So I want to try shooting 150gr Scenars in my 7mm-08 Rem Varmint Special. I have shot the 120 gr BT'S over 45grs of Varget, which it shoots well as does another 7-08.

I want to shoot out to 550 yards.

I have less than 3 pounds of H4350, which I am saving for my Creedmoor.

I have IMR 4350, TAC and Varget that I am willing to use.

Any suggestions for a load? Would TAC be preferable considering magazine length? It will feed a COAL of 2.830" but not much longer. Those Scenars are pretty long.

What are you guys Using?

Any suggestions JB?

I use Big Game with 140’s. Haven’t tried 150’s.

DF

Sakoluvr,

Would probably try Varget first, of the powders you have. With high-BC bullets like the Scenar, muzzle velocity doesn't matter nearly as much as it does with more typical "hunting" bullets. A "loss" of 100 fps at the muzzle ain't gonna matter much at 550---or even, in my experience, at 100 yards.

How old is your IMR4350? Not asking to make sure it's still good, but I bought a couple pounds of IMR4350 a couple years ago, the stuff made in Canada, and it turned out to be "short-cut"! So far it has produced just about exactly the same velocities as the standard. long-granule IMR4350 that most veteran handloaders know so well. It would probably work very well with 150s in the 7mm-08--if you can find any.

My IMR 4350 is less than 5 or 6 years old. I use it in my 6mm Rem.

Thank you.

I checked my powder supply and have enough Varget to work up a load with the 150 Scenar and have some fun at the range.

My interweb search shows 41grs to be a max charge, although some are using up to 42 grs.

You didn’t ask about Big Game so my apologies for answering a question you didn’t ask, but do you gave any Big Game available?



P

I am pretty much stuck using Varget. For now anyway. Thanks!

Varget will work for sure. My most accurate load uses I4895 under the 150 gr. Ballistic Tip.

I,m using RL26 for 145gr to 169gr bullets. I got 2868FPS using Sierra 150gr Bt and RL26 . PP4000MR did 2888FPS with Speer 145gr SD of 9.6 5 shots. I have

more loaded including Superformance but have not been to range. RL26 seem to be best for the 160gr Nosler Partitions.

Wow that’s fast. What’s your barrel length?

Both the 7-08's (Kimber MT's) I used Varget/150's with used charges of 41.5-42.0 gr's. Depending on the rifle and the 150 bullet, speeds are in the 2,665 - 2,720 range.

I'm a conservative handloader and believe these loads were safe and within SAAMI pressures. I did find a few manuals/data showing up to 42.0 Varget. But I think the safe speed you should load for would be no more than around 2,680-ish fps with a 22" barrel which will usually mean the 41.5 gr load.

Very helpful. Thanks Brad.

Happy to help. I’ve got a mountain of TAC but never got around to trying it in the 7-08. I can say in the 308 Win, TAC typically gives equivalent accuracy as Varget, with an additional 35+ fps.

I use TAC in my .308, .358 win and .350 rem mag. Good stuff!

Why would the powder manufacturers not make all stick powders short cut?

Changes burn rate, with short cut theoretically burning faster due to more surface area (assuming same diameter granules) unless the coating, or something else, is adjusted along with the powder granule length. I don't know how much effort (money) adjusting the formulation of the coating would require to compensate for surface area change, but I'm sure the powder companies evaluate the anticipated ROI before they make that leap.

IMR 4350 works very well with 140’s, should be good with 150’s

I’ve shared this photo a couple of times. It’s not meant to aggrandize me, but rather to illustrate the prowess of the wonderful 7-08. This old bull was taken with a 150 gr Ballistic Tip. The round is capable of all the hunting most of us will ever do.

My dad’s last bull, a big 5x5, took a single 140 gr AccuBond through both lungs from a 7mm-08, 225 yards.

It’s all about placement with a proper bullet.

I've seen that face on he wall in my Post Office.