Favorite 260 rem. powders?

[Marty B]

New rifle should be here Friday (Savage 12 lrp in 260, 1 in 8" twist), Lapua brass not too far behind. I will be starting out with 140 bergers (not sure which ones yet (suggestions welcome), 140 Hornady ELD-X and A-Max, and Lapua 139 gr. Scenars. Not sure what powders to start off with. Would like to set up for long range so good velocity is desirable but accuracy trumps all. Anybody have any favorite loads that would be a good place to start or any experience with the above bullets?

Thanks,
Marty

 

[ArchAngelCD]

My shooting buddy uses the old standby, IMR4831. I have been told even slower powder are better like IMR7828 and Supreme 780 but I can't tell you for sure. My friend want to try the new IMR7977 when he gets the chance. Sorry so little help.

 

[GooseGestapo]

My rifle prefers RL22. Slightly under max, bullets seated to lightly engage lands
Secondly, IMR4350, and close behind H4350 and RL 17.
RL19 and H4831 are good too.
Match primers are helpful, too. Magnum not necessary, unless really, really cold.

 

[Das Capitolin]

42.0 grains of Hodgdon Hybrid 100V in RP brass and 140gr bullets for my 260 LRP. It's exactly the same as H4350, but has less heat explosion for a longer barrel life.

Unless you're shooting benchrest competition, absolutely any primer will suffice. The same people who suggest a special primer or magic charge weight are the same ignorant fools who have no idea what their case capacity or seating depth are.

 

[Captcurt]

The 260 is not picky.

IMR 4350 worked well with 120 Speer HotCore. Excellent whitetail round. Goose and Arch are right on. Most of your slower powders will work with 120gr-140gr. Mid-range powders like Varget, IMR-4064, R15, and IMR 4895 work well with 100gr.

Nosler's 100gr Partition would be interesting when cranked out at 3200 fps. Unfortunately, I sold my Ruger Compact. Went from a light, short barreled 260, to a long barreled, 10 lb Vanguard in 6.5 Creedmore. Oh well.

 

[Marty B]

Thanks for the replys so far. Probably won't be doing any hunting with this (11 pounds bare rifle) except maybe some varmints on rare occasion. Was considering 7828ssc to begin with and I have IMR 4350. Does anyone have any experience with the various Berger 140"s? Not sure which one would be the most accurate. What about the Hornady ELD match or the ELD-X? How do they compare to the A-Max for accuracy? All will be in the 140gr range.

Thanks again,
Marty

 

[Captcurt]

Marty, only your gun can tell you which bullet is best. What shoots well in my gun may be all over the paper from your gun, and vice versa. And, just because a bullet doesn't shoot well with one powder doesn't mean that it is a bad bullet. A change in powder or seating depth can make it a tack driver.