Hornady 220 ELD-X in 300 WM - will not shoot

[travisch]

My standard load of 69gr Reloader 22 with a 200 gr Sierra Matchking shoots sub .5 at 100 yards and hold this accuracy out to 500 if I do my part but I've been experimenting with the new ELDX bullet and not having any luck.

The BEST group I had was 3.5 inches at 100 with the 220 ELDX over 77gr of retumbo and a .030 jump. At 500yds it was a 18" group if you can even call it a group.

Today I'm going to back down to 72 grains and see what it does unless anyone has any better ideas. I just can't believe there is this much difference between two loads. 210 Berger HVLD shoot better but only 1.5-2" at 100 - nothing like the matchking.

Any ideas or similar experiences?

 

[dmj]

Do you know your barrel twist?

 

[travisch]

1:10 - its a factory Sendero.

 

[dmj]

I don't have any experience with the 220eldx. Hopefully someone with experience will chime in. Just wondered if your twist would stabilize the bullet. But 1:10 would probably be in the ball park. Know that it works with the berger 215 in both my 300 wm and 300 wsm.

 

[codyadams]

When was the last time you shot your standard load that shoots well, to make sure something isn't going on with the rifle?

If I have a good load for a gun that is consistent and accurate, ill take 3 rounds with me to the range while doing load development, shoot those 3 first to confirm my gun is still shooting well and give me a basis for comparison, then shoot my development loads.

I did this one time and my known load didn't shoot worth ****, and I discovered my base had started to work loose.

Just a thought. But I have found the ELD'S can be very picky for seating depth depending on gun. My .260 ai shoots them half MOA at .045-.055 off, outside that groups fall apart. I have had to seat them from .090" off all the way in to .010" off to get them to shoot. You may have gone through all this, but just throwing it out. I heard several people say the 220's like .020" off.

 

[Bullet bumper]

It's stable in 1 in 10 @2500 fps and up as far as bullet length goes but God knows what they have done inside the bullet . Might be seated too far off the lands and you might have poor case fit that is launching the bullet non concentrically into the lands inducing in bore yaw . Sierra bullet design may be more resistant to this situation.
VLD designs usually don't like a big jump to the lands .

 

[Trnelson]

You may not be as bad off as you think you are. Any time I change powders or bullets I fully de-copper and clean the barrel and chamber of any powder residue or carbon. Different powders deposit differently and different bullets deposit jacket material at differnt rates and sometimes really don't play well with each other.
When I start with a new powder or bullet I load 7-10 minimum charged rounds and use them to foul in the barrel and run them over the magnetospeed to make sure the velocity makes sense and that the optic is roughly adjusted to the POI.
Also, it may be a bullet related issue. I'm shooting the 143(ish) ELDX to finish off a couple of older barrels and have to remove the copper fouling every 40 rounds or the accuracy goes away, real far, real quick. Several others have also reported rapid copper fouling that drastically effects accuracy.... Just some things to check and exclude.

 

[Lefty7mmstw]

The eld bullets really aren't playing well for me with the larger chamberings. I'm sitting on some 200gr 30cal. and some 175gr. 7mm... I tried to run the 30 cal through two different 300rum rifles and a 300 win and 100 bullets later gave up... My 8" twist 7mmstw was the candidate for the 175 eld-x pills, and it won't even get down to moa with them. My 9" twist 7rum was far worse, and that rifle will hover around 1/2 moa with the 7mm 180gr. sierra matchking...

Contrasting this, one try with my 30-06 and I'm sub moa with the 200 eld-x and with ZERO load development I was able to get my boy's 6.5 creed to dump the 143eld-x into .6 moa from a ruger...

In short, back your load down and see if it works, or get a smaller rifle...

 

[FEENIX]

The BEST group I had was 3.5 inches at 100 with the 220 ELDX over 77gr of retumbo and a .030 jump. At 500yds it was a 18" group if you can even call it a group.

Try one of the recommended powders in the attached document ...

 

[alaska]

I don't have any experience with the 220eldx. Hopefully someone with experience will chime in. Just wondered if your twist would stabilize the bullet. But 1:10 would probably be in the ball park. Know that it works with the berger 215 in both my 300 wm and 300 wsm.

 

[alaska]

Yes 1:10 twist
and H1000 with the 220gr ELDX
75.0 to 76.0
WW brass with Fed 215

 

[QuietTexan]

Got me with the old post......

 

[dfanonymous]

My standard load of 69gr Reloader 22 with a 200 gr Sierra Matchking shoots sub .5 at 100 yards and hold this accuracy out to 500 if I do my part but I've been experimenting with the new ELDX bullet and not having any luck.

The BEST group I had was 3.5 inches at 100 with the 220 ELDX over 77gr of retumbo and a .030 jump. At 500yds it was a 18" group if you can even call it a group.

Today I'm going to back down to 72 grains and see what it does unless anyone has any better ideas. I just can't believe there is this much difference between two loads. 210 Berger HVLD shoot better but only 1.5-2" at 100 - nothing like the matchking.

Any ideas or similar experiences?

Give it more jump. ELDs like to be seated deeper.

 

[Hard Head]

I just bought Bergara's .300 Win Mag with a 26" barrel and the Self timing Muzzle break, the only powder I could find locally was RamShot LRT with 215 Fed Mag Match primers and Hornady's 220 ELD Found some data for the win with Berger 230's and used it for the 220's started at 83 grs of LRT and worked up to 88 grs. acc. was so so about a 1" to 1 1/2" at 100, but velocity was 2925 to 3025, pressure was nonexistent as you could lift the bolt with your finger and extraction was as if it was a empty chamber, they were all seated against the lands, will go out again later this week with progressively deeper seating to see what happens ,it has been cold here around 8 degrees when I was out, Pete