My initial starting powders for the 17 Rem are Varget, 2495, and BLC(2) with the 25 HP, all short ladders to half a grain under max according to manufacturer data. I'll end up trying 4320 as well, when I can get my hands on some.
I'm curious just how bad a fouler the rifle will be. Maybe my father was just overly o/c about the bore. The likelihood of that was already high, and with what you gentlemen have added to my understanding, it seems more and more certain.
