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- Dec 7, 2016
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With my mitts wrapped around the Patriot .45 too often and winter fully engaged yet, I've taken some time to do a little studying on the direction I want to go with it. I think I have my powder choices pretty well zeroed in on except for deciding on the final weight that will come with shooting. I've decided that since the gun is, or came to me, having been shot using smokeless it would be stupid to start sighting with BH209. I've weighed out a mess of medium light charges of three powders and will play with them to get the scope sort of dialed and maybe see how each change in powder and charge moves things. For this I will use my stash of XTPs in 200 grain .40 cal.
The bullets are proving to be my onus now. I have plenty of the 200 grain .40 cal XTPs and a mess of 200 grain .40 cal SSTs along with plain and crush rib blue sabots. My thing with the XTPs and the SSTs is I am not sure how well they will hold together at smokeless velocities, even in the 2200-2300 fps range, on deer. Mark at Woodman suggested the 225 grain Star Tipped bullet he sells from Fury. Fury has assured me that the .40 225 grain is a bonded bullet that's smokeless rated so I think I will order 50 of those and have them knurled to prevent sabot slippage. While I am waiting on bullets, I plan to get the gun out as soon as possible and do my starting powder playtime/basic scope sighting stuff. When the new bullets arrive, I will settle down to some serious shooting, one powder at a time, until I find what I want for accuracy and then draw things together thru the summer for a hunting load. I think I will find the accuracy I want somewhere between 2300 and 2600 fps, mindful that I will be shooting mostly well under 100 yards. My plan with the 225 grain pills is to sight at 100, but spend more time plunking on targets at 125, 150, 175, and 200 yards, not only for fun but to know exactly where I am at with farther shots should that option come along.
I'm not new to reloading center-fires and know the ins and outs of load development. I just thought I'd gotten out of that zone with muzzleloaders. Ha! Always a wrench to toss in there and this Patriot certainly has been a big wrench since it's been maybe 46-47 years since I reloaded for the smokeless rifles and big pistols. Conceptually things are about the same but then again so much has changed.... like the powders and NOT having a case. Honestly, I think having had the weather make a u-turn and thwart some of my anxiousness to hit the range with this gun was a good thing. It's forced me to think ahead a little. Slow down and breathe a little.
I have N110, IMR 4198 and 5744. I've always had super good results with IMR powder in my centerfires so will likely start there, then try the other two. I never realized how consuming this smokeless gig gets until now. On one hand it is almost intimidating, on the other its fun finding out what all there is out there. I'm at a point where I want to bring it on but the weather has had other ideas for me, so I'll order my Furys, get some travel done while they're enroute and then get down to making no smoke.
The bullets are proving to be my onus now. I have plenty of the 200 grain .40 cal XTPs and a mess of 200 grain .40 cal SSTs along with plain and crush rib blue sabots. My thing with the XTPs and the SSTs is I am not sure how well they will hold together at smokeless velocities, even in the 2200-2300 fps range, on deer. Mark at Woodman suggested the 225 grain Star Tipped bullet he sells from Fury. Fury has assured me that the .40 225 grain is a bonded bullet that's smokeless rated so I think I will order 50 of those and have them knurled to prevent sabot slippage. While I am waiting on bullets, I plan to get the gun out as soon as possible and do my starting powder playtime/basic scope sighting stuff. When the new bullets arrive, I will settle down to some serious shooting, one powder at a time, until I find what I want for accuracy and then draw things together thru the summer for a hunting load. I think I will find the accuracy I want somewhere between 2300 and 2600 fps, mindful that I will be shooting mostly well under 100 yards. My plan with the 225 grain pills is to sight at 100, but spend more time plunking on targets at 125, 150, 175, and 200 yards, not only for fun but to know exactly where I am at with farther shots should that option come along.
I'm not new to reloading center-fires and know the ins and outs of load development. I just thought I'd gotten out of that zone with muzzleloaders. Ha! Always a wrench to toss in there and this Patriot certainly has been a big wrench since it's been maybe 46-47 years since I reloaded for the smokeless rifles and big pistols. Conceptually things are about the same but then again so much has changed.... like the powders and NOT having a case. Honestly, I think having had the weather make a u-turn and thwart some of my anxiousness to hit the range with this gun was a good thing. It's forced me to think ahead a little. Slow down and breathe a little.
I have N110, IMR 4198 and 5744. I've always had super good results with IMR powder in my centerfires so will likely start there, then try the other two. I never realized how consuming this smokeless gig gets until now. On one hand it is almost intimidating, on the other its fun finding out what all there is out there. I'm at a point where I want to bring it on but the weather has had other ideas for me, so I'll order my Furys, get some travel done while they're enroute and then get down to making no smoke.
