JDinFbg
Member
I've been trying to find something that shoots well in my 30-30 94 Win. with 26" octagon barrel. I started with W-748 using Hornady 160gr. FTX bullets with not much success. I then tried IMR-3031 with the FTX and two different 150gr. bullets. Supposedly, IMR-3031 is one of the 'go-to' powders for the 30-30, but my results were not good. I got to looking at suggested load data from current-day sources versus what was listed in some late 1960's vintage manuals I have. I listed these findings in the attached PDF file. Current-day sources list max loads comparable to what the old manuals listed as starting loads. So my questions: Has the characteristics of IMR-3031 changed over the years? Have newer data sources become more conservative in their suggested loads (due to lawyers getting involved)? From my tests so far, it appears my results were getting better with powder charges closer to the current-day published max loads. So, I'm wondering if I can safely push the bullets a little harder using the IMR-3031 powder that is in current-day production?