Max charge, low velocity...

[Walkalong]

Oh heck no, they'll just screw it up.

 

[WestKentucky]

Seat a tad deeper, and crimp it lightly. Then leave the chrono at home, see if it fixes your issues. BTW, I love 4350 in everything other than semiauto rifles. It makes my .270 do things a cheap factory rifle shouldn't do.

 

[jmr40]

Chasing velocity is a bad idea, as pressure is unknown.

Upgrade to a larger cartridge for more velocity. There are many in 30 caliber.

Accuracy is more important than velocity.

That is good advice, but he is getting 30-30 speeds from a 30-06, that is not acceptable. I've loaded with that powder and a max load can safely get 2930 fps with 165's, my manuals show 60 gr as max, not 58 which is in some manuals. I've done it with Hornady and Nosler bullets. But I found best accuracy at around 58.5 gr with around 2880 fps. This is a perfectly safe load 1.5 gr under max.

FWIW Speer bullets while they look just like other bullets do have a different bullet profile and I believe the jacket may be a harder copper. Not 100% certain on the 2nd part, but I do know they require a much different load than other brands of the same weight.

The 2720 you got from the factory ammo sounds right on the money from a factory load from a 22" barrel. This pretty much proves there isn't any issue with the rifle. Some rifles simply shoot slower than expected, but if the factory loads are shooting where they should be the issue is with the load not the rifle.

Seating bullets longer reduces pressure and velocity. It is a trick some handloaders use to get a little more speed out of a cartridge without increasing pressure, you're essentially increasing powder capacity. Same principle as the ackley improved rounds. You can load above the max load suggestions in manuals safely if you do this. But I don't advise it. The rounds you load may be perfectly safe in your rifle, but be dangerous in another. I'm not risking something off the charts, but won't accept hand loads 100 fps or more slower than what you can get from the factory, this is 400-500 fps too slow.

 

[Varminterror]

I've been using 4064 for almost 20yrs in one of my Ruger 30-06's, but have more recently been using H4350. Started using it under 178grn ELD-X's a few months ago, swapping from 180grn Win/Nosler BST's. I get a lot more than 2400fps out of it either powder!

 

[Bart B.]

One of the arsenals proved back in the 1950's that IMR4064 produced better accuracy with their 30-06 match ammo's 172-gr bullet. But only when weighed powder charges for it and IMR4895 were compared. Metered IMR4895 threw more uniform charge weights than IMR4350 did metered so they stuck with IMR4895.

That powder was also the favorite for use in 30-06 match rifles in its heyday of NRA match rifle competition for bullets 165 to 180 grains. Nobody cared IMR4064 shot the same bullet about 70 fps slower than IMR4350 did at the same pressure levels. IMR4350 was better for 190's and 200's.

 

[Bayourambler]

I'm gonna bump it up to 59 grains on imr4350 this week and see what happens. As far as the chronograph , I check it each shooting session with my .22 LR and match bullets. I Would settle for somewhere in the 2700 fps range as long as it shoots good,it works very well with my ballistic plex scope. I just have a bunch to learn . My experience is almost null as I have barely been able to match the factory bullet performance.