Varget question

[kurac]

I am new to Varget but not to re-loading. On Monday I opened my first can of Varget and poured a little into the cap to see how big the grannules are. I noticed right away that the black grafite coating is kind of thin and you can actually see the powder base underneath.

Is this normal or should I be worried? I have never noticed this on any other poweder.

[thmpr]

That is normal. What caliber are you loading?

[kurac]

I will be loading some .223 match loads for CMP Highpower

[Chaingun]

Good choice on powder

Varget is also great for .308

[kurac]

From what I heard, Varget is the only choice

[ocabj]

From what I heard, Varget is the only choice

Whoever told you that is mistaken.

RL15 is has probably taken the lead over Varget for .223 HP SR shooters and a pretty good percentage of shooters use N140. A select few use N540.

[Timberwolf]

Varget is a good powder but the lot to lot variences are higher than other powders. That said RE15 has pretty much become my powder of choice for most applications 223 and 308.

[uscbigdawg]

Varget's awesome and reliable. Pretty easy to get kegs in a pinch.

Rich

[jandmtv]

all of my rifles, .308 and .223 seem to like RL15 better than varget.

[Cazach]

Is it just me, or is Varget the stinkiest powder out there?

Every time a crack it open, I smell it for hours afterward.

[All Nav]

Tried Varget in my Savage 12VLP .223 and sold the bottle the next day. Terrible stuff. Moved onto H322 and have never looked back. If you are shooting a bolt gun, try this powder before settling on any other.

[kurac]

Well, Thanks for all of the info, I will be loading some up the next few day, testing it out on Friday and then loading some up that night for a match on Saturday morning, it should be interesting.

[ocabj]

Tried Varget in my Savage 12VLP .223 and sold the bottle the next day. Terrible stuff. Moved onto H322 and have never looked back. If you are shooting a bolt gun, try this powder before settling on any other.

Yes, Varget isn't optimal for lightweight .223 rounds. Stick to ball powders for under 70 in .223.

[Ahhnother8]

All powders vary from lot to lot. As do bullets and brass. Primers, not sure??? Varget works fine in .223, but is very dirty. That means an AR needs to be cleaned fairly often. You can actually hear the bolt cycling slower and slower as it gets dirty. Many/most of the people that compete at Sac Valley use Varget.

Almost any type of powder, of the appropriate burn rate, will work for .223. Ball powders are extremely temperature sensitive though. If you work up a load in cool weather, and shoot in the heat, you may experience serious pressure issues. Just be aware of that. If you find yourself in that situation, put the ammo in an ice chest, and the pressures will come back down.

Lane

[Fjold]

If you do a Yahoo search for "varget temperature sensitivity" the first five article all talk about how stable Varget is for changes in temperature.

I stopped reading after that.