After 20 years in storage, I decided it was time to dust off the old rifle.
Previous loads for this rifle were for IMR-4350 powder and Speer bullets. I had a hard time locating any 4350 lately so I purchased some Reloader 22 and a box of Hornady 139gr BTSP and loaded up a box. The first two loads I tried were 65gr and 67 grains. The 65grain loads did not group well even at 100 yards. When I got the 67 grain loads, the groups tightened up.
My Remington 700 BDL 7mm Rem Mag with a Bell & Carlson stock, 6-24x scope, and bi-pod.
My first 200 yard 5 shot group in 20 years. The two holes to right are from the 65gr loads. Three shots group well, but it seems that I had two flyers; one to the left and one to the right.
I can't wait until I buy a set of sand bags to stablize my rifle for some fine tuning. I need to see just how consistent the load actually is. These shots were taken while resting the front of the rifle on my hard MTM range case.
I apologize for less thean stellar pics.
The overall spread for the 5 shot group is a hair over 1.75 inches:
Three shots in the center of the group measured about .625 inches. I don't think that too bad for lacking sandbags and not shooting the beast for 20 years.
