Powder, bullets and temperature

[Waynard]

Hi guys, what say you fellas, I've got a 30-06 Browning A Bolt 2 when the temp. is 60 degrees it will shoot 125gr. sierra bullets with R-15 powder in the same hole. Drop the temp. to about 40 degrees with the same setup and it shoots 1 to 1.5 inch groups. Is R15 powder that sensitive to temp. change? gun)

I like one shot kills where possible and prefer to do all my hunting before I shoot.
Elmer Keith

 

[Dosh]

W, it's possible, but 20 degrees isn't much difference. You could try matching R-15 to an extreme powder like Varget which is very close to R-15 on the burn rate chart.

 

[dkhunt14]

From what I have seen Reloader powders are more sensitive to hot temps. Like when it peaks it goes to too hot real quick. Matt

 

[Bill Johnson]

Hi guys, what say you fellas, I've got a 30-06 Browning A Bolt 2 when the temp. is 60 degrees it will shoot 125gr. sierra bullets with R-15 powder in the same hole. Drop the temp. to about 40 degrees with the same setup and it shoots 1 to 1.5 inch groups. Is R15 powder that sensitive to temp. change? gun)

I like one shot kills where possible and prefer to do all my hunting before I shoot.
Elmer Keith

Actually, it's not very sensitive to temp IME. What do your groups look like? When accuracy falls off, is there much vertical dispersion? That might indicate an ignition issue.

 

[Waynard]

This is the load I'm using Hornady case, CCI BR2 Primers, 56grs. R15 powder and 125gr. Sierra Pro Hunter bullets. The bullets hit at same point of aim only when the temp. is colder and only by 20 degrees the groups open up 1 to 1.5 inches. Like I said before the rifle will shoot bullets in the same hole when the temp is around 60 degrees, this one has me scratching my head!!

I like one shot kills where possible and prefer to do all my hunting before I shoot.
Elmer Keith

 

[Lefty7mmstw]

This is the load I'm using Hornady case, CCI BR2 Primers, 56grs. R15 powder and 125gr. Sierra Pro Hunter bullets. The bullets hit at same point of aim only when the temp. is colder and only by 20 degrees the groups open up 1 to 1.5 inches. Like I said before the rifle will shoot bullets in the same hole when the temp is around 60 degrees, this one has me scratching my head!!

I like one shot kills where possible and prefer to do all my hunting before I shoot.
Elmer Keith

Your powder likely isn't loaded enough for consistent performance using that light of a bullet. I've seen it a # of times where a bit of condition change is enough to push a good load to the marginal or crappy range. I'd push your bullet weight up to 150-165 grains. I just picked up my 5th '06 last week (deal I couldn't refuse-- the action is worth more than I paid for the rifle with a decent scope on top). I traded the last four '06 for various reasons but a lh lss is a good setup and if I tire of the caliber I'll re-barrel. I plan on running 165-180 grain bullets with 4350 or rl22 under the hood. I may even play around with 190-220 grain bt's to see how ell they perform in the little cartridge.

 

[Cold Trigger Finger]

Rl 15 looses some velocity in extreme cold. Like 30 below and colder. At 40°F it has always worked very well for me. I don't use it much any longer as I often shoot in extreme cold. . It is a lot better than Bl C 2 but not as good as Varget or 4064 .

 

[dkhunt14]

When the guys use R15 in a Dasher they use a 450 magnum primer for better accuracy. Maybe you need a hotter primer. I would try a powder like 4350 where I could get the case fuller. Matt

 

[Waynard]

Thanks guys, I'll try some hotter primers. I've got some Federal 215 magnum match primers. gun)

I like one shot kills where possible and prefer to do all my hunting before I shoot.

Elmer Keith

 

[Bill Johnson]

When the guys use R15 in a Dasher they use a 450 magnum primer for better accuracy. Maybe you need a hotter primer. I would try a powder like 4350 where I could get the case fuller. Matt

I think you hit the nail on the head. That what I was getting at with my last post/question. CCI BR2s are a very mild primer and hotter primer could very well solve the OPs problem.