Home Forums Reloading Big Game Rifles .260 Remington BlueDot Range Report

I've used BlueDot in a variety of firearms for decades, from the .45-70 down to the .223 and .25-20. But I never used it in a highpower bottlenecked big game rifle. After reading Seafire's report and load data, I decided to give it a go in my M700 VLS, chambered to .260 Remington.

The rifle wears an old Bausch and Lomb 6x24 Target scope (made back when the B&L name meant top quality) and is pillar bedded in the factory laminated wood. Other than a trigger job the rifle is pretty much stock. With its favorite loads (100 BT and 120 MK) it will agg around .6 moa out to 300 yards. But it is summer in Texas and full-house loads heat the barrel up fast, slowing the rate of fire and extending rage time waiting for the barrel to cool - in 90-degree heat. I needed an alternative load for practice.

I loaded 40 cases with 100-grain BTips and BlueDot, stepping up in one grain increments from 19.0 grains to 22.0 grains - ten cases with each load. WLR primers lit them off, and the Noslers were about 0.02" off the lands. The range was sparsley populated, the wind was variable under 4 mph and the temperature was 92F. I set up the front rest and bag and started shooting 5-shot groups @ 100 yards.

Making a long story short, groups were good (around moa) until I reached 22.0 grains, when they turned great. The two 5-shot groups averaged 0.645 moa and were reasonably round in shape. I was very happy with this, and next time out I'll try 1/2 grain above and below 22.0 grains to fine tune the load. What a great result, and safe too (the 22.0 grain load had expansion ring measurements below that of published loads with "normal" powders).

Thanks Seafire!



One of the BlueDot groups - 0.669".

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That's an encouraging group! Very nice and very good shooting!

I've had a similar experience with Blue Dot and 129 grain Hornadys in my 6.5x55. I started 3 grains under his stated max of 24 grains and worked up .5 grains at a time for one full grain of charge and then .3 for the next grain, stopping one grain under max. My groups started out in the 1.25 to 1" range and got down to .75 when I hit 23 grains.

My next step will be to work up .2 grains at a time to the 24 grain max. I have them loaded but haven't made the time to shoot them yet. I got distracted getting some loads going in a 308 for my daughter after I found a nice youth sized FWT stock in the Classifieds. Now I have two BlueBot projects going but it sure is fun!

Guys,

glad to be of help... it makes me feel great that fellow shooters that I have never had the opportunity to meet, are taking the info and having both fun and success with it..

double radius.. I am always recommending stopping at 22.5 grains max in the 260 or ANY 308 sized case... regardless of bullet weight...

I have the same VLS in 260...I can also report some impressive results with the 90 grain Speer TNT and the 85 grain Sierra HP, along with the 100 grain Sierra HP and the 100 grain Hornady SP..

I am the odd man out but I can not get the 95 grain V Max to shoot anywhere near as accurately, as all the other bullets..
regardless of load, rifle or MV...

I don't loose sleep over it, as I think it is overpriced anyway...

Keep playing with that load tho. I have found that barrels get "use" to blue dot after awhile.. which translates to groups will actually get tighter after there is X amount of Blue Dot down the barrel...like all 5 over the above bullets should make a nice cloverleaf...as long as you can hold your rifle more steady than seafire can...which isn't a hard accomplishment..

Just for those who are interested in the specifics of this info again..

260 Remington and Blue Dot Range Report�

Rifle Used: Ruger 77 Mk 2

Barrel Length: 22 inches

Primers Used: Federal 210


I. 85 grain HP Sierra OAL: 68.25mm

10 grs: 1628 fps
11 grs: 1712 fps
12 grs: 1825 fps
13 grs: 1922 fps
14 grs: 2065 fps

15grs: 2167 fps
16 grs: 2254 fps
17 grs: 2381 fps
18 grs: 2467 fps
19 grs: 2558 fps

20 grs: 2646 fps
21 grs: 2718 fps
22 grs: 2767 fps


II. 95 grain Hornady V Max OAL: 70.50 mm

10 grs: 1602 fps
11 grs: 1682 fps
12 grs: 1779 fps
13 grs: 1924 fps
14 grs: 2031 fps

15 grs: 2119 fps
16 grs: 2162 fps
17 grs: 2242 fps
18 grs: 2365 fps
19 grs: 2470 fps

20 grs; 2574 fps
21 grs: 2609 fps
22 grs: 2692 fps

II. Nosler 100 grain Ballistic Tip: OAL: 72.85 mm

10 grs: 1524 fps
11 grs: 1677 fps
12 grs: 1862 fps
14 grs: 1936 fps

15 grs: 2043 fps
16 grs: 2126 fps
17 grs: 2213 fps
18 grs: 2310 fps
19 grs: 2397 fps

20 grs: 2453 fps
21 grs: 2548 fps
22 grs: 2619 fps�

Notes;

No need for Magnum Primers� even large pistol primers are both satisfactory and there was no real noticeable difference in MV.

Work up from the 20 grain mark to the 22 grain mark, as some throats produce tight chambers in some rifles� not so in the Ruger Test Rifle

The Ballistic Tip was chosen for the 100 grain bullet, based on the fact that it will open up nicely down to 1500 fps, and the 2600 fps max is just below my recommended MV of 2700 fps that is max for the ballistic tip without suffereing meat loss�

The Nosler Partition will work well down to about 2000 fps impact velocity..

The 100 grain Hornady SP seemed to work well down to about 1750 fps MV

The Sierra 100 grain HP seemed to work well down to about the same for adequate lethality on a deer in the 150 lb range and under�

Remember to always work up.. and your loading techniques are YOUR responsibilities.

I highly recommend loading a round and then seating a bullet before going onto the next one.. this will prevent an accidental double charge from happening.

Do not exceed the above recommendations.. I have and have determined there is nothing gained in velocity above that listed, but there is an increase in pressure and remember being a fast powder, it shows up much quicker than with slower powders�

All the loads proved to be very very accurate in my Ruger and my Rem VLS�


cheers
seafire

Another trip to the range with the 22-grain load and the 100-grain Ballistic Tips. Starting from a clean barrel, the five groups progresively shrunk until I fired this, the fifth and final group:



That's four shots into 0.185", the flyer was the first shot of the string. Perhaps it was my bag technique, perhaps the load just throws flyers. Still, I'm pretty happy with the load....


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Well DR...

I get those flyers in ALL my loads, regardless of powder.. I call it the Seafire Flinch...but the 4 shot, cloverleaf that is less than the size of that dime, at 100 yds..

I'd call it a day...

Good shootin'.... now I hope it will wack you a yote or deer/antelope out there some time some...

Seafire, you mentioned in another post that your BD loads prefer a 'seasoned' barrel. I'm very familiar with this phenomenon with cast bullets, but not to a great extent with most jacketed loads. Yet my experience with the twenty-five 22-grain loads today showed a definate improvement in grouping the more shots fired. I'll not clean the barrel, and get out again soon to see if the first groups are tight like the final one today.

Flyers are often caused by the shooter, but the truth is that may are due to the load or rifle itself. I'm 80% confident the flyer in the final group today wasn't me since flyers apopear in most of the BD groups. But I could be wrong.....


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If that first shot is from a clean barrel, I wouldn't call it a flier. I would call it a fouling shot and grin really big.

Leon

I would too, but by my read, he had shot 20 rounds before that 5 shot string. Still, as Seafire suggested, I'd call it a day and a proven load.