SmallCaliberCentral

What would you consider to be the best all-around powder for the .204 Ruger?

Plenty of possibilities. My rifle is perfectly happy with RL10X.

My go to powders for the 204, are the ones that give me the best results, for my personal expectations. I do have 2 "best" powders for my 204, which include, Benchmark for the 32gr. pills and RKL10x for the 39gr. SBK's. But to get the 40 gr. Vmax to shoot, I have to load H4895! There are a few others out there that I have not tried, and have NO intentions to do so.
I am a firm believer in the old proverb, if it ain't broke, don't try fixing it!

mailmanmark wrote:What would you consider to be the best all-around powder for the .204 Ruger?

Every rifle is a story into itself. But Reloader 10 is a good standard that seems to work in most every 204 R. Good one to start and try in yours. Bill K

I like Reloder-15 for mine but others that have worked very well are;

-H4895
-Reloder 10x
-Benchmark
-Varget
-N135
-N540

Others that have been reported with good results;

H335
W748
IMR8208xbr

The only one I've tried extensively that didn't pan out was IR8208xbr. It was so-so, but it sure went fast.

HTH,

i have 2# of CFE 223 and am wondering how this is going to work with 32g v max and 35g Bergers?

mailmanmark wrote:i have 2# of CFE 223 and am wondering how this is going to work with 32g v max and 35g Bergers?

Dunno' just have to try it. Because of the climate [lack of powder] it gets really tough to find the one your gun likes in short order. If your selection works out, try and get as much as you need, preferably the same LOT. For me, thats an 8lb keg, depending on caliber and anticipated usage.

Good luck and HTH,

Jim

Another powder besides H4895, Rel 10X, H322, and Benchmark that have worked well in my .204 Rugers is IMR 8208 XBR. I use IMR 8208 XBR in the two .204 Rugers that I shoot the 39 gr. Sierra BlitzKing in and the third .204 Ruger that I use the 40 gr. V-Max in I'm using H4895.

Silverfox wrote:Another powder besides H4895, Rel 10X, H322, and Benchmark that have worked well in my .204 Rugers is IMR 8208 XBR. I use IMR 8208 XBR in the two .204 Rugers that I shoot the 39 gr. Sierra BlitzKing in and the third .204 Ruger that I use the 40 gr. V-Max in I'm using H4895.

I have a couple more experiments I'm going to try with IMR8208xbr; hopefully it will work. If not; I'll try it in 223 and 308. If still unsatisfactory; dunno' use it to grow grass I guess. To bad too because it sure meters well.

imr 8208 and benchmark both shoot great in both my rifles with 35 gr. bergers

RL-10x if I had to have one powder. I use 8208XBR with great results though with 35gr. Bergers.

mailmanmark wrote:i have 2# of CFE 223 and am wondering how this is going to work with 32g v max and 35g Bergers?

I have used cfe-223 with 35 grain bergers with excellent results I use 30.9 grains of powder , rem 7.5 primers for 3990 fps. I shoot that load in a mod 12 savage with a 26" bbl. if I do my part I can get groups at .25" and less. I seat the bullets to 2.250 or longer. with the long freebore I can't seat the bullets out close to the lands as the powder keeps falling out of the end of the case.

yesterday at the range it was 40 degrees and raining off and on. I shot a 3 round group with 27.9 grains (over max) of H-322 and 32 grain v-max hornady bullets into a group that measured .108. this was with a mod 12 savage with a 26" bbl. and a 4-16X50 vortex viper. a little luck and a lot of help from God!

I use Benchmark. It is consistent and my reloads are accurate. It meters well and is easy to load with.

28.3gr H335 with 32gr VMax, 2.26"COL = Clover leaf in my Howa 1500