GlockZ
Well-known member
I have a Hornady and a Lee reloading manual, however, for the last couple of years I've been going online to Hodgdon, Alliant, Western, Nosler, & Barnes website for the most up to date information.
What reloading manual should I get?
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AvidIndoorsman
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Have to agree with you on this one... they under-load the .264win mag so bad it’s obnoxious... they were 400fps below my old Lyman manual.
Dougfirtree
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It just boggles my mind that Quick Loads hasn't been turned into an app yet.
Don Fischer
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Not a big Nosler fan but the term engineered fiction doesn't fit well at all! I believe that whoever makes the manuals is responsible should things go wrong that shouldn't go wrong. That the only reason I can find that I can go past max with a number of loads in different rifles. I have the Nosler manual and I find by starting low and working up I can find a load that might work for me. Sometimes I use it to provide data for other than Nosler bullet's. But you can take Nosler bullet's and use data in any manual that provides data for the same bullet weight.
antelopedundee
Well-known member
In the grand scheme of things $100 or 2 spent on manuals is a good investment.
Has anyone compared old and current published loads for specific round to see if any of the data has changed? It has been mentioned here that some lots of a given powder can be a tad hotter than others.
Has anyone compared old and current published loads for specific round to see if any of the data has changed? It has been mentioned here that some lots of a given powder can be a tad hotter than others.
coloradoguy
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I use the Hornady manual, The wife doesn't get as mad when I'm looking at that in bed rather than digging through the internet on my phone.
Manuals aren't all that important, great reference material for trim length, overall tength and a list of popular powders, but typically myself and the reloaders I know choose brass, primers, bullets based on availability, price and performance needs. In my opinion, you can make almost any combo work in any rifle if you are using the powder that provides the proper pressure curve that your rifle and caliber tells you it wants. So research your powders and then refer to the manufacturer website for max loads and load from there. There is not a bullet or brand that has not shot well out of my rifles if I pair them with the proper powder along side optimal charge weight testing and finding the bullet seating depth your gun wants.
Ive seen people and myself load combo after combo of primer, brass, and bullet with so so results and never test other powders. After a bunch of heartache and less than satisfactory performance we finally try a new powder and miraculously our guns were shooting sub moa after minimal testing. So wasted time and numerous reloads later powder was the common denominator. There are too many factors that determine velocity and accuracy to lean on a manual. It takes time and testing to notice patterns and youll find that youll be able to whip up a recipe pretty quick if you understand how powder more or less dictates the accuracy of your rifle with minor physical tweeks of your reloaded shell.
Manuals aren't all that important, great reference material for trim length, overall tength and a list of popular powders, but typically myself and the reloaders I know choose brass, primers, bullets based on availability, price and performance needs. In my opinion, you can make almost any combo work in any rifle if you are using the powder that provides the proper pressure curve that your rifle and caliber tells you it wants. So research your powders and then refer to the manufacturer website for max loads and load from there. There is not a bullet or brand that has not shot well out of my rifles if I pair them with the proper powder along side optimal charge weight testing and finding the bullet seating depth your gun wants.
Ive seen people and myself load combo after combo of primer, brass, and bullet with so so results and never test other powders. After a bunch of heartache and less than satisfactory performance we finally try a new powder and miraculously our guns were shooting sub moa after minimal testing. So wasted time and numerous reloads later powder was the common denominator. There are too many factors that determine velocity and accuracy to lean on a manual. It takes time and testing to notice patterns and youll find that youll be able to whip up a recipe pretty quick if you understand how powder more or less dictates the accuracy of your rifle with minor physical tweeks of your reloaded shell.
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6mm Remington
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I am partial to Nosler bullets and even though you can look most of this up on the internet, I still like to have a hard copy that I can research on. Plus if you are new to the game you can learn a lot by reading tips they have on how to set your dies up etc. Well worth it.
Work up but here are a couple loads for the 6mm Remington and 30-06 that work for me.
30-06: I really like the Nosler 165 gr. Partition and Accubond in the 30-06 and that's all I shoot in mine.
