DA Load Tooo hot I say.

[Sandpebble]

Been a very long time so maybe things are different but back in the day Federal brass was too soft.... especially in larger calibers. One hot load and primer pockets were loose .

Once fired Federal brass found at the range were left there ..... and we used a lot of Varget because it didn't seem to care about temps that much

[togor]

Federal brass is said to run on the soft side for primer pockets. I have some from some GMM boxes, but haven't done anything with them yet. Lake City is my go-to brand. In fact I have a box of 8mm loads from converted LC53 '06 brass. It appears I should have backed off another half grain or so on the pulled down kraut powder because the primers are flat and the extractions are hard. But the primers are still in there.

[p246]

Federal brass is said to run on the soft side for primer pockets. I have some from some GMM boxes, but haven't done anything with them yet. Lake City is my go-to brand. In fact I have a box of 8mm loads from converted LC53 '06 brass. It appears I should have backed off another half grain or so on the pulled down kraut powder because the primers are flat and the extractions are hard. But the primers are still in there.

Well theory all shot to hell. Went back out yesterday till rained out. Same gun ran 8 rounds but POI started walking up. We were shooting at 700 yards. 9th and 10th round blew primers so we stopped. Primers on round 1 through 3 showed a little pressure, 4 through 8 primers showed more. As gas gun gets hot it appears to cause issues. I’m going to pull some of his reloads to ensure he does not have a scale problem. 44 grains Varget a 71 degree should be good. We shoot this load in another 700P bolt gun with no issues, but I load them on a different scale. Head scratcher.

- - - Updated - - -

I loaded up some Hornady and Remington Brass on my equipment. I also loaded some with 43.1grains Varget over a 168 grain SMK which is a pet load I like. We will see. I agree Federal is a little soft but another guy is running the 43.1 load and is on his 4th reload. Gas guns can be a pain when trying to push them.

[togor]

Well theory all shot to hell. Went back out yesterday till rained out. Same gun ran 8 rounds but POI started walking up. We were shooting at 700 yards. 9th and 10th round blew primers so we stopped. Primers on round 1 through 3 showed a little pressure, 4 through 8 primers showed more. As gas gun gets hot it appears to cause issues. I’m going to pull some of his reloads to ensure he does not have a scale problem. 44 grains Varget a 71 degree should be good. We shoot this load in another 700P bolt gun with no issues, but I load them on a different scale. Head scratcher.

- - - Updated - - -

I loaded up some Hornady and Remington Brass on my equipment. I also loaded some with 43.1grains Varget over a 168 grain SMK which is a pet load I like. We will see. I agree Federal is a little soft but another guy is running the 43.1 load and is on his 4th reload. Gas guns can be a pain when trying to push them.

Well I just got out my caliper and checked the case web on some FC and LC brass, once-fired, never trimmed. Pretty much the same web thickness and case volume on both, from what I can tell. I load 42.4gr of 4064 to push a 168gr SMK through a 11.25 twist barrel on a AR action. That shoots to nearly the same POI as Federal GMM 168 grain. To be honest, 44gr of Varget pushing a 175 gr bullet seems like a stout load to me.

[Former Cav]

POI as Federal GMM 168 grain. To be honest, 44gr of Varget pushing a 175 gr bullet seems like a stout load to me.

like he said in one of the posts above, a lot of it depends on the rifle.
My load of 45.0 grains, Standard Large Rifle Winchester Primer, R/P Nickel brass and 175 Sierra Match King MOLY coated. THis load was "compressed"
worked fine.

but I can tell you I had something similar happen to me many years ago while shooting prairie dogs with a 25-06
I had 90 grain bullets (LOUSY but that was all I could get my hands on) can't remember the exact load but he results were as follows.
SHoot 4 rounds, all is well with the world (had a 8-32 x 50 Burris Black Diamond scope with mil-dot reticle)
shoot the 5th round and ....what duh...where did it go..... did I blink or what? the rifle stock (a savage bolt gun with the fancy laminate stock and varmint barrel with muzzle brake would make a PING sound (there is no SPRING in the stock like an AR 1!)
So I had my friend shoot it.
4 rounds ....great
5th round.... a perfect "smoke ring" about 140 meters down range....the bullet exploded from centrifugal force.
SO.....Had Ice and soda and water in a cooler.
put the bullets in a sandwhich bag and on ICE.
8 rounds.... good
9th round....POOF.... same smoke ring....
very consistent.
I ended up shooting out that barrel in like 750 rounds... I had a custom 6.,5 x .284 barrel put on it. Much better selection of bullets.
If I remember correctly....25-06 bullets were like 75, 90, 117, and 120 grain was all that was available. NOT much choice. The 120's worked the best actually and did not explode.