Pharmseller
WKR
I bought a take off 1-8” stainless .223 Tikka barrel from Wind Gypsy to trade with Blue Lightning, my 1-10”. All the other Tikkas I load for are 1-8” that shoot 75 ELDM very, very well so I’m getting away from 50 gr BTs. The 1-8” will shoot 50s but the 1-10” doesn’t like the 75s.
Took the rifle and barrel to a gunsmith, first question he asked was how old was the T3? Evidently the older ones screwed the barrel on with the strength of Thor and mine was no exception. He warned me about maybe needing to make a relief cut in the existing barrel so I was prepared not to re-use the barrel. No worries.
On the way home I found a roadkill mink.
Looks like head damage only. I brought him home and stuck him in the freezer for a friend of mine. Back to the story.
After a thorough cleaning I chambered a few rounds of “Kyle,” my 75 gr ELDM load that I use in Varmint Cong, my stainless T3 Varmint. Kyle is 1.940” BTO, about .002” off the lands, so I didn’t know if it would chamber. It did, almost exactly the same chamber dimensions.
Kyle uses a max (per Hodgdon) charge of Benchmark. Their test barrel is 1-12” at 24 inches, top velocity was 2829. I fired three rounds over the Magnetospeed Sporter and got an average of 2836, ES of 26. Brass looked good. CCI400 primers are a little soft but that’s what I have. Three rounds won’t tell the whole story but it’s a start.
I get 2915 from Kyle in Varmint Cong, but VC’s barrel is and inch longer. I’m not gonna argue over 79 fps. Both loads are over 1800 fps at 600 yards, which is my max for deer anyway.
My other 75 ELDM load is Carlos, using Varget. I’m right at 2900 but it’s also a stainless Varmint with a longer barrel.
Next step is a range session to see how she likes either one.
P
Took the rifle and barrel to a gunsmith, first question he asked was how old was the T3? Evidently the older ones screwed the barrel on with the strength of Thor and mine was no exception. He warned me about maybe needing to make a relief cut in the existing barrel so I was prepared not to re-use the barrel. No worries.
On the way home I found a roadkill mink.
Looks like head damage only. I brought him home and stuck him in the freezer for a friend of mine. Back to the story.
After a thorough cleaning I chambered a few rounds of “Kyle,” my 75 gr ELDM load that I use in Varmint Cong, my stainless T3 Varmint. Kyle is 1.940” BTO, about .002” off the lands, so I didn’t know if it would chamber. It did, almost exactly the same chamber dimensions.
Kyle uses a max (per Hodgdon) charge of Benchmark. Their test barrel is 1-12” at 24 inches, top velocity was 2829. I fired three rounds over the Magnetospeed Sporter and got an average of 2836, ES of 26. Brass looked good. CCI400 primers are a little soft but that’s what I have. Three rounds won’t tell the whole story but it’s a start.
I get 2915 from Kyle in Varmint Cong, but VC’s barrel is and inch longer. I’m not gonna argue over 79 fps. Both loads are over 1800 fps at 600 yards, which is my max for deer anyway.
My other 75 ELDM load is Carlos, using Varget. I’m right at 2900 but it’s also a stainless Varmint with a longer barrel.
Next step is a range session to see how she likes either one.
P
