[BrowningBoy710]

Here is my best group from the range today. This was shot out of my x-bolt at 50 yrds. planning on backing up to 100 yrds tomorrow or sat. the group is actually 7 shots, not 6. #7 was the flyer to the right.

 

[broom_jm]

Very nice! What is the velocity and recoil like with that load? I can't say I've seen or heard of Trailboss being used in a 308 before, so I'm curious. I really need to get some and load up some non-hunting loads for my 44/40!

 

[MZ5]

Nice! Maybe I'll try some in my 308.

 

[hailstone]

I've used Trail Boss powder is several pistol chamberings and is a real interesting powder too use with lead bullets. Recently Handloader magazine featured an article using the powder in rifles. Very interesting read but haven't had time to experiment yet. That's a definate project for the future.

 

[BrowningBoy710]

recoil is about like a hot .223 load. report is a little more than a .22 mag. i dont have a chrony, but i did some math and 12.5 should put me a little over 1200. this was using Sierra 150gr spitzers, i'm planing on getting some beartooth 155gr in the near future to try out and cut costs a little more.

i'm also thinking about using some 115gr cast and bumping up the charge a little... if i can get them to group like these out to about 75 yards, this may be my new squirrel rifle!!

I did not crimp these loads, but when using cast bullets in bottle neck cases, isn't crimping required? and what crimp is best? FCD or the taper crimp in the seating die? also, i'm using CCI 200's now, do you think it might be advantageous to use magnums for the lighter bullet to insure a complete burn? or would the crimp ensure this by itself?

 

[unclenick]

I think you'll find that if you get a bullet with a crimp groove that only a roll crimp will do it justice by fitting it well. The rifle type FCD is going to tend to distort cast bullet enough that you'd have to experiment to see it it works out? You may indeed find you need it, but with a quick powder like Trail Boss that's not a certainty. With cast bullets single-loaded in a rifle, you can also seat them out to touch the lands. That gives them decent start pressure, and the load you have is light enough that it won't see it's pressure increase enough for that to matter.

It was good to see that group pre-validate some upcoming experiments I've got planned. I just started a project with some new Lapua brass in which I will be using Trail Boss to do the initial case fireforming (doing it at low pressure doesn't create a pressure ring) and to find the best seating depth for the the bullet before I start working up IMR4064 and Varget loads in it.

 

[Kanuck]

It sounds like TB is doing about the same thing (with a bit more bulk perhaps?) that SR4759 does. SR4759 was touted by the likes of Townsend Whelan for reduced loads for small game. In .30 caliber he was using mil surplus 150gr FMJBT at about 1,600 fps.

Personally, I like my small game loads to be sub-sonic (950 fps or so) to reduce the noise they make even more and to improve their accuracy...

 

[TMan]

That's pretty interesting.

Friday I took off a couple hours early, and headed for the range. One of the missions was to sight in my .223 with TB loads. I determined on my last trip that 9.0gr was fine with a 40gr Sierra HP, but I had't really tried for groups. It kept 9 shots in a dime size group at 50yds, sighted in for a POI 1/2" high. It's 2.5" low at 100yds, and a 10 shot group opens up to a hair over an inch.

The .243 and 7-08 are next.

 

[jamesicus]

CZ 550 American rifle - 30/06 caliber.

Shooting from the bench under calm conditions - 90 F temperature (10 am) - bright sunshine - Caldwell rifle rest. Bullet velocity measured using a ProChrono chronograph positioned 15 feet from the rifle barrel muzzle. Hand loads using 15 grains of Hodgdon IMR "Trail Boss" powder (each charge hand weighed) - Winchester new brass (full length resized) - Hornady 30 cal 150 gr FMJ/BT bullets (not crimped) - Remington 9 1/2 large rifle primers.

The powder performed flawlessly - clean and complete burn. Extraction of fired cases was easy and they were in excellent condition -

50 yd five shot group (with sighters):

Again, not too bad a group - considering my diminished eighty year old eyesight and accompanying trigger finger tremor.

Twenty shot string chronograph results (fps):
....
1487
1501
1485
1515
1516
1513
1513
1514
1523
1518
1489
1515
1488
1506
1503
1486
1510
1521
1514
1514
....
1510 average

Be sure to refer to the data published by Hodgdon relating to their IMR Trail Boss Reduced Loads for Rifle and Pistol prior to formulating your own handloads.

JP