SmallCaliberCentral

Good morning folks! I am happy to have finally joined the board here. I have been reading a lot of past posts for about a year now since I really got into shooting the .204. My gun that got me started in this realm was a CZ 527 American http://www.204ruger.com/forum/posting.p ... e90fd#with a 28.5" 1:12 twist heavy barrel, beautiful American Walnut stock and Leupold 3x9x40 scope. It was stolen a few weeks ago along with a shotgun. http://www.204ruger.com/forum/posting.p ... cd438e90fd# I had begun reloading for the first time with once fired Hornady brass mostly from 40 gr. off the shelf loads that are most available in my area. I have had great success killing various varmints from skunks, coyotes, to wild hogs and at ranges beyond 400 yards. 95% of the kills were instantaneous. That gun was pretty much point and shoot. Now my replacement gun, I tried with no success to find one exactly like my original, is a CZ 527 Varmint with a 24" barrel and a 1:9 rate of twist. I upgraded my scope and am still zeroing it in here at the farm to my layout.
Here is my situation. I am well read enough now to know that I need help to work thru my confusion... Here is what I think I know:

1st. difficult factor = Hornady brass
2nd. complication = that Hornady brass was out of a gun I no longer have. (headspace, fire formed cases, and other options are gone)
3rd. issue = it seems my press is not liking the Hornady brass either. Some cases are growing when resized so much that I am cutting them down on a lathe after their first firing off the store shelf.
4th. issue = I was loading for the 1:12 twist but now I am trying to determine what powder and bullets I can reload with my new 1:9 twist barrel for the most accuracy. (I love reading the permanent thread on everyone's favorite loads but wish everyone had listed their twist rate as well)
5th. I don't know if my new gun needs to push out some break in rounds before I check it's specs and start all over with it's fire formed brass.

My thoughts are to use the couple hundred Hornady rounds I have off the store shelf to break in my new gun and save that brass for harder times. I should buy new brass that is WW, or Lapua, or Nosler, or Norma and load it with what I determine is a good starting point for a 1:9 twist barrel. Since this post is getting long I will post another concerning your experiences with 1:9 twist rates and reloading specs.

Thanks for all the information ya'll have shared in the past, it is very helpful, enjoyable reading.

TX204FAN
Mike D.
Tyler Texas
CZ 527 Varmint 24" 1:9

Just my opinion, but if you don't have confidence in one of your components then load testing is not going to prove anything. If there is one brand of brass that consistently gets a thumbs down around here it is the Hornady stuff. Get yourself some Win or Rem brass and start over. Just my thoughts.

+ One for Trent's comments.

Your brass options are WW, R-P and Nosler (made by Norma). Some day when the planets are in correct alignment, the birds are singing and the sun is out, Lapua will indeed produce both 204 Ruger and 20 Vartarg brass, but for now, those are your options. I'd recommend dumping the Hornady brass for reasons stated. I'm not aware of anyone on this forum who actually likes the stuff after having any experience with it, myself included.

You'd be well advised to purchase new brass and start fresh, and by doing so you'll have perfectly fireformed brass for YOUR chamber of your new rifle.

Sorry to hear of your loss of the other rifle. It's a shame we have to share the same air as those cretins who steal from others who have worked for what they have. Those are the types that we'd like to give a .45 caliber 230gr enema to.

Good luck sorting it out with the new CZ....it should be a shooter....most of them are.

Thanks for the replies. I am just realizing the extent of the loss the thief presented me with with the theft of one gun in particular. All my studies into reloading for one particular weapon, all my confidence built up with that one gun so I could confidently take pretty difficult shots is gone. He didn't steal a gun. He stole a year of effort, learning, practice and confidence as well as my first quality rifle that my dad and I started our hunting memories with. He stole my unflinching confidence that I could protect my farm and ranch animals and people form what ever predators came lurking. I don't have a much time of my own to spend on anything that is not really important. I have too many irons in the fire in my life and this joker just gave me a new one. Some one sent me a message once to cheer me up about the stolen items saying that they felt bad for those that steal from others because they must be in dire straights and are not as blessed as we are... That thief did me at least $5000 damage that one or two minutes he was in my truck to steal my 5 year old radio, which he broke in the attempt and left. The insurance thing is a fraud... we pay to be covered so we can try and replace our damaged stuff and we pay what it doesn't cover, and we pay the penalty for the rate to go up because we made a claim. It's crap.
Oh well, I get to shoot a lot more that I would have over the next few months.

TX204FAN wrote:All my studies into reloading for one particular weapon, all my confidence built up with that one gun so I could confidently take pretty difficult shots is gone. He didn't steal a gun. He stole a year of effort, learning, practice and confidence as well as my first quality rifle that my dad and I started our hunting memories with.

That says a lot right there. Sorry man. Glad to hear that you are able to persevere though and get back in the game.

I know someone else may have already told you this, but I have heard that homeowners insurance will cover this type of situation. I've never tested it so I cannot confirm it.

Yes. Homeowners covers guns. And it actually gave me the full value of the two stolen guns minus the deductible since guns don't decline in value.

Sorry for your situation TX'. Most of us have been there, or some similar crappy place, so at least you don't have to feel alone...

Yeah, Hornady brass did me no good things... Search the threads and you'll see its pretty much the concensus here. Nosler all the way for me now. But if you LIKE to work your brass (weigh sort, measure and turn the necks, ream the flash holes, uniform the primer pockets, trim, chamfer, de-burr)... and many folks do and take pride in it it, then I say WW or Rem. But Nosler will save you a ton of time though. JMHO.

I say start fresh and work up a brand spankin' new load. Cut no corners, take good notes, and only change one varaible at a time. Otherwise, you will likely breed regrets and confusion, and an freaking TON of wasted time and ammo.

TX204FAN- First, I'm sure sorry to hear about the theft. I know how violated you feel when some scumbag helps himself to your prized posessions. Now, with the new rifle, the 1 in 9 twist should stablize up to the 50 grain Bergers. Most people don't want to shoot that heavy of a bullet anyways, but those 40 grain V-max bullets should do just fine. I would also suggest stearing clear of the hornady brass. After I switched from recycled factory's to preped and sorted win brass I had far fewer unexplained fliers. Good luck working up the new loads.

-Neil

Hey! Thanks for all the encouragement! I was feeling pretty lost but the last couple days of studying and some really good advice I am feeling like I can start moving ahead with out so much confusion. Thanks!