Should I be trying Varget???

I think you're better off with H4350 for those two personally. Not that there's anything wrong with Varget, but 4350 is slower burning and better allows the capacity of those cartridges to be taken advantage of IMO.

Do you have access to ramshot hunter... might be worth a look.

H4350 will work better for both.

I use Varget for my 30-06 elk/big game load. I know that I might get a more powerful load by using a slower burning powder, but I get good accuracy and a reasonably full power load. Most importantly for me, there is almost no difference in the load between very low and very high temps. Given that I use this load in October for proghorn when it can be 90F and in November for elk when it can be 20F, this matters far more to me than an extra 50 FPS.

98s1lightning said:

I load hunting ammo for

284win
30-06

I been using H4350 but have access to Varget and powders kind of scarce these days. Should I be trying the Varget too? I have zero experience with it.

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Not knowing what bullet your using, I’ll take a guess on 165/168 grain for the 06.
Nosler says IMR 4350 is their best load they also list RL-15 in the 284 with a 160gr and H4831under a 150 gr

I have never had outstanding accuracy with Varget in several different calibers. I used it in my 338 Federal, but only because I was trying to get rid of it.

Another endorsement of H4350. Love Varget in 308 and 8x57.

I've found good loads in this cart using H4350, Ramshot Hunter, Hybrid 100v and H4831sc.

Never used Varget for this one but seems like it would work fine.

Loaded up some rounds last night to go shoot today. .30-06 Ackley Improved. One batch was the proven RL-22 and the other was some with Varget. I love Varget in .308, so figure I'd see what it does in .30-06 AI.

Varget could be used in those, but it burns too fast to be ideal. It is near ideal in 308 with bullets weights 180 gr and under. H4350 is had to beat in 30-06 with bullet weights 150-180 gr. Heavier bullets will perform better with slower powders. And H4350 is very temperature resistant. IMR4350 is just as good IME, but it is more likely to be effected by temperature swings.

It doesn't hurt to try Varget if you have access to it. I used it in a variety of calibers and it appears to be very accurate. Another feature is Varget has a copper cleaning additive which helps reduce copper build up in the barrel. For that reason Varget is about 200 fps slower than what it was 5 years ago.

Captcurt said:

I have never had outstanding accuracy with Varget in several different calibers. I used it in my 338 Federal, but only because I was trying to get rid of it.

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I also am in the minority in my Varget experience. In .308 Win., I have better results with IMR-4064, and blew a primer in a 22-250 with it at less than maximum published load data. The 8 lb keg I bought years ago during one of the panics is almost gone, replaced by Ramshot TAC for the .223, IMR-8208 XBR for the .338 Federal, and Ramshot Big Game for light bullets in .243 Win. Still deciding between IMR-4064, 8208XBR and Big Game for the 22-250.

2ndtimer said:

I also am in the minority in my Varget experience. In .308 Win., I have better results with IMR-4064, and blew a primer in a 22-250 with it at less than maximum published load data. The 8 lb keg I bought years ago during one of the panics is almost gone, replaced by Ramshot TAC for the .223, IMR-8208 XBR for the .338 Federal, and Ramshot Big Game for light bullets in .243 Win. Still deciding between IMR-4064, 8208XBR and Big Game for the 22-250.

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I wouldn't worry about blowing primers below published data as long as I was running acceptable accuracy and velocity with the lower charge weight.
I keep going back to 4064 in the 22-250.

On the original post. I tend too lean to slower burn rate for cartridge than faster. I would be looking at one of the reloder powders or shooters world with a similar burn rate if I wanted a backup.

98s1lightning said:

I load hunting ammo for

284win
30-06

I been using H4350 but have access to Varget and powders kind of scarce these days. Should I be trying the Varget too? I have zero experience with it.

Click to expand...

IMO H4350 is the best choice for the 30-06 and that's all I use. Varget, H4895, Superformance and a few others will also work but H4350 is all I use in the 30-06.

Varget and unique are the only powders I buy in big containers. The rest i just buy 1lb at a time. They are pretty versatile. Usually not the best for anything but nearly universal powders. Great for shortages.

Walkalong said:

I would, y’all be careful out there.

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I’ll echo that post.

I've used H4350,Varget ,IMR 4064 And RL15 in 30-06 with150 gr Hornady bullets. I quit using the H4350 because it groups way off from the others. I tend to go with IMR 4064 and Varget.They seem to be my most accurate and they group to the same point of aim. I'm still expirementing with RL15, but my results so far have been promising. I like H4350 but I can't find another powder that groups to the same point of aim. I'm sure there is one, but so far no luck and the others have been avaliable. So thats what I buy. May be I will try heavier bullets in the future , but right now I have a boatload of 150gr bullets in .308 caliber.

Am I the only person with a load manual/Guide

98s1lightning said:

I load hunting ammo for

284win
30-06

I been using H4350 but have access to Varget and powders kind of scarce these days. Should I be trying the Varget too? I have zero experience with it.

Click to expand...

I feel your pain. I bought 4 pounds of Tightgroup last month having never used it before. It works, but eh.

Only you can decide if you should buy the Varget. It will work in both of your guns, it won’t shoot to the same POI as what you’ve been using, but for hunting up to 200 yards that will be OK.

Varget is a fine powder, but I really can't get it to do better than some others I have been using. Tried it for 5.56 heavy bullets. It did very well there, but not necessarily better than R-15. Tried it in my 7,5 Swiss, 6,5 Swede and 7,62x54R sniper. Either 4064 or 4350 outperformed it there, in some cases handily. I've found it doesn't like lower load densities...needs to be near compressed for top accuracy. Not so with the IMRs I shoot. Couple the accuracy factor with the fact that it is one of the first powders to become unobtainable in a panic (as in now), and one of the last ones to come back, and I swore the stuff off several years ago.

I've used both in my 6.5 CM. Varget preformed better with the 130gr bullets. But moving up to the 140's H4350 out preformed it.

So the only way to know for sure is try it for yourself.