Wind/distance regular access to 1000+ located in NC. 26” stock aiax barrel suppressed
-
Having trouble using the site?
Contact support
260 questions
- Thread starter Centerfire01
- Start date
Had a box in my hand this morning along with an 8lber of rl16 and hesitated. Wasn’t a great price on the powder but the 147’s were 36 a box
It’s a great bullet for the cost.
While it’s kinda hosed my before I never buy a lot of any powder I have no experience with till I’ve tested it.
Exactly why I hesitated there wasn’t any h4350 either. Gonna check another spot tomorrow probably.
Buy a box of factory Bergers with the 136gr Lapua Scenar-L, your AX should like it and you get lapua brass to boot.
I need to break in the barrel regardless, so this is a viable option. Thank you for all the guidance as well bro.
What sensitivity?
Temp?
R16 has really good in that department for me.
R17 can get pretty spooky with heat!
yes, temp sensitivity. Maybe I have the two powders switched around. I thought 17 was 'newer' and supposed to be less temp sensitive?
Nope
R16 is the modern one.
I still have a half a can of R17.
living in the desert then trying to get speed with no issues when it’s hot out taught a valuable life lesson.
good to know. I'm sitting on a bunch of H4831sc that I've been shooting in my .260s but I'll have to pickup some R16 next time I see it and give it a whirl. I'm in Minnesota and frequently shoot when it's 10 degrees outside, or when it's 95, so it's important to me to have a temp stable powder (as much as possible, anyways)
Unless you have a longer barrel (26"), I would think the H4831SC's burn rate would be a bit slow versus other powders.
Inside of 800 yards you seriously cannot go wrong with rl16 and 130 hybrids, infact it may be the best combo for the 260. After shooting a few cases of eldm and hybrids the hybrids do tend to be more consistent at longer range but I've only really noticed it when shooting from a bench because it is a small difference (at least inside 1200). H4350 is much cleaner burning than rl16 but that's really my only complaint. It isnt bad compared to other powders out there but it does build up much more than H4350. The speed gain and the temp stability is what makes rl16 the solid choice.
Plug in 130 hybrids going 2950-3050 and compare it to the other 6.5 bullet options, its impressive.
Plug in 130 hybrids going 2950-3050 and compare it to the other 6.5 bullet options, its impressive.
Anyone else shooting the Berger 140 EH? I''m currently working up a load with these for my LaRue 22". 42gr of H4350 seems to be the sweet spot, but still need to play with seating depth, should be able to get to a COAL of 2.870" maxed out in LT mag.
Sorry this doesn't answer your question, but FWIW I've found the factory Hornady 130gr ELD-Ms and the Berger 136 (Lapua Scenar-L) have been so reliable and accurate in my .260 laRue tOBR (22") that I don't bother hand loading for it.
No worries, thanks for your input @Defender3. FYI mine is the UU kit, don't think that's the same barrel as the tOBR?
I have shot a ton of factory loads out of it including: Berger 136, 140, 130, Hornady 130 ELDM, 129 SST, Prime 130, Copper Creek 140 EH, 143 ELDX, Nosler 120, Federal 142 GMMK. The best performing was the Berger 136 Lapua Scenar-L and the Hornady 130 ELDM, however both hover around 1-1.25 moa with occasional .75 so I firgured it was time to handload for it, I really wish it shot factorys better but what can I do. I'm just about over 700 rounds.
Also I follow your LaRue 260 thread over at AR15.com, props to you for such an in depth thread, so much great info stored there.
Ah, okay, thanks for following the thread. The UU is a bit different in that I have the barrel with the PST. I have a LaRue 22" 6.5CM (non-PST) barrel and it just luvs the 140gr American Eagle, that of course, they don't make any more.
My 260 was also a 1.25MOA rifle and after shooting a lot of rounds to refine MY abilities, it's settled to a repeatable .75MOA rifle.
I have settled on Berger 130 hybrids at 44.2 gr of h4350 in my 26” .260. Inside 800 yards the 130 shoots inside my 140 hybrid load. That’s my experience.
Got down to the range yesterday. Went through barrel break in, and then did a ladder test. This is what I found. I’m going to load 15 at 42.8 and 15 at 43.6 and head back down. This was all without the can. This is lapua brass, gm210m, h4350, 140 ELD-m. 26” barrel. Only 29 rounds so may speed up.
Attachments
42.8 looks the best, I was moving around and writing down velocities (hence the shitty groups) It gave me an ES of 4 when I got my chronograph working correctly. I wanted 43.6 to be much better than it was. The bottom right target I was zeroing the rifle so don’t pay attention to that. Any advice? Should I trust my old school chronograph? Lol
Attachments
I was getting extremely off data from my chrono. It read 1700 a few times. Another question is would shooting with a can change the node?
Honestly, I’m not convinced that 43.6 was a node. Just because you are close in velocity doesn’t mean you are near a node. Notice how it drops down at 43.7 and then jumps up at 43.9? If you were to chart that, it would not be a plateau.
And personally, I’d wait to do serious load work up until you have a few more rounds on the barrel. Until then, shoot 42.8 and be happy. 2850-ish is plenty fast for a .260 without entering barrel burning territory.
And personally, I’d wait to do serious load work up until you have a few more rounds on the barrel. Until then, shoot 42.8 and be happy. 2850-ish is plenty fast for a .260 without entering barrel burning territory.
Last edited:
After this afternoon I really don’t trust my chronograph. I had some readings around 1700 and one string where my ES was 4. I’ll be investing in a better chronograph shortly.
So i have loaded between 9-10k in 260 since about 2004. I have shot from 25 yards out to one mile with it. I have used RL16 and found it to be very temp sensitive. H4350 has produced the most consistent rounds for me. I shot in weather from the teens to the 90's.
For those of you complaining about H4350 and saying its hard to get. Every year, from Decemeber till about march, it goes off the market. Buy in bulk. By the end of March you will be able to find it pretty easy. They make so much based on a lot of the orders they get at shot show. Also alot of people reload at this time of the year to get ready for spring shooting. I have never been with out 4350. Its like any thing else be prepared.
For those of you complaining about H4350 and saying its hard to get. Every year, from Decemeber till about march, it goes off the market. Buy in bulk. By the end of March you will be able to find it pretty easy. They make so much based on a lot of the orders they get at shot show. Also alot of people reload at this time of the year to get ready for spring shooting. I have never been with out 4350. Its like any thing else be prepared.
