.308 Win powder choice for cast boolits?

[Shuz]

I am looking for the most accurate powder that YOU have found for use in the .308 Win with cast boolits. I have used 2400, but can not get my groups to be consistently under 1.5" at 100 yards. I'm a CBA member and have scoured the "Fouling Shot" and a lot of the folks use the Vitaviouri powders, but they are unobtainium out here.

[Harter66]

IMR 4350 has worked well for me across many cartridges from the 308 and 06' families where twist will allow .

4895 is said to be good also .

[Lloyd Smale]

4895 has always been THE powder for 308 accuracy with jacketed bullets.

[osteodoc08]

I’ve had great success with Varget and XBR 8208. 4895 is also a good choice.

[beemer]

I also use 2400, don't what rifle you are using but mine is a rebarreled and sporterized 1909 Mauser. It is nothing fancy, it has been scoped but still has the military trigger. A 1.5" group would suit me fine. Another one that works for me is IMR 4198. I do use a dacron filler with most of these loads, it just makes things more consistent.

I am not a serious target shooter, just like to play and tinker but it seems that once I reach about 1.5-2" it takes a lot more work and attention to details to reduce group size. Being that most of my rifles are mil-surps some of them don't do that good with jacketed.

[MostlyLeverGuns]

I use 5744 and Reloder 7 for 170 to 200 grain boolits. 15 to 20 gr Accurate 5744 or 20-25 gr Reloder 7 have given excellent results in several 308's and 300 Savage's. Maybe Reloder 7 just a bit better(?). Incremental/ladder testing for refinement. Getting from 1.5 MOA to under 1 MOA - incremental testing, higher power scopes, case prep, bullet diameter, overall length, weather (wind/temperature) bench rest technique, trigger quality all come into play. Incremental testing at 200 yards quickly shows vertical and 'sweet' spots.

[megasupermagnum]

I never gave it too much effort, but between 700x, Unique, Bluedot, RX7, and IMR4895, 17 grains of Bluedot produces the best accuracy for me with the Lee 170 grain bullet. 25 shot average is 1.7". Consider that this is a rifle that is nothing spectacular, most jacketed bullets hover around 1" to 1.25".

[Reverend Recoil]

I have found nothing better than Reloader #7 powder with cast bullets for 308 Win and 30-06 Springfield.

[waco]

What boolit are you shooting?
What velocity are you looking for?
Barrel length?
Twist rate?

[lotech]

I prefer bullets in the 200 grain range for .30-40, .308, and .30-06. Best powders have already been mentioned, but it's worth trying each. One powder may have a slight edge over the others: 5744, Reloder 7, and H4895. I suppose 4759 should be included even if it has been discontinued.

[trapper9260]

I found in my 308 semi auto and bolt that 4895 works the best. Work up the load .See what the gun says .

[Lloyd Smale]

re7 would be my second choice behind 4895
I have found nothing better than Reloader #7 powder with cast bullets for 308 Win and 30-06 Springfield.

[Shuz]

What boolit are you shooting?
What velocity are you looking for?
Barrel length?
Twist rate?

The boolit is either Lee clone of Lyman 311041 or RCBS 30 165 sil or NOE 311299 clone. Bbl is 22 inches. Twist is 1 in 10. Velocity is not important....accuracy is what I am seeking.

[Kraschenbirn]

The boolit is either Lee clone of Lyman 311041 or RCBS 30 165 sil or NOE 311299 clone. Bbl is 22 inches. Twist is 1 in 10. Velocity is not important....accuracy is what I am seeking.

The "best-so-far" load for my M700 (24" McGowan barrel, 1-10 twist) is the RCBS 30-165SIL over 30.5 gr H4895 with a tuft of dacron. Been shooting this load for several years 'cause I ain't come up with a more accurate combination. Doesn't quite match the sub-MOA accuracy of SMKs from that barrel but consistently beats milsurp M80.

Bill

[Shuz]

Thanks for all the replies! I loaded up 10/ea of 23,24 and 25g of Reloder 7 and the Beagled RCBS 30-165-sil at .310 and Saeco 7-8, and we'll see what happens on the next trip to the range.

[robg]

I use 2400,18 gr under most boolits 180 gr boolits shoot very well in my 1 in 9 twist savage.might try tac as its suitable for reduced loads in 3030 with lead boolits and jkt bullets.

[DonH]

A former national benchrest champion who shared range time with enjoyed leisurely shooting an H&R Handi Rifle .308 with cast bullets. When asked how it shot he said about an inch at 100 yds. He said the H&R liked "the fattest bullet that would chamber and the same charges of the same powders used in the 6PPC in competition."
I was not sure what to make of that but the gentleman has a surname any serious shooter would recognize immediately and has likely forgotten more than most of us will know.
I don't offer this as a recommendation but recently I pulled out manuals and spent some time reading 6PPC data. Some of those powders and charges are really close to what I read here and on CBA forum.

[quilbilly]

One of my 308's likes 2400 and RE-7 while the other likes 3031 and Red Dot. Both have the same twist but one is a short barrel Mossberg while the other is a Remington that has a 22" barrel The Remington likes boolits around 160 gr while the Mossberg likes the "heavies" around 200 gr. The adventure with cast was the Mossberg which likes either the Red Dot load with 200's at 1200 fps or the 185's at over 1950 fps but nothing in between. Enjoy your voyage of discovery with your 308.

[leadhead 500]

Out of every powder I have tried loading in the 308 with bullets from 150 grain to 200 grain the best groups have always cam from Varget powder ! Start at 26 grains and work up to 30 grains in
1/2 grain increments, I have seen many times groups under 1” at 100 yards