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Old December 27, 2012, 05:07 AM   #1
MC One Shot
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Reload data for Berger 168g VLD Hunting in .308

I am looking for .308 reload data for Berger 168g VLD Hunting bullets.

I cannot get any data from Berger for them since they put out their manual they are not emailing any data out and the link has been removed from the site. The books are not available yet at any of the dealers in my area.

I ordered one but it has yet to come.

Any one got the book and can PM/email a copy of the data.

Thank You
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Old December 27, 2012, 09:15 AM   #2
Dan Newberry
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The nodes will be in the usual places--as a rule--but we allow for exceptions, always... so we work up from starting charges.

Check www.hodgdon.com for load data for the .308 and 168's... the Bergers will not be that different as to their max charges as other 168's Hodgdon shows data for. The following charges are well within Hodgdon's parameters for the 168's they show...

In Winchester brass... the node with IMR 4895 should be at 43.6 grains, but you'd want to check 41, 41.5, 42, 42.5, and 43 grains just to be safe. You don't have to shoot but one shot at each of those charges...

With 4064... it's going to be just north of 44 grains... work up from 42 grains. Probably it'll be at 44.4 grains or somewhere in there.

With Varget, it'll be about the same as 4064, but work up from 42... Varget has a high node close to 46 grains but I have never gone there with the Berger, so I can't advise as to that.

The old standby, 39 grains of IMR 3031 is a safe and accurate load for most 168's in Winchester brass for the .308...

I don't know how sensitive you'll find these bullets to be to seating depth... if you're shooting a Remington action, you'll have to load them to 2.800" or they won't mag feed... and you won't want to go much shorter than 2.785" or so I wouldn't think.

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Last edited by Dan Newberry; December 27, 2012 at 09:22 AM.
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Old December 27, 2012, 05:45 PM   #3
Unclenick
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Dan's loads all look very reasonable. I'll refer you to Berger's comments on finding best VLD seating depth. Heavy VLD's usually wind up too long for magazine feeding and the most accurate seating depth for this one may do the same thing. It just isn't certain.

Based on Bryan Litz's dimensions for that bullet, the ogive is 0.688" long. That means you could seat into a maximum length case (2.015") and have a cartridge 2.703" long before the front end of the bullet's bearing surface began to go in below the case mouth. If one of the seating depth sweet spots turns out to be between 2.703" and 2.810" (SAAMI's max; the military's is 2.800"), then it will fit into and feed from any SAAMI compliant magazine configuration for sure. Many actual configurations will let you seat out slightly further than SAAMI maximum. So, go through Berger's procedure once you have a moderate load shooting, then see where the best accuracy lands.
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Old December 27, 2012, 06:39 PM   #4
Bart B.
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I don't know what the "node" is Dan's talking about, but the following loads have been very accurate with all 168-gr. bullets in the .308 Win. case. If any one won't shoot better than 3/4 moa at 100, it ain't their fault. Some seating depth differences may be needed.

39 grains of IMR3031 - favorite load for military rifle teams in the '60's
42 grains of IMR4895 - Average charge for M852 match ammo
43 grains of Varget - newcomer to this list; just is darned good
41 grains of IMR4064 - super accurate reduced load; popular with competitors
44 grains of IMR4064 - popular load for competition service and bolt rifles

Cut the charge about 1 grain if cases are heavier than 180 grains, increase the charge about 1 grain if cases are lighter than 160 grains.
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Old December 27, 2012, 07:21 PM   #5
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MC One Shot, You might want to wait on the manual as your going to find some good information from these shooters.

Each section is written by an expert in their discipline. These include a section on Short Range Benchrest by Walt Berger, High Power – Across the Course by Sherri Jo Gallagher, Palma, Long Range & Fullbore by Nancy Tompkins and Precision Hunting by John Burns.
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