'Faster' powder for .270

Tackleberry270

Well-Known Member
Having used some very popular powders for .270 in the past (H4831 etc) with good results, I am now looking to find something with a faster burn rate as part of some trouble shooting I am doing (scuse the pun).

Has anyone experimented with faster powders and how fast have you gone (sensibly) ?

I need something easy to get hold of.

IMR 4064? N140? R15 or even Varget?
 
Having used some very popular powders for .270 in the past (H4831 etc) with good results, I am now looking to find something with a faster burn rate as part of some trouble shooting I am doing (scuse the pun).

Has anyone experimented with faster powders and how fast have you gone (sensibly) ?

I need something easy to get hold of.

IMR 4064? N140? R15 or even Varget?

i have used varget in the past , but had pressure problems so i took advice from a good friend and re-loading guru (he'll love that if he reads this ! lol) and use N560 or turbo charged N160 . ive used it ever since with exelent results . in fact i use so uch of it i buy in bulk 10kg at a time .
 
Having used some very popular powders for .270 in the past (H4831 etc) with good results, I am now looking to find something with a faster burn rate as part of some trouble shooting I am doing (scuse the pun).

Has anyone experimented with faster powders and how fast have you gone (sensibly) ?

I need something easy to get hold of.

IMR 4064? N140? R15 or even Varget?

this should keep you enterained for a while http://www.reloadersnest.com/frontpage.asp?CaliberID=39
aslo look at RL17 this produces superb velocity
 
+1 ^

your brass doesnt know the difference between N160 and N150
(BTW N140 will leave you with half empty cases and a barrel twanging crack, not for magnum cases IMO)

RL22, N160, 4831 are all good burn rates for the .270

why do you need a better seal?
sooty shoulders?

factory Norma ammo leaves a mark half way down the outside of the neck on my .270
I get similar from the same Norma brass and moderate loads of N160 (it burns clean so no soot)
 
anneal your brass

The Norma brass is new (well, fired once) so shouldn't be an issue.

+1 ^

your brass doesnt know the difference between N160 and N150
(BTW N140 will leave you with half empty cases and a barrel twanging crack, not for magnum cases IMO)

RL22, N160, 4831 are all good burn rates for the .270

why do you need a better seal?
sooty shoulders?

factory Norma ammo leaves a mark half way down the outside of the neck on my .270
I get similar from the same Norma brass and moderate loads of N160 (it burns clean so no soot)


The barrel is worn and has a fair amount of throat wear. The faster powder is next on the list and on the advice of a certain expert! Just wondering how fast to go. I might cross N140 off the list.
 
been using H414 for years in myall my 270s. the only other powders i've used were H380 behind 100 grain hollow points and RL12 behind 90 grain hollow points.
 
The Norma brass is new (well, fired once) so shouldn't be an issue.




The barrel is worn and has a fair amount of throat wear. The faster powder is next on the list and on the advice of a certain expert! Just wondering how fast to go. I might cross N140 off the list.

I wouldnt rule out annealing mate as Norma brass is very thick on the neck and is known as hard brass so it may be more worked than you think.I would anneal sooner than change your powder it a damm site cheaper
 
I used IMR4064 in my Howa once or twice with decent results. I used 45 grains with a 150 grain bullet (IIRC, check) and got some groups as good as those with 4350 -just a little slower.~Muir
 
I use 46.0 grs of IMR 4895 in my 270 with 130gr bullets it seems to work very well in a 19" barrel
 
I have been trying IMR4350 in my 270 with150 grain bullets and was getting almost as good accuracy as with my previous use of H4831. But....certainly at a greater perceived pressure.

In fact now that I have used up my canister of IMR4350 I have replaced it with...H4831 as I don't think that it can be bettered very much. Certainly it is that slight bit better accuracy AND at less perceived pressure.

Don't try Vectan SP7 however! I did with a load that was a full four grains ( about 8%) under what was being published as acceptable and ended up blowing the primer and the case looking like a belted magnum. No other ill effects noted so I think that in fact it may have been a rogue case with soft head area.
 
Last edited:
I wouldnt rule out annealing mate as Norma brass is very thick on the neck and is known as hard brass so it may be more worked than you think.I would anneal sooner than change your powder it a damm site cheaper

that doesnt sound right
Norma is known as soft brass surely? It has a higher copper content and as a result doesnt suffer from the work hardening that many other harder brasses suffer from

still worth doing as a tenner per hundred investment
 
I am sure I remember reading that Sako factory ammunition for the .270 is loaded with N140. Anyone got a Sako catalogue with their cartridges listed in it to hand?
 
that doesnt sound right
Norma is known as soft brass surely? It has a higher copper content and as a result doesnt suffer from the work hardening that many other harder brasses suffer from

still worth doing as a tenner per hundred investment
well thats what ive found,with loading 1 x 243 and 1 x 243 AI with Norma.as you say annealing is worth trying for the sake of £10 to have it done properly
 
well thats what ive found,with loading 1 x 243 and 1 x 243 AI with Norma.as you say annealing is worth trying for the sake of £10 to have it done properly


I've always come back to using norma after dabbling with other makes including lapua. I have easily got 20 reloads out of my .270 brass with good consistent results without annealing.

I know what annealing does and its benefits but at the moment I am not looking at extending the life of my brass and I don't feel the need to anneal at this stage of my testing (I pretty sure I can feel the difference as it gets to the overworked stage in my press compared to soft maleable brass). If I did start annealing I would want to be sure that it was being done properly as it can make your problems a whole lot worse if its not.

Anyway. Powder is the next variable on test as 4831 certainly does not work anymore with old or new cases.
 
Guys!!! Being a perfectionist my testing is pretty meticulous. The 4831 has been tested in sensible increments up to the max loads and will not perform anymore. What I am doing now is trying to squeeze the last bit of life out of a very worn throat and barrel (I have inspected the bore through a scope). I have it on good authority that it is possible to find load/bullet combinations that will enable this, so whilst I am not expecting it to shoot as it once did, powder is the next variable on the list.
 
Back
Top