30-06 Cartridge Recognition

[Dr T]

Is it possible to visually distinguish a factory Remington 30-06 180 gr PSP round from a Remington 150 gr or 165 gr PSP round?

 

[splattergun]

are they the same length? A heavier projectile is often longer, thus the added weight. But deeper seating may minimize OAL differences.

 

[rooster59]

Don't know abt a 165, but one of the two 150 or 180 at one time had a ring around the bullet close to the case mouth that you can see. Otherwise a reloading scale should be able to pick out the 180 from the 150, but have no experience with the 165.

 

[willypete]

I'm not sure if Remington just lengthens the shank of their CL bullets when increasing weight or if they re-profile them (make ogive rounder, etc.), but that might be a way of distinguishing them without pulling bullets. Alternately, you could weigh the rounds. The large difference in bullet weight would be offset by a slight difference in powder weight. E.g., a 150 grain bullet might be coupled with 53 grains of powder whereas a 180 grain bullet might only have 48 grains of powder for a net difference of 25 grains.

Did you upset a container and dump a bunch of loose ammo on the ground or something?

 

[Dr T]

I came into possession of about 10 R-P 30-06 rounds that have the the little ring around the bullet as rooster59 noted. The Hornady 180 gr. FBSP Interlock has a similar ring, and I was wondering if Remington used the same visual code to distinguish these from the other bullets. I have not been able to find a photo of the Remington bullets to check.

And, yes, I could always pull a bullet to check, but I would rather shoot them...

 

[shaggy430]

Remington has added and removed the ring over the years so you can't necessarily go by that. Also, weighing the cartridge will not necessarily give you the the difference either as different powders and powder weights would likely be used in the 150 and 180. The only sure way to tell is to pull the bullet and weigh it.