Should I try the 250 Game King again?

[Bigwheels]

I was useing the 338 cal.250gr. Sierra Game King for several years,before realizing that I suffered from magazine deformation.(Bad)I then switched to the 225gr.AB.Since I have a Winchester BOSS.Accuracy isn't an issue.(It will shoot anything if adjusted right.)But I can't get my AB's over 2750fps.With the max load of H4350.I could get my 250gr.Game Kings up to the same speed with less powder,& My Sierra Infinity software gives a perfect account of thier trajectory.The AB's shoot low @ all ranges as compared to what my software tells me.Anyway.I have changed stocks now,& my rifle doesn't recoil like it used to.Should I try the Game Kings again?What do you guys think?

 

[R Flowers]

While the 225 AccuBond is a great bullet, it is hard to beat that plain old Sierra 250 grain GameKing in the 338. I shot them for years, myself.

I found it no problem to get them close to 2800 from my 338 Win Mag using any number of powders. I shot a number of deer, hogs, and elk with the Sierra. I guess I just migrated to the Nosler Partition for all my shooting.

The B.C. of that big old Sierra is great. I have shot deer at over 400 yards and elk at over 500 with it. It does not drop that bad for a big caliber slug.

I personally could not get the AccuBond to shoot in my .338 Win Mag or several other .338 caliber rifles. It is weird, in several Winchester Magnums and Weatherbys I got AWFULL groups with the Accubonds. With my friend's 338 RUM I got groups under a half inch with them. Go figure.

 

[340boy]

I also did not have much luck with the 225 grain AccuBond in my 340 and 338-378wbys!
They shoot nice in my 338win and I have not tried them yet in my 338RUM.
I find that curious that you can get the same or slighter better velocities in the 338win with the heavier bullet. :?: :shock:

 

[FOTIS]

My buddy shot a calf elk with a 338 Win at 200 yds. The bullet disintagrated in him.
I never liked sierras...never will.


225 Accubonds and call it a day!

 

[JD338]

225 Accubonds and call it a day!

+1

JD338

 

[7 STW]

225 Accubonds and call it a day!

+1

JD338

+2

 

[Bigwheels]

Thanks guys.I like the 225 AB too.They shoot as well as the Sierra's did,just haven't been able to get them up to the same velosity as the Sierra's.I'd like to get them up to if not over 2800fps.Maybe I'll try a different powder.Say H4831SC.& see if I can get them up to speed.

 

[JD338]

Just remember that speed isn't everything. +/- 100 fps really doesn't matter. Accuracy is where its at.

JD338

 

[Bigwheels]

I know.I just want my 225's to shoot as flat,or flatter than my 250's were.My BOSS equiped Winchester will paint clover leaf's @ 200 yds. with anything I've tryed in it.I just have to adjust the BOSS.I think if I can get another 100fps. out of the 225 AB's,I'll have what I'm looking for.

 

[Jeff Olsen]

Thanks guys.I like the 225 AB too.They shoot as well as the Sierra's did,just haven't been able to get them up to the same velosity as the Sierra's.I'd like to get them up to if not over 2800fps.Maybe I'll try a different powder.Say H4831SC.& see if I can get them up to speed.

I had no trouble getting the 225 AccuBond to 2900 fps in my 26"-barreled Remington XCR, in 338 WM of course. That's with 74 grains of RL19.

-jeff

 

[Bigwheels]

Then should I just exceed the max load a little,& see what happens?I'm not seeing any pressure signs with the max load of 72gr. of H4350.(Thats what my old Hogdon book says is Max).I see a lot of guys exceeding the posted Max's in here by a few grains.Am I really OK to go with some more as long as the primers don't show excessive pressures?

 

[Jeff Olsen]

Then should I just exceed the max load a little,& see what happens?I'm not seeing any pressure signs with the max load of 72gr. of H4350.(Thats what my old Hogdon book says is Max).I see a lot of guys exceeding the posted Max's in here by a few grains.Am I really OK to go with some more as long as the primers don't show excessive pressures?

Huh! Look at that; I AM over max. At least in the Nosler book. Who knew? :lol:

Actually, I don't generally exceed book maximums, and especially with a cartridge like a 338 Win Mag where I'm not worried about needing the power... so I'm betting that in a DIFFERENT book, I'm at or below book max. Probably the Alliant book. IIRC, when I did that load I kept going up to max, the accuracy stayed excellent, it chrono'd at 2900 fps, so I called it good.

