Reloading for the 280 Remington

[Angus 1895]

Hello . I am reloading a 280 Remington with 165 grain Remington core locks.

What is a good recipe? I don’t have much IMR…..would varget work?

Thanks

Looks like 41 grains of Varget might be good?

 

[Native Hunter]

The Nosler website shows a load with a 140 grain bullet. I think the powder is a little on the fast side for that caliber per what I see. It may work but won’t be optimal.

 

[Wind Gypsy]

Yeah, varget is pretty fast burning for a 280 especially with heavier bullets. I’d have guessed more in the h4350 - h4831 burn rates would be good. Hodgdon has all their data online.

Reloading Data Center – Hodgdon Reloading Data Center

hodgdonreloading.com

 

[Foggy47]

When I was doing lots of reloading for a few 7MM cartridges including my 280 Remington......I ALWAYS used H4831 SC powder. I tried several others but h4831 became my fav powder due to the consistent ES and accuracy of all the others. Also goes thru a powder measure better than other stick powders and it throws consistent weights in your measure.

My 2 cents.

 

[Angus 1895]

My powder pouring contraption HATES 4831 SC

I got over a pound of it……..but every pour will require my intervention.

I am surprised how slow max loads are compared to the 3006.

 

[bigboreblr]

308 holds 58 grains, 30-06 is 68. Then neck doown the throat even more. Also, as the diameter gets smaller, the more pressure sensitive the load is. cross sectional area is 18% less, so your change of volume as the bullet travels is less.

 

[Wind Gypsy]

My powder pouring contraption HATES 4831 SC

I got over a pound of it……..but every pour will require my intervention.

I am surprised how slow max loads are compared to the 3006.

Hodgdons data does seem pretty slow to me too. Keep in mind the 280s shoulder is a little further forward than 30-06 so I’d have thought that would make up for some of the smaller bore losses in efficiency.

 

[Jerry-B-WI]

My powder pouring contraption HATES 4831 SC

I got over a pound of it……..but every pour will require my intervention.

I am surprised how slow max loads are compared to the 3006.

Do you use that powder measure/scale for all your handloading? I've never used an electronic scale. Never loaded that volume of rifle cartridges that I needed the supposed speed and convenience of one. Never loaded more than 50 at a time and for handgun I just used a powder measure and threw charges.

For rifle I set my measure about a half a grain short of the weight I want and throw the charge right into the pan for the scale. Place the pan back on the scale and use a trickler to top it of to the weight I want. Goes quick enough when you get a rhythm. I've seen videos of the type scale you're using and always thought they were slow. YMMV

 

[Teeder]

Do you use that powder measure/scale for all your handloading? I've never used an electronic scale. Never loaded that volume of rifle cartridges that I needed the supposed speed and convenience of one. Never loaded more than 50 at a time and for handgun I just used a powder measure and threw charges.

For rifle I set my measure about a half a grain short of the weight I want and throw the charge right into the pan for the scale. Place the pan back on the scale and use a trickler to top it of to the weight I want. Goes quick enough when you get a rhythm. I've seen videos of the type scale you're using and always thought they were slow. YMMV

That's what I do for the volume I load for.

Also agree with the others, Varget's definitely on the fast side for 165's in the .280. I wouldn't even bother with it with 140's. Maybe 120's.

 

[Angus 1895]

No I use it for all my reloading.

Some powders it hardly ever hiccups.

4831SC is not one of them

 

[drycreek]

I use an RCBS Chargemaster to throw my .280 Rem loads, it hits on the money every time. Full disclosure, it didn’t always. From the factory it was hit or miss but a guy on the Texas Hunting Forum was turning brass bushings for the “spout”, (for want of a better term”, and now it’s super accurate. I do check every load with a beam scale, and by the time I do this and charge the case another charge is waiting in the pan. Reloader 19 is my go to powder for a 140 grain Sierra Game King.

 

[Angus 1895]

I never liked reloader powder due to the bottle is so tall……they don’t fit in my cabinet.

 

[Teeder]

You could lay them down.
I've used alot of RL-15 through the years. Definitely a favorite for my .338-06.

 

[Angus 1895]

Duhh…..never thought about that thanks.

 

[Wind Gypsy]

alliant (reloder) powders have been very hard to come by and very expensive lately anyway.

 

[Wind Gypsy]

I use an RCBS Chargemaster to throw my .280 Rem loads, it hits on the money every time. Full disclosure, it didn’t always. From the factory it was hit or miss but a guy on the Texas Hunting Forum was turning brass bushings for the “spout”, (for want of a better term”, and now it’s super accurate. I do check every load with a beam scale, and by the time I do this and charge the case another charge is waiting in the pan. Reloader 19 is my go to powder for a 140 grain Sierra Game King.

if overthrows are the issue with that hornady powder thrower this is a good point. Before people made brass bushings for chargemasters lots of people used plastic straws jammed in them instead. Might be worth the OP looking up “chargemaster plastic straw mod” and trying it with the hornady

 

[Angus 1895]

I will look it up. Thanks.

 

[Foggy47]

At one time.....I would dump a charge into the scale pan.....and use that little spoon made by RCBS to add or remove a few grains of powder. The easiest method after getting a good setting on my powder measure......was to set the RCBS manual-spin powder trickle with the tube dropping into the scale pan.....and simply tap the tube with the spoon to add a few granules of powder.

Seemed that was about as quick as any method out there for stick powders. With ball powder......I could normally just set my (Redding or RCBS) powder measure......and after a few tweaks it would repeat to the 1/10 of a grain. I'd just check about every tenth load for QC......but it often would stay spot-on though loading of hundreds of rounds. I still prefer balance beam scales over the electronic stuff.....maybe it's just me and my adverse relationship with electronic stuff.

One ball powder that has been quite versatile for me was / is Hodgedon 380. I have used it in loads for my 22-250 on up to my 280 Remington (IIRC). Really easy to meter though a powder measure.

 

[Wind Gypsy]

The autotricklers have been the cats ass for a while. Dispenses charges to within a kernal quite a bit faster than my RCBS chargemaster gets em to within 3 or 4 kernals with an occasional overthrow.

AutoTrickler V4 + A&D FX-120i Combo

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But this new one might steal the show

I've never had a manual powder thrower as i started with a chargemaster but might get a harrells precision to throw ball powder for less than top precision 223 ammo pretty soon here.

 

[Jerry-B-WI]

$1070 for an auto trickler? That's just nuts unless you're in the business of reloading. I do it for the enjoyment and satisfaction.

Just screwing around one time I pulled the motor out of an old cassette player and mounted it with a battery box and momentary push button switch. I mounted a pulley from the cassette player to my trickler and voila had my own motorized trickler. Quit using it cause it was easier to spin the trickler with my finger. Never have to worry about my finger being dead or bluetooth not working either.