Reloading

Try and find an experienced , competent mentor to help you get set up and be able to call on matters that will crop up. However some of the printed data books still hold how to sections and there are other good books on the processes . Henry Krank keeps a goodly amount of old and new books
 
Gentlemen,

If he is trying to duplicate a factory load, he'll likely need a chronograph to establish the velocity his factory ammo has out of his particular rifle.

To the OP,

Beyond that, (like mentioned) read your manual. Select a powder based on the load data in the manual, where the starting and max loads (for that bullet weight) bracket your desired end state velocity. Then work up a load. Also, understand, factory loads do not typically use "cannister grade" (stuff people buy in stores) gun powders. They use industry supplied bulk powders which are then blended to achieve a desired velocity and pressure. So, the home reloader can not create an exact duplicate most times, but they can develop one that has similar pressure and velocity, which will yield (typically) the same results as factory bought ammunition. There are exceptions to this rule, but it is rare when factory ammo uses cannister grade powders (308FGMM and early 6.5CM ammo come to mind as ones that used cannister grade powders).
In the days when I spent more on reloading materials than measuring I simply used duplicating the group size at a known range as the benchmark. I would try and get a load that was closely matched to the published factory data but the barrel length etc meant it was easier to use the group size and point of impact as the measure. It worked well enough until I borrowed a mates chrono, he hasnt asked for it back yet!
 
In the days when I spent more on reloading materials than measuring I simply used duplicating the group size at a known range as the benchmark. I would try and get a load that was closely matched to the published factory data but the barrel length etc meant it was easier to use the group size and point of impact as the measure. It worked well enough until I borrowed a mates chrono, he hasnt asked for it back yet!
I will say, I just used the new Garmin Xero chronograph on Friday, when I was testing nose ring'ed 130gr RDFs. Oh. My. Lordy. What an improvement over the LabRadar....well worth the cost of admission IMHO.
 
I will say, I just used the new Garmin Xero chronograph on Friday, when I was testing nose ring'ed 130gr RDFs. Oh. My. Lordy. What an improvement over the LabRadar....well worth the cost of admission IMHO.
That's great to hear. I'll admit that I'm a lazy sod, so I haven't read the manual. So allow me to to ask you two questions please.
Can you use it as a stand-alone unit or do you need a smart phone to go along?
Do you need to open up an account with Garmin? (Read something of the sort somewhere.)
 
That's great to hear. I'll admit that I'm a lazy sod, so I haven't read the manual. So allow me to to ask you two questions please.
Can you use it as a stand-alone unit or do you need a smart phone to go along?
Do you need to open up an account with Garmin? (Read something of the sort somewhere.)
You have to register an account if you want to use the app (which also registers the Xero for warranty and such). I suspect this is also how the Xero is linked to your phone (the app is tied to the MAC address of the device).

I believe you can use it stand alone (without the app), but haven't really tried that, since I like having all the data automatically transferred and stored on my phone for later review). That being said, after using the Xero you have to pull it to the app, so I'm pretty sure you can use it stand alone (which makes sense, since you might be in the boondocks when using it, and having to have it tied to a smartphone that has no cell reception would make no sense).

BTW, it has settings for rifle, pistol, air rifle, arrow and "other".
 
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