I stocked up on components, for rifle rounds, in 2008. I'm all set.Originally Posted by TheRoland
I stocked up on components, for rifle rounds, in 2008. I'm all set.
If I couldn't get my ammo at a reasonable price, I would load .308 in a heartbeat. The cost benefit is definitely there, availability of components are abundent (at least in this area), and the ability to tune a load to your gun/chamber/rifling/optic will aid in serious accuracy shooting.
Have you tried running the 155 Scenars? For me, they meet the accuracy of the 175s, and I get a lot less drop @ 1K. It's almost 3 MRad less drop at 1K than the 175s.
Oh, dude, I blew through that at Randy's practical rifle class, plus a couple hundred more I had. Some people are real slippery to pay back...Not everyone gets shipped a surplus of FGMM by a dude on the internet.
But it was priced for ya huh?
Maybe I am too nice...........?Anyway, I liked the fgmm enough that I stocked up on a couple of cases and still have enough for my anemic big rifle schedule - though once this drought passes, I need to get a 22lr stash like yours. I will never again wonder how much ammo is enough!
The answer, it seems to me, is wrath. The mind cannot foresee its own advance. --FA Hayek Specialization is for insects.
The new 155 class bullets are excellent. (Sierra 2156 MatchKings, Berger 155 Hybrids and 155.5 Fullbore and the 155 Scenars--which have been around a while.) Unfortunately, the Scenars are *pricey*. The only reason I tried them a couple years ago was I got them for $15/100--and even then they were already over $45/100 from the cheaper online retailers. But they're good bullets--though you'd be hard pressed to go wrong with any of the new ones.
The (new) 155s compare favorably to the older generation of 175-185 class bullets on windage and drop. (I shoot known-distance prone, so drop doesn't matter at all to me, but windage and accuracy sure do.) And the higher BCs have significantly lowered the speed that you need at the muzzle to keep them out of the potentially problematic transonic region out to 1000 yards. It used to be you needed a very stout charge and a 30" tube to use the 155s at 1000, but with the newer ones, you can get away with a few hundred fps less, and that means you can use a much shorter barrel.
The newer 185 class bullets (Berger 185s: LRBT "Juggernaut" and Hybrids) are another big step up from the new 155s in terms of windage, but perhaps not so much if drop is a concern to you. (I don't remember the relative drop numbers, just the windage)
Disclosure: I shoot for the Remington HP team, and we get (slightly) discounted bullets from Berger.
I'm out of touch with prices. I bought thousands of them in 08/09, at $250 / 1K.
Before I made the switch from 175s, and I was running them at ASC, I got a first round hit at 1350Y with some interesting winds. After everyone in the relay went for their first try, I shot my 2nd and confirmed it. After that, I stocked up.
Last edited by JV_; 02-06-2013 at 06:59 AM.
Very interesting post, thanks for sharing.
#RESIST
That was a good deal even then. I just looked up the prices on Powder Valley: $46/100 for the Scenars, $41/100 for the 155 Berger* Hybrids (my favorite .308 pill), so the price premium isn't as big as it used to be--assuming I'm remembering it correctly.
Either way, the Scenars shot well out of my Palma gun--as did the Sierra 155s (new 2156s), the Berger* 155 Hybrids, and the Berger 200 Hybrids. There are so many good .308 match bullets out there now. For the longest time the .308 was something of a wasteland of bullet choice. There were bullets that were easy to get to shoot well, but none with good form factors (that is to say, none were very sleek. Heavy, so they got a decent BC, but not sleek, so they didn't have the BC they could have for their sectional density). The new 155s are great, and the new heavy Bergers* are really sleek. Sierra is probably working on a new design for heavy .308s as a result. I think Lapua recently came out with (or announced, anyway) some new, sleeker, heavyweight .308 bullets, too. Anyway, if you're interested in cutting down on your wind drift with a .30 cal bullet, you've got a bunch of good new choices.
*See disclosure on my previous post, and sorry to do the equivalent of name dropping, but I'd rather err on the side of not breaking Todd's disclosure rules...
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