Help on loading for Rem 260

B

BenKeith

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I'm having my 13 year old granddaughter a rifle built to shoot Rem 260's. I've been out of shooting and reloading for about 30 years so looking for some help that will save me a lot of time, work and money building loads for this rifle.

The rifle is a Mauser action and all barrel/action work is being done by McGowen Barrels. The bolt lugs squared and lapped, bolt face squared, their 24" #3 sporter barrel chambered to a 260 Remington, with a removable muzzle break to tame recoil when bench shooting. Also installing Limbsaver recoil pad and 7/8" x 5" mercury compensator so maybe she won't be flinching. It has a fully adjustable Timney trigger and 3x9 Nikon Monarch scope. The action will be pilar post bedded in a custom walnut stock and free floating the barrel.

Now I want to build loads that will shot as accurately as possible from the rifle. So here comes the quetions.

How much of the Benchrest case prep will help and what's a waste of time.

Do I need to turn the necks, this barrel will have a .300 throat?
Do I need to buy the Norma or other high price brass or will the Remington work if I go through and match it up.

Do I need to buy the high dollar target dies or will a Lyman or RCBS set work. I always full lenght resize hunting loads and usually only neck size bench loads.
Would it be worth buying a 260 neck sizing die.
Would you buy a bullet seating dye that has the bullet guide that holds the bullet as it goes up?
Would it be worth hand seating the primers or would the tube feeder on my press work good enough.

I guess what I'm asking is, if one of ya'll were going to build loads for a sporting rifle, just how extreme would you go?

Anybody that has good load data for 260 w/1:8 twist, it would be appreciated.
 
First off, what is the rifle gonna be used for? Is it gonna be a light weight hunting rifle? If so, I would think that a lot of the intense cartridge prep that Bench shooter do would not be needed. Nor would you need the expense of imported brass. There is a happy medium where you can get satisfying accuracy without having to cut little logs of 4350 in two.
IMO, domestic brass, fire formed and trimmed to length. Do whatever you're inclined to do to the primer pocket (or nothing at all), select a couple of powders (I like H414), a couple of 120&140gr bullets, and start your load developement. I think how much trigger time your Gdaughter spends with the rifle will have as much impact on its accuracy as any case prep you do.
 
The rifle is a Sporter, will weigh eight - nine pounds. It will be used for deer and varmit hunting, as well as a lot of bench and free hand shooting time. I'm a firm beleiver in you have to shot a lot to learn to shoot. At the same time, I feel the rifle needs to be as accurate as possilbe to gain the confidence in being able to place a shot where you want in. My normal shot for a deer was a head shot, even out 200 yards. I want her to have the same confidence in being able to make that shot. That's why I reload and build loads for the rifle. If I just wanting something to throw lead down range, I would buy factory loads. If the gun is capable of .3" groups, I want loads that will shot them.

That happy medium is what I'm looking for without having to go through all the work and expense to find it. I don't need a round that will shot .1" groups if they are not going to make a difference. That's why I was asking if neck turning, top quality brass, and a lot of the other things required to make a benchrest rifle shoot it's best would be worth the effort in a sporter barrel.
 
I'm certainly no expert, but I have spent a little time with my .260 in an Encore.
I would not bother with neck turning for a hunting rifle. And with 3x9 glass I doubt you would ever need or be able to tell any difference. It would just make it more likely to have a problem in the field. Same with the brass. Remington .260 brass will do fine or you can use .243, .7-08 or .308 and neck up or down accordingly if you have some available. I've done them all and hve seen little difference. (BTW- My rifle is about 1/2 MOA with non-extraordinary efforts.)

I've had good success with Hornady 129gr bullets and both I-4831 & I-4350.
This is one of those calibers that is easy to load for and easy to shoot. Good choice for a young shooter. Good luck.

