wc 852 lot baj 47288 what is it like

brassbullets1 · April 14, 2013, 01:00 PM

i got 2 to 3 jugs of wc 852 this all the same lot baj 47288. it was sold to me as garand powder, but i have found out it is too slow, what is it like, i load fnfals .308 bolts, 300 win mag, 7.62x 54 and garands 150 and 175 gr smk.
i wished i hadn't bought it.. i loaded it a while back in garand and it was 300 to 400 fps too slow, i didn't load any more, or try.i wans't at max but close..
thanks for any help

11B-101ABN · April 14, 2013, 09:15 PM

WC852 was used for military 30 caliber machine guns and rifles, including the M1 Garand, for several decades. From the Army Ammuunition Data Sheets TM 43-0001-27 dated 1981, here are two loads from the book I have used, and had good results with: 1.) 50 grain of WC852 with a 145 grain tracer bullet produced 50,000 psi, and 2665 fps. 2.) 55 grain of WC852 with a 165 grain armor piercing bullet produced 54,000 psi and 2715 fps. If you substitute your 150 grain jacketed bullet and start at 50 grains, and do not exceed 55 grains for a charge weight, you should be ok.
Jeff Bartlett from Bartlett Reloaders sold that stuff for many years and recommended using IMR 4831 data to load WC852. You might consider contacting him for info.
Lake City Ammunition Plant has not made .30 caliber ammunition since the mid 1970's so your WC852 surplus powder is probably approaching 35 years old, and depending on the way it was stored, may have changed composition.
There have been warnings about using slow powder and heavy bullets causing damage to the M-1 Garand operating rod, but your 150 grain bullets should be OK. There are not many load books that will reference Military Surplus powders so if you are relatively new to reloading, the safest thing to do is find someone close to you who has worked with WC852.

brassbullets1 · April 15, 2013, 08:30 PM

thanks, i wrote jeff sunday, i seen him at knob creek sat, but hadn't looked at my powder until yesterday. i have loaded 1 batch afew months ago, it wasn't max but close and it was 2250-2300 fps with a 150 gr. then i got to checking,and found all the info on net that said my lot baj 47288 was too slow. i will contact him, i was just hoping to find somebody that had the same lot. i will try what you said, but will have to be next weekend. i will contact back
thanks again

brassbullets1 · April 17, 2013, 11:02 PM

i heard from jeff barlett , this is what he said
I never sold any WC852 from lot 47288. However, my records indicate it was one of the waivered lots that was used in .30-06 MG ammo only. The burning rate is similar to Hodgdon H450 or Winchester 785.

the only place i can find a lot of data is from my 1999 lyman book, it has quite a lot of data for h450 and win 785.
if any body lives in ky and might be intrested in a jug, contact me
thanks for everybodys help

April 14, 2013, 01:00 PM	#1
brassbullets1 Junior Member Join Date: August 22, 2011 Location: ky Posts: 11	wc 852 lot baj 47288 what is it like i got 2 to 3 jugs of wc 852 this all the same lot baj 47288. it was sold to me as garand powder, but i have found out it is too slow, what is it like, i load fnfals .308 bolts, 300 win mag, 7.62x 54 and garands 150 and 175 gr smk. i wished i hadn't bought it.. i loaded it a while back in garand and it was 300 to 400 fps too slow, i didn't load any more, or try.i wans't at max but close.. thanks for any help

April 14, 2013, 09:15 PM	#2
11B-101ABN Member Join Date: March 29, 2010 Location: Eastern Iowa USA Posts: 47	WC852 WC852 was used for military 30 caliber machine guns and rifles, including the M1 Garand, for several decades. From the Army Ammuunition Data Sheets TM 43-0001-27 dated 1981, here are two loads from the book I have used, and had good results with: 1.) 50 grain of WC852 with a 145 grain tracer bullet produced 50,000 psi, and 2665 fps. 2.) 55 grain of WC852 with a 165 grain armor piercing bullet produced 54,000 psi and 2715 fps. If you substitute your 150 grain jacketed bullet and start at 50 grains, and do not exceed 55 grains for a charge weight, you should be ok. Jeff Bartlett from Bartlett Reloaders sold that stuff for many years and recommended using IMR 4831 data to load WC852. You might consider contacting him for info. Lake City Ammunition Plant has not made .30 caliber ammunition since the mid 1970's so your WC852 surplus powder is probably approaching 35 years old, and depending on the way it was stored, may have changed composition. There have been warnings about using slow powder and heavy bullets causing damage to the M-1 Garand operating rod, but your 150 grain bullets should be OK. There are not many load books that will reference Military Surplus powders so if you are relatively new to reloading, the safest thing to do is find someone close to you who has worked with WC852.

April 15, 2013, 08:30 PM	#3
brassbullets1 Junior Member Join Date: August 22, 2011 Location: ky Posts: 11	thanks, i wrote jeff sunday, i seen him at knob creek sat, but hadn't looked at my powder until yesterday. i have loaded 1 batch afew months ago, it wasn't max but close and it was 2250-2300 fps with a 150 gr. then i got to checking,and found all the info on net that said my lot baj 47288 was too slow. i will contact him, i was just hoping to find somebody that had the same lot. i will try what you said, but will have to be next weekend. i will contact back thanks again

April 17, 2013, 11:02 PM	#4
brassbullets1 Junior Member Join Date: August 22, 2011 Location: ky Posts: 11	i heard from jeff barlett , this is what he said I never sold any WC852 from lot 47288. However, my records indicate it was one of the waivered lots that was used in .30-06 MG ammo only. The burning rate is similar to Hodgdon H450 or Winchester 785. the only place i can find a lot of data is from my 1999 lyman book, it has quite a lot of data for h450 and win 785. if any body lives in ky and might be intrested in a jug, contact me thanks for everybodys help