Kevin Thomas
Well-Known Member
436,
Sounds like you've got it pretty well sorted out already. The RL-15 is an excellent choice in this combo, and one that already has an enviable track record for accuracy and performance out to, and including 1000 yards. Given our Army's adoption of the M110 recently, and the AMUs forays into 1000 yard Service Rifle shooting using this platform, I expect we'll see a good bit more development of this combination. Got one going together right now myself, and with a little luck may have it built in time for Camp Perry next year.
Funny history there; Lake City is what's known as a "Go-Co" operation. That is, "Government owned, Contractor operated." As long as the ammunition meets government specs for accuracy, pressure, etc., the choice of componenets is left to the contractor. Oddly enough, when Remington (a part of DuPont) had the contract, they found the the absolute best powder in the world for the 7.62x51 was IMR4895 (which was, of course, produced by DuPont), which they loaded for many years. Once the contract was taken over by Olin, they did extensive testing and found that the absolute best powder in the world for the 7.62x51 was WC-750, a ball powder they produced. Consequently, the l0ad was changed to WC-750, and that was the standard powder used in M118 and M118LR for many years. Fast forward a bit to when ATK won the contract bid, and lo and behold, the found that the real best powder was RL-15, which their Alliant Powder holdings manufactured. Funny how that works, isn't it? I've tested all of them in certifications over the years, and they all work just fine. Of them all, I'd have to say I liked the RL-15 the best, but would be hard pressed to put a finger on exactly why.
Sounds like you've got it pretty well sorted out already. The RL-15 is an excellent choice in this combo, and one that already has an enviable track record for accuracy and performance out to, and including 1000 yards. Given our Army's adoption of the M110 recently, and the AMUs forays into 1000 yard Service Rifle shooting using this platform, I expect we'll see a good bit more development of this combination. Got one going together right now myself, and with a little luck may have it built in time for Camp Perry next year.
Funny history there; Lake City is what's known as a "Go-Co" operation. That is, "Government owned, Contractor operated." As long as the ammunition meets government specs for accuracy, pressure, etc., the choice of componenets is left to the contractor. Oddly enough, when Remington (a part of DuPont) had the contract, they found the the absolute best powder in the world for the 7.62x51 was IMR4895 (which was, of course, produced by DuPont), which they loaded for many years. Once the contract was taken over by Olin, they did extensive testing and found that the absolute best powder in the world for the 7.62x51 was WC-750, a ball powder they produced. Consequently, the l0ad was changed to WC-750, and that was the standard powder used in M118 and M118LR for many years. Fast forward a bit to when ATK won the contract bid, and lo and behold, the found that the real best powder was RL-15, which their Alliant Powder holdings manufactured. Funny how that works, isn't it? I've tested all of them in certifications over the years, and they all work just fine. Of them all, I'd have to say I liked the RL-15 the best, but would be hard pressed to put a finger on exactly why.
