Home Forums Reloading Big Game Rifles AA 4350

IMR 4350 is what I like, but have none, or very little. I will use what I have left in a .243 that I have had for a long time, and have proven loads for. I loaded up some .243 test loads this morning, with AA 4350 for the newer rifle, but windy today, so tests will wait. But it is a lot cooler. 102 yesterday with a predicted high of 88 today. miles

88 is a lot nicer than 102! Doesn’t archery season open there this coming weekend?

I think so, but I will wait for cooler weather, if I archery hunt at all. miles

Totally understand that as hot as it is. When I last lived there it opened 1 Oct. I got at one point I archery hunted more than gun hunted, but always did better during ML and modern gun.

Let us know how the A4350 works for you.

Will do. miles

I may be a little late to the conversation but I use to shoot a lot of AA 4350 in my 50-90 Sharps.

It shot well for me.

I load AA 4350 for .270 and 30-06 so far with good success. I’m a fan.

I also really like the AA 2495 in .308.

Ok I just got back from the range where I tested A4350 vs H4350 vs IMR4350.

I was shooting my Tikka T3X Superlite in 6.5 CM. I was using once fired Sig brass , Fed 210 Match primers, and 130 gr ELD-X bullets at .020” off the lands. I used 42 gr. of powder for each of the 4350’s and here is what I got. Temp 36F OVC skies and winds 07005KT.

5 shots of each
A4350 Avg. velocity 2474 fps, SD 18, ES 41. 5 shot group measures 1.590”

H4350 Avg. velocity 2675 fps, SD 18, ES 44. 5 shot group .906”

IMR4350 Avg. velocity 2669 fps, SD 17, ES 40. Shot group 1.294”

Granted, this is just one example, but I have averaged 150 fps below book on just about every cartridge I have used it for. I got excellent accuracy results with it in my .338 WM using 210 gr TTSX’s, but again 150 fps avg slower than what was in the manual. I k is every gun is a different story, but I’m done with A4350 and will move to either H4350 or IMR4350 in my .338 as I did not try those powders last year working up the load as I was trying to save what little of H4350 and IMR4350 I had at the time.

I hear you on saving your H4350. I was there a few months ago. Luckily I found 6 pounds though. I still don't use it like I used to though. In conserve mode right now. If you are looking for a good available substitute, try Big Game and shoot for group size. You guys that keep using es and sd are cracking me up. Do your trust the numbers better than your shooting ability? Also, you are way low on your velocities. Look at the Hornady load manual. Max velocity should be around 2,850 fps. So you can lay on the gas pedal a little more, until you reach your comfort zone, I guess??? Your numbers don't really prove anything to me, especially since you are not working on "developing" a load, so to speak. An arbitrary charge weight that you pull out of your azz will likely not ever give you what you are looking for. Just sayin. Also, with a 130gr pill, I would not use H4350. It's not "optimum". You can see that, again, if you look at the Hornady load manual. Some of you guys always pissing in the wind and always end up with yellow teeth for some reason..

Well BSA, the 130 ELD-Ms were what I had extra at the time that I loaded these rounds. I know I said ELD-X, but they are M’s not X’s. As far as ES and SD, I personally don’t track those numbers when I reload, but I figured someone may ask so I offered them up.

Just bought some trying to save what little Hodgdon I have left. I loaded some 140 grain Speer for my 260 and will load some 90 grain Speer for my 6mm. Hodgdon is reserved from my Sierra's so.....shortages have me trying other combos- and paying ridiculous shipping costs. Will see if it is dirtier than others.

Tom,

Two comments:

1)It's not Accurate Arms (AA) 4350, and hasn't been since Western Powders bought Accurate Arms maybe 15 years ago. AA often bought surplus powders, both military and otherwise, but Western started getting all the powders produced to their standards. At that point they became much more consistent.

2) I noticed in a recent thread that you use 39 grains of one of the other 4350s with 100-grain bullets in the .243--which is a slight underload. That wouldn't matter with those two powders, but my experience with Accurate 4350 is that it's considerably slower burning, almost like H4831. If you're using 39 grains of A4350, then the reason its burning dirty might be too-low pressure. If so, I would first up the powder charge before switching to a magnum primer.

John:

I don't want to derail this since it's about A4350 in particular, but do I understand correctly that A2700 is the very same powder as W760 and now-discontinued H414, only in a different container?

Thanks.

Muledeer- great stuff and timely.

Hi Mike,

Sorry to not answer sooner--intended to but got side-tracked. Yes, that's my understanding: 2700 is the same powder as H414 and W760.

Thanks, John. And don't worry about the delay: there's never any rush.

Thanks again.

OK, I'm one step ahead...39 gr. of IMR 4350 is my load. To duplicate with A4350 ( at least duplicate POI...) I use 41 grains. I haven't clocked either load but judging by trajectory they'll be 2850-2900 fps.

First time I've heard that that 2700 is the same as the other two. H414 and W760 match up exactly in the data on the Hodgdon web site, but 2700 does not. Guess that's just the old Accurate data that's different.

Hodgdon didn't admit that H414 and W760 were the same powder until a very few years ago. Prior to that, like everybody else, they listed pressures/velocities that differed slightly due to different manufacturing lots. Which is why they eventually "dropped" W760 a couple years ago--by ceasing to put W760 labels on canisters of the same powder.

Plus, the Accurate 2700 data was shot at the Western Powders pressure lab in Montana, not by Hodgdon. And no doubt was a different manufacturing lot of powder.

Thanks for the clarification, John. I bought an 8 lb jug of 2700 back in the 90s. It always seemed to give me just enough issues with unexpected pressure problems that I never got really comfortable using it. Finally finished the jug a couple of years ago and was actually glad to get rid of it.