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Apparently you are looking at Nosler bullets as that seems to be where you are getting your first information.
My personal experience with Nosler products is that they work best when pushed near maximum in the load charts. Otherwise, they seem to wander around where other brands often demonstrate an accuracy node at more than one speed.
I would suggest that you search some of the reloading sites to see if you can find what you need without limiting yourself to one brand. Sierra makes excelent hunting bullets as does Berger.
This is good info Im looking for. Ive just read a lot of good on the Nosler Partition for penetration on larger game but have looked at some others like Sierra and Berger and would consider them if I research they hold up under penetration and expansion. It seems this is learned thru word of mouth and hunting blogs like Chuck Hawks. I want a do it all round for this rifle is all and simply favor a 120g bullet since I also hunt elk with this rifle.


Another question, is there a book with the steps to reloading or is that included in the reloading manual for the bullets or press?
 
Another question, is there a book with the steps to reloading or is that included in the reloading manual for the bullets or press?
The book called; "Modern Reloading" by Richard Lee has a lot of information in the front of the book. There are others that have information, but that is the one I keep handy for general reference. You may be able to find the book at Sportsmans Warehouse if there is one near you. I live in Beaverton and there is on just off of 185th ave near Hwy. 26. There is another one on SE 82nd in Portland.
After you have mastered the basics there are some advanced techniques you can learn to make your loads even more precise. (also more expensive)
 
The NP is a best choice for your intended purposes IMO. Due to how they are constructed, generally not considered precision bullets in general, but precise enough for hunting applications. Their terminal performance is near legendary in my opinion.
 
I am a fan of partitions but for antelope a ballistic tip is all that would be required. They are cheaper, have higher bc's and are generally more accurate than partitions. The accubond would also be a good choice and would be a bit more versatile.
 
The book called; "Modern Reloading" by Richard Lee has a lot of information in the front of the book. There are others that have information, but that is the one I keep handy for general reference. You may be able to find the book at Sportsmans Warehouse if there is one near you. I live in Beaverton and there is on just off of 185th ave near Hwy. 26. There is another one on SE 82nd in Portland.
After you have mastered the basics there are some advanced techniques you can learn to make your loads even more precise. (also more expensive)
Thank you. What I think I will do is order this book and read it before buying equipment. Just as a last check Im up for this project and will also help me learn what equipment to look for.


 
The NP is a best choice for your intended purposes IMO. Due to how they are constructed, generally not considered precision bullets in general, but precise enough for hunting applications. Their terminal performance is near legendary in my opinion.
Would you say they are precise enough to hunt pronghorn in the 3-500yd range?

Im not exactly married to this bullet I just want a do it all projectile for what I use the rifle for. Hunting elk with a 25-06 is a bit... marginal, and I need to maximise my bullet choice there. What Ive read is the NP is legendary terminal performance indeed. That said, If there is another projectile with near reputable terminal performance thats more stable at distance it might be a better compromise.
 
Would you say they are precise enough to hunt pronghorn in the 3-500yd range?

Im not exactly married to this bullet I just want a do it all projectile for what I use the rifle for. Hunting elk with a 25-06 is a bit... marginal, and I need to maximise my bullet choice there. What Ive read is the NP is legendary terminal performance indeed. That said, If there is another projectile with near reputable terminal performance thats more stable at distance it might be a better compromise.
With the .25-06, it is hard to have a do-all because of the limitations of the caliber. I use the 110 grain Accubonds as my marginal do all because they are bonded. A little light for say elk, but I have different calibers I would use for that type of hunting elk were on the list. They smoke deer, up to big muleys, though. And they are pretty accurate in my rifle. Some folks get decent groups with the NP, give it a try. Just remember that 1" at 100 is like 5" at 500. 2" 100 yard groups could make a real mess on a tiny antelope at 500 yards.
 
