's recommended minimum. Of course with H4895 being on the lower end won't cause any problems, but you may not be getting the full potential at 400 yds. I would want to chrono the loads. My Savage model 12 shoots H4895 very well at 27grs. with the 39 sbk's, and I have a model 16 that really comes in at 27.5 to 27.7.
 
Originally Posted By: hawkeye reloaderYou might try 5 shot groups 26.1-26.3 and see what you get. Congrats, looks like you picked a sweet shooting rifle!

I plan on shooting some 5 shot groups with 26.2 this spring when the weather gets warmer.

Originally Posted By: DoubleUpYour groups look good. It depends on how hard you want to push them since you are on the lower end of Hodgdon's recommended minimum. Of course with H4895 being on the lower end won't cause any problems, but you may not be getting the full potential at 400 yds. I would want to chrono the loads. My Savage model 12 shoots H4895 very well at 27grs. with the 39 sbk's, and I have a model 16 that really comes in at 27.5 to 27.7.

I had no idea Hodgdon's recommended charges are so much higher than Sierra's. Hodgdon's max load is 27.7 and Sierra's is 26.5....
 
Well I went out Saturday for my second round of OCW testing. This time I worked up from 26.7 gr to 27.8 (.1 gr over listed max) with H4895. I picked 26.2 gr from the initial testing and loaded up 10 rounds. I shot a 5 shot group for fouling and it grouped at 1/2".

I then started my testing. Working my way up I noticed the primers (CCI 400) had a weird extruded ring around where the firing pin struck, is this a pressure sign? A guy at the range who has been handloading for a while said that it was probably safe because there were no extractor marks, the primers were not flattened and the base of the case looked normal. He did say that my firing pin could have a burr on it which would cause this? I found this odd because I have shot 100+ Hornady factory ammo with no signs of this. Then I got to 27.7 gr and I punched a primer, that's the first time I've done that. I decided to not shoot any more of the 27.7 and didn't even attempt the 27.8.

I then decided to start from the beginning at 26.7 and work my way up to the charge before 27.7, I forget what it is at the moment, I will post pics tonight. I thought this was an OK idea because there were really no pressure signs from these charges according to that guy.

I got to 27.1 and punched another primer, this time I stopped my testing all together. It's obvious something is wrong here. I still had 5 more rounds of 26.2 so I decided to shoot another 5 shot group, this time the group opened up a little, to just over 1/2" but I'll take it. This is going to be my OCW load.

I'm still curious about what the extrusions mean. I found it weird that there were no other pressure signs. If those extrusions are caused by my firing pin is there a way to fix it? Another concern of mine is could I have damaged my firing pin/bolt by punching two primers?

Any input is welcome. I will post pics of the primers and targets tonight.
 
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My son's Remington 223 does the (mushroomed a little) extruded ring around where the firing pin struck also. Nothing else on the primer. Might try a few CCI BR primers to see if any differnce. He has shot many, many rounds and it still does it. It is a middle of the chart load for 223. I can't remember what has been said about the firing pin fix, gunsmith could take care of it or if you know how to take the bolt apart and look at it to find the problem and file it. Punched primers that is a different story, I would back off from that load! There is a forum (2 forums above yours) for pressure signs on here. It is a really good read and very informative. Rudy
 
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Savages often have oversize firing pin holes which will allow the mushrooms on primers, but punching them is another matter entirely. Your groups looked very good at 26.1 and 26.3. You may have to be satisfied with one of those.
 
I agree with rudy try a tougher primer and make sure you seat primers with uniformity. And check base diameter stretch before and after firings. The barrel seems pretty tolerant to harmonics may as well run as hot as you can,unless it is a colony rifle then the slower loads will reduce heat.
 
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