Thanks for all of the help, guys. I really appreciate it. I did load 3 dozen of those 45 grain Speer bullets this morning. I will give them a try when I can get to the range. I also have and loaded some more of those 45 grain Hornet bullets by Hornady to try as well. It's been a frustrating process but maybe I will keep at it. Maybe a gunsmith could help. I guess it is possible to replace the barrel if necessary but I'm not in love with the action or stock on this rifle either. I think I just like modern rifles with synthetic stocks better but accuracy could change my attitude.
Pappy, I do own a 223 Rem but I load it for for coyote and long(ish) range varmints. I can shoot 1" at 100 yards with it consistently so a great shooter could probably cut that in half. The reason I have not tried loading down is because I think it will change the point of impact and screw me up with my current loads. I may be crazy but I normally pick a good load and shoot nothing else with each one of my rifles. That way I am confident in my shot and don't need to keep sighting in. Thus, I have about 20 rifles in my safe.
I live in a city (a mile or two from the Philadelphia border) and the nearest public shooting range is over an hour away. It means I can only get to the range on weekends. I am heading to my camp in Vermont this weekend. I may bring the 218 bee with me to test it more but I don't have a shooting bench on my land so I would be shooting off hand or resting on a 4-wheeler. It's not really conducive to testing accuracy.
Check your PM. Shot you a number of a reloading shop that did me good on selling and shipping some stuff to me.