57.4 grs. of IMR4350 using Federal 210 Match primer
6mm Remington: IMR4350 works well in this one too. I load 100 gr. Partitions in my Ruger 1B using 43.4 grs. of IMR4350. In my son's Ruger MKII we use IMR H100V 44.5 grs with the 90 gr. Nosler E-tip. We have both taken coyotes, deer, antelope, and elk with these two bullets and they both worked very well.
Work up but here are a couple loads for the 6mm Remington and 30-06 that work for me.
30-06: I really like the Nosler 165 gr. Partition and Accubond in the 30-06 and that's all I shoot in mine.
57.4 grs. of IMR4350 using Federal 210 Match primer
6mm Remington: IMR4350 works well in this one too. I load 100 gr. Partitions in my Ruger 1B using 43.4 grs. of IMR4350. In my son's Ruger MKII we use IMR H100V 44.5 grs with the 90 gr. Nosler E-tip. We have both taken coyotes, deer, antelope, and elk with these two bullets and they both worked very well.
1eyedshooter
Member
I like my Hornady the best but I have a Barnes, Lee, Nosler and speer !!
Don Fischer
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Getting started, get the manual for the bullet's you are using. You'll find out down the rad just a bit that different manuals will use sme different powder's and using data for a 150gr bullet in say 308 the data in all the manuals will work if you pay heed to working up loads. You'll see data for some specific powder in one manual the use'd more of that powder for the same bullet in another manual. Doesn't matter if you work up loads. Don't get a bunch of manuals and try to figure out them all. Actually they all same the same thing just use different words to do it, learn one way and expand as you go!
Brian in Montana
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I have the Reloading Assistant app. Forgot to mention that before.
Don Fischer
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So what? All a manual is is a guide anyway. My though on which manual to get seem's to really be over thinking a problem that doesn't exist in the first place! Can you load a 150gr Nosler bullet with Hornady data Of course you can! Maybe a lucky thing you didn't blow up your 264 with Lyman data. Lyman doesn't make bullet's!
Dougfirtree
Well-known member
I'm not familiar with that. The thing that is so amazing about Quick Loads is that you can input virtually any bullet and powder combination and it will give you load data that is based on your barrel length. It just about makes manuals obsolete. Can Reloading Assistant do that?
SoCalHuntr
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I wouldn’t settle on one, hornady and Lyman is what I have and each has slightly different info.
Brian in Montana
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No. Reloading Assistant will not do that. It's more like a database, for lack of a better word, that has much of min/max loads manufacturers have already published. It includes energy and pressures too if one is interested in that sort of thing. Ive found it useful but limited, it is a free app after all. Quick Loads does sound interesting.
Dougfirtree
Well-known member
Got it. That still sounds helpful. I'm attaching a load data sheet that you would get from Quick Loads (you get to set the OAL for anything you want). I don't own the program (I think it's only available on like, the Apple IIc via floppy disk), but this one was done for me by a person who does. Super helpful and if it were available as an app, I would pay real money for it. Boggles my mind, as I said...
efw
Active member
Definitely buy a good manual; they’re good for far more than load data.
The Lee manual’s loaf data is old but the procedural stuff is indispensable.
The Lee manual’s loaf data is old but the procedural stuff is indispensable.
std7mag
Well-known member
Online will be your most up to date data, especially with new powders coming out every couple of years.
Quickload does allow you to change many variables. COAL, case volume, start pressure, barrel length, max pressure, etc...
But...
There are still powder/bullets that are not on their database yet.
They keep up pretty well with Hodgdon powders. Alliant not so much.
They do have RL16, RL23, RL26 data.
But not Alliants Power Pro series of powders. Some of which have been out over 5 years.
The new update doesn't have them yet either, appearantly.
Updates can be purchased when they release them, and come on CD.
Quickload does allow you to change many variables. COAL, case volume, start pressure, barrel length, max pressure, etc...
But...
There are still powder/bullets that are not on their database yet.
They keep up pretty well with Hodgdon powders. Alliant not so much.
They do have RL16, RL23, RL26 data.
But not Alliants Power Pro series of powders. Some of which have been out over 5 years.
The new update doesn't have them yet either, appearantly.
Updates can be purchased when they release them, and come on CD.
