Lithgow La102 .308 reloading

Reloading equipment, methods, load data, powder and projectile information.

Lithgow La102 .308 reloading

Post by Macbeth » 08 Feb 2019, 1:38 pm

Hi

I'm new to the reloading game and I'm looking for some tips or info on how to get some better accuracy and consistency out of my lithgow La102 .308.
The La102 has 4 groves and a 1:11" (279mm) right hand twist and a 560mm barrel.
I i have tried a couple different loads all using AR2208 and multiple gr projectiles and not fining much consistency.
I'm not sure if the powder is a good one or what gr projectiles i should be looking at using for target shooting.
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Re: Lithgow La102 .308 reloading

Post by deye243 » 08 Feb 2019, 8:43 pm

From 150g and up 08 is hard to beat in a 308 what group size are you getting and with what .
And was this rifle part of the recall ...... did it get a new barrel .
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Re: Lithgow La102 .308 reloading

Post by SCJ429 » 08 Feb 2019, 9:17 pm

I agree, and you need to get as much sped as you can. They seem to shoot the best near maximum pressure. What projectiles are you using?
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Re: Lithgow La102 .308 reloading

Post by Macbeth » 19 Feb 2019, 11:07 pm

deye243 wrote:From 150g and up 08 is hard to beat in a 308 what group size are you getting and with what .
And was this rifle part of the recall ...... did it get a new barrel .

Just had it sent away for repairs and I have been informed that its getting a new barrel installed. There was nothing wrong with the barrel, so I say it was up for the recall.
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Re: Lithgow La102 .308 reloading

Post by SCJ429 » 20 Feb 2019, 6:49 am

When you get it back try some Berger projectiles or if you cannot get them, the Sierra Match King for your target shooting. You will have to batch the SMK, measure them from base to ogive, to get the best out of them. Stick with 2208 and load them as long as you can.
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Re: Lithgow La102 .308 reloading

Post by sungazer » 20 Feb 2019, 7:39 am

Get some berger hybrids 155s 2208 is ok 2206H is a tad better and even BM8208 with 155s. In 2206H try about 44.3 grn work up to it from 43.5 with 2208 a 1/2 grn more is probably needed. Dont go for big heavy bullets they get progressively harder to tune and just wont shoot as accurately esp in a sporter lenght barrel.
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Re: Lithgow La102 .308 reloading

Post by Macbeth » 20 Feb 2019, 8:11 am

sungazer wrote:Get some berger hybrids 155s 2208 is ok 2206H is a tad better and even BM8208 with 155s. In 2206H try about 44.3 grn work up to it from 43.5 with 2208 a 1/2 grn more is probably needed. Dont go for big heavy bullets they get progressively harder to tune and just wont shoot as accurately esp in a sporter lenght barrel.

Do you worry about OAL? The La102 can take a very long round, to the point at which the bullet dose not seat much into the case.
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Re: Lithgow La102 .308 reloading

Post by sungazer » 20 Feb 2019, 4:08 pm

I have shot the LA102 308 with rounds that are with the Berger Hybrid 155s that are seated with the start of the boat tail seated at the end of the neck. It produced very good results. I have also tested the Berger Hybrids in my target rifle at different jumps from jam to 120 thou and found them to really tolerate if not like a large jump. I tested out to 100 thou you may find you have more but I doubt it will make a difference. The Sierra 2156, 2155 on the other hand like to be closer. There will be some people say that it is different in each gun however I have found from talking to a lot of people that shoot 308s in the target world that the bullet types seem to like the similar distances across a multitude of different barrels. Read the VLD bullet seating depth on the Berger website.
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Re: Lithgow La102 .308 reloading

Post by Macbeth » 20 Feb 2019, 9:11 pm

sungazer wrote:I have shot the LA102 308 with rounds that are with the Berger Hybrid 155s that are seated with the start of the boat tail seated at the end of the neck. It produced very good results. I have also tested the Berger Hybrids in my target rifle at different jumps from jam to 120 thou and found them to really tolerate if not like a large jump. I tested out to 100 thou you may find you have more but I doubt it will make a difference. The Sierra 2156, 2155 on the other hand like to be closer. There will be some people say that it is different in each gun however I have found from talking to a lot of people that shoot 308s in the target world that the bullet types seem to like the similar distances across a multitude of different barrels. Read the VLD bullet seating depth on the Berger website.

