sierra tipped matchking 168gr 308 win

[Dbk]

hi all

reloaded several of these recently

using adi 2208 powder and have sort of found a sweet spot at around 44.1gr of 2208 - a few groups have been 0.6inch groups at 100m. some have been around 1 inch or just over but i think these are single flyers/poor shooting technique.

2 questions :

i was wondering if any one has got reloading data from sierra for this specific bullet. i cant seem to find anything and i have been using the loading data for the 168gr SMK.

2nd - bullet seating. i have a tikka supervarmint 308 and measured to the rifling... the bullet sits wayyyy out there and wont fit in the mag because of the length. i triple checked the measurements. i load them 5 thou off the rifling or thereabouts. they shoot fine with mostly tight groups with the occasional 5th shot out of 5 being a "flyer" making the group a 1 inch or over group. i have had no issues shooting 60 or 70 of these rounds. is this what people are expecting???

[No1Mk3]

1st Q- No, Sierra does not differentiate data based on type, only weight. Use 168g data for both, tune your load to suit. 2nd Q- Seating depth is black magic combined with old wives tales and personal bias. Many Champions do not care about distance to the lands and seek accuracy nodes at anything from .010 to .080" off jam.

[Dbk]

thanks for the reply. even with 0.080 off... its still seated a long way out. i will send a pic later if i figure out how to do it

[SCJ429]

Just do a jump test with the length of the mag being the maximum COAL and bring it back from there. Use the load you shot the 0.6 inch group with. You can tinker with your load from there.

[mchughcb]

hi all

reloaded several of these recently

using adi 2208 powder and have sort of found a sweet spot at around 44.1gr of 2208 - a few groups have been 0.6inch groups at 100m. some have been around 1 inch or just over but i think these are single flyers/poor shooting technique.

2 questions :

i was wondering if any one has got reloading data from sierra for this specific bullet. i cant seem to find anything and i have been using the loading data for the 168gr SMK.

2nd - bullet seating. i have a tikka supervarmint 308 and measured to the rifling... the bullet sits wayyyy out there and wont fit in the mag because of the length. i triple checked the measurements. i load them 5 thou off the rifling or thereabouts. they shoot fine with mostly tight groups with the occasional 5th shot out of 5 being a "flyer" making the group a 1 inch or over group. i have had no issues shooting 60 or 70 of these rounds. is this what people are expecting???

If a Tikka Supervarmint in 308Win is shooting sub 25mm at 100m and the occasional 5th shot is a flyer at 25mm at 100m which is already sub MoA then I suggest stop and be happy with that load and go hunting.

I wise RO once said to me, he has seen thousands of backyard hunters with their hunting rigs wearing out barrels trying to get the groups that benchrest shooters get after spending thousands on their rigs and hundreds of hours of practice.

[bigpete]

hi all

reloaded several of these recently

using adi 2208 powder and have sort of found a sweet spot at around 44.1gr of 2208 - a few groups have been 0.6inch groups at 100m. some have been around 1 inch or just over but i think these are single flyers/poor shooting technique.

2 questions :

i was wondering if any one has got reloading data from sierra for this specific bullet. i cant seem to find anything and i have been using the loading data for the 168gr SMK.

2nd - bullet seating. i have a tikka supervarmint 308 and measured to the rifling... the bullet sits wayyyy out there and wont fit in the mag because of the length. i triple checked the measurements. i load them 5 thou off the rifling or thereabouts. they shoot fine with mostly tight groups with the occasional 5th shot out of 5 being a "flyer" making the group a 1 inch or over group. i have had no issues shooting 60 or 70 of these rounds. is this what people are expecting???

If a Tikka Supervarmint in 308Win is shooting sub 25mm at 100m and the occasional 5th shot is a flyer at 25mm at 100m which is already sub MoA then I suggest stop and be happy with that load and go hunting.

I wise RO once said to me, he has seen thousands of backyard hunters with their hunting rigs wearing out barrels trying to get the groups that benchrest shooters get after spending thousands on their rigs and hundreds of hours of practice.

People put way too much tine and effort into chasing 1 hole groups with their hunting rigs when they could actually be hunting and learning how to get close. Its kinda ridiculous. I've got a mate who's rifle from the factory consistently printed a 1½" group at 100m with factory ammo,but that wasn't good enough allegedly so it took him a year and a heap of modifications to get it " good enough " and now its showing flyers again coz the cheap s**ty eBay scope he put on it is s**ting itself. What a complete f*** around.
And there i was with a rifle that struggled getting a 2" group putting deer and goats in the freezer on the regular.....

[Oldbloke]

Agree, forget long shots and shoot within your and the rifles ability.

You hear/read about 300 or even 400 yard shots at animals. They never mention the misses or the ones that bolt wounded. Funny that.

Everyone wants to be a hero.

[Blr243]

Agreed. I can’t find time to get to the range at all and I can’t even shoot Moa let alone .6

[in2anity]

The Sierra 168gr bullet literally evolved for service rifle shooting out to 300m, back sometime around the 1960s. I can attest they are a very competative bullet at such distances and even further, up against the likes of the classic 155gr palma pill. Heck I once cleaned the 500m ICFRA face with 168grs, from the sling, no real dramas. Nonetheless they are purportedly not competative in the longs (700m+) because they lose stability (not what they evolved for).

Similar to the Sierra #2156, they seem less sensitive to jump, compared with other designs (such as the Berger). I jump them far in my m1917-308 and they still easily outshoot me and buck the wind nicely. It's my bullet of choice for 300m and dang they will shoot, if you're doing your bit and paying attention to the flags/mirage.

I would seat your bullet to your magazine length, and run your tests again. My bet is they still group more or less the same. Sorry you don't get to ignore so called "flyers", unless you call the shot bad before looking at the target. The group is what it is, particularly over a large sample size.

[bigpete]

Agree, forget long shots and shoot within your and the rifles ability.

You hear/read about 300 or even 400 yard shots at animals. They never mention the misses or the ones that bolt wounded. Funny that.

Everyone wants to be a hero.

I hold by the theory don't shoot something further away than you're willing or capable to run to finish it off.
Thats about 50m for me lol
But on a serious note,same bloke whinged for ages about not getting a deer for decades,despite also telling me he was seeing them regularly. I must admit he didn't like my response to that. I also must admit he's shot 2 very very good deer in the last couple of years,both within 200m. Different strokes for different folks i guess

[Oldbloke]

Yeh, my limit is about 150yards. And that's set up with a good rest.