Pressure Too Low


Sooty cases are often the result of loads that are low pressure and failure to grip the chamber walls through lack of adequate expansion.
Sooty cases are often the result of loads that are low pressure and failure to grip the chamber walls through lack of adequate expansion.

Q: A friend of mine gave me a load consisting of 35gn of W-760 for my Howa .22-250 with the Sierra 55gn bullet. I didn’t have any 55gn bullets but I did have plenty of Sierra 50gn bullets, so I tried his load with these bullets thinking there would be no danger since I was using a lighter bullet. Boy did I get a surprise!

There was a lot of smoke when I fired the first round and when I extracted the case from the chamber, it was smoked black on the outside. I am wondering if the load he gave me was too hot for my Howa. I only own one reloading manual and it’s a very old one.

Gary Hamilton

A: The reason you got smoke and a blackened case was not caused by too-high pressure. The load wasn’t powerful enough to cause the case walls to seal against the chamber. Gases leaked around the outside of the case, causing smoke to come out of the action and blacken the outside of the case.The load you used is way to mild for the powder and bullet weight you used. About 40gn is more like it for a 50gn bullet in the .22-250. You should getyourself a current reloading manual.

Never assemble and fire a load which has been passed along by a friend without first checking it in a reliable loading manual.

Past experiences with my mate’s reloads has convinced me never to fire someone elses reloads.

 

 

 


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Nick Harvey

The late Nick Harvey (1931-2024) was one of the world's most experienced and knowledgeable gun writers, a true legend of the business. He wrote about firearms and hunting for about 70 years, published many books and uncounted articles, and travelled the world to hunt and shoot. His reloading manuals are highly sought after, and his knowledge of the subject was unmatched. He was Sporting Shooter's Technical Editor for almost 50 years. His work lives on here as part of his legacy to us all.

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