Well, I've been reading that it's generally accepted that Varget is a good powder for .243 but only with lighter weight bullets. I started a thread on this subject a few days ago on this forum, and the feedback generally was that a fellow could probably get away with up to 80 grain bullets with Varget.
So, to just get a feel for the Varget and to see if my rifle would even like this combination, I deviated a bit from my usual methodology and went with less rounds per charge, and worked up in bigger steps.
The Nosler manual lists 36 gr as the starting load and 40 max. So, I went with:
36 gr (3 rounds)
36.5 gr (3 rounds)
37 gr (3 rounds)
37.5 gr (3 rounds)
38 gr (3 rounds)
I was not comfortable going above 38 grains without backing off to 2/10th's increments and didn't want to shoot that much anyway, so stopped at 38 gr. (In fact, I was slightly nervous going from 37.5 to 38...)
Now, before anyone tells me 3 round groups one time out doesn't mean squat - I KNOW!!
Each *individual group* may not tell one much, but I still feel like general trends and patterns can begin to be seen even with the small amount of data points, especially since I had no clue where to start zeroing in on a powder weight.
So, how did the 80 grainers shoot?
36 grains: 1.25"
36.5 grains: .81"
37 grains: .65"
37.5 grains: Well, take a look:
Then 38 grains opened back up to .8" group.
The results, based on a VERY limited amount of shooting, look good! Next, I plan on starting at 37.3 grains and load 5 each of 37.3, 37.5, and 37.7 grains.
I suppose I'll then take the best group(s) from those 3 loads (assuming there is something there that shows promise), then go from there.
--Duck911
So, to just get a feel for the Varget and to see if my rifle would even like this combination, I deviated a bit from my usual methodology and went with less rounds per charge, and worked up in bigger steps.
The Nosler manual lists 36 gr as the starting load and 40 max. So, I went with:
36 gr (3 rounds)
36.5 gr (3 rounds)
37 gr (3 rounds)
37.5 gr (3 rounds)
38 gr (3 rounds)
I was not comfortable going above 38 grains without backing off to 2/10th's increments and didn't want to shoot that much anyway, so stopped at 38 gr. (In fact, I was slightly nervous going from 37.5 to 38...)
Now, before anyone tells me 3 round groups one time out doesn't mean squat - I KNOW!!
So, how did the 80 grainers shoot?
36 grains: 1.25"
36.5 grains: .81"
37 grains: .65"
37.5 grains: Well, take a look:
Then 38 grains opened back up to .8" group.
The results, based on a VERY limited amount of shooting, look good! Next, I plan on starting at 37.3 grains and load 5 each of 37.3, 37.5, and 37.7 grains.
I suppose I'll then take the best group(s) from those 3 loads (assuming there is something there that shows promise), then go from there.
--Duck911