SmallCaliberCentral

Three rounds at 200 yards

The holes are raggedy because it was raining. And windy.

Okay, the wind didn't make the holes raggedy, but it was windy all the same.

The group measures 5/16ths, 0.3125". I was tweaking seating depth and had four other groups the same session that hovered just above ½" but this one took the kewpie doll. My first range session auditioning RL-10X, the same rifle shot a 0.171" group at 200 yards so this isn't an isolated event.

If a rube like me can make a bullet sing like this, it must be a goof-proof cartridge. And one heckuva rifle.

If I knew a tenth about reloading that crap like this makes me think I do, I probably could get this thing to shoot like this all the time.

26" Savage 12 VL
Mueller 8.5-25×50 Eraticator
WS2-coated 32-gr Noslers
26.1 grains of RL-10X
Twice-fired, freshly annealed Hornady brass
Neck sized w/Lee collet die
2.33" COL, seated w/Redding dead length seating die
BR4 primer
~4010 fps avg MV
SD: 19.8 fps

The same load was clocking ~135 fps faster last weekend and was grouping about twice as large (~1¼" @200). Temps were in the 90°s both weekends but yesterday I kept my ammo on ice until ready to shoot it. I'd shot a .243 WSSM load on Friday (same temperature) that was ~250 fps faster than it should have been because my bullets had warmed to 90°s+. I suspect chamber pressure had to be in excess of CIP max to drive it that fast (Danger, Will Robinson!!). So I decided to try chillin' my bullets. It seems to have done the trick.

Ya just got to love results like that! Long live the .204 Gary

Fred: Don't you just love it when a plan comes together? Nice shootin' there, bud, glad it all came together for you.

On a sidenote, I'm betting you enjoyed shooting your 204 that day much more than that 243WSSM......right?

Rick in Oregon wrote:...On a sidenote, I'm betting you enjoyed shooting your 204 that day much more than that 243WSSM......right?

I get all giggly shooting that .204 at a public range when the targets of the guys on either side of me look like they're patterning a scattergun.

One of the RSOs at the range where I was shooting this past Sunday is a "nothing new is worth a hoot" old codger who keeps arguing that his darlin' .22-250 is a better cartridge. He often casually strolls past my station, glancing at the numbers on my chronograph as he passes. And a couple of times I've caught him out of the corner of my eye checking out the targets I've left lying behind me while I shoot. I figure some day he'll start trying to wheedle load information out of me ...one detail at a time. That'll be my cue that he's been won over and went out and bought his own .204 ...but he'll never admit to it.

Me too...here is one of my test groups @ 200 yds from a CZ-527 American, 39 SBK. When I shot this, the 1st four shots looked darn good but on the 5th one I was on that set trigger just a hair to soon.

Target says 350y, but its actually a tad over 400 steps...


And I always wanted to shoot a bug!! Granted he was a big one and he was kinda close, LOL!!

LOL bow shot!

I've done it once myself but I wasn't smart enough to take a picture for proof!

As for the .204...LOVE IT! I don't know how I made it so long without one!

All that was left was a set of tinkerbell's wings. I was printing a trajectory set (350, 300, 200, 100, 50y) and he sat there throught the 50y group. So I had to do it!!

bow shot wrote:All that was left was a set of tinkerbell's wings. I was printing a trajectory set (350, 300, 200, 100, 50y) and he sat there throught the 50y group. So I had to do it!!

Don't blame ya if he just sat there!

Good groups are AWESOME! WTG!
I was a 22-250 freak before the 204, now I am a 204 freak

Good shooting Guys!