Hammer Bullets

[MattB]

From what I have been told by one of the owners and what I have read on the Hammer forum, their bullets are really forgiving of seating depth.

 

[BigLost]

Sorry to bump an old thread, but I’m look to see if anyone had any info on how much jump the hammers like? I just picked up some 181’s for my 300 WM and I’m looking to find a good starting point. Scored 8lbs of RL26 last week, probably a little slow but it seems to work it most everything halfway decent.

 

[Runningwater]

Don't have much experience, but with my 3006 Fieldcraft and 166 hammers, we set the bullet as far out as it could go and reliability feed in the magazine. With the pointy shape of the bullet, there was quite a lot of jump left. My reloading friend started at that depth and started working up with RL16. At 57.1 grains we were at 2840fps and at 57.4 grains it was interestingly the same velocity. So went back to 57.1 and shot 3, 3 shot .5 inches groups and called it done.

They certainly lived up to the hype of easy load development for us. Have fun and good luck!

 

[RosinBag]

Call the guys at Hammer Bullets, they are very knowledgeable and have data from lots of customers and what is working for them.

 

[92xj]

I'm shooting the 181s in my 300wm pushed by rl23. I'm at max mag length which is 2.874 with the comparator. Load is better than I can shoot.
I also had great success with the 199 sledge and 196 hunters. Went to the 181 because I was bored and wanted to see if I could get to 3100 fps. I'm currently at 3098 fps. So freaking close.

 

[choovhntr]

I’m shooting the 181 out of my 300 win mag. Loaded to 2.930 ogive. This gives me roughly .060 jump and right below mag length. My mag is fairly long so you may have to jump more. I’m shooting 75.5 gr 7828ssc at 3095 ave speed. ES so far is 13 ( only happened once and closer to 10 normally) SD is 4. I got to 3183 with med lift and slight ejector mark with 77 grains. This is a 24” barrel. I backed off due to a good node with ladder test, and didn’t want pressure spikes with temp. I’ve heard this powder can do some funky things in the 90 plus degree temps we see here. I have a bunch of rl 23 I plan to run after this powder is gone. Similar burn rate and a little more stable. Rifle groups sub .5 all day and often a lot better. It took under 15 rounds to find this load following Steve from hammer bullets suggestions. Load to mag length, do a ladder test at distance over a chrono and pick the best node from vertical dispersion . 3050-3100 seems to be pretty repeatable for a solid node with those powders in a lot of rifles with a saami chamber. Lastly, be careful of the stated BC. I’m still testing, but finding that it may be a little exaggerated. Definitely test it yourself at distance. I’ve only shot 1 deer with this load so far, but bang flop! Hoping to test on elk in a few months. I have not played with seating depth at all. They say it doesn’t matter, I find that hard to believe, but can’t deny the results. It just worked first try and was extremely happy with the results. Hope things work out as easy and well for you as they did for me. Happy to help with any more questions as I’m going to start load development for a buddy’s xbolt soon using this data. He has a shorter mag box so it should answer some of the seating depth question.

 

[choovhntr]

Forgot to mention, this load is with ADG virgin brass and .015 neck tension 3/4 the way down the neck. I only mention this because this brass is very consistent but also has less capacity then other brands. You may need to load a couple grains more powder to see those speeds in say... Norma brass (good capacity but a little soft), but may also see pressure signs before you get there. ALWAYS START LOW to do some pressure testing before taking some guys load data off the internet!

 

[choovhntr]

I'm shooting the 181s in my 300wm pushed by rl23. I'm at max mag length which is 2.874 with the comparator. Load is better than I can shoot.
I also had great success with the 199 sledge and 196 hunters. Went to the 181 because I was bored and wanted to see if I could get to 3100 fps. I'm currently at 3098 fps. So freaking close.

How many grains are you at with rl 23? Just trying to figure out a good starting point. Thinking 73ish and working up. Sound about right? Using 75.5 of 7828ssc and they seem to be very similar burn rate, but wanted to hear some thoughts with someone shooting same velocity node as me for accuracy with these bullets.

 

[92xj]

How many grains are you at with rl 23? Just trying to figure out a good starting point. Thinking 73ish and working up. Sound about right? Using 75.5 of 7828ssc and they seem to be very similar burn rate, but wanted to hear some thoughts with someone shooting same velocity node as me for accuracy with these bullets.

Yep, that load is with 73g. 73.4 the group started opening up a tick.

 

[BigLost]

You guys are a wealth of knowledge, exactly what I needed! Really appreciate the help.

 

[Quicksilver]

Developed this today. Christensen arms 300wm 181 hammer and rl26. She’s a hot load on virgin ADG brass but we are going to roll with it for now. Seated .020” off the lands and 3300fps measured with labradar.

 

[choovhntr]

Developed this today. Christensen arms 300wm 181 hammer and rl26. She’s a hot load on virgin ADG brass but we are going to roll with it for now. Seated .020” off the lands and 3300fps measured with labradar.View attachment 182115

Wow! I may have to try that with the rl 26 I have. That’s screaming. What length barrel? I’m guessing 26”. Also, is this a single loader at .020 off the lands? I’m .060 off with virgin ADG just to make sure I have adequate clearance in the mag with recoil from the shot. My mag is long for a factory rifle and always thought the Christiansen was shorter than my 3.71 length. I started at .020 off and it had the slightest contact when pushed to the bottom of the mag. I played it safe and went with deeper seating to protect the tips. Congrats on a hammer of a load!

 

[choovhntr]

Here’s my last group with 7828ssc at 3095 and ADG virgin brass. 24” barrel cooper model 92...

 

[Quicksilver]

Wow! I may have to try that with the rl 26 I have. That’s screaming. What length barrel? I’m guessing 26”. Also, is this a single loader at .020 off the lands? I’m .060 off with virgin ADG just to make sure I have adequate clearance in the mag with recoil from the shot. My mag is long for a factory rifle and always thought the Christiansen was shorter than my 3.71 length. I started at .020 off and it had the slightest contact when pushed to the bottom of the mag. I played it safe and went with deeper seating to protect the tips. Congrats on a hammer of a load!

I believe it’s a 24” barrel. They’re long but they fit in the mag. I haven’t stacked it full, but if I put one in it feeds from it fine. Hoping we can stick with this one for a bit, otherwise we’ll find a lower node which I’m sure will still be scooting.

 

[BigLost]

I ended up with a load at 3.505 coal shooting .5 MOA at 100 yards. Got it dialed in with the kestrel and was getting perfect impacts at 600 with a bit of tuning. Loving the 181’s and RL26 so far!