Hornady ELD Match 225gr

[FreeTacos]

Anyone loaded these? I have a ton of A1680 and it's my goto powder for subs. I'm going by the Hornady published load data shown in the screenshot and I'm calling BS on this. Even at only 10gr of A1680 the bullet won't seat enough to fit a magazine. It compressed to the point of deforming the bullet and was still way too long for a magazine.

I've tried a drop tube and vibrating the case to settle the powder...its just not happening. Not sure how that load made it into the published data.

I have like 400 of these so I guess I'm going to have to find a different powder. Interested in knowing what anyone has successfully used for these behemoths.

[KB64]

Not sure, disclaimer-I haven't used these bullets before research this at your own risk, but the bulk density of AA#9 and A1680 is almost identical at .0657 for #9 and .0655 for 1680. If you have a chronograph maybe work down towards the 8.3 grains of 1680 ?

[FreeTacos]

I do have a chronograph, but my velocity is always quite a bit less than the published data. I think most 300blk load data numbers are from a 16" barrel and mine is 8.5". I'm not sure I'd want to go much lower than 10gr, but I'm willing to try it.

This evening I loaded up some with H110. I never use it for subs, but next time I go to the range I'll see how it does. Might go ahead and try less A1680 too, but don't have high hopes for that.

It's funny, Hornady's load data goes as high as 13.2gr of A1680, which isn't possible unless they are just single loading rounds into the chamber, because none of those loads are fitting a magazine.

[dellet]

I would check the capacity of your brass. I would expect around 25 grains of water weight. Less than 24, would be very Lowe capacity.

I just checked a half dozen pieces of Remington and Norma brass. 12.3-12.5 grains with the bullet touching the powder to get an overall length of 2.250”. 13 grains would be more compression than I care for, but it wouldn’t likely be a problem, in this brass.

I know I have some Hornady brass around here but didn’t bother to look for it.

[FreeTacos]

That's interesting. I tried 3 different ones and just verified my results. One is Lake City brass, one is Federal, and I can't read the headstamp on the 3rd one, but none of them will seat this bullet to 2.250 with only 10.5gr of A1680. I have some Starline brass somewhere, I'll try those later.

I also have a fired piece of brass that I can easily slide the bullet in and out just to show the difference without powder vs with powder and to show how much of the bullet is in the case.

First pic is the bullet seated to 2.251 with no powder. I put a piece of tape on the bullet to show the seating depth.

Second pic is with 10.5gr of A1680 with the bullet as far as it will seat at 2.283. Keeping in mind this is fired brass that has not been resized. I'd think it would have more volume than a sized case.

Third pic you can see the bullets got deformed from the seating depth due to the resistance from the powder. You can also see by the tape line how much of the bullet is in the case.

[dellet]

Tried an LC 10 case tonight, it was a little less, but not significant.

I can vary the powder level almost .080” based on how I drop the powder. I use a 6” drop tube, hold the pan a few inches above the funnel and trickle the powder in. About 8-10 seconds to pour the powder, the. Just tap the side of the case gently with the funnel to get rid of any cone that might have formed

A 1 second pour the powder column I said about .050” higher.

Expect the Starline brass to be worse, it’s a known low capacity case.

Might play with your pour and see what happens.

[FreeTacos]

Thank you, I'll try that

[FreeTacos]

Wow, that worked. Kudos to you, good sir. The drop tube I was using is 3" so I got a long straw instead and trickled it in like you said. Typically I just dump it in. Crazy...never stop learning

[dellet]

Wow, that worked. Kudos to you, good sir. The drop tube I was using is 3" so I got a long straw instead and tricked it in like you said. Typically I just dump it in. Crazy...never stop learning

How many grains?

[dellet]

The drop tube idea is as old as cartridge shooting. 20-30 inches is pretty common for Black powder, people often make them out of arrow shafts. I have a 32” made out of brass tubing and a small funnel soldered in.

Dropped right, a fine ball powder like 1680, will be so tight it won’t hardly compress.