New to F class - Finding a starting load

[Brendy]

Hi Everyone
Im looking at developing a load for my new rifle. I'm new to handloading.
It's a surgeon 591 with 28 inch barrel, shooting F STD

I have purchased lapua brass and 155 gr sierra palma projectiles
So many options for powder? Do I need to try them all? Or can I just choose 1 powder (eg ar2208) and then slowly work out the right load.
Do the brands differ?
Equipment, Primers, projectiles and brass seem easier selections I'm having trouble with the brand and/or model number of the different powders.
I just want a nice place to start. I can see this being a long journey
Any recommendations would be great

[Barossa_222]

I'd start with 2208, Lap palma brass (once fired at a medium load will season the primer pockets), BR4 or 450 primers and start at 45.7gr jammed into the lands and work up in .2gr increments until I hit hard bolt lift. This would be the practical maximum for the rifle. The load would be somewhere under that, probably low to mid 46's.

[AD5010]

2208, 2206h and 8208 all work with the Sierra 2156 in my experience.
2208 I would start at 45.5 and work up, while with 2206h and 8208 I would start at 44.0.

If it helps Im running 44.8 of 8208, Cci 450 primers and 50 thou jump.

[Aus9914]

Conduct a "Ladder Test" over a chronograph with your chosen powder. You are looking for the lowest "extreme spread" in velocity whilst still being within safe pressure limits. If the muzzle velocity is not above the sound barrier at the longest distance you intend to shoot get the next fastest powder and rinse and repeat. If it is still not fast enough get a longer barrel. Once you are happy with the extreme spread, standard deviation and muzzle velocity of your ammo, adjust your barrel tuner to get the smallest group.

[mauserjr]

Brendy ...Start it simple and keep it simple .If you are new to handloading proceed slowly and learn as you go . Lapua brass and 155 proj are good . Primers are what is available on todays market. If you can affford Benchrest primers ,and get them well than good . If not , there is nothing wrong with using standard CCI or Federal standard primers in a .308 . I have been using them for 30 plus years . ADI AR2208 is the go to powder with 155 gr pills ,start off at 44.5grs (mild) and slowly increase by about.2 of a grain until primers start to flatten or bolt is hard to open or both ,then back off . Start your seating depth at 20 to 30 thousands off the land and adjust as necessary . Seek advice from a club member who has been shooting a .308 with good results for a long time . Mauserjr

[fapope]

Ditto what mauserjr has said. That combination is as good as anything out there. There are a few tricks to precision reloading, so getting one of the good club shooters to show you their methods will save about 12 months worth of wasted mistakes. Practising minimal f/l sizing and case concentricity are critical starting points. You might also care to search this forum under AR2208 and .308 loads to see what other shooters are doing. It is likely you best load might be within 1/2 a grain of what they are using. In my view a lot of reloading equipment and gauges out there are obscenely overpriced so don't be in a rush to spend money there. I highly recommend the Lee collet neck die, the Redding body die and anything made by LE Wilson. If you want to progress even faster watching the Youtube channels "Winning in the Wind" and "Eric Cortina" are well worth the effort
.

[Brendy]

Thanks everyone, appreciate all the feedback.

[cheech]

Know your chamber dimensions well , understanding neck clearance especially. Brass preparation will revolve around your chamber specs ,and how hard the loads are on brass . Biggest thing I learned was consistent brass preparation , this becomes more important after a few firings looking for signs so it stays safe to use and importantly long accurate life we all know brass is not cheap ‘sometimes hard to get .

Don’t be reserved in asking members questions at the club especially those that shoot well and display meticulous approach to their equipment you will learn lots but in small steps

[Sam Walker]

I thought I knew enough to produce good ammo, and for the most part I did but one thing I took from Erik Cortina's YouTube videos, was ditching neck sizing for FLS every time. However I didn't have a good way to get my FL die adjustment right until I got a Whidden case gauge which makes it very easy to set the die adjustment for .002" shoulder set back and check the results.