Wideners 860 on sale

[ron brooks]

Just a heads up. Widners has 860 for $25.00 per 8 pounds.

Ron

[garandsrus]

Ron,

What calibers are candiates for loading with 860 and cast bullets?

Thanks,
John

[Lee]

Thank you, Ron. I placed an order today. (Probably wrong, but don't think the price will go lower than this!!................................Lee

[jballs918]

ok what other then 7mm mag that can use this stuff. granted at almost 80 grains or so a load im thinking one can go thru alot of it, but i really dont think i will go thru that many 7mm mag

[Buckshot]

...............The 6.5x55 and the 7x57 will both generate close to design ballistics with a caseload of WC860. Plus it burns clean in that application. In the 7x57 a charge of 42.0grs under a heavy cast slug is very accurate, and ditto 34.0grs in the 6.5x55. However neither burns very clean in the application.

A full caseload in the 30-'06 will net about 2100+ fps with a heavy cast slug and burn clean. You can forget it in any straight case as the expansion ratio is too high to build enough pressure to burn worth a darn. You CAN duplex it though. In the 45-70 with 4.0grs under a caseload you'll get BP velocities and it burns clean.

.............Buckshot

[David R]

46 grains in the 308 behind a 190 grain is accurate for me, but you gotta clean the gun now and then. Accurate enough that I bought a second jug, my first is almost gone.

David

[jballs918]

what about a 32ws or a 7.5x55 swiss or 7,62x54. they are all pretty close

[ron brooks]

According to Felix 860 was too slow for a 35 grain case, but ok in a 60 grain case.

Ron

[jballs918]

ok so mostly it needs a large charge then

[454PB]

I have several 8 pounders of WC860 and it compares closely to Hodgdon H-870 in burning rate.

I use it for heavy bullet loads in my 7mm Rem. magnum, and suspect it would work well in something like a .264 magnum.

I also use it in the same .308 Win. recipe that David R quoted, but it leaves a lot of unbuned powder in the bore.

[jballs918]

im just wondering if it would be worth it for my 7mm mag

[Ricochet]

Yes, it's terrific stuff for the 7mm Rem Mag and .300 Weatherby Mag with heavy bullets and heavy charges with a magnum primer and "Factory Crimp." My lot of WC860 is a little too hot for 175 grain bullets in the 7mm at 80 grains; it gives 2960 FPS in freezing weather and a sticky bolt in the summer. Need to back down a few grains. In the .300 Wby I can't overload it under jacketed bullets to 200 grains. (Speer Hot Core.) It just won't hold enough to be too much. 100 grains of it can be settled by vigorous case tapping during charging in neck sized Remington brass, and compressed under the bullet. Gives about 3000 FPS from my 24" Vanguard with no pressure signs, and is very accurate. Works well with 180 grainers, too.

I've never tried it with cast bullets.

[borderman]

Richochet (or others) - I just ordered 4 jugs for my 300 Weatherby. Stuffing dacron gets very old. Any load data using the Lyman 311284 or similar sized boolit? 2000 fps would be more than enough for me.

Many thanks,

[Ricochet]

I've never done any cast bullet loading or downloading with jacketed bullets with this stuff. I've regarded it as a pack-the-case-full fuel for full power magnum loads. I have used it with full, compressed loads and lighter bullets. In .300 Weatherby, 100 grains of WC860 under a 110 grain Hornady Spire Point gives 3280 FPS, a most impressive muzzle flash and blast, a hefty shove to the rear, and leaves the bore pretty clean. I thought it would be a "reduced load," which it was in terms of bullet momentum, but the jet thrust from all that powder gas makes up a big part of the recoil. This powder's extremely inefficient with all but the heaviest bullets and heavy charges in big cases. Still quite inefficient there too, actually, but under those conditions you can approach the maximum velocities attainable with more efficient powders.

I'm averse to loads that leave lots of unburned powder. Had a bad experience with an attempt to load cast Gould hollow points in .45-70 with a full capacity charge of IMR 7383 (which I've found to be apparently similar to 4350 in burning rate, with a lower bulk density.) Got black powder-like velocity of 1300 FPS or so, which was OK. But every powder grain survived intact, just with a surface layer burned off so they were a bit smaller in diameter and the central holes were a bit bigger. Those powder grains quickly jammed the action of my Marlin 1895, and it was a real chore getting the stuff out. My Chrony was full of those powder grains, too.

[borderman]

Well I don't need full power loads out of WC860 in the Weatherby. I can get that with other powders and don't care for the recoil. Looking thru past threads there are a bunch of other cartridge uses so I am sure it will get lots of use. I held off previously due to the unburned powder issues but I don't *think* that will be a problem. I clean after every outing anyway. $25 a jug is just too good to pass up.

[corvette8n]

Will this powder work for .338 winmag?

[Ricochet]

Sure it'll work, and likely you can find loads that will shoot well. I don't think you'll be able to get maximum velocities with jacketed bullets in the .338, though. Too slow burning. It's marginal for the heaviest bullets with compressed charges in .300 Weatherby, and certainly can't be overloaded IMO. Lots of folks use it in much smaller cartridges for medium velocity cast loads and don't mind the unburned powder.

[GregP42]

Would this stuff work in a 6mm-06 or a 220 swift you think? Or am I off my rocker with rounds this small?

[Wayne Smith]

H870 worked well in the 25-06, especially with the heavier 117 and 120 gr. bullets. I was shooting @ South Coast Gun Club in the LA area at that time and the guy who turned me on to it said "That stuff burns all the way to the target!"

[Tristan]

...............The 6.5x55 and the 7x57 will both generate close to design ballistics with a caseload of WC860. Plus it burns clean in that application. In the 7x57 a charge of 42.0grs under a heavy cast slug is very accurate, and ditto 34.0grs in the 6.5x55. However neither burns very clean in the application.

A full caseload in the 30-'06 will net about 2100+ fps with a heavy cast slug and burn clean. You can forget it in any straight case as the expansion ratio is too high to build enough pressure to burn worth a darn. You CAN duplex it though. In the 45-70 with 4.0grs under a caseload you'll get BP velocities and it burns clean.

.............Buckshot

Will it work with both cast and the unmentionable projectiles in 6.5x55?

I'd love to hear of anyone's experience with this powder in this caliber!

Thanks,

Tristan