Ok, I’ve been loading 178 ELD-M and ELD-X loads for my 308, but I haven’t been able to find any published load data online for my specific bullet and powder, so I’ve gone off of loads that other people have loaded and suggested.

For this load, I was using 178gr Amax, 42.3 grains of H4895, twice fired black hills brass, and a cci primer.

It shoots remarkably accurately and was pushing this pill at about 2600 FPS.

Attached File


The primers seem to be flattened a bit and there is cratering, but I don’t see any other pressure signs.

Also many people I have read online have claimed to have loaded up to 46 grains of the same powder in this load without any dangerous effects.

This is my new load, 43 grains of Varget under a 178 ELD-M, this one has very similar pressure signs.
Attached File


Am I approaching any sort of dangerous territory here?

Oh sorry, it’s a Remington 700

How far is the bullet from the lands?  How do the primers look on factory rounds?

Firing pin hole in bolt is oversized.
No flattening of the edges of the primer.

Not very high at all.

Ok, thanks guys, just wanted to make sure my loads were safe!

Hodgdon lists 42.5gr H4895 as MAX under a 180gr SP.

ETA: 45gr Varget compressed.

Am in the group that believes that by the time you see excessive pressure signs, you are likely already over pressure by a fair margin.  Am also not willing to work up upper rifle loads without a chronograph and have some kind of anticipated velocity from the combination being used.

To conflict with that, if working up a load and get expressive pressure signs below the expected velocitys, might consider backing it off instead of pressing forward  for more velocity.

Guess another way of wording that is overpressure signs can be a fairly reliable indicator of higher pressures, but no overpressure signs are not a definitive sign of a "safe" load.

Especially in 308 with the significant variation in case capacity, and harder primers commonly used.

Thanks, I’m running 43grains so that should be well within the safe realm correct?

Also the casings I’m using have a bit of a larger case capacity than LC or FC since they are basically Winchester so I should be well within the real of safety.

My next purchase is going to be a magnetospeed, but at the moment all I have the means to do is ladder test loads, check for pressure signs, and chase accuracy. The loads I am running right now aren’t specifically made for chasing velocity, but accuracy, they seem to just be on the higher end of a node.

I would say that's max until you get a better firing pin to channel fit.

Yeah I agree, I might even back off a little.

A chrono only tells you what the average pressure up the barrel was.

You need a strain gain system (at least) if you want to measure actual pressures and see what is going on.