11 firings is 1100 rounds that about takes care of the barrel and the brass in my book
I'm also interested to know how many firings you guys are getting from Lapua brass. I'm only 3-4 firings so far on mine (230s at 2940 using h1000) so I figure they should last a good long time.
Hey, I’m new to the 300 Norma, still working on getting a rifle put together, but I’m going to buy powder today. I can get N568, Retumbo, US 869, and StaBALL HD. I plan to stay in the 215 to 220gr class and have some 220 LRHTs already. Which powder would I likely have the best results with? I’m not trying to reinvent the wheel.
I got about 3150 from N570 and 3020 from N565. Those were both about a half grain below first pressure signs. That's from a 26" barrel at 3k feet of elevation
If you’re more worried about throat erosion, a single base powder like N165 and N170 are good alternatives. I’ve had four .300NM barrels so far and the most recent one is hands down the most accurate magnum-class barrel I’ve ever owned. In order to preserve it as much as possible I switched from N570 to N170. I was shooting 250s out of this 30” barrel at 3025fps, and switching to N170 brought it down to 2900fps, which is still very much acceptable and generates quite a bit less heat.
I just tested some h1000 and got 3115 fps with a SD of 3.7 and a ES 9.5.
I was about to start gathering components and have the opportunity at n570 or h1000. It seems like the n570 is the most recommended powder? Which should I pick up?
I’ll be running a 27 inch factory axsr barrel. Should I run around 230 grn bullets or go lighter?
I’ll be running a 27 inch factory axsr barrel. Should I run around 230 grn bullets or go lighter?
What twist is your barrel? What is the intended purpose, hunting or ELR? I would go with N570 if you can find it.
I am also shooting out of my 27” AXSR. I’ve got both 215 and 245 Berger hybrids, n570, n565, and h1000. So this is also relevant to me. I haven’t started cooking up loads yet.
All the info seems to say that n570 has the highest performance at the cost of burning hotter, but it’s not like the 300NM has a super long barrel life anyway.
I did fire some factory FGMM that was loaded with 215 bergers (just to make sure the barrel was all good), and they were great.
My last barrel was a 1/9 twist and where I live it wasn't enough to stabilize even a 230 gr during the winter months. Don't overlook H50bmg it gives the best case fill and was the easiest to tune. Also Staball HD showed promise but I only had a pound to play with. It has the same burn rate as Retumbo. H1000 seems a little fast for the 245 or 250 gr. but works well with the 215 gr. I never could get h869 to group worth a damn.
I ended up with 16 pounds of Retumbo hopefully I didn’t mess up.
I thought 1/9 was the right twist for 230's. Maybe I heard wrong. What elevation you at.
Berger’s twist rate stability calculator says you’re fine
https://bergerbullets.com/twist-rate-calculator/
https://bergerbullets.com/twist-rate-calculator/
But what is your air density? I'm at sea level and during the summer months my 1/9 twist is fine with an air density of +150 ft but when the temperature drops below 20 F I start to see air density readings of -2000 ft and when it gets down to below 0 or below I see air density readings of -6000 ft. At a 1000 yards my groups were opening up considerably when it's cold. I was baffled why the same load was suddenly giving me fits until I ran the numbers with the Berger twist rate calculator and an elevation of -2000 ft it shows a 230 as marginally stable 1.42. At 1/8 twist gives you a 1.79. So I went to a lighter 215 Berger which is slightly more stable bullet for winter months until this barrel is wore out and I can get a 1/8 spun up for next year.
No was just wondering. Everyone I talked to, or read have said 1/9 for 230's. I'm close to 6000 ft of elevation. Had a 1/8 on my ASR. But want a 1/9. Just didn't know why you were having issues. Good to know. Merry Xmas.
Whats the best combo for the 250 A Tips out of a 26" barrel. I've got H1000, N565, N568, RL33 and Retumbo to work with. Also have ADG or Lapua brass and CCI LRM's or Fed 215 GMM's. Should I drop back to the 230 A tips with 26" tube.
Not necessarily. I think it’s the best overall performing powder for a range of bullets in .300NM, but it’s notorious for reduced barrel life. I still use it though, but one of my barrels performs so well above others that I use N170 instead (less heat than N570), but that results in less velocity. So it really depends if you favor performance over barrel life.
N568 is a good alternative.
N568 is a good alternative.
I just found 10 lbs of 570 that I forgot I had... Start at 77/78gr if I go with it instead?
With a 250gr ATip and n570 I was comfortable enough to test 86.0, 86.5 and 87.0 and pick the best out of those.
