What rifle to reload for

I started reloading about 6 months ago. I'm slowly getting things sorted. I've found that the rifle you reload for is a big factor. I have a Sako 85 in 270 and found that I can only change my seating depth a small amount due to the length of the magazine. This leaves me with a decent amount of jump prior to the bullet meeting the rifling. This hasn't proved to be too much of a problem as I'm getting consistent sub MOA but if I want to play around with different projectiles it could be in the future. The reading I've done on reloading seems to focus on the reloading process and equipment but I haven't seen much on what rifles lend themselves favourably to reloading or what to look for in a rifle that you want to reload for.

So I have some questions for those who have a lot more reloading experience than me. What rifles are you reloading for? What are the pros and cons of reloading for that rifle? What rifle would you recommend owning as a reloader? I'm not asking about calibre, that's a whole other kettle of fish I know.

I'm also loading .270 but in a Remington 700... it has a really long magazine so I don't have your issues, but I did read that it's a potential problem due to the long case plus wide variation across models since it's quite an old calibre.

Yip long actions can be a pain. Get a 6.5 Grendel on your Sako 85 LA and you will be able to seat whole pencils D

Nah in all seriousness though its more about finding the calibre you want and then sussing out what rifle/action and mag length would offer the options/flexibilities in reloading that you want.

I load for several Tikkas and Remingtons. As stated the long action Rems have a large magazine box but the medium action are a bit more restricted. The Tikkas being box Mags in medium length cartridges are limited also but you can for example put a long action bolt stop in and change the mag to a long one in the likes of a 260 Rem then that will give you a lot more room to seat your bullets out further.
My 6.5 x55 is a Tikka with long action and I seat the bullets well out and still have plenty of room to play with. My 300 Win Mag I load 200 gr ELD X bullets to fit the mag and they work well not taking up to much powder space in the case. I think you can generally find a way to make it work in most cases.

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Originally Posted by play4laugh

I started reloading about 6 months ago. I'm slowly getting things sorted. I've found that the rifle you reload for is a big factor. I have a Sako 85 in 270 and found that I can only change my seating depth a small amount due to the length of the magazine. This leaves me with a decent amount of jump prior to the bullet meeting the rifling. This hasn't proved to be too much of a problem as I'm getting consistent sub MOA but if I want to play around with different projectiles it could be in the future. The reading I've done on reloading seems to focus on the reloading process and equipment but I haven't seen much on what rifles lend themselves favourably to reloading or what to look for in a rifle that you want to reload for.

So I have some questions for those who have a lot more reloading experience than me. What rifles are you reloading for? What are the pros and cons of reloading for that rifle? What rifle would you recommend owning as a reloader? I'm not asking about calibre, that's a whole other kettle of fish I know.

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Do you own any other centerfires? if so, what do you have?

You could run a single load and a mag fit load...just sight in for your single load and tinker with a mag fit load (shorter projectile) to similar POI.
Everything in my 270 kept to the same horizontal plane and moved up and down depending on bullet weight and velocity.

Max Headroom, I have a Sako 223 that I'm reloading for. This is a great little rifle and most groups are just a about down to 0.5 MOA using 55gr Sierra Gamekings. I also have a Tikka 243 but I don't have dies for reloading this one. I mainly use the 270 and 223. I used to have a 308 but sold it. There are so many reloading options for the good old 308 I kind of wish I still had it.

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Originally Posted by play4laugh

Max Headroom, I have a Sako 223 that I'm reloading for. This is a great little rifle and most groups are just a about down to 0.5 MOA using 55gr Sierra Gamekings. I also have a Tikka 243 but I don't have dies for reloading this one. I mainly use the 270 and 223. I used to have a 308 but sold it. There are so many reloading options for the good old 308 I kind of wish I still had it.

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I suggest to you that if you're getting .5 MOA, then you've already arrived at where you need to be, unless you feel the need to experiment.

If you do, the 223 is a good place to start, and learn more about your craft. Lots of people reload it.

