IMR 8208 vs . 175 SMK 308 ?

[Rprecision]

So a friend scored 1 pound of IMR 8208 for me. He said it was a good powder for short .308's

I have heard a few things here and there on this powder but this is my maiden voyage

What say you

Any thoughts or advice ?

 

[Niles Coyote]

I tried it in my 21.75 rock barreled 308 and 155-168's it shot faster than varget but with 175, 178 and 180's it was about 15-20 fps slower... YMMV

Accuracy was good in both. I have thought at times it may be a little load finicky in my 223 and 308 as small changes in load weight can make or brake a good load, Varget seems to have wider nodes as does H4895 in my 223 but I have not used H4895 yet in the 308.

 

[SingleShot85]

I got 2900 with 155 Lapua bullets out of a 22" barrel and I run it in all my .223 55gr-65gr

 

[rjacobs]

Not an ideal powder for the 175s imo. Works great with 155's but I think a tad fast for 175's... it's my go to 75-77g 223 powder though.

 

[Rprecision]

So is it generally a temp stable powder like the extreme line of Hogdon (Varget, H4895, H4350, Etc)

I am suprised to hear it runs slower as it is a faster powder then Varget

 

[jkonzal]

In my 223 bolt gun, with a 28" tube, I got 25 fps more with 8208 than Varget. It was also .5gr less powder.

 

[bruddah]

Been a very accurate powder for me in .223

 

[BoilerUP]

As mentioned upthread, it works great in 223/223AI.