Hey gents, hoping someone can help me out here. I couldn't find what I was looking for in the last few pages.
Forgive my lack of knowledge on the 300NM. I've got my buddy's MRAD SMR with me for a bit, and was messing with it today. I'll be working up a load for him, but he did leave me a box of factory Norma Match with the 230gr Berger Hybrid.
Ho-Lee-Fuk. His rifle hammers with that load. I only shot it at 100 and 385 from my porch today, but it cranked out a half-minute group at 385 (2").
I'm no longer interested in trying to develop something new, but rather sleuth the factory load. I've got all the measurements...but it is using 86.3 - 86.4gr of a powder that I am unfamiliar with. I'll attach a crappy photo of it.
Anybody have an idea of what powder it may be? Obviously the charge weight narrows it down, but i dont have any magnum powders on hand other than H1000, and it definitely isn't that.
I've left the deconstructed round apart so that I can dump the powder out and compare.
Maybe N570??
Any insight is greatly appreciated.
Forgive my lack of knowledge on the 300NM. I've got my buddy's MRAD SMR with me for a bit, and was messing with it today. I'll be working up a load for him, but he did leave me a box of factory Norma Match with the 230gr Berger Hybrid.
Ho-Lee-Fuk. His rifle hammers with that load. I only shot it at 100 and 385 from my porch today, but it cranked out a half-minute group at 385 (2").
I'm no longer interested in trying to develop something new, but rather sleuth the factory load. I've got all the measurements...but it is using 86.3 - 86.4gr of a powder that I am unfamiliar with. I'll attach a crappy photo of it.
Anybody have an idea of what powder it may be? Obviously the charge weight narrows it down, but i dont have any magnum powders on hand other than H1000, and it definitely isn't that.
I've left the deconstructed round apart so that I can dump the powder out and compare.
Maybe N570??
Any insight is greatly appreciated.
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N570 has way bigger kernels. Could be N568 or N565.... or their own commercial grade powder Norma only has.
Diggler, it's Norma ammo, therefore as mentioned above, would look at a Norma powder. Identifying powder visually is probably not the best way to approach this. That being said, the Vihtavouri powders for 300 NM (N170, N565, N568) I'm familiar with are not as uniform as your picture. Diameter fairly consistent, length and clean cut ends not so much.
And why would I even know this? Because I have an Ingenuity Trickler and conversed with Paul in trying to find the correct disk for N170. In our conversation(s), he indicated Vihtavouri powders, at least in that series are not all that consistent. I defer to his knowledge and my observations.
And why would I even know this? Because I have an Ingenuity Trickler and conversed with Paul in trying to find the correct disk for N170. In our conversation(s), he indicated Vihtavouri powders, at least in that series are not all that consistent. I defer to his knowledge and my observations.
I appreciate the help gents.
As far as I know, Norma powder is no more. I already tried to find some 217 as it made the most sense. Powder Valley, Midsouth, and Midway no longer list Norma powders, and there are threads dating back a couple years on other boards stating that Norma is gone.
So either Norma is using a proprietary blend not commercially available (absolutely possible as their advertised velocity is pretty hot), or they have been using something from another company.
As far as I know, Norma powder is no more. I already tried to find some 217 as it made the most sense. Powder Valley, Midsouth, and Midway no longer list Norma powders, and there are threads dating back a couple years on other boards stating that Norma is gone.
So either Norma is using a proprietary blend not commercially available (absolutely possible as their advertised velocity is pretty hot), or they have been using something from another company.
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Was hoping to get some help diagnosing my Norma build.
I've got 18 rounds down the pipe and 2 light primer strikes.
The firing pin channel did have a tiny bit of crap in it so I cleaned that out.
Headspace:
Zeroed on go-gauge
Fired brass +.003"
Virgin brass -.0065"
Primers are seated -.008" (on primers that didn't ignite) CCi 250's
This was all measured with calipers so take it for what it is. Is this where my issues are? Or are these numbers inline with what you guys are seeing?
I've got 18 rounds down the pipe and 2 light primer strikes.
The firing pin channel did have a tiny bit of crap in it so I cleaned that out.
Headspace:
Zeroed on go-gauge
Fired brass +.003"
Virgin brass -.0065"
Primers are seated -.008" (on primers that didn't ignite) CCi 250's
This was all measured with calipers so take it for what it is. Is this where my issues are? Or are these numbers inline with what you guys are seeing?
What kind of trigger do you have? Way back in the day, I would get light primer strike with a Timney trigger. Turns out the sear engagement was off on the trigger causing this issue.
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