Yes - I'm pretty stoked with the 223

@play4laugh, excellent question :thumbsup:

It is a variety of factors, I am sure you will get many replies and each person would have a slightly different answer.

Like others have mentioned, mag loading is a big limitation for some calibers, especially the "older" calibers like 308 and 270 compared to the hot new flavours such as 6.5 CM or 47.

In my experience, rifles with internal magazines are easier to reload for if seating to or close to the lands is important. Anything with a plastic magazine will be shorter. Some of the AI style magazines (Accurate mag for instance) have more internal capacity.

Some actions such as the Tikka T3 range are effectively all the same length, and use bolt stops for the shorter chamberings. So you could use a long action and load long short action cartridges, provided you overcome the feeding issues.

Then if you get into F-class shooting, it is generally single shot actions, with extremely long throats (to accommodate the loooong, high BC target projectiles) - so a different kettle of fish all together.

you've got the field well covered with 223, 243 and 270. I assume these are firstly hunting rather than target rifles ?
If the twist rate on your 223 allows you could experiment with the heavier 22 cal pills (60 -75+gn) for better longer range performance on gongs & single feed.
Same for your 270 - even if you have mag length restrictions you can still load for max COAL and optimum jump to lands, you just need to single feed. Not the end of the world for long range shots when hunting as at extended range you need time to set up the shot anyways. If its a hunting rifle run a bush load that fits the mag for 0 -300 yrds, then a specialist long range pill which you single feed. Easy peezie

ok, what do you want to hunt/ shoot and at what range is a good place to start. i hated 223 but later learned it was a good goat and hare gun. i would never shoot large game with it though.
then i decided 308 was right for me till i discovered long range and went 7mmRM
i still uses a 44 for short range pigs. though accuracy isnt as necessary at 20-50m as knock down!

so it all depends on what you are trying to do

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Originally Posted by gonetropo

so it all depends on what you are trying to do

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That's it in a nutshell.

If it shoots well who cares how far in the case the bullet seats. Sakos are known for having relatively long throats, my theory is it is to accommodate the heavy round nose bullets favored by the Europeans, they're not as "pointy" as some of the newfangled offerings so the bearing surface reaches further toward the front of the projectile, bearing surface closer to the lands for a given projectile length.

Whether to reload comes down to two factors Cost or Accuracy . If you are using more than 40+n rounds a year then cost become a factor . If you are chasing Accuracy then cost can go out the window .
Everything balances on what you want , as to the outcome ????? .

Already lots of good advise, my 2cents. Load what you have to get the best accuracy, even if it means single loads.
Then you have a bench mark for how well it shoots, then experiment with loads to fit the mag.

one good thing about reloading is once you develop good accurate ammo you don,t have to worry about where its going to shoot not like factory ammo it quite often will shoot in a different place:cool:

For me it doesn’t matter what rifle I’m using. I reload for sub MOA accuracy and projectile performance on animals first and economic of reloading than buying over priced factory ammo here in New Zealand and well worth it if firing high volume of ammo. Some calibers I’ve had are wild cats which means reloading only. I reload for a few mates and they bought the dies for the calibers I didn’t already have and some only use 100 rounds in 3 or 4 years but have the best of the best accuracy and performance from stock standard rifle.

It all really depends on what you needs are? Fast pace goat/bunny’s and targets 200 rounds in a day? or maximum accuracy long range deer dropper on the spot?.

all of them...... very seldom do I buy factory ammo anymore. sometimes .223 or 7.62x39mm only because its so darn cheap..... normally both get fed reloads so I can taylor loads to whatever I want them to achieve.

I built a 284 on a Tikka action for the purpose of being able to seat the bullets long and still fit in the magazine. Im considering selling my Tikka 7mm rem mag as I have to single feed it in order to get it shooting well with the bullets I wanted. This will help me to fund other toys now that I have my 284. I could go down the path of using an AICS magazine conversion but I don't want a magazine sticking out the bottom on a hunting rifle. I have plenty of time to think about it though haha.