308 bullet info

[MrRobot]

Hello all,

I have a couple questions regarding loading data. A little back story really quick. Today my buddy at work gave me a early birthday gift card to TX road house but also gave me
some Hornady match bullets.

30 Cal
168 gr BTHP Match
Qty :100
#30501

I haven't started to reload 308 yet. Been getting the dies and everything I need before starting. The only thing I have currently is PMC 308 brass that is one time fired. I been looking last couple of weeks and even tonight for Large primers. All I could find so far is small pistol primers. Plus I need to figure out which primer would be good to start out with.

When I got home I went to my Lyman book and Modern Reloading Second edition Lee book.

I could not find the 168 BTHP bullet in either book. I did find in the Lyman book 168 jacketed HPBT ..
Lee book i only found 168 jacket bullet.

Now my question is

1. When loading for a remington 700 ADL rifle is 168 high to start out with? I'm trying to find what bullet works for this rifle. I will be using this rifle for range shooting and seeing how far I could shoot.
2. Since I can't find the bullet in those 2 book do I need to purchase a Hornandy book and does that apply to Sierra bullets as well?

Any kind of help would be awesome.

 

[Army 1911]

You can probably get the info online on the Hornady site.

 

[Army 1911]

You can probably try the Hornady site online as they probably should have loadings for that bullet there . But since I don't load rifle and haven't used Hornady products I can't swear to that . Good luck in your search .

 

[Mills]

The 168 bthp is a great bullet indeed.

you should buy a hand-loading manual

The Lyman one is a good one.

You are being redirected...

 

[MrRobot]

The 168 bthp is a great bullet indeed.

you should buy a hand-loading manual

The Lyman one is a good one.

You are being redirected...

Thank you Mills... Since I have the Lyman 50th version book the book you are suggesting 51th version should have the BTHP bullet inside?

 

[msharley]

Get a variety,

H'Day, Speer, Lee, Lyman...etc....

In this day and age of "fake as hell" powder/primer "shortages"?

One must "adapt" ...

BLC II & Varget are "go to" choices for powder...

Federal Large Rifle primers work well...

 

[msharley]

Also...

 

[MrRobot]

@msharley Thank you for the advice. If I can't find the Federal Large primers what would be the 2nd or 3rd option beside those in case I run into some primers.

 

[Texasjack]

You won't always find loading data for your exact bullet. Even if you do, the gun that was used to develop that load is likely different from yours. That's why we don't start with the max load. Find a bullet that is close - for example, a 165 grain bullet would be close to your 168, or a slightly different 168 grain bullet would also be close - and then develop your load starting with that data. The best book available is the Lyman handbook, if for no other reason than it has a lot of information beyond just loads. Always consult the web site for the powder you're using and see what loads they have. Those will always be the latest info.

The .308 generally uses bullets between 150 and 180 grains, so 168 is about right in the middle. You may find that your rifle "likes" some bullets better than others. I had a Remington 700 BDL years ago that only did well with heavy bullets. The beauty of reloading is that you can match your load to your rifle to maximize the performance.

Develop your loads for ACCURACY, not for VELOCITY. You don't need that extra 50 feet per second of velocity for the bullet to do it's job. You need it to hit where you aim every time.

 

[Gordo]

Just about to type the same thing...
Damn old fingers don't move like they used to...

 

[Huntsman52]

Those projectiles will work good. If you know what powder you want to use alot of the manufactures will have data online you can look up.

 

[MrRobot]

You won't always find loading data for your exact bullet. Even if you do, the gun that was used to develop that load is likely different from yours. That's why we don't start with the max load. Find a bullet that is close - for example, a 165 grain bullet would be close to your 168, or a slightly different 168 grain bullet would also be close - and then develop your load starting with that data. The best book available is the Lyman handbook, if for no other reason than it has a lot of information beyond just loads. Always consult the web site for the powder you're using and see what loads they have. Those will always be the latest info.

The .308 generally uses bullets between 150 and 180 grains, so 168 is about right in the middle. You may find that your rifle "likes" some bullets better than others. I had a Remington 700 BDL years ago that only did well with heavy bullets. The beauty of reloading is that you can match your load to your rifle to maximize the performance.

Develop your loads for ACCURACY, not for VELOCITY. You don't need that extra 50 feet per second of velocity for the bullet to do it's job. You need it to hit where you aim every time

you hit the nail right on the head... That's my goal is to find a bullet that my rifle likes and can shoot for accuracy. Now going back to your bullet and trying to match it up. I'm looking in my book for Lyman and I see 165 gr. Jacketed Partition and 168 gr jacketed HPBT.

Since I don't see the BTHP version rule would be I would look at the 165 jacketed Partition?

One other thing you mention "The .308 generally uses bullets between 150 and 180 grains,"

Should I start at 150 first and move up that way?

 

[Texasjack]

you hit the nail right on the head... That's my goal is to find a bullet that my rifle likes and can shoot for accuracy. Now going back to your bullet and trying to match it up. I'm looking in my book for Lyman and I see 165 gr. Jacketed Partition and 168 gr jacketed HPBT.

Since I don't see the BTHP version rule would be I would look at the 165 jacketed Partition?

One other thing you mention "The .308 generally uses bullets between 150 and 180 grains,"

Should I start at 150 first and move up that way?

