Mag pro powder??

[ST52v]

I am getting ready to reload for my 270 wsm, 7mag and 7mm stw and need some info on powder. I have the latest manual from Nosler and noticed the high velocities with mag pro. I know the rl powders were made for the short mags. My first plan was to use the extreme powders and the rl powders. I just don't want to buy a bunch of powders that I will never use. Has anyone ever used the mag pro? What would your short list (3-5) powders be? I want to shoot acubonds and partitions. Any thoughts or load info would be appreciated. Thanks Robin

 

[tstowater]

You will never buy a powder that you will never use. Just might need another gun or a different load. I load 140 & 150 grain Partitions in 270WSM's using H4831SC and this works extremely well in my son's Tikka T3. Haven't played with the mag pro or RL's. If I was going to limit myself to 3-5 powders in the house (I definitely am not limited that way), I would look at the guns first and the flexibility next. 4895 and 4350 powders are hard to beat, would just need to add a couple others.

 

[belly-deep]

I am getting ready to reload for my 270 wsm, 7mag and 7mm stw and need some info on powder. I have the latest manual from Nosler and noticed the high velocities with mag pro. I know the rl powders were made for the short mags. My first plan was to use the extreme powders and the rl powders. I just don't want to buy a bunch of powders that I will never use. Has anyone ever used the mag pro? What would your short list (3-5) powders be? I want to shoot acubonds and partitions. Any thoughts or load info would be appreciated. Thanks Robin

RL-17 was made for short mags, not the entire line of RL powders.

Magpro, by all accounts I've read, does infact produce astonishingly high velocities in some cartridges.

I personally like the Exteme powders because they don' t lose velocity in really cold weather. If I was hunting in a state with consistent warm (30-50*) temps, I'd try Magpro.

 

[Shrek]

+1 for extreme powders. I built a load for my 7-08 using w760 ( a ball powder ) at temps in the upper nineties then hunted down around seven degrees and it fell off the earth ! I had 6 " of drop at 300yards when it was hot . After I missed a deer at 230 yards in seven degree weather I got down and checked my rifle. It was 13" low at 200 yards. When I got back home it had warmed up to the fifties. Went out to rezero my rifle thinking the scope was off. It was back on the money at fifty something degrees. When a powder doesn't burn in its heat and pressure range the way it burns can change dramatically. I had used the load down to the mid twenties and had no problems. Somewhere my load crossed a pressure and heat point and didn't burn right. I've gone back to h4350 for that rifle.

 

[FURMAN]

I will gladly give up a little velocity to keep the low extreme spreads you can achieve with the Hodgdon extreme powders.

 

[belly-deep]

I might have to try it in a pronghorn load though...zip!!!

Definitely no good for elk or mule deer; I need to be able to predict my bullet drop in cold weather.

 

[TwoTikkas]

Alright. I've never really thought about the effects of extreme cold and heat. I know there is a concern there,but I never thought it would amount to a foot of difference in performance at 200 to 300 yds. So,is Hodgdon the only manufacturer of extreme powders? If there are others, is there a list I can refer to includung other manufacturers? I don't want to get caught in the bushes with something that's not up to the task.

 

[FURMAN]

At two to three hundred yards it will not really matter. All my big game rifles are 600yds plus guns. I have to know where the bullet is going to go. Hodgdon is the only manufacturer that makes "extreme powders".

 

[belly-deep]

Alright. I've never really thought about the effects of extreme cold and heat. I know there is a concern there,but I never thought it would amount to a foot of difference in performance at 200 to 300 yds. So,is Hodgdon the only manufacturer of extreme powders? If there are others, is there a list I can refer to includung other manufacturers? I don't want to get caught in the bushes with something that's not up to the task.

Usually the "worst" powders will lose around 2fps/degree. So your .300 Win Mag that you sighted in on a 70* day becomes a fast .30-06 @ 0*

There is no official list of temp resistant powders. A powder's ability to hold velocity in cold temps actually varies from cartridge to cartridge, but as a general rule, if it produces above 90% load density, a powder designed to be temp resistant will remain so.

As far as I know, RL-15, Ramshot TAC and Big Game, and the Hodgdon Extreme powders are all temp resistant. RL-17 claims to be, but guys have had mixed results in the field. Ramshot Hunter and Magnum, along with IMR7828 are also fairly temp resistant but still lose a bit of velocity in cold weather.

Generally ball powders (with the exception of the Ramshot line), IMR 4350 and 4831, and most of the RL line is are not temp resistant. I don't know about any of the others.

 

[Matt Cashell]

I like Hodgdon Extreme powders also, but I have used other "non-temp-stable" powders with success also.

My 7-08 load uses w760, and I have shot it in many different temperatures without a notable trajectory change out to 400 yards. Daveinjax' experience above seems really unusual to me. It has been very cold here lately, and I think I will go chrono that load.

I have used RL powders a lot, and have never had a wild swing in performance with temperature. I chronographed loads out of my 300 RUM w/ RL 25 in temperatures from 12 degrees to 93 degrees and the results are as follows out of my log:

93 deg (August 2012) : 3185 ave. MV
57 deg (May 2012) : 3172 ave. MV
12 deg (Jan 2012) : 3152 ave. MV

SDs were under 8 for all three days.

This doesn't seem unworkable variation to me, especially given the wide temp variations.

I wouldn't count out powders that aren't Hodgdon Extreme.

 

[ST52v]

THANKS!!! I love this sight. If I had everything, I'd start testing on Monday with a low of 7deg. Still neeed a set of dies for the 270 wsm, powder, and a chrony. I'll keep you posted. Robin

 

[FURMAN]

I agree with what others are saying. There is more to extreme spreads than just the powder. I use way more Alliant powder than Hodgdon but it is in my varmint rigs and the temps do not swing much when I'm shooting prairie dogs. I have however tested them in colder weather and I do get much larger swings than I do with the Hodgdon powders. Whatever powder you choose make sure you check it if you are going to be shooting at longer ranges. If you are interested there is a Gunwerks video on Youtube that demonstrates this subject. Type in "Gunwerks powder" it will be the first video. My results have mirrored theirs.