OCW or Ladder for pet load finding?

[zrockstar]

I feel like I mostly understand the difference between the two, but for getting a straight up accuracy load, which is better? I see guys doing OCW that will not necessarily take the best group, but the group that falls withing the best range. So if I am looking for the tightest group my rifle can achieve, am I better off sticking to the ladder? Also what increments do you guys use for testing? I will be using Benchmark with a min/max range of 21.5-23.5. I was thinking about doing .3 and then going .1 once I find the best. This will be my first time doing load development, everything else has just been by the book loads. Thanks.

[silvertriple]

Whether OCW or ladder, everyone still does it a little different because everyone has their own preference.

I tried ladder a few times and don't care for it too much.

I mainly use OCW now. I start with max col (governed by either by hitting lands or max mag) loading batches of 4 rounds (cause it's in between 3 and 5 and will usually allow you to see the groups you don't want) in .3 powder charge increments. Once you're sighted in (I like to do mine at ~ 200 yards) take your time shooting the loads so your error factor can be dismissed as much as possible.

After all loads are shot, look at where the batches POI. You'll usually see 2-4 strings in a row that have similar POI. Usually at lower powder charges and then again at higher charges. Those are your accuracy nodes. Pick the charge you like best and then work on seating depth to further fine tune. Since you started with max col, load more batches with chosen powder charge, shortening col by .010. You'll be surprised how .010 change in seating depth can affect accuracy.

Sometimes the loads shoot so well already you don't have to play around with seating depth.

Hope this helps some. Show us your results! Load development is so fun + addicting!

[SixPointEight]

I prefer ladder, removes more variables. But it has to be done at sufficient range to see the results, and you have to accurately track the impacts. Otherwise, it's worthless. I've tried coloring bullets etc, and had very little lucky. Either a good spotting scope, or a camera down range is the best bet.

The point of the ladder and OCW is to find a range of powder charges that have minimal impact on POI. If your charge is slightly off, you won't see a large difference in your POI. Usually these windows or nodes are around 0.5grs wide, so I usually start a ladder test at 0.3 gr increments to find some preliminary windows, then try 0.1 gr increments to really narrow in on the node.

Just starting out, take your load manual, take the min and max loads. Take the difference between them and divide by 10 to get your charge increments. Load up 2-3 rounds at each charge increment you just determined and start from there

[silvertriple]

When doing ladder, I used a camera to track impact to minimize walking and since you can't call a seize fire after every shot at public range. Ditto on the longer range needed. I preferred ~ 300 yards. I think for ladder you're shooting skills have to be dead on to rule out fliers/ outliers since only one shot is taken for each charge weight. This can prove challenging for some since the shooting distance is further out.

[longrange1]

this is the original OCW and is one of the fastest ways to find a solid and consistent load...IF...you read through it,understand it and follow it to a T...

http://optimalchargeweight.embarqspace.com/ocw-instructions/4529817134

i used the OCW for several years and with in 24 rounds found loads...the only thing i did different was to load 1 extra round of each charge weight and from lowest to highest shoot 1 round each over the magneto speed BEFORE i shot the test for two reason...1 for a little warm up/practice...and 2 to check velocities.

ive used this load development in the last 3 barrels ive shot...2 260rems and the 6CM i just shot out and will use it next week with the new 6CM barrel...

http://www.texasprc.club/preidloaddev/

obviously youll need to adjust your charge weights for the caliber your shooting but i like Paul Reids thoughts on load development because even when i used the OCW way i was still looking for a speed node as well as an accuracy node...plus it is much faster than the OCW...i do load 1 extra round of each charge weight and shoot over the MS BEFORE shooting the test looking for my velocity as well as checking for pressure.

with all that said and as silvertriple said IMHO ladder tests are more for advanced shooters...ive shot just about every type of load development you can think of over the years at all different distances and the two above shot at 100yds are the two fastest ways ive found that produce accurate loads with the least amount of rounds fired for a new to average shooter.

[zrockstar]

LR1, that second article is great, thank you! I think I will try this today.