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Recall this pic of the depth test candidates in 7mm-08:
I hit the range today with my brother so he could test the loads. He brought some of his previous loads (BTO 2.156") to act as sort of a control, so he had 8 OALs to try. He started short, appropriately, since longer rounds can be shortened, but not the reverse. I'll not bore the board with pics of the four short lengths (horrible groups) and skip right to the money shot. Note that the OALs are written on the target.
The two shots in the center are the last two of the 2.306" length. He put the bench rest away and installed his bipod for the last two. If you were to superimpose the last two shots over the previous three shots the group size would not increase. I'm estimating about half an MOA.
Next step is to load a few more and see how they measure for speed. They're really long so I expect a bit lower MV.
My main shootin' iron, Red Death, did okay. And before any of you gents throw shade at me for my targets, be advised that they don't make these anymore, so I re-use the heck out of them. Patches do not mean cherry-picking.
That's a 150 ELD-X at 2780 fps. Group size measured 0.331", which is pretty consistent for this rifle.
Next up was my T3 Superlite. This is my backup/loaner rifle. My buddy's son used it to kill his first buck in 2017.
As a backup the Superlite doesn't get much playing time, but always delivers when it gets the chance. I found some loads from October of 2015 with Big Game and 140 gr AccuBonds, the same recipe I used in 2014 to kill my second antelope in Oregon, and the same recipe my dad used in 2015 to kill the largest bull of his life.
I figured what the heck, let's see how they group.
That's 0.301", which ain't bad. Muzzle velocity is 2860 or so. I think I'll load a few more of these, too.
P
I hit the range today with my brother so he could test the loads. He brought some of his previous loads (BTO 2.156") to act as sort of a control, so he had 8 OALs to try. He started short, appropriately, since longer rounds can be shortened, but not the reverse. I'll not bore the board with pics of the four short lengths (horrible groups) and skip right to the money shot. Note that the OALs are written on the target.
The two shots in the center are the last two of the 2.306" length. He put the bench rest away and installed his bipod for the last two. If you were to superimpose the last two shots over the previous three shots the group size would not increase. I'm estimating about half an MOA.
Next step is to load a few more and see how they measure for speed. They're really long so I expect a bit lower MV.
My main shootin' iron, Red Death, did okay. And before any of you gents throw shade at me for my targets, be advised that they don't make these anymore, so I re-use the heck out of them. Patches do not mean cherry-picking.
That's a 150 ELD-X at 2780 fps. Group size measured 0.331", which is pretty consistent for this rifle.
Next up was my T3 Superlite. This is my backup/loaner rifle. My buddy's son used it to kill his first buck in 2017.
As a backup the Superlite doesn't get much playing time, but always delivers when it gets the chance. I found some loads from October of 2015 with Big Game and 140 gr AccuBonds, the same recipe I used in 2014 to kill my second antelope in Oregon, and the same recipe my dad used in 2015 to kill the largest bull of his life.
I figured what the heck, let's see how they group.
That's 0.301", which ain't bad. Muzzle velocity is 2860 or so. I think I'll load a few more of these, too.
P