Rick
 
Grayfox offered good advice. I`d add though for a younger shooter you might want to look at Noslers 100 gr Partition for deer and the ballistictip for everything else. I`ve found the 100 gr BT to be very accurate in 2 different 260s and the partition was designed for deer with the 260 Rem.
H4831, R19, and H4350 have all been very good powders in mine for hunting type loads
 
What about reloading dies?
Which have ya'll had the best results with. Way back in time when I was doing a lot of shooting, the bulk of mine are RCBS. Since the 260 does not seem that popular, the only thing I can find in RCBS is the basic, full lenth resize die and standard seating die. I see other companies making dies but most of them I've never heard of. When I was heavy into this, RCBS, Lyman and those cheap LEE's were about all that were available.

While building loads, I will be using my old 24X scope so I won't have a problem finding the center of the targt. The 3x9 is for just shooting and hunitng. Living in central GA, most of her hunting is going to be woods or along the edge of fields. Seldom would she ever be making a shot over 250 yards because that's the furthest I have room on my land to put a target, and there are not many hunting areas she would ever be in that's that far.

I doubt many of ya'll will know what a 222 1/2 is but I have my old bench rest rifle in that caliber from over 45 years ago that would still put five shots in a hole about the size of a 45 bullet at 100yds the last time I shot it.

I do appreciate the help and any more advise. I know powders, bullets and everything else about this sport has changed since I was last active in it. After all, I now see 5" groups at 1000 yards. Back when I was doing this, that would have never even been a dream because it would have been asking for the impossible.
 
Ben,
You will do just fine with RCBS dies. Personally, I prefer Redding, but really, either will do. If you want to go just a little better, get a Type "S", bushing die and a few different bushings so you can vary neck tension. These will do better than pulling the button back through the neck. The standard seater should do very well.

A couple of other posters mention the 100gr bullets. I've used them as well with good results, but the 129gr Hornadys were just a little more accurate. All of them will do "minute of deer" easily.

I'll bet that 222 1/2 would be a hoot to sit down behind for an afternoon. Some things haven't changed all that much.

Rick
 
my 260

Ben, I prefer the redding deluxe die set. this has a FL die, Neck size die and bullet seater. i got the nosler 260 brass that is already prepped as time is a premium to me. the 260 likes H-4350 and the hornady 129gr spire pt is a good all around bullet. it will whack a whitetail and pop a big hole in a g-hog too. best of luck. as you stated the best thing is trigger time practicing. get her a good set of ear muffs and that should keep her from flinching. most flinching is not from recoil but from the crack felt on the eardrum when firing.
Fred
 
OK, I ordered the Redding Delux die set and a couple of different bullets. The site I found the Dies at was out of stock on the 129gr Spire's. Rounding up stuff for the 260 is getting to quite a task. Don't know if everybody is out of stock or don't carry it because it's so unkown or because it's getting so popular. I'm having to order bits and pieces where I can find them instead of making just one order at one or two places. Looks like Cabela's is the only one with brass and I'm hoping I can find the powder where I can drive and pick it up. I won't say local because where I live, anything local is a 35 mile drive minimum.
 
I've got an old steel-tubed Weaver T12 that I use for my load developments before I put the hunting scope on the rifle. Over the years, its been on everything up to and including a 8mm RemMag. Its been a real Timex.
222.5?? Isn't that the calibre that Jim Carmichael(spl) shot a lot in competition?
 
I guess I'll be a little different here. First, DO NOT PUT A MUZZLE BRAKE, on it. I found out that the report made them flinch more than the recoil. I have introduced 3 young Grandsons to shooting. Their young ears are sensitive! How much do you save using domestic brass? Not very much seeing as how 20 rounds will last forever. To be accurate you need to match the bullets to the throat and freebore in the barrel.
Butch
 
Muzzle Brake??? Naah. get her some good ear protection. Get her some trigger time with a .22 and since you'll be reloading, start her out with some watered down .260 loads and don't start out with too big a dose of those. Let her work up to full house hunting loads. You want to come away with her wanting more not asking "Granpaw, can we go home now??"
FWIW, I don't know anyone that buys their brass in lots of 20. If you do, you'll spend all your time reloading and very little time shooting.
 