With the .25-06, it is hard to have a do-all because of the limitations of the caliber. I use the 110 grain Accubonds as my marginal do all because they are bonded. A little light for say elk, but I have different calibers I would use for that type of hunting elk were on the list. They smoke deer, up to big muleys, though. And they are pretty accurate in my rifle. Some folks get decent groups with the NP, give it a try. Just remember that 1" at 100 is like 5" at 500. 2" 100 yard groups could make a real mess on a tiny antelope at 500 yards.
It does have limitations if one includes elk. And thats all on me because I don't want to add another rifle to the collection. I will start with the NP and see what precision I can get. My guess is I just don't see how it would be worse than factory ammo (?), but I have no metric to judge that from unless I try out reloading for this. I fully expect better than 1" from reloading since thats *about* what Im getting with the factory load my rifle likes best. **The issue there is thats 1) from a bench rest 2) I get fliers I swear Im not pulling. I borrowed a chrono and measured precious 13 rds (ammo crunch) and the extreme spread is 118fps and my Standard Deviation is 32.3 and my average velocity is 2681fps. What I dont know is if my standard deviation is whats contributing to those fliers, if not... Im wasting my time reloading and its me or the rifle.
 
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Start with a solid cast press. This will last a lifetime.

RCBS is a good start, change out the threaded insert to a Hornady Lock-n-Load so you can quick change dies and you don't have to adjust your dies every time.
I've found a liking for a Lee Breech Lock cast press, it was 1/2 the cost and used the same breechlock die bushings I had on hand.


If you don't want to roll that way, find some dies and come participate on reloading on my bench. Glad to help you run as many loaded rounds as you'd like to keep the memories alive. I will help you get everything exactly like you want, if you are dialing in a load or just making a generic. Bench is open.
Do you have a link for the incert?
 
Extreme spread of 118 fps is bad and very well could contribute to poi outside of group. I strive for single digit sd and es numbers under 30 or so. When developing a load remember es/sd is combustion related and is heavily reliant on powder choice. Pick your bullet and load 15 rounds, 5@ with three different powders in the lower mid range of load recommendation. Keep seating depth and all other variables the same for all 15. For example, looking at nosler data for the 120 partition, I would choose retumbo, imr 4350 and imr 4831. Shoot these all across a chrono and look for the 5 with the best es/sd numbers. I don"t even really look at groups at this point. Once you find that powder you can start messing with charge weight and seating depths which effects harmonics. Only change one variable at a time. After best powder is selected I play with charge weight until I find the widest accuracy node that has acceptable velocity. After that I fine tune seating depth to wring the best possible accuracy from the load. Half the fun is the journey. Good luck!
 
Thank you. What I think I will do is order this book and read it before buying equipment. Just as a last check Im up for this project and will also help me learn what equipment to look for.


If you can't find one let me know, I'll send mine your way. When one comes in you can send mine back. (I use it as reference material very seldom)
 
If you can't find one let me know, I'll send mine your way. When one comes in you can send mine back. (I use it as reference material very seldom)
Greatly appreciate the offer, though I did order the book last night from that link I should have it in a few days.
 
Extreme spread of 118 fps is bad and very well could contribute to poi outside of group. I strive for single digit sd and es numbers under 30 or so. When developing a load remember es/sd is combustion related and is heavily reliant on powder choice. Pick your bullet and load 15 rounds, 5@ with three different powders in the lower mid range of load recommendation. Keep seating depth and all other variables the same for all 15. For example, looking at nosler data for the 120 partition, I would choose retumbo, imr 4350 and imr 4831. Shoot these all across a chrono and look for the 5 with the best es/sd numbers. I don"t even really look at groups at this point. Once you find that powder you can start messing with charge weight and seating depths which effects harmonics. Only change one variable at a time. After best powder is selected I play with charge weight until I find the widest accuracy node that has acceptable velocity. After that I fine tune seating depth to wring the best possible accuracy from the load. Half the fun is the journey. Good luck!
This is incredibly useful and perhaps my first metric on knowing the limitations of factory ammo and lets me know Im on the right path to tightening my group. So much advice packed in your reply that confirms what Ive read so far, thank you for that. I'm going to look up those powders and bookmark.
It sounds like I have a reasonable cause to get into reloading for this rifle, I need to work on a component list and start keeping an eye for when they come in stock... the only dilemma now is how this ammo crunch has grown to consume reloading supplies but I have time on my side for this project. I want to read that book I ordered first as well.
 

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