7mm-08 Barnes TTSX 150gr Vihtavouri N160 Compressed?

[Yuck]

I'm following this load data: http://www.vihtavuori.com/en/reloadi...remington.html

Using Barnes TTSX 150gr I tried loading 45.5gr of N160, but it feels waaaaaaaay too compressed. I can get the bullet to seat but can hear the powder crunching as I'm driving to bullet into the case. Is this normal for compressed loads? I'm terrified to test fire these rounds.

Anyone have experience loading N160 in a 7mm-08?

[dkf]

With powders that fill the case 100+% you will get crunching of the powder when seating the bullet. I see 45.5gr is the max load. Did you work the load up to 45.5gr or are you just loading the max and hoping it is ok?

[Yuck]

For the Barnes TSX Vihtavouri lists the following for N160 powder:

Start load: 44.0 gr 2477 fps
Max load: 47.1 gr 2648 fps

I can't imagine shoving 47.1 gr into a 7mm-08 case.

[dkf]

Yeah I looked under the wrong column, my bad. How much you can squeeze in can depend some of the brass used and how thick the walls are. What you can do is fut about 2/3rds of the powder in, lightly tap the case on the bench to help settle the powder and then put the rest in and seat the bullet. Some even go as far to have a punch that compresses the powder before seating the bullet. There is going to be crunching. I run into the same thing with powders like varget, can't even get the max load in the case.

If you work the load up properly and look for the pressure signs you can work up the load and be safe about it. If crunching powder bothers you then you could always go to a faster powder that fills less of the case.

[Delkal]

Never loaded with N160, Is it a course stick powder?

To get a max load of a stick powder like IMR to fit in the case you need to settle / align the powder as your pouring it in. You can't just dump it in and crunch it down. Weigh or meter a charge then SLOWLY pour it into the case with a funnel. The higher you pour the better, some people even use drop tubes. This will align the sticks and give you more room for the bullet. You will see more room in the case.

The amount you can get in is also brass dependent. Some brands hold more than others. You should never have more than just a slight "compression" when reloading.

[Yuck]

Never loaded with N160, Is it a course stick powder?

N160 is an extruded powder. It was a real pain in the ass to meter it as well. I read good things about it, which was why I decided to give it a shot but I don't know that it's ideal for this caliber.

[Delkal]

I hate weighing out the course extruded powders but for extreme accuracy and max loads you need to. When done right they can be exceptional.

But there is also a lot to love with ball powders. Just meter them out (accurately) and put a bullet on

[dkf]

N160 is a really slow powder, slower than is needed for a cartridge with such a small case capacity like the 7mm-08 IMO. That is some of the reason why it fills up so much of the case, then add a really long monometal bullet like the Barnes and you crunch kernals. Winchester 760 or H414 will get you right there with the velocity that the N160 will attain. But neither max load for the 760 or H414 is a compressed load. I'd still work up and shoot loads to try with N160 but you may want to try some different powders too.

Here you can see some data from Hodgdon. http://www.hodgdonreloading.com/data/rifle

A measure I have found that works better than you would expect for stick powders is the Lee Perfect Powder measure. It is surprising good for the price.(I have one) Though these days I do favor my Hornady Auto Charge electronic powder measure for stick powders.

[BobGun]

Try Winchester brass it seems to be thinner and therefore allows more room for powder. Anytime I load a compressed load I use Winchester brass.

[762xIan]

Yes the "crunch" of a compressed load doesn't feel "right".....but it is ok. It is nothing more than combustion, and you actually want to have a powder that fills the case as much as possible.