The 222 1/2 starts off as 222 mag casing. The mag casing has too short of a neck to hold the bullet stable so you resize it to a length that's longer than the 222 but the bottle neck short than the 222 mag. Since it's been over 30 years so I don't have a clue who or if anyone is still shooting the cartrigde but it was a good cartridge when I was shooting. I shot this for 100yds and a modified 7mm Mag for long range. Neither of which would probably be competive today without new barrels and a lot of work.

The muzzle break is removeable and only for bench and practice shooting. The end of the barrel is threaded so it can be taken off and a cap screwed on to protect the treads and not show the funky end. When just practicing she will have very good ear protection on so the report from the break should not bother her but would not want here hunting and shooting it with the break on it. I have a 70db high frequency hearing loss above 5Kz from years of muzzle blast, don't want her doing the same.

A good set of ear muffs will keep the noise in check and I don't want her to shoot four or five rounds and want to quit because her shoulder is getting sore. The muzzle break will take out about 30% of the recoil, the 16oz mercury compensator in the stock will take a lot more and the Limbsaver pad will soften what's left so she should not feel anymore than shooting a 222. When hunting, the compensator can come out and the break will come off. The recoil pad will soften it enough it should not bother her for one or two rounds. Most people never notice the kick when concentrating on making a kill shot.

For the brass, I've ordered 100 rounds of Remington and 50 rounds of Nosler for starters.
For bullets I've ordered a box of 100gr varmit, Nosler 120gr partioned, a 120gr target, a 140gr target and going to get some of the 129gr, that company was out of the 129's.

For powders, I'm looking at the H414, the H4350 and the H4831SC. Those three seem to cover just about every bullet weight and bullet the 6.5 shoots.

Still hung on the fence for primers. CCI's seem to be popular.

She has tons of 22LR time and she killed her first deer last year with her daddy's Model 700, 270. Factory 150gr loads and no recoil pad or anything but she didn't like shooting it at all.

One more question, what's the oldest powder has anyone tried to use. I have a pound of IMR4350 dated Apr 1995 I bought to load my son-in-law some 270 ammo, but never opened it. The rest of my powders I'm pretty sure would be way too old. I don't see any dates on the cans but the price stickers are still on them where I paid $4.00 for a pound and $10 for one four pound can and were actually made by Dupont with the Dupont logo on the cans. Just for kicks, some of my RCBS die sets still have their $14.00 price sticker on them and one box of Sierra 6mm 85gr BTHP's that was $9. I still have close to 1000 old CCI 200 primers, 200 of them I got in 95 with the IMR4350 powder.
 
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If the can has never been opened, I'd bet it's still good. Without being able to see and smell the rest of it and w/o a Chrony, I'd say just use the rest of it as fertilizer.
No point in working up a good load and then finding out a new box of powder is way hotter than what you used. Or that the data in your load books just ain't matching up with what you're getting from the bench.
 
Shooters in the 60s were using surplus WWII powders to reload with.

Let your grand-daughter help you with working up a load for her rifle. I don't think the 260 will be much trouble in the recoil department especially with the recoil pad you've chosen, let alone the mercury tube. I wouldn't use the muzzle brake. Even with double ear protection, brakes are hard on the ears. If she's used the 270, and is still shooting inspite of "not liking the recoil" the 260 shouldn't present any problems especially if beginning with lower velocity loads and the rifle isn't one of those super light rifles. Also, the fit of the rifle is important for recoil management.

I would suggest you install a 2x7 power scope instead of the 3x9 or even a fixed 4x. They are better power choices for hunting and the scope won't be too big for that particular rifle. I had good results installing the Leupold 2x7 on my sons' rifles
 
Actually, it's going to more like I'm gonna help her. I'm going to have her doing all her loads while teaching her the do's and don'ts. I want her to fully understand every detail of how to build her own load. I have a large metal fold out box that will hold everything she needs but her Rock Chucker presses and I will keep a Starrett mic and a Starrett dial caliper in her kit and she will mic all her new brass and after every shot. I'm 62 years old and my clock could stop ticking any day. I want her to be more that capable of loading her own and knowing exactly what she is doing and why.

