03-26-2020, 12:52 PM
The topic of "safety" necessarily translates directly to the pressures that occur in the barrel during the shot, since pressure is what a) propels your bullet and b) blows your action/barrel up if too high.
Each barrel is truly unique, in addition each steel is unique and each set of metallic grain structures is unique. That being said, it is reasonable, with adequate QC, to set a more or less standard over-pressure limit, as well as the yield limits and rupture limits. Your barrel load limit needs to yield MVs/pressures that are less than all of these, obviously!
Pretty much everything we can measure is some kind of proxy for measuring chamber pressure. I too have run out of case volume, and seen insane MV's from a so-called "normal" non-max load. The hot load sequence came from using book load data in my 308 but in Hornady, vice other (I think Win?) brass.
Bottom line I would say is you need to take a data-driven, observation based, informed, all-of-the-above approach to looking at safe loads. Which will doubtless vary from barrel to barrel, brass to brass, powder lot to powder lot, and so on.
My starting ladders are my way of establishing powder/brass/primer/bullet/barrel combo and performance. If MV or case appearance, heck- recoil kick even, if any of these give me indications then I know I'm approaching the limit.
Each barrel is truly unique, in addition each steel is unique and each set of metallic grain structures is unique. That being said, it is reasonable, with adequate QC, to set a more or less standard over-pressure limit, as well as the yield limits and rupture limits. Your barrel load limit needs to yield MVs/pressures that are less than all of these, obviously!
Pretty much everything we can measure is some kind of proxy for measuring chamber pressure. I too have run out of case volume, and seen insane MV's from a so-called "normal" non-max load. The hot load sequence came from using book load data in my 308 but in Hornady, vice other (I think Win?) brass.
Bottom line I would say is you need to take a data-driven, observation based, informed, all-of-the-above approach to looking at safe loads. Which will doubtless vary from barrel to barrel, brass to brass, powder lot to powder lot, and so on.
My starting ladders are my way of establishing powder/brass/primer/bullet/barrel combo and performance. If MV or case appearance, heck- recoil kick even, if any of these give me indications then I know I'm approaching the limit.
"Down the floor, out the door, Go Brandon Go!!!!!"