Handloader Magazine-243-Trail Boss- Amazing Accuracy!

[rbertalotto]

This months Handloader magazine just arrived.  So I had to quit work early, grab a beer and head out to the back deck.......

An article caught my attention about the Cooper 54 rifle in 243 Winchester. I love looking at the accuracy reports because after all..."The only rifles that are interesting are accurate rifles!"

Simply amazing the accuracy the writer got out of this rifle with Trail Boss, 85g bullets and only 1447fps....0.17" groups!!

And how little the barrel heated up.

Now of course, with this slow speed the trajectory will be like a 22RF. But if you were shooting Eggs or paper targets at a known distance, accuracy like that could be extremely useful.

I'm gonna have to try TB in some of ny bottle neck cases to see if I can reproduce the accuracy.

(BTW...Best accuracy with a plus 3000fps load was 0.59"...)

[Will Lynchem]

I have a brand new Uberti model 1873 short rifle that I just got back from the cowboys and indian store. I had Jim Bowie do a full action job and add a 5th generation short stroke kit. (He did a bang up job)! While I was waiting for the work to be done, I hand loaded 1000 rounds of 38 special with 125 gn cast lead TC bullets using 4.6 gns of Trail Boss. I went to the range last weekend and shot off about 250 rounds. I wish I could figure out how to post pictures because I would love to show off the targets. With the buckhorn sights at 100 yards, each group of 10 rounds were within 1.5 inches of each other with all rounds in the 9 ring and at least 4 of the 10 in the 10 ring! The recoil is no more than if I was shotting a 22. Needless to say I AM IMPRESSED,!!.  Not only with the accuracy of the rifle, but the consistency of Trail Boss as good all around powder. The only drawback I have found is that it is a really "dirty" powder. After shooting a full CAS match, cleaning both Ruger Vaqueros and the 1873, im spending more time cleaning than I am shooting. Even with the extra cleaning required,  I'm going to stick with this powder for the foreseeable future! 

[Galloway]

I sorta wonder if its lack of recoil rather than the powder causing these accurate groups.

[Will Lynchem]

It could be because of the lack of recoil but when you are casual shooting and not trying to beat the clock, it shouldn't make that much difference.  I tend to think it has more to do with the consistency of the powder and how it is made. The way they have flattened it out and made it a lighter weight per volume powder, it fills even magnum cases with a sizeable amount. A full or near full case results in a more consistent and complete burn. I by no means clame to be an expert in the fields of chemistry but I have noticed with other loads such as my 45 ACPs and my 308s that the powders that have very little volume per case vary much more with there accuracy than the powders thst fill more of the case. The more powder in the case the more even the burn. In my case, it just seems to be a theory that works.