280 AI Powder

[Backcast88]

Looking to add a 280 AI to the collection at the end of hunting season. I've got a chance to get a Browning Xbolt 2 Speed at a great price and since I've been itching to get a 280 AI, its time to jump on.

Looking to load 160 TMK, 165 TGK, 162 ELD-M/ELD-X bullets in Peterson brass. Rifle will have a 24" barrel. Trying to narrow down powder options. I was thinking of focusing on n160, n555, 4831sc, and ramshot hunter. Any QL data on that group of powders would be great. If there is a powder I am missing, let me know.

 

[JD338]

Welcome to the 280AI club. RL22 is my go to powder for 120-160 gr bullet weights. I have 16+ pounds so I am in good shape for some time. I had excellent accuracy with the 168 gr ABLR and IMR7828SSC.
The powders you are considering are all good choices. Of the three, I'd start with H4831SC.

JD338

 

[RL338]

Out of your 4 powders listed , N555 would be my choice as it work great in my 30-06 with heavies.

 

[6.5_sWv]

RL 19 / RL 23 / IMR 7828ssc / IMR 4831 / Win StaBall 6.5 and H-1000 are also some powders that have performed well in both 280AI I have owned and loaded for.

I agree with JD338, that of the ones you mentioned, id start with the H4831sc.

In my rifle the 165 TGK shot its best with IMR 7828ssc and the 162 ELD-X performed best with RL 19. I like 150s for alot of my hunting and the H4831sc has been very good with the 150 Nosler Ballistic Tip, the 150 TGK, and the 150 ELD-X.

Peterson brass is about as good as it gets for the Ackley. I bought 100 pcs when it was first made available and I'm still using the first 50. I've been annealing every other firing and I'm on 7 firings. The primer pockets are still tight. That brass should last you a good while.

 

[Aussie Wanderer]

Indeed welcome to the 280ai cult…I mean club

I mostly shoot 150’s in mine as well and have found H4350 was excellent. If you want some good YouTube videos, check out Little Crow gun works. He has done a lot of work in the 7mm calibre and gives the old AI a fair going over.

 

[Backcast88]

I'd love to get my hands on RL19 or IMR7828ssc but those are nonexistent for me. Most of the Vihtivori powders are easy to get and Hogdon is hit or miss. That was the reason I was looking heavily at n150/n160/n550/n555.

I'm guessing my CCI 200 primers will be fine. That's what I've got for my 6.5 PRC, 270 Win, and 30-06 and since I've got a couple thousand of them I should be set.

 

[JD338]

When I started out with my 280AI, my gunsmith suggested I try Magnum primers. My groups went to bug holes.

JD338

 

[Nadawah]

I don’t know if this may help you but I finally nailed down a load for my 280AI. I tried 5 different powders and found a sweet spot with Ramshot Hunter. It didn’t work well with the 140 Accubonds but was the most accurate by far with the 160accubonds. I have a 22” barrel and a1:9 twist. Tried imr4831,Magpro, imr4350, H4831sc, and it just wouldn’t give me anything better that 1” Tried RS Hunter again and all bullets holes were touching and less than 1/2 inch apart. I’m actually glad that was the powder that worked because it’s readily available , it’s from Hogson in Kansas , it’s a ball powder and it’s less expensive than others.

 

[boonermike]

I use Ramshot Hunter with fantastic results in my 280AI. 61.5 gr behind 145 gr Barnes LRX—3117 fps—.50” groups with 8.4 SD. 20” barrel Weatherby 307 Alpine,. No pressure signs

 

[JD338]

I use Ramshot Hunter with fantastic results in my 280AI. 61.5 gr behind 145 gr Barnes LRX—3117 fps—.50” groups with 8.4 SD. 20” barrel Weatherby 307 Alpine,. No pressure signs

Sounds like a great load. Nice shooting.

JD338

 

[Wenaha]

I am using both H4831sc and VV N560. Slightly better results with the VV powder, which also works well in mt 7mm Em Mag and 308 Norma Mag.

 

[Brobb]

I know the post is old and I'm late to the party. I had a 280AI built in 2013. I also struggled to get the 140 accubonds to be as accurate as I wanted. The 160's shot very well with nearly all powders I tried including H4831SC, RL19, RL23 but RL19 was what I settled on with that bullet. After 7 elk, 10 antelope, 16 deer, I made a switch to all copper. RL23 with a 143 grain Hammer Hunter was the winner after testing several different bullets. After harvesting 3 elk, 4 antelope, 6 deer with that, my experiment with Hammers was done. Then switched to 150 grain Hornady CX. After 2 elk, 4 antelope, 4 deer I'm really happy with what I'm seeing in performance.

 

[Aussie Wanderer]

Can you talk through your experiences with the terminal results of each bullet and what speeds you were running them at? I often tinker with the idea of going to a mono metal projectile but haven’t as yet. I’d be genuinely interested in your thoughts.

 

[Brobb]

Sure, I will say this is my opinion and experience. I've had people try and argue with me and I'm not interested or willing to expend energy with that.

The 160 AB was going 2930 FPS. I have nothing but praise for the AB and Partitions and wouldn't hesitate to shoot or recommend them to anyone. My issue was the amount of bloodshot meat I was seeing and hating having to throw away meat. I know shot placement is a big factor and in my utopia, every animal is perfectly broadside and every shot is perfect....lol. back to reality. So I was looking to reduce waste.

