Thread: OCW Load Testing

hehe, i'm definately coming at it from a very different angle

usually trying to find a load that works in a second hand, half shot out rifle of dubious chambering

Originally Posted by ebf

usually trying to find a load that works in a second hand, half shot out rifle of dubious chambering

...in which case there is even more chance that group dispersion will be due to factors other than those addressed by OCW.

For those contemplating trying to improve group size using OCW consider the following:

- if you very very carefully assemble 7-8 rounds to get as close to identical charge weights, neck tension, COAL, primer seating consistency etc etc and the resulting group is significantly smaller than when normal care is applied then it may be worthwhile trying to find a OCW node, as that is what finding a OCW barrel "whipping" node is trying to achieve; a smaller group than would otherwise result from shot-to-shot loading variations if not at a node.

- when not at a node the dispersion of the shots should lie along a line (that links adjacent nodes). If not trending along a line then the dominant reason for the dispersion cannot be the barrel whip.

I'm not saying that there aren't reasons why differing charge weights may result in different group sizes, only that the underlying principle that Newberry is trying to address with OCW is one around barrel "whip", and it pays to know what you are trying to improve before embarking on a method that may have only coincidental bearing on that issue. That is my position on most of the OCW testing that is reported on this forum.

Experimentation on thrashed-out barrels might be better spent trying some different hardness and weights of flat-based bullets.

Open to debate of course ( when I can find time to get on here) so bring it on…