Generally use the weight first, then the design. A 168 boat tail is probably going to work a lot like a 168 flat base.

Start at 150? Not necessarily. You have a 168 grain bullet, so work it up first. Later you might try some other bullet weights. If your rifle performs better with one, then that's a good place to go. It takes a long time to really match up reloads with your rifle and do it right. Some rifles will do great with every bullet weight. I've got a Win 70 that performs beautifully with any bullet. I talked to a retired machinist from Remington who told me that the factories push the tooling on barrels as far as they can go, so some barrels are tight, some are loose, and some are in the middle. 99.9% of shooters aren't good enough to tell the difference. According to him, if you get a rifle with a barrel that works really great, hang on to that rifle and trade any others you've got if you need to.

Those old Remington machinists had a black powder club where they made their own rifles using the same tools that were used 200 years ago. They might take 2 years or more to make a rifle and test all the combos of patches, powder loads, and bullet weights until they had it perfect. I've seen them hit an egg at 150 yards, consistently. Modern rifles - cartridge rifles - are a lot more forgiving, but the concept is the same: If you really want accuracy, try different bullets/loads/etc. until you find that sweet spot.

 

[MrRobot]

Thank you for all the good info. I think i will order the new version for Lyman book.

One thing I notice on bullet box was the twist rate. This bullet is for a barrow that is 1-12. My remington is 1-8 does that really matter?

 

[Gordo]

OP, you could save yourself some work, and just buy loaded ammo...
Save the mental anguish of finding primers.
Then I will take those bullets off your hands

 

[Lonesome Dove]

308 and 125s-150s are a blessing in disguise.

 

[TexMex247]

I could potentially trade you a few hundred large rifle primers if you have small rifle or pistol. As far as 168s. I consider them the "proving" round of any 308. The Sierra match kings come to mind. I have yet to find another 168gr projectile that outperforms them. You can PM me your location anytime. The Federal GMM recipe is out there and worth duplicating if you can get your hands on some IMR4064.

I have a few loose 100ct boxes of different types if you want to play around but I concede that Fed210s are my go to. I think I have Winchester and CCI lying around but I'll look tonight. I know I also have LR mag primers too and depending on your powder selection they may also suit your needs.

If you're far away the next best thing I could offer is ready to load primed once fired brass. Primed brass is not considered hazmat and can ship through any carrier. That may be your best solution to get the ball rolling. Large rifle primers remain difficult to find and you'll just have to keep the hunt going.

 

[TxStetson]

you hit the nail right on the head... That's my goal is to find a bullet that my rifle likes and can shoot for accuracy. Now going back to your bullet and trying to match it up. I'm looking in my book for Lyman and I see 165 gr. Jacketed Partition and 168 gr jacketed HPBT.

Since I don't see the BTHP version rule would be I would look at the 165 jacketed Partition?

One other thing you mention "The .308 generally uses bullets between 150 and 180 grains,"

Should I start at 150 first and move up that way?

168 BTHP (Boat Tail Hollow Point) and HPBT (Hollow Point Boat Tail) are the same thing.

 

[Nicholst55]

AmmoSeek.com is your friend.

Large Rifle Primers

 

[msharley]

@msharley Thank you for the advice. If I can't find the Federal Large primers what would be the 2nd or 3rd option beside those in case I run into some primers.

Winchester is always good...

I try to save CCI for "last"...they seem to be about .0005" larger in diameter....once primer pocket starts to loosen? One more loading (sometimes two) with CCI... YMMV...

I have used them all, over the years....For accuracy work ...I think (in 22-250, 22-250AI, 30-06, 38-55 & 45/70) in "standard loads" that the Federal 210 will give you a slight "edge" (different rifle? Remington may be the way to fly?)...this is in my rifles...and the "edge" is just that...

I heard a couple mail order firms have WLR & CCI primers? (sometimes? they are GONE before I heard...LOL)...

The FAKE SHORTAGE may help you...Get 100 of Federal, 100 of WLR & 100 of CCI (LGS is selling them by the 100 packs)...see which works best for you....? (rather than getting 10,000 of something that is not quite up to snuff?)...

The Service Rifle guys mostly shot the pulled 147gr FMJ over 45gr of BLC II....some switched to Varget...(in the M1-A).

Bottom line? Today? Grab what is on the shelf...and work around it..

A dozen loading Manuals will be your friend!

A good rifle will generally shoot a 3" group at the 200 yd line.......with good ammo...Figure the size of a snuff can...


On brass. Tumble. Lube. Size. Trim. Chamfer. Uniform the flash holes & primer pockets. Tumble again. Anneal if you are so inclined. (those that anneal swear by it...those that don't...don't...)...

Tumble again.

INSPECT the cases.

Prime cases.

Set measure. Prep dribbler. (I like a good balance scale...I don't do well with electronic gizmos)

Charge cases. INSPECT powder level in cases whilst in loading block.

Seat bullet.

Crimp if so desired. (if you have a crimp die...most rifle sets are two die sets and do not crimp)

I always load a couple dummy rounds of each bullet design in caliber...makes setting seat die easier...and can see if they work in gun. (have run into "short chambered" rifles...in the past)

Hope this helps...

Later, Mark