The 143 grain HH were going 3030 fps. What I experienced with them were very small entrance and exit holes, the animals that ran, not much for blood trails. Here's a picture of an Antelope buck shot at 225 yards. Entrance barely visible, small exit. He dropped right in his tracks though. I absolutely loved the lack of bloodshot meat and accuracy was probably best of anything I've shot. The last 2 animals I shot was a cow elk at 530 yards. I Normally wouldn't shoot that distance but was perfect conditions, had a great rest and the animal had a long ways to go to get out of site. Made a good shot, she ran 75 yards and died. I wasn't sure I hit her based on the reaction. From where she was standing to where she fell was a mere couple drops of blood in the snow. The last was WT buck at 150 yards. Perfect shot, double lung. He ran 150 yards over a small ridge and piled up and slid into a brush patch. Thankfully there was snow on the ground because there was very little blood. I commented that without snow, I probably don't find that animal. So it was then I decided to try something different.

So far the 150 grain HCX at 2960 fps has appeared to fit that gap. There appears to be a larger wound channel. Definitely more bloodshot than HH but less than AB. Observable blood trails on those animals that have run. So I'll keep using them for now. If I make another switch it'll be back to the accubonds.

Edit to add: If I routinely took shots at 400 + I'd rather shoot the AB or Partition.

 

[hunter24605]

Rl22, And Ramshot Hunter are stellar performers in mine. All that went out the window when I played with Absolute Hammers. Ended up with staball 6.5 with the 140 absolute hammer. Accurate and flat out carries the mail at 3190

 

[jimbires]

Sure, I will say this is my opinion and experience. I've had people try and argue with me and I'm not interested or willing to expend energy with that.

The 160 AB was going 2930 FPS. I have nothing but praise for the AB and Partitions and wouldn't hesitate to shoot or recommend them to anyone. My issue was the amount of bloodshot meat I was seeing and hating having to throw away meat. I know shot placement is a big factor and in my utopia, every animal is perfectly broadside and every shot is perfect....lol. back to reality. So I was looking to reduce waste.

The 143 grain HH were going 3030 fps. What I experienced with them were very small entrance and exit holes, the animals that ran, not much for blood trails. Here's a picture of an Antelope buck shot at 225 yards. Entrance barely visible, small exit. He dropped right in his tracks though. I absolutely loved the lack of bloodshot meat and accuracy was probably best of anything I've shot. The last 2 animals I shot was a cow elk at 530 yards. I Normally wouldn't shoot that distance but was perfect conditions, had a great rest and the animal had a long ways to go to get out of site. Made a good shot, she ran 75 yards and died. I wasn't sure I hit her based on the reaction. From where she was standing to where she fell was a mere couple drops of blood in the snow. The last was WT buck at 150 yards. Perfect shot, double lung. He ran 150 yards over a small ridge and piled up and slid into a brush patch. Thankfully there was snow on the ground because there was very little blood. I commented that without snow, I probably don't find that animal. So it was then I decided to try something different.

So far the 150 grain HCX at 2960 fps has appeared to fit that gap. There appears to be a larger wound channel. Definitely more bloodshot than HH but less than AB. Observable blood trails on those animals that have run. So I'll keep using them for now. If I make another switch it'll be back to the accubonds.

Edit to add: If I routinely took shots at 400 + I'd rather shoot the AB or Partition.

thanks for posting this , it's very good info , for either side of the mono bullet debate .

your mono metal bullet , on game results mirror my findings . I have not tried as many different bullets as you , nor have I shot as many animals as you . I gave up on them fairly quick . from lack of blood trails , to finding the animal still alive , they don't kill like I'm wanting to see . I relate bloodshot meat to the bullet putting it's energy into the animal . no bloodshot meat , means no transfer of energy . maybe I wrong , but that's how I'm seeing it .

 

[Aussie Wanderer]

Sure, I will say this is my opinion and experience. I've had people try and argue with me and I'm not interested or willing to expend energy with that.

The 160 AB was going 2930 FPS. I have nothing but praise for the AB and Partitions and wouldn't hesitate to shoot or recommend them to anyone. My issue was the amount of bloodshot meat I was seeing and hating having to throw away meat. I know shot placement is a big factor and in my utopia, every animal is perfectly broadside and every shot is perfect....lol. back to reality. So I was looking to reduce waste.

The 143 grain HH were going 3030 fps. What I experienced with them were very small entrance and exit holes, the animals that ran, not much for blood trails. Here's a picture of an Antelope buck shot at 225 yards. Entrance barely visible, small exit. He dropped right in his tracks though. I absolutely loved the lack of bloodshot meat and accuracy was probably best of anything I've shot. The last 2 animals I shot was a cow elk at 530 yards. I Normally wouldn't shoot that distance but was perfect conditions, had a great rest and the animal had a long ways to go to get out of site. Made a good shot, she ran 75 yards and died. I wasn't sure I hit her based on the reaction. From where she was standing to where she fell was a mere couple drops of blood in the snow. The last was WT buck at 150 yards. Perfect shot, double lung. He ran 150 yards over a small ridge and piled up and slid into a brush patch. Thankfully there was snow on the ground because there was very little blood. I commented that without snow, I probably don't find that animal. So it was then I decided to try something different.

So far the 150 grain HCX at 2960 fps has appeared to fit that gap. There appears to be a larger wound channel. Definitely more bloodshot than HH but less than AB. Observable blood trails on those animals that have run. So I'll keep using them for now. If I make another switch it'll be back to the accubonds.

Edit to add: If I routinely took shots at 400 + I'd rather shoot the AB or Partition.

Awesome thank you. I don’t have a horse in the race and whilst I am confident in what I shoot, there is always the doubt in the back of my mind as to whether I could be doing it better. Thank you again, very much appreciated and thanks for posting the pics too.