308 plinker powder

Curahee19

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Jul 24, 2018
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looking for a gas gun 308 plinking powder. I reload on the Dillon 650 and have been using Varget all this time but I get inconsistent throws and muzzle velocities from 2500 all the way to 2560. reading online I've seen that a lot of people use ball powder on Dillons powder throw. they say its more consistent rather than stick powder. and plus don't want to waste Varget on a gas gun. Any good ball powders that are not weather sensitive leaning towards bl-c2 but want to know what you guys use
 
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I was in the same scenario recently and decided on 2000MR. It meters consistent AF and you can cram 50 grains of it under a 150 SST. I have them going 2650 out of a 16" gas gun. I've been using 8208 for years in other things but when I tried it in 308 recently I had problems with 175s in my bolt gun. Hit pressure way before I should have and when it hits that pressure wall it spikes really quick. It would probably be good for 150s but I didn't bother.

-Dan
 
Another less temp sensitive option would be AR Comp. Adaptable to 223/6.5 Grendel/light bullets in 6.5CM and your weight range in 308. Good to have this cartridge flexibility option in a shortage of reloading supplies.
 
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I'm about to load up some 150gr Hornady FMJ with H335 because that's what I have a bunch of. Its my primary .223 powder and it meters very good. It may not be ideal but it is listed in the Speer manual so I'm going to give it a shot, no pun intended.
 
Ar comp works great on light to mid weight bullets for Caliber. I use it for 223, 7.62x39, 6.5 creedmoore, and 308. I had good results with 125grain up to 168gr bullets that I tested. Ar comp and 8208 loads are very close in comparison.
 
TAC for sure over CFE223, BLC-2, 748, or H335. All of those meter well and can work, but TAC is generally more consistent and temp stable in my experience.

I use a lot of Ramshot/Accurate powders, and especially like both TAC and XTerminator for 308 and 5.56. Also, the Western Powders (which is Ramshot & Accurate) load guide is a free download and contains a lot of really good data with specific bullets, and is one of the few sources of good 5.56-specific data.
 
I use 8208 in my Dillon PMs for a few calibers with great success, but for plinking ammo I use the cheaper BLC2 or Win 748.

Not as worried about temp sensitivity as I'm not running these at the upper end of load data nor am I taking them to extreme range where the temperature induced velocity spreads will negatively impact my results.
 
I run H4895 @ 39.5gr in LC brass in my AR308 with 168gr SMK. It's an old school load but it does shoot really well in my 308 and is one of my favorite handloads.

Pretty cheap and does a good job for decent plinking ammo.

ETA: I missed where you said you are looking for ball powder to meter better out of your Dillon. Win 748 would be a good one to try.
 
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