Imagine my surprise when they talked about Hodgdon 4895 as an ideal powder for youth or reduced loads. IMR 4895 was originally designed for the .30-06 rifle. After WWII, Bruce Hodgdon went into the reloading components business and some of the first surplus powder he bought was IMR 4985, which he repackaged and sold to the shooting public. IMR 4895 was designed and sold as a powder for the .30-06 Springfield cartridge.
Readers here know my fondness for 4895, in whatever guise it appears. I think it is probably the most versatile powder currently manufactured. The two companies that make it are now both owned by Bruce Hodgdon. You'll find small differences in the loading tables, but basically 4895 is generally the same, regardless of manufacture. Cautious reloaders know that powder changes with each lot manufactured, and the powder made in 1955 isn't the same powder made in 1995. They're different and safe loading practices take care of those differences.
As I use the cartridge more, I'm becoming more fond of the venerable .30-06 Springfield. I once asked a veteran reloader what load I should use for the .30-06 and was told: "50 grains of 4895 and anybody's 150 bullet will do you just fine." I've found that he was right. My basic hunting load for the cartridge is 51 grains of my surplus 4895 with one of Mr. Hornady's 150 grain bullets. It's an accurate, dependable load.
However, I have a qualification coming up and I want to shoot my Remington 760 at the qualification. It's a .30-06 and the thought of pumping out 40 rounds of my hunting load just didn't appeal to me. So, after I read Hodgdon's page on youth loads, I got a piece of .30-06 brass and seated a cast 311041 bullet in it. The dummy cartridge chambered just fine in my 760.
So, I looked at the dipper chart for 4895 and saw that the 2.2cc dipper would give me 30.2 grains of 4895. So, I weighed a couple of dippers and with my technique, my dippers and my 4895, that 2.2 dipper weighed the powder at 29.7 grains. Still, that is awfully close to the 60 percent rule that Hodgdon recommends for his 4895 powder in youth and reduced loads.
By taking the maximum charges listed in our Annual Manual with any given cartridge and multiplying it by 60%, the shooter can create a 1500 to 2100 fps load, depending on the bullet weight shown. This works only where H4895 is listed. Do not use H4895 in a cartridge where it has not been shown.Hey, Hey. I've got powder and a bullet.
That picture shows the Lyman 311041 bullet loaded in the case over 29.7 grains of my S4895. They're getting the Lee Factory Crimp before being stored. I'll get out one day this week and see how they shoot.
Let me know how they run, Paw-Paw. I'm particularly interested in:
ReplyDelete-Grouping, center-to-center at 50 and 100 yds, and
-Center of groups, relative to your standard sight settings, at those and other ranges.
Do you do any shooting with heavier (165 or 180g) bullets in '06?
I've been playing a bit with reduced loads for years, and have of late been playing with the '06's favorite oaf nephew, the .35 Whelen. Medium charges of medium speed powders like H110 or 2400 and 158g .357 pistol bullets are just sheer fun out of a Whelen.
If you're getting ~2000 fps out of your lead (hopefully gas checked?) 150g .30 cal bullets, you're beating any pistol on patrol, and smiting the handy .30 M1 Carbine by a mile, and giving a LOT more oomph than any subgun load. While not as hot as a .223 factory in terms of speed (I haven't sat down to work out the energy, which always favor velocity), it has a lot more inertia and will hold together better than any .223/5.56 ever made, at distances under 500 yards. :)
Heck, I'd run with it.
(In a way, I already did.)