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So I’ve successfully loaded my first ten rounds. I started with ten of the starting charge of 45.5 grains of WIN 748. I picked it for good velocities and no compression in the 200gr bullet weights. Now max COAL is 2.82. I seated the bullet, without crimp, to cannelure. I know I don’t have to. But did I the first rounds. There was no resistance, but the rounds are 2.74 long. Some of that is the short new brass but could I sear them too deep doing that?

You said,
"There was no resistance, but the rounds are 2.74 long. Some of that is the short new brass but could I sear them too deep doing that?"

Did you mean 'SEAT' instead of sear ?

They will not be too deep EXCEPT, it may not be correct for best accuracy. Did you invert a bullet and chamber to check 'distance to lands?'

How do they fit your magazine ?

I'd shoot a few and see if they're accurate.

I'd ALSO seat some to the COAL based on your lands-- IF there's room in the magazine.

From here on it's a matter of shooting for accuracy. Trial - Error

Good Luck

Jerry

Jerry, thanks a million.

Yes. It was seat, not sear.

The very next thing I intend on doing is checking the distance to the lands.

The mag is roomy. Surprisingly so. It’ll be interesting to see my chamber dimensions. Everything fed fine other than the lips on the mag being a little narrow and hard to load. That’s an easy fix.

I feel much more confident now. Having been through the whole process, I know things will come up, but I feel like I can handle them better now. I have a baseline. I’m going to load up a few more increments of powder. I think I’ll seat some starting loads out to COAL once I know my chamber length.

It really would’ve nerve wracking without you guys. Oh, I primed the second half with my hand prime tool. Like the feel of that much better.

Thanks again for everyone’s patience and experience!

So I’ve run into my first conundrum since loading up some work up loads. The bullet I’ve chosen to use has been discontinued. I have 200 more on order, but I’m going to have to move on from them. I’m going from the 200 gr interlock to the 200gr Speer. When changing bullets, I’m going to have to do a full work up again right? I feel like I’m using a lot of gunpowder here. How many rounds do you guys use when working up? Especially with changing bullets in mind.

Speaking for myself ONLY. When changing bullets SO similar, I would NOT start at the beginning. I'd drop back 2 grains and start.
In the 300 WM, I found NO difference in powder charge BETWEEN Horn 180s and Speer 180s.

OTOH - harder bullets such as Nosler Partitions, I'd probably back up 3 grains.

You may find there to be no difference in powder charges. You may ALSO find slight tweaking of the charge to achieve best accuracy.

I'd load 10 or so with the Speer bullets. IF the first 5 or so DON'T show promise, I don't shoot the others. Try something different.


*** Knowing the rifle and it's potential makes a HUGH advantage*** I understand you are new to handloading and that makes a difference. I remember when I did NOT know what I was doing and did NOT know how well the rifle 'could' or 'should' shoot, I had to just try different loads, bullet depths till I could get a handle or feel comfortable with what to expect.

I hope that helps. Just keep trying without shooting all your powder.

Jerry

If you have a load which shoots well and kills well, the 200 bullets you'll have on hand when your order arrives should keep you going for a while, unless you are culling pigs or something. If I could I'd lay in some more of those, enough to see me right for a while, and call it done. I'd worry about working up something else when that starts to run out. My own preference when I've found a load which shoots well and kills well is not to have to change it.

To answer your question though, if you have a load which is close to or at maximum, you should drop back a bit and work up again if you change any component. Bullets of the same weight can give rise to different pressures due to differences in hardness, bearing surface and sometimes diameter.

Others may have a different approach, but when I'm working up a load for hunting I might make up as few as 3 rounds at each charge increment, to see what sort of velocity I'm getting, and to see if accuracy shows promise. Once I'd identified a load with a bit of promise I'd make up maybe 10 rounds and shoot it to see how it groups, and perhaps think about doing a bit of tweaking to seating depth. I'd ideally hope to have worked out within maybe a couple of dozen rounds whether it was worth persisting with a particular bullet. I'd probably then go out and see how it performs on game.

FWIW I don't go all out to get the last little bit of velocity for its own sake, and if the load shoots as well as I expect of the rifle and as accurately as I need then I'm inclined to leave it at that. Worrying about the last few fps or last 1/8 MOA on a big game rifle is a short road to madness IMHO.

I’m with you on not needing every ounce of velocity. If I had wanted a 338 mag I’d have gotten that instead of the fed. And those were my thoughts on such similar bullets. Being new to this, I’ve followed speers advice on 7 rounds at each charge level, and going up in half grain increments. One powder I’m using goes from 48-52 grains. That’s a lot of loads. I was thinking if the Hornady loads were safe, I could start around 49.5-50 and work up with five rounds each.

I think I’m going to save the interlocks for hunting and the speers for shooting. I practice with my gun sighted point blank about as far as I can get, then work on position shooting and off hand shooting to 150yds or so. I practice further a bit with my hunting loads, but in 35 years, 125 is about as far as I’ve shot. Not many long shots in swamps.

Jerry, you’re right, I’m not sure what the gun will do yet. I think I’m going to try two factory loads I’ve heard good things about as a baseline. Honestly I’d love clover leafs, but I’ll take 2”. Did I say that on the web?? I thought they were all 3/4”....

Thanks again guys. Love this site.

Capn -

I mean NO disrespect to anyone. I'm simply expressing my practice based on experience of grouping and graphing.

I don't count the 'precision' of 3 (three) rounds when 'group shooting' or graphing for speed.
3 rounds will give SOME idea of potential from both but certainly not a foundation.

eg. I once shot a 4 shot group of varmint bullets in my 6mm Rem. WOW just barley expanded the hole.
.
.
.
After at least 5 (five) more groups NONE were even close. Don't know why. Didn't chase it further.

Jerry