I don't believe in holding kids back just because they are young. She's been casting a Shimano Curado bait caster reel as good as most men since she was 8 and catch more bass than most so called bass fishermen. She's been driving my Chevy 4WD truck since she was 9 (her in the drivers seat, me in the passengers), towing my bass boat with it since she was about 10 and is now backing it down to the ramp at 13. By the way, this is all on country roads, not down major highways.
 
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OK, picked up some H414, H4831SC and H4350 today. So, now I either have everything on hand or on order but the primers and some Lapua 123gr Scenar bullets I'm gonna try.

For bullets I've gotten Nosler 130gr Accubonds, 125gr Partioned, 120gr Balistic tip and some 100gr Balistic Tips.

I've ordered 100 rounds of Remington Brass and 50 Nosler.

With this, who has had the best results with what primers. I'm thinking the CCI 200's but there are so many out there now, and maybe something just a touch hotter for the 4350 powder.
 
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I built a 260 on a VZ24 Mauser action with a 22" Douglas factory long chambered barrel.

I got the best results with 45 gr IMR4895 100 gr ballistic tips moly, 2.940" ~ 61kpsi ~ 3230 fps

It shoots sub moa until the barrel Copper fouls.
 
Ben....

I've been playing around with alot of different bullet weights and powders with my 26" 260 on a Rem 700 and what I found with mine is it doesn't care too much for the H4350...it will shoot it, but the sweet spot is so narrow I don't bother with it unless I try for some 600+ yd targets but i'm not there yet.

The 260 is a hot load and likes the slower powders for the heavy bullets, ie, above 125 gr.

However, the 4895, whether it's Hodgons or IMR, is a very accurate powder for the lighter bullets like the 95gr to the 107 and possibly even the 120-130 grainers just need to watch the pressure.

I was loading up 36gr of H4895 at about .015 off and I was getting slight cratering in the primers...back it up to about .040 and you would think you were missing a few grains of powder looking at the primer, seating depth seems to be a major player as far as pressure goes with the 260, remember you are nearing 60K PSI with this one so loading heavy at the lands will peak in a hurry.

I haven't loaded a hunting round but for paper the 107 SMK works very well 200 and under, the 123 scenar or the 130 Berger is very accurate as well.

With a neck of .300 for paper punching I would get a Lee collet neck die and size the neck after the first few firings and see how the neck thickens up before you do a F/L size. Do F/L size first before the first firing for sure but after that neck size the next few, that rem brass looks like it came out of a blender when new.

If you are not shooting for score then F/L size everytime, the 260 will be in the brisket regardless once you get a good load worked up whether you F/L size or not. I generally use the neck die and check the shoulder every firing and I usually don't need to trim or bump for at least 3 firings, and I have been using standard Rem brass. Set you neck tension for about .003 and you should be set.

I did get some 243 Lapua brass and when I expanded the neck, I trimmed the shoulder junction first before I formed to allow for the shoulder to "flow" to the trimmed area to avoid getting the dreaded "donut" that forms inside the case...not all the time but most of the time this will happen with 243 brass, it's a PITA to turn the shoulder but is worth it.

Reason for turning the outside of the junction is I don't like to disturb the inside of the neck..kinda keep the neck smooth and after you turn the donut down it's kinda rough inside so this step keeps you from having to do this.

I use BR2 primers and a Lee hand primer, get a flash hole tool and clean up your new brass. Get a Hornady headspace gauge and see what your chamber measures, also get comparator so you can use your dial caliper to measure the bump.

Don't go by OAL but base to ogive, them 6.5 boolits are long and vary greatly at times so always measure base to ogive and give it about a .020-030 jump to start, once you find the sweet spot try going to .015 or closer and I think you will find more flyers from pressure spikes and you will likely be happier with a good jump than a jam.

Powders, I would use the IMR 4831, H4831SC for the 120 or heavier and the 4895 for the lighter ones. H4895 is the only powder I believe you can vary the max load by as much as 40%...double check that first but even at 36 gr mine will easily shoot 1/2 MOA even with alot of air in the case, it's an awesome powder.

Hope this helps, keep us posted.
 
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