Need Help With .300 WM Loads (No Accuracy) (Bolt Hard To Close)

[DougD]

Well...the problem has been solved!

It appears that the problem was threefold: 1) Bad brass, 2) A finicky rifle, 3)Seating depth (possibly)

My buddy loaded a whole bunch of different loads and bullet/case/powder combinations to see what would work. I also bought 100 pieces of new Winchester brass and gave up on the inconsistent and problem ridden "once fired" brass I bought from someone else on Sniper's Hide. (No names will be mentioned here...)

After a lot of work, we found that the following load(s) consistenly shot 1/2" or 3/4" at 100 yards:

- 180 grain Nosler Ballistic Tip and 75 grains of Hodgon H4831SC
- 180 grain Sierra Match Kings and 75 grains of Hodgon H4831SC
(We seated the bullets slightly deeper than the first loads pictured above.)

These were tested with success in my new Winchester brass. For whatever reason, my rifle hates Swift Sciroccos, Nosler Accubonds, Ballistic Silver Tips, and Alliant Reloder 22 powder. Go figure.

We're going to load up 100 rounds of the Ballistic Tips, check the load with the chronograph, and then confirm the Exbal drop tables. After that, I'll practice on steel at various ranges from the major positions.

I sincerely appreciate all of the replies, private messages, and emails that were offered. Your input has been invaluable.

Some lessons learned on my part:

1) Don't ever buy second hand brass again, no matter what.
2) Don't give up on your rifle until you have tried plenty of combos; even if the popular loads/bullets don't work, that doesn't mean that another one won't
3) Don't get hung up on trying to force a particular bullet to work for you. Just because it's supposed to the be a bad-ass super bullet doesn't mean it will shoot worth a damn for YOU. Be open to trying something else.
4) Prep brass
5) Study more about reloading and case development

Words cannot describe the relief that I feel in knowing that my rifle is not a lemon and that I now have a load that has been repeatedly proven to be accurate out of this rifle. No elk within range will be safe now!

Doug

[Huntinfool]

At first glance it appears you may have the bullets seated too shallow! What method did you use to come up with your seating depth?

This would be the easy fix if that's the main problem the others have given you good advice. I use a stoney point overall length gage to determine where my are seated to!

Good Luck,

Chuck

[larrywillis]

DougD,

You have two separate problems:

(1) Your bolt should close on a loaded chamber without using ANY force. The problem is not likely to be excessive case length, I'll bet it's excessive case WIDTH. This is a very common problem when handloading belted magnum calibers. Read the post above (about the 300 Weatherby). He also has a belted caliber with a case width problem.

(2) The accuracy problem is another issue. I'd solve the chambering problem first, then try different bullets. Some shooters get stuck on trying one bullet for way too long. Some exceptionally fine rifles just perform better with a particular bullet. By the way, some of your bullets are seated way too deep, while others appear way too long. What's with that? On hunting rifles, I usually start by seating my bullets to the maximum length that the magazine will allow. I also measure handload length from the bullet ogive back. This shows accurately how far you are off the rifling. Read my website for tech tips that will solve both of these problems and others.

- Innovative

[mddietz]

After you shoot this new brass and then reload it...... And you have the same problem as mentioned before...Look me up, I think I will have the answer.