.204 Ruger seating depth

Cyres

Well-Known Member
My Savage like most .204's seems to have a very deep throat and its virtually impossible to load rounds that are close to the lands. I have been loading 39 grn Blitz kings at 2.350 and its shoots well. Last week talking to my mate who also has a .204 he suggested try seating at standard COL. I measured the COL's of factory Hornady 32/40 v max rounds and they were very similar so made up x5 39 grn at factory COL. Quick zero check on Saturday at 100yds was in effect 2 1 bullet hole gps about 1 cm apart so it was me rather than the rifle- ammo. This is very encouraging, load was 25.2 grn Reloader 10x. remmy 7.5 primers, Hornady brass.

D
 
My Savage like most .204's seems to have a very deep throat and its virtually impossible to load rounds that are close to the lands. I have been loading 39 grn Blitz kings at 2.350 and its shoots well. Last week talking to my mate who also has a .204 he suggested try seating at standard COL. I measured the COL's of factory Hornady 32/40 v max rounds and they were very similar so made up x5 39 grn at factory COL. Quick zero check on Saturday at 100yds was in effect 2 1 bullet hole gps about 1 cm apart so it was me rather than the rifle- ammo. This is very encouraging, load was 25.2 grn Reloader 10x. remmy 7.5 primers, Hornady brass.

D
Yet more proof that 'seating to the lands' is unnecessary and that data producers know what they are taking about when they recommend a seating depth! The distance to the lands on my CZ 204 is completely unknown to me. I load to the listed OAL and got 1/2 MOA, five shot groups.~Muir
 
Just to endorse what Muir says, with my 3 centre fire rifles the closest to the lands is 165 thou back - my 20 Tac is 223 thou back and that is a custom barrel.

20 Tac 98 yds-page-001.jpg
 
Yet more proof that 'seating to the lands' is unnecessary and that data producers know what they are taking about when they recommend a seating depth! The distance to the lands on my CZ 204 is completely unknown to me. I load to the listed OAL and got 1/2 MOA, five shot groups.~Muir

Its just another statistic that I file under "couldn't care less"...
 
Yet more proof that 'seating to the lands' is unnecessary and that data producers know what they are taking about when they recommend a seating depth! The distance to the lands on my CZ 204 is completely unknown to me. I load to the listed OAL and got 1/2 MOA, five shot groups.~Muir


+2

I've found that loading to published COAL often gives better results than trying to jam them up against the lands, but both arguments miss the point really. The seating depth is just one of a few variables, together with charge and bullet weight/type (sidewall length in contact with rifling, affecting swaging and barrel pressures for example) that effect barrel time and it is this that will determine the sweet spot (best accuracy load) for your rifle, apparently.

There are a number of barrel-time nodes for all rifles (changing with barrel length) that will result in a sweet spot. I've found that with my 223, and using 69 TMKs, for one specific load, the accuracy nodes are at 20 though off lands and 100 thou off lands. In between those values, groups open up. Outside of those values (ie closer to lands and out past 100 thou) groups open. Only at those two nodes with that one charge do I get decent groups. That's simply an indication of barrel time (the time of flight from rest to exiting the muzzle) coinciding with the barrel harmonic that is on a node. Others will find that their rifles shoot the same bullet with the same powder/charge at a different seating depth best, especially if barrel length is different.

Starting with published seating depths may or may not give best results. It depends on the test barrel (especially length) used for the data compared with your own.
 
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