compressing Varget?????

[poor man]

i was going to use my varget powder to load some 223's but the bullets i have laying here are tracers and are longer than standard sp or hp bullets so it is wanting to really compress the the powder a lot..... any thoughts on this? thanks much.

BTW the varget bottle says 27.5 gr for 62gr bullets and that looks high, im in the hospital for radiation treatments no so i cant get to my books,,,,

 

[Sunray]

27.5 gr is 3 grains over max for a 62. How old is that can?
Hodgdon gives 22.1 to 24.1 of Varget for a 62 grain bullet. No compression at all. A 62 grain trace won't be longer than any other 62 grain bullet.

 

[notaglockfanboy]

A 62 grain trace won't be longer than any other 62 grain bullet.

They are longer that a standard 62 grain round because of the cavity that the tracer compound is in.

 

[Hungry1]

I'm loading 62 gr Fusion JSP, .223 bullets over 26.5 gr of Varget. They don't appear to be compressed.

I worked this load up and don't notice any signs of overpressure. Accuracy is very good.

The Lyman 49 has data for:

60 gr V-Max 24.4-27.2 gr (compressed)
63 gr Jacketed SMP 25-27 gr not compressed.

 

[Clint M]

You would be amazed at how much difference a drop tube can make as to how much powder will fit in a case without being a compressed load. I have used Varget in compressed loads (222 rem, and 221 fireball) no problems with powder however it will cause bullet to move forward if it sits even a week even with crimped bullets. I don't care for compressed loads for this reason... however like I said a drop tube will let those kernels arrange themselves at the perfect place in life (case) to fit the most in.

 

[steve4102]

27.5 gr is 3 grains over max for a 62. How old is that can?
Hodgdon gives 22.1 to 24.1 of Varget for a 62 grain bullet. No compression at all. A 62 grain trace won't be longer than any other 62 grain bullet.

That data is for the Swift Scirocco, not sure why, but Hodgdon loaded it with less then the 63 gr Sierra.

The 63gr Sierra has a Min of 24.5gr and a Max of 26.4gr (C).

Either way you are correct the OP's 27.5gr is over Max according to Hodgdon.

http://www.hodgdonreloading.com/data/rifle

 

[spitballer]

I agree with sunray, doublecheck your maximum load for the 62's. Having said that, however, compressing extruded powder probably doesn't present the same danger as, say, compressing a dense ball powder. Kind of like compressing marshmallows vs hard candy. I've found that extruded powders have an advantage over ball powders of similar speed if they fill the case and distribute the material better.

 

[Reloadron]

I have a current 8Lb jug of Varget sitting here and 27.5 grains is on the label for 223 using a 55 grain bullet. Apparently my label does not agree with your label?

The Hodgdon Website:

62 GR. SFT SCIR
Hodgdon Varget
.224" Diameter
2.260" C.O.L.
Start Load 22.1 grains
2,773 Velocity
44,700 PSI Pressure
24.1 Maximum Load
2,974 Velocity
52,600 PSI Pressure

Something obviously isn't right as to the charge for a 62 grain bullet. This runs parallel to exactly as Sunray states.

Ron

 

[Hungry1]

I have a current 8Lb jug of Varget sitting here and 27.5 grains is on the label for 223 using a 55 grain bullet. Apparently my label does not agree with your label?

The Hodgdon Website:

62 GR. SFT SCIR
Hodgdon Varget
.224" Diameter
2.260" C.O.L.
Start Load 22.1 grains
2,773 Velocity
44,700 PSI Pressure
24.1 Maximum Load
2,974 Velocity
52,600 PSI Pressure

Something obviously isn't right as to the charge for a 62 grain bullet. This runs parallel to exactly as Sunray states.

Ron

After reading this thread last night, I too checked my Varget label. The charge listed on the label is indeed for a 55gr bullet.

When I worked up the charge for the 62 gr bullet that I've been shooting, (pulled 62 gr SP from RMR), I referenced the Lyman 49 and found data for a 60 gr and a 63gr bullet.



I did start the charge weight at 24 gr and then worked up.

Thoughts/opinions/suggestions? Thanks

 

[Reloadron]

Hungry1, you started using a good loading manual and worked up. Sounds good to me. It isn't unusual to see some disparity between manuals and even older and new versions of the same manual. Long as we start with known good published data and keep an eye on things as we work up a load I see us as playing it safe.

Ron

 

[poor man]

Thank you ALL.....

im in the hospital for my radiation treatments for the rest of the week, il be home friday night and il look at my bottle again, its not too old of a bottle but the label has gotten wet and is hard to read, il check it better when i get home Thank you again,,,,,,,

 

[WVRJ]

I checked a couple of 1 and 8 pound containers of Varget,27.5 is for 55 gr bullets.My experience has been that it's hard to get 27.5 grs of Varget in some cases,especially 5.56 milsurps.I shoot 60 and 73 gr bullets in my 3 rifles that are chambered for 223 and quit gaining velocity with the 60 grainers at 26 grs in two 20 inch and one 16 inch barrel.Long bullets like the 73 gr need more case/less powder anyway.I would guess that somewhere around 25.5-26 grains is all that can be compressed by a longish bullet and still keep the COAL where it's supposed to be.

 

[poor man]

Thank you ALL.... i am home for the weekend before i go back for more radation...

anyway i looked real close at my varget bottle and it DOES say 55 grain NOT 62 like it looked like i wrote the info on card stock and taped it on the bottle so i dont mess up again thanks


so here is my starting point from Hodgdon papers i have,,,using Varget

35gr start 25.2 max 28.0c

55 sp start 22.8 max 24

62 tracers start 22.1 max 24.1


i also have some 32gr frangible but i cant find a load for it


thanks for All your help

 

[notaglockfanboy]

Thank you ALL.... i am home for the weekend before i go back for more radation

Hope everything goes OK and you get well soon. Never been through it myself, but have had a few friends and relatives go through radiation treatment and I pains me to see anyone go through that. Take care and good luck.