Update - 7 DEC 18
Jesus, its been a little while since I posted in here.... But not because I've been lazy. I've been beating the crap out of the Black Bear and really pushing to see what it can take... After about a solid month of doing nothing but shooting round after round out of it, I still haven't found anything that I can honestly say is a negative. It's rock solid, smooth, and hasn't failed me yet...and I've run some seriously hot loads through it. Not even a firing pin issue, or extraction hiccup...
Speaking of load development, which isn't necessarily the topic of this forum, but I did some 308 load work and also spun another barrel in 6 BRX to try out in a couple weeks. After testing bullet after bullet in the 308, I found one that's been OUTSTANDING at distance and beats my 6.5x47 with the 142 Sierra's/140 ELDM loads.
The x47 is a 26" Hawk Hill 1-8 Twist, and flings the 142/140gr pills over Varget at roughly 2810-2815 when I take my time loading. At distance its easily the most consistent rifle I own. 4" groups at 975 are pretty regular out of that combination. My 308 Black Bear on the other hand, is a 25", Bartlein 1-10 Twist, and gives me great velocities with the 175/178gr bullets over Varget, roughly 2775-2800ish if I'm pushing it... But those loads aren't anything special... Nobody's interested in hearing about how a 308 shoots 11mils of elevation at 1000. Been there done that, your uncle was doing it back in Nam, I get it....... Well how about if it shot 6.5mils to 960? (Skeptical hippo eyes?)…
After searching for something different to shoot this next season, I ran across a company by the name of G9... Never heard of them, never talked to any of em', not even a word from anyone else about them. Digging a little deeper into their products and I found the 154gr lathe turned solids they claimed to give more velocity and better barrel wear...with a G1 BC of .578.. I was EXTREMELY skeptical, but Mile High had them in stock and for a decent price, so I picked up a couple boxes. I've tested both Warner and Cutting Edges stuff, but for the price, it's not worth spending the money on competition shooting outside of ELR or maybe a finale. With that being said, lathe turned solids are pretty nasty. Super flat, HIGH BC's, buck wind really really well, and makes life a lot easier when it comes to dope and turning turrets...
The G9's are slightly different from the Warner and Cutting Edge stuff. Both solids from Warner and Cutting are copper.... G9's on the other hand, are brass. Not a new concept by any means, but (for me) they do open the topic back up for testing. After getting 300 pills from Mile High, I went straight into testing to see if their claims for more velocity was bullshit or would have me on the phone with Mile High ordering dozens of boxes. I also bought a couple boxes of 155 Palma's just to compare.
First things first, these solids are sensitive to seating depths... They have a 3 rib sealing section that, in my findings, don't appreciate being moved around. Not a huge issue, my chamber is throated for heavier pills, so the length of the 154's didn't really effect accuracy. If some of you are interested in trying these, keep in mind the advertised C.O.A.L is 2.900", so you may or may not have jam. Just warning you. All of my testing was done at that 2.900" C.O.A.L and as much as I wanted to mess with the seating depths, it seemed like groupings could get out of control rather quickly if the projectiles were seated shorter or longer... I stayed on the safe side and just ran the 2.900, accuracy was still good, not ridiculous like my x47, but still under a moa.
Powder behind the 154's was a challenge... They advertise RAMSHOT TAC, 2000MR, and IMR 4166.... None of which I had any of, of course. I managed to find a couple 1lb jugs of TAC, but I don't like the enduron line of IMR so I didn't even bother buying and 4166. 2000MR, if I could find any of the shit, I would've bought it, but I couldn't... Varget on the other hand, I have a bunch of and it's always shot well for my 308, so why not?
First tests were done with Varget… Immediately regretted trying it. No pressure signs, no chamber blow ups, but the velocities weren't even close and I was already WAYYY up in the neck during charging... Varget was out. Next came TAC. Really liked the stuff. I'm not a huge fan of spherical powder, I've always used extruded, but this stuff could change my mind. It was so easy to meter and my powder machine loved throwing it. Velocities were great, and with the solids it gave me 3025fps with ZERO pressure signs. Just to make sure it wasn't a fluke, I did the same test with 155 Palmas, and was only able to get 2925fps with pressure signs almost immediately. This could just be MY rifle, so take that info however you may.
After shooting a couple weeks with Tac and throwing the 154's at 3025ish, I started searching for another powder that was a little more available to me. I tried, H4831SC, which wasn't having it... H4895, did OK, but nothing special.... a couple Accurate Powders, then I stumbled on CFE223... MY GOD. This powder is an absolute animal with those 154's, and has had no drawbacks so far. It's pushing the solids at 3065, grouping really well, and down range performance has been outstanding. The combo of CFE223 and the G9 154's, is pushing my 308 well under my x47 dope and lines up with my 6SLR shooting 115 Coated DTAC's @ 2980...