SloppyJ
WKR
- Joined
- Feb 24, 2023
- Messages
- 1,363
Took my 18" 6 creed out last weekend to break it in. I shot 70rds through it over the course of the day. I tested 108 ELDMs and 108 Berger Elite Hunters. Thinking they would roughly be the same, I loaded up 50 Bergers at 41.8gr of H4350 in new Peterson SRP brass with CCI 450s which is near the book max of the ELDMs. These were going to be my long range steel loads to play with. I loaded 25 powder test loads of both the ELDMs and the EH to see if I could find pressure and get some velocity data.
Well to my surprise I started seeing heavy bolt lift around 40.5gr with the Bergers. I shot 5 of the 41.8gr loads and they grouped really well and had an ES of 18 and a SD of 10. No denying the sticky bolt lift but no cratering of the primers. I was at a range that I'd been waiting to go to for a while so I sent them all collecting velocity and checking my dope. I ended up running through all 50 of them. Walked out from 300yds to 1100yds.
I didn't get to test all of my other powder charges with the two bullets but I had no pressure signs with the ELDMs at 40.5gr. Those shot around 2860fps and the 41.8gr Berger loads averaged 2898fps. Bergers were 50thou off and the ELDMs were 30thou off.
The velocity seems to be there but the powder charge seems low to me. I'm roughly a full grain short based on both Hornady and Hodgdon's data. It's probably 1yr old H4350 that I'm using if it matters. Trying to figure out what could cause this and if it might be worth to try some N555 in there to see what I can do since I still have case capacity left.
Well to my surprise I started seeing heavy bolt lift around 40.5gr with the Bergers. I shot 5 of the 41.8gr loads and they grouped really well and had an ES of 18 and a SD of 10. No denying the sticky bolt lift but no cratering of the primers. I was at a range that I'd been waiting to go to for a while so I sent them all collecting velocity and checking my dope. I ended up running through all 50 of them. Walked out from 300yds to 1100yds.
I didn't get to test all of my other powder charges with the two bullets but I had no pressure signs with the ELDMs at 40.5gr. Those shot around 2860fps and the 41.8gr Berger loads averaged 2898fps. Bergers were 50thou off and the ELDMs were 30thou off.
The velocity seems to be there but the powder charge seems low to me. I'm roughly a full grain short based on both Hornady and Hodgdon's data. It's probably 1yr old H4350 that I'm using if it matters. Trying to figure out what could cause this and if it might be worth to try some N555 in there to see what I can do since I still have case capacity left.