SmallCaliberCentral

Hello all! im a new member from the UK, ive just had my custom .204 for a couple of weeks now and am having some trouble loading for it.

the spec is as follows

rem 700 blue-printed action
1/10 twist 26" heavy contour barrel
AICS Stock
Tuned x-mark pro trigger
IOR 8-25x50 glass


Now im having some trouble loading for her, ive been trying to get the 39grn sierras to work but with not much joy, ive tried quite a few powders H322, H335, BL-C(2) and some more. Using new winchester brass & Fed gold match primers. Now is that bullet too light for the twist rate?

anyone on here with the same twist?? any help will be gratefully received!!

Ive got some 45grn SP's on order to try....


anyways here is a pic of the rifle

I'm by no means an expert or even as close to being as knowledgeable as some here but with that high of a twist rate I would think the 45s and heavier would perform well.

The 39's should work in that twist. Your not jamming into the lands are you?

The 39bk is a very thin skinned fragile projectile. Perhaps the 10 twist is imparting to much rotational force.
The 50gn Berger is perfect for that twist but expensive.
The 40 V-Max should be another great choice. They're quite a bit tougher than the 39 and should handle it well.
The 45 sp you mentioned is shorter than the 39 or 40's therefor requires less twist.
If those 45's are an improvement over the 39's you'll know its a problem with the 39's. The 45's have never been known to be the most accurate.

Very nice gun and Welcome to the forum.

Try some Benchmark..

Thanks for the replies and thanks for the welcome!


Well, my lands start at the o-give point at 1.965.

My initial loads started at 40tho back, so the o-give on the bullet was 1.925 with no joy so i tried 30tho & 35tho back.


Should i try going back even further?


Thanks Sam

I DON'T HAVE MY DATA IN FRONT OF ME.WHAT IS THE OAL OF YOUR CLOSEST LOAD WITH THE SIE 39GR BLITZ?HORNADY LOADS THEIR FACTORY LOADS 2.250 +/- FOR THE 40GR,AND HAVE A SEVERE CRIMP, IMO.I LOAD THE 39 SIE @ 2.350-2.355,WITH .002-.003 NECK TENSION.VARGET,BLC(2),AND IMR 8208 XBR HAVE GIVEN BEST RESULTS.SEEMS THE THE 204 SHOOTS WELL WITH MORE BULLET JUMP THAN ONE WOULD EXPECT,BUT I DON'T SEAT MY BULLETS DEAPER THAN THE NECK/SHOULDER JUNCTION,WHICH ,IN THE 204, IS ONE CALIBER WIDTH.

Welcome blackfox!

By "newbie", do you mean new to shooting new to handloading, or new to the forum?

BTW, you've come to the right place!!

I would also suggest you try RL-10X as well. The 39 grain BK should have no issue in the 10 twist barrel. This powder has been MAGIC in my remington VSF! Benchmark also in my top 3 for this caliber. See my post elsewhere in this forum with a recent target of some benchmark load work.

Yes, Rl-10x is my first choice of powder, it works well in twists from 1:12" to 1:8.5", with bullets from 26 grains to 40 grains. Otherwise, Benchmark and Varget do well with heavier 50 grain bullets. What I have discovered is that bullets usually do well when seated at the recommended factory depth of 2.260" to 2.300". I have yet to find one that shoots better seated close to the lands.

FYI, I seat out to 2.330" with polymer bullets and even longer with HP's of any sort.