Custom Rifle Journey/Review *Pic Heavy*

[Quandary]

Even dropping down to a 300PRC or 7PRC the XLR Element 4 with the C6 butt end is a good mule kick. It makes load development with the chassis a challenge......

 

[huntnful]

Even dropping down to a 300PRC or 7PRC the XLR Element 4 with the C6 butt end is a good mule kick. It makes load development with the chassis a challenge......

I’m just not a fan of chassis’ at all. Especially for a hunting rifle. They suck to shoot behind for me.

 

[Quicksilver]

I’m just not a fan of chassis’ at all. Especially for a hunting rifle. They suck to shoot behind for me.

Same, I feel much more at home behind a stock. I have a 18” barrel 6.5 saum on a folding xlr chassis that was intended for compact transportation and the ability to shoot from a tripod. Outside of it being a tool for a job, my other two rifles with stocks I reach for first.

 

[RockAndSage]

I was shooting with my good buddy yesterday morning. The one responsible for getting me into all of this years ago lol. He’s got all carbon barrels on his guns. They shoot extremely well. He also had this 33XC. The ballistics were insane with a 300gr Berger going 3100fps. It kicked like a MF though haha.

View attachment 922657

Had no idea what a 33XC is, but those cartridges look big, and googled it. Pretty interesting stuff.

 

[huntnful]

Had no idea what a 33XC is, but those cartridges look big, and googled it. Pretty interesting stuff.

It’s a freaking cannon basically haha. But he’s actually put it to work on some elk hunts. Hadn’t shot it for months. First round out of it was at 1013 yards yesterday and it was 4” from the bullseye. But we had gotten good wind calls from previously shooting our other rifles before that one.

 

[RockAndSage]

First round out of it was at 1013 yards yesterday and it was 4” from the bullseye.

Daaang...

 

[fshaw]

Huntnful, very interesting thread, thanks for starting it. Impressive use of impressive rifles. I’d love to hear some details about your personal loading process for extreme long range hunting including dies and components used, brass prep, annealing, special techniques, cartridge runout measurement if any, neck turning, load development process, etc. if you don’t want to dilute this thread, how about a new thread if you have any interest?

Anyway, thanks again for a great thread. Merry Christmas and a happy holiday season to you and yours.

Frank Shaw

 

[huntnful]

Huntnful, very interesting thread, thanks for starting it. Impressive use of impressive rifles. I’d love to hear some details about your personal loading process for extreme long range hunting including dies and components used, brass prep, annealing, special techniques, cartridge runout measurement if any, neck turning, load development process, etc. if you don’t want to dilute this thread, how about a new thread if you have any interest?

Anyway, thanks again for a great thread. Merry Christmas and a happy holiday season to you and yours.

Frank Shaw

Hey Frank! It’s actually very simple.

1. A well built gun with good components
2. Dependable scope and mounts
3. Good brass, bullets and powder
4. Find lands with desired bullet. Back off .010-.020 or so.
5. Find pressure with desired powder. Back off 1gr.

This alone normally gives me A LOT of 5 shot .5” groups. Which is plenty good to kill anything, at any distance.

I don’t neck turn. I don’t measure runout. I don’t anneal. I don’t measure every shoulder bump or every BTO of completed rounds.

Chamfer the brass, brush the inside with a nylon brush, apply some dry moly and mandrel it open with a .002 undersized mandrel.

No special dies or bullet seaters. 95% of the guns shooting capabilities come from how well it’s built, the components it’s built with; and the brass, bullets and powder you choose IMO. I used to put MUCH MORE emphasis on reloading being the catalyst to precision. But really it’s all the decisions you make prior to even loading a round.

 

[fshaw]

Thanks very much for the reply, interesting. I expected a bit more alchemy.

 

[huntsd]

@huntnful when you apply dry molly then mandrel. Do you clean after to get the dry molly off before dumping powder? I would assume powder could get caked up on dry molly? Asking because I plan to run a mandrel on my next build and have never used one.

 

[huntnful]

@huntnful when you apply dry molly then mandrel. Do you clean after to get the dry molly off before dumping powder? I would assume powder could get caked up on dry molly? Asking because I plan to run a mandrel on my next build and have never used one.

I go back and forth testing, but currently I’m just leaving it in the necks. It’s borderline microscopic dry lubricant. Powder is definitely not sticking to it.

I only test it with and without to see if I can see precision differences.

 

[HuntHarder]

I only test it with and without to see if I can see precision differences.

And? I have been using moly for a year or so, not sure I can tell any difference on paper, but the mandrelling feels smoother. Have you noticed anything on the target?

 

[huntnful]

And? I have been using moly for a year or so, not sure I can tell any difference on paper, but the mandrelling feels smoother. Have you noticed anything on the target?

I haven’t noticed anything other than mandrelling is much smoother. I thought it would help more with cold welding of the bullets in the necks but I had some 195’s that were damn near locked in place after only sitting for 3 months. So it must not help that much lol.

 

[ACHILLES]

I apply imperial sizing wax to any bullet I load with my fingers to prevent cold welding and it helps with accuracy a lot of times vs using without. I shot ammo that was loaded around 3-4 yrs ago in 2 different cartridges last week and never saw any issues.

 

[RockAndSage]

I haven’t noticed anything other than mandrelling is much smoother. I thought it would help more with cold welding of the bullets in the necks but I had some 195’s that were damn near locked in place after only sitting for 3 months. So it must not help that much lol.

Moly's a kind of metal, with sulfur in it - that makes me wonder if it's not neutral to whatever alchemy is causing cold welding. It also makes me wonder if Hexagonal Boron Nitride (HBn) might be more effective at preventing that the cold welding. HBn's essentially a ceramic, but in the same layered lamella structure as the MoS2, and also comes as a powder in similar sizes (nano to 3-4 micron). They're both used in premium lubricants as a boundary lubricant additive, for the same purposes, almost interchangeably. IIRC there are some guys coating bullets in it (David Tubb??).

 

[huntnful]

Moly's a kind of metal, with sulfur in it - that makes me wonder if it's not neutral to whatever alchemy is causing cold welding. It also makes me wonder if Hexagonal Boron Nitride (HBn) might be more effective at preventing that the cold welding. HBn's essentially a ceramic, but in the same layered lamella structure as the MoS2, and also comes as a powder in similar sizes (nano to 3-4 micron). They're both used in premium lubricants as a boundary lubricant additive, for the same purposes, almost interchangeably. IIRC there are some guys coating bullets in it (David Tubb??).

That actually makes good sense. I’ll try that next