Thanks for the advice. I will have a read on the Berger website.
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Re: Lithgow La102 .308 reloading

Post by Bustacap » 06 Apr 2019, 2:42 pm

I have had similar frustration to yourself with not getting the expexted groupings from this rifle. I bought a range of sample packs, all in 150 grain, to find a projectile that it liked. I was so frustrated that i nearly left it in the bin at the rifle range. I struggled to get an inch at 100 yards. By the way the best prjectile group was sierra game kings 150gr SBT. I decided to try a different weight projectile. Again i bought a number of sample packs again to see what it liked best. I was rewarded instantly with a .8, then a .5, then a .3 inch group. Nearly every group was 4 shots touching or through same hole and one flyer. It would seem that my Lithgow, likes the heavier projectile. Every projectile sample grouped better at 165 grain than 150. I also had a sample of 178 grain eldx that out grouped the 165 grain sierra match king. Both the Sierra Game King 165 gr in SBT and HPBT performed very well and will be my hunting projectile from this time forward. The one that leaves the largest exit wound will be the final winner.
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Re: Lithgow La102 .308 reloading

Post by Macbeth » 07 Apr 2019, 10:39 am

I just got some sierra match kings 150g yet to try them. I have tried 168g with different powder loads and i did not get any good groupings.
I will also have to get some heavier projectiles to try out. I will update how I go.
Thanks for the help
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Re: Lithgow La102 .308 reloading

Post by Bustacap » 08 Apr 2019, 9:05 am

I went to the range yesterday to finalise my hunting load. I found I still had ELDX and Sierra match kings in the box that I had yet to group. I have attached some photos of the groups. I nikko pen the point of aim because the cross hairs on my scope are quite thick.
Attachments
178gr ELDX 42gr BM8208.jpg
I was happy with the hornady ELDX also, honest groups at most test loads, the 150 gr did ok also. I cannot use these because the extra weight of this projectile does not match my BDC scope aim points.
178gr ELDX 42gr BM8208.jpg (130.28 KiB) Viewed 4737 times
168gr SMK 43gr BM8208.jpg
Might need some further tuning with seating depth, but I tried 4 different powder weights and had similar results. These are not a hunting projectile anyway, I was just keen to see if they performed as promised.
168gr SMK 43gr BM8208.jpg (135.41 KiB) Viewed 4737 times
165gr SGK HPBT 43gr BM8208.jpg
The winner. Case overall length 2.750 inch. This load matches my BDC scope near perfect. Piggies beware.
165gr SGK HPBT 43gr BM8208.jpg (129.52 KiB) Viewed 4737 times
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Re: Lithgow La102 .308 reloading

Post by Macbeth » 08 Apr 2019, 11:46 am

That's awesome.
Thanks for the info. I had the same result with the 168gr SMK, they don't seem to match the gun well. I will have to get the 165gr SGK and test them out. I will post my results.
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Re: Lithgow La102 .308 reloading

Post by Bustacap » 08 Apr 2019, 6:09 pm

I have attached one more for your interest. This was the 165gr SGK HPBT at 42.5gr of BM8208. Still a good honest group. I discovered one more thing with this rifle. I was over cleaning it. I removed every trace of dirt and copper fouling after my shoots. It will not group this clean. I looked back through all of my previous work and found it would not group until it had fired at least 15 rounds through it. It seems to like being hot also. I was once rushed to finish some load testing before the range closed. The barrel was near sizzling to the touch but still could put 3 shots in the same hole. So take some fun ammo to dirty, and warm it up before you try your loads. I had no luck in seating the projectiles out towards the rifling. I actually found bigger improvements seating them deeper. I had some 130gr Speer hollow points, flat base things left over from my Omark. The Lithgow did not like them one bit, sounded like a howitzer going off. I pushed them back to COAL of 2.61 inch from memory and Shazzam, through the same hole. They actually out grouped all of the other projectiles that I tested that day. A fast and devastating projectile on anything, even large pigs. Add them to your list if you are looking for a varmint style round.
Attachments
165gr SGK HPBT 42.5gr BM8208.jpg
You should find a good load somewhere between 42.5 and 43gr.
165gr SGK HPBT 42.5gr BM8208.jpg (122.56 KiB) Viewed 4690 times
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Re: Lithgow La102 .308 reloading

Post by Urbanbushman » 09 Apr 2019, 7:21 am

Buster cap, that 165gr HPBT @42.5gr seem a bit of alright! If was me I would go up 4clicks and call it job done! As for the “hot” ammo shooting better, I remember reading something about snipers in the Middle East laying their rounds out in the sun to improve the accuracy.
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Re: Lithgow La102 .308 reloading

Post by Bustacap » 09 Apr 2019, 10:39 am

I had the following issues with my La102 that may affect your groupings. I have the Poly stock. The manufacturers made a batch where the hole into which the sling swivel screw is inserted was drilled too large. The result for me was my bipod got looser and looser with every shot. Lithgow replaced my stock under warranty. The new stock came with instructions on how to fit it complete with torque settings for the bolts. When I went to remove my old stock, I was expecting them to be tight, however they were not even finger tight. I had only fired around 80 rounds by that point so I was not expecting anything to be loose on a new rifle. So before starting your groups it would be prudent to eliminate any other variables that could affect them like loose stock or scope mount screws.
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Re: Lithgow La102 .308 reloading

Post by Urbanbushman » 09 Apr 2019, 10:41 pm

Buster cap, could you give us the heads up on the action screw torque settings, many thanks in anticipation!
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Re: Lithgow La102 .308 reloading

Post by Bustacap » 09 Apr 2019, 10:57 pm

5nm or 44 inch pounds.
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