Oh- if you have not tried RL19 in your 338 Win Mag, you should. I think it's the powder of choice for that caliber.

And that brings up the dirty little secret of reloading... that you will see as much as a 5-grain difference in maximums in different books. For example, the little book Hodgen puts out typically has maximums well over the Nosler book. So... when the powder manufacturer says you can go to X grains, and then Nosler (or whoever) says you can only go to X minus 3 grains... obviously, there's some leeway there. At least maybe.

I personally do have loads, obviously, that exceed at least some of the book max's so I guess that tells where I stand on the issue, but you have to go there very carefully and make sure there's some good reason to do so in the first place, which there usually ISN'T. I have one load where I feel like it does matter, my .358. Using a WAY over book load of RL7, I am able to get it to 35 Whelen speeds with primers that are still round. Since we are still only talking 2600 fps, in this case I feel that the 150 fps I gained in that adventure were well worth it, and since my brass life with that load appears to be indefinate (over 15 reloads on one batch now) I don't think it actually IS an overload, or even a particularly hot load.

But ultimatly, you have to be careful careful careful. Wouldn't want to wreck a perfectly good rifle, or a perfectly good YOU.

-jeff

 

[Bigwheels]

Thats exactly what I was wondering.How much leeway there is between books.I hav eonly 2 books.The 1st is a 10yr. old Hogdon free basic pamphlet,& I recently bought a new Nosler 5th edition.I'd been useing a load from my pamphlet for a max load of 71gr. of H4350 with my 250gr. Game Kings,& wanted to look up a different load in a later book.I was shocked to see the max in that book was 3gr. less than I had allready fired about 2000rnds of through my rifle.& unfortunatly ,the Nosler book is also more conservative than the Hogdon book.(When they even have a load for a Hogdon powder)Thanks for the info.I'll be carefull,& try a few @ 73gr of H4350,& see how my primers look.& what my velosity is.As long as they aren't any flatter than my factory loads of Winchester Supreem AB's are I'll be Ok.

 

[Alaska]

In my Win 70 either Reloader 19 @ 75.3 or IMR 4350 @ 71.0 are the loads with 225 AB.

 

[Bigwheels]

Alaska,What velosity are you at with those loads?I can only get 2750 out of 72gr.of H4350.I can get that out of my 250 GK's with a grain less than that.When thw weather gets better,I'm going to try some H4831sc.Hopefully I'll have some 250AB's by then.

 

[Alaska]

with a Win 70 about 2840 FPS with Reloader 19 @ 75.3 with 225gr.

The 250 Sierra with 73.0 of Rl19 is another good load. I like the sierra GK for hunting out at the 250 to 300 yard range. I have switched to the Barnes TSX 225gr as my all around load, with IMR 4350 @ 71.5.

 

[Bigwheels]

I have been thinking about trying the TSX 225.But I've decided to wait a while,& see if Nosler comes out with a 250gr.AB.If they do,that will be my everything load for my 338 Win Mag.

 

[Jeff Olsen]

Thats exactly what I was wondering.How much leeway there is between books.I hav eonly 2 books.The 1st is a 10yr. old Hogdon free basic pamphlet,& I recently bought a new Nosler 5th edition.I'd been useing a load from my pamphlet for a max load of 71gr. of H4350 with my 250gr. Game Kings,& wanted to look up a different load in a later book.I was shocked to see the max in that book was 3gr. less than I had allready fired about 2000rnds of through my rifle.& unfortunatly ,the Nosler book is also more conservative than the Hogdon book.(When they even have a load for a Hogdon powder)Thanks for the info.I'll be carefull,& try a few @ 73gr of H4350,& see how my primers look.& what my velosity is.As long as they aren't any flatter than my factory loads of Winchester Supreem AB's are I'll be Ok.

If you want to try to go from one book max of 71 to another book's max of 73, do it in 1/2 grain increments. Don't just jump from 71 to 73! I get pretty careful "up there" because things can get pretty squirrelly, pretty fast.

-jeff

 

[Bigwheels]

I was talking about my other load for my 250gr. GK's with 71gr. of H4350.My current load for my 225 AB's is @ 72gr.I'll try a couple @ 73,& see where I'm at.I have desided to try some H4831sc.When the weather cooperates.& I'm not going to do that for a little while.I'm hopeing that Nosler will make a 250 AB for my 338.& then all this discusion will be moot.I'll work up a load for them with H4831sc,& see if it rivals my load of H4350.If it does,that would be great.If not,then I still have the load I've been useing.I'll win out either way. :grin: