Handloading - basic and advanced

[RDA]

They could simply comb through all the data posted here, weed out the good from the bad, edit, voila, 300BLK load manual.

they just replied and it appears they have one in the works!

[plant.one]

their data is a collection of data from published loadbooks and manufacturer's. direct copy and paste.

regardless of how talented i sincerely believe the folks here are, nobody who publishes the kind of data they do can take the risk of using non-pressure tested (in a proper industry standard testing barrel i mean) in their publications. its just too much of a liability and would quite honestly be - in a business sense - a potentially suicidal level of financial risk.

[Dr.Phil]

There have been some great comments on this thread.
I would like to add that 300 BLK is a poor place to start for the novice hand loader.
There can be major pressure changes with the same charge weight when seating depths are varied.
This is especially true with powders that load with a lower percent case fill like AA#9.

IMO, a fantastic place to start is with 308 Win or 30-06.
They are much more forgiving.
Loading 300 BLK requires absolute attention to detail.

I'm still working on my tips & tricks contribution to this thread.
Unfortunately, my time is at a premium at the moment.

Cheers,

[TMD]

There have been some great comments on this thread.
I would like to add that 300 BLK is a poor place to start for the novice hand loader.
There can be major pressure changes with the same charge weight when seating depths are varied.
This is especially true with powders that load with a lower percent case fill like AA#9.

IMO, a fantastic place to start is with 308 Win or 30-06.
They are much more forgiving.
Loading 300 BLK requires absolute attention to detail.

I'm still working on my tips & tricks contribution to this thread.
Unfortunately, my time is at a premium at the moment.

Cheers,

I'd have to disagree with this statement that the .300bo is dangerous for a novice to reload. No difference than any other bottle neck cartridge. Actually if anything with the lower pressures it operates at it more forgiving.

[rebel]

TMD, what the Doc is saying is one should have a working knowledge of what type powder he is using, typically fast burning, that .5 of grain is no biggie with a 308 but can change everything in the 300 BLK, and seating depth can make your load squirrely or even dangerous if one decides to "go off the ranch" and use the same weight long boat tail when the load calls for a flat base. It gets complicated quick. I am no where near as organized as some of the folks here, however, I do take great notes only I can decipher ( this load sucks, is jotted several times in my book ). The novice, meaning a beginner, can certainly load for this cartridge. The Docs not saying they can't, he is saying it's not the best to start out on. It's easy to screw up with the components we use. If the beginner does choose this cartridge, my suggestion would be pick one bulletin the 110 - 125 range, one good supersonic powder, pre-formed brass and good published load data and carefully work up the load in their rifle for accuracy. My advice would be the same for 308, however one doesn't tend to have a catastrophic failure with a reduced load of R 15 vs. AA #9 or H110. While I would agree the pressures are lower, I do not think it is more forgiving.

[TMD]

TMD, what the Doc is saying is one should have a working knowledge of what type powder he is using, typically fast burning, that .5 of grain is no biggie with a 308 but can change everything in the 300 BLK, and seating depth can make your load squirrely or even dangerous if one decides to "go off the ranch" and use the same weight long boat tail when the load calls for a flat base. It gets complicated quick. I am no where near as organized as some of the folks here, however, I do take great notes only I can decipher ( this load sucks, is jotted several times in my book ). The novice, meaning a beginner, can certainly load for this cartridge. The Docs not saying they can't, he is saying it's not the best to start out on. It's easy to screw up with the components we use. If the beginner does choose this cartridge, my suggestion would be pick one bulletin the 110 - 125 range, one good supersonic powder, pre-formed brass and good published load data and carefully work up the load in their rifle for accuracy. My advice would be the same for 308, however one doesn't tend to have a catastrophic failure with a reduced load of R 15 vs. AA #9 or H110. While I would agree the pressures are lower, I do not think it is more forgiving.

That same argument could be used for any cartridge. Take bullseye powder for example in a .45acp. One can easily double or triple charge it if their not paying attention. Those results would be much worse than seating a bullet too deep in a rifle case.

[Dr.Phil]

TMD, what the Doc is saying is one should have a working knowledge of what type powder he is using, typically fast burning, that .5 of grain is no biggie with a 308 but can change everything in the 300 BLK, and seating depth can make your load squirrely or even dangerous if one decides to "go off the ranch" and use the same weight long boat tail when the load calls for a flat base. It gets complicated quick. I am no where near as organized as some of the folks here, however, I do take great notes only I can decipher ( this load sucks, is jotted several times in my book ). The novice, meaning a beginner, can certainly load for this cartridge. The Docs not saying they can't, he is saying it's not the best to start out on. It's easy to screw up with the components we use. If the beginner does choose this cartridge, my suggestion would be pick one bulletin the 110 - 125 range, one good supersonic powder, pre-formed brass and good published load data and carefully work up the load in their rifle for accuracy. My advice would be the same for 308, however one doesn't tend to have a catastrophic failure with a reduced load of R 15 vs. AA #9 or H110. While I would agree the pressures are lower, I do not think it is more forgiving.

That same argument could be used for any cartridge. Take bullseye powder for example in a .45acp. One can easily double or triple charge it if their not paying attention. Those results would be much worse than seating a bullet too deep in a rifle case.

Thanks Rebel...
That was my thinking.
Folks should take solace in knowing that 300 BLK is not an easy place to start their handloading career.
It can be very challenging to develop a good load that delivers all the performance characteristics that they expect from 300 BLK.

As far as any cartridge being potentially dangerous, of course that is true.
Good reloading practices include selecting a powder with good case fill.
That provides more consistent ignition and adds a layer of safety by making double charges impossible.
Experienced reloaders experiment with different powders in order to achieve performance gains.

FWIW, I'm not trying to get in a pissing match with anyone.
There are tons of visitors to this site with skill levels that run the gamut.
The more seasoned members on this site PM each other with "non-mainstream" stuff regularly.
We don't put a lot of the experimental stuff publicly, because it would be irresponsible.
Some new hand loader who just Google's "300 BLK recipes" may stumble across it and have a bad day because they are not experienced enough to set COAL properly.

[dellet]

I left the reservation a long time ago. Whether it was voluntary or not is for others to figure out

As an individual, I absolutely disagree that 300 Blackout is a poor beginner cartridge, it's perfect.

As a member of a community, I disagree with my previous statement.

Everything about the cartridge that makes it a good choice, also makes it a poor choice. It boils down to the person loading.

If you are the type of person who researches what you are doing, wants clear feed back from small changes allowing you to understand the principles, it's a great choice. You can learn a great deal very quickly.

If you are the type of person who only scans information, gets the general idea and figures "that's good enough, I'll learn the rest when I need it", you will probably be frustrated with this choice to learn from.

Learning to load safely, does not guarantee you will learn to produce an accurate round, and this is where the trouble starts. This is where the experimentation starts. If you don't have a good grip on the basics, the search for accuracy can be very dangerous, or not. It depends on you.

Learning to load, is like learning to fight. You will learn more learning to fight from the Master who can kill you the easiest and quickest, than from someone a little better than you. As long as you work slow, and at a pace you can truly learn and understand the basics and how to apply them, you stay safe. The student learns quickly, as long as he is respectful and works within the set boundaries. When the student steps too far outside of his knowledge and ability, it is the teachers responsibility to lay the student on his ass.

A poorly loaded cartridge can be a lot less forgiving for stepping outside of your knowledge than any Martial master.

[RDA]

their data is a collection of data from published loadbooks and manufacturer's. direct copy and paste.

regardless of how talented i sincerely believe the folks here are, nobody who publishes the kind of data they do can take the risk of using non-pressure tested (in a proper industry standard testing barrel i mean) in their publications. its just too much of a liability and would quite honestly be - in a business sense - a potentially suicidal level of financial risk.

I was teasing plant.one. That being said, I imagine that their published results will end up coinciding with what many have already posted here as there are many loads listed here that work.

[rebel]

While it has no info for 300 BLK, the new Berger 1st addition reloading manual has both basic and advanced techniques written by some very noted folks in the industry. Good reading.