lynxpilot

If you compost correctly, it doesn't stink. Stink is from anaerobic bacteria, which is a sign that you got your compost too wet and cut off oxygen to it. I don't mess with expensive commercial composters. We do it on a grand scale here and pile our yard waste, wasted hay/straw, chicken coop cleanout, llama poop, leaves, and food scraps in a corner of our lot and I periodically turn it over using the tractor/loader. On a smaller scale, I'd recommend a loosely connected walled area that breathes really well. Walls on 3 sides only. If you use wood slats, leave a gap between them. Just dump your stuff in it and turn it with a pitch fork every month or so. If you're in a dry area and get very little rain, you'll want to hose it down once in a while to dampen it. Not too much.

Bullet stability drops rapidly as you approach the speed of sound. At sea level on a 'standard' day, that is 1,116.4 fps. A fair measure of the maximum range of any given load is when it goes subsonic. You can estimate this range using any one of a bunch of online ballistic caluculators so long as you know muzzle velocity (requires chronograph), ballistic coefficient (varies depending on muzzle velocity but is normally provided for standard velocities by bullet mfgr.), and atmospheric data where you are shooting (like temperature, humidity, and altitude in mean sea level). You can estimate a lot of those and still stay within a reasonable range of accuracy to decide whether or not the barrel length you are looking at will suffice. Case in point, I bought a DPMS LR308-AP4 which comes with a 16" carbine barrel. My loads chronographed consistently 200 to 250 fps less than the identical load from my loading manual, which gives data taken from a universal test mount at barrel length 24". At 8" difference and the speed differences I mentioned from my barrel, you could surmise that the shorter barrels will produce about 30 fps less per inch of barrel. If you don't chrono your rounds, use what data you have available. If you reload, it's what the manual says minus the difference for barrel length, or if you use factory loads, use what the box says minus the correction for barrel length. Bullet manufacturer should provide ballistic coefficient or you can google it. Plug this data into one of the online ballistic calculators and see where the round goes subsonic (less than 1,116.4 fps). The calculator will also give you the energy of the bullet at that speed, so you can get an idea of its effectiveness. That's your effective range.

Apologize for the photo quality. Shouldn't have used the flash. Looks like with 0.5" spread at 44.6 gr and 0.75" spread at 44.8 gr, all others being unacceptable, I may bulk load at 44.7 gr just to put the error in loading weight measurement in the middle of two acceptable loads. Hopefully the tiny spread in load weight from unacceptable to acceptable isn't too small. I'll try 10 rounds at 44.7 gr. If I can duplicate the results from above, that's what I'll stick with. The highest two loads were showing overpressure on the primers. One was backed out slightly and all from 45.0 gr and up were too flat for my comfort zone.

OK, here goes:

I ended up doing a workup using the 168's and picked a load range within the Sierra recommendations for max. Went to the Hodgdon site and they show a much higher max. I forget what Sierra was, but Hodgdon is 45.6 gr. I did 0.5 gr intervals from 44 to 45.5 yesterday, but did it on my 400 yd range and couldn't discriminate the shots very well. It looked like the best group was about 45.0. I reloaded a group today in 0.2 gr intervals from 44.4 to 45.4 gr and will shoot them tomorrow at 100 yds. No pressure signs at any load up to 45.5 so far. I was getting about 2750 fps at the top load using the 178's. Until tomorrow.

I've been loading almost all of my 308 for long range target and have been using Sierra MK 168 gr bullets. For powder, I'm stuck on 43.8 gr Reloader 15. Just out of curiosity, I ordered a bucket of 4064. Anybody have a pet load using 4064 with 168 or 175 gr Sierra MK's??? Thanks, Dave

I'd never heard of the Remington versions having these problems, but I certainly had them with my LR308AP4. I ended up bending the lips on the DPMS mags out and it fixed it. Mine would usually jam on the second to last round in the mag. The bolt was running up the bullet when it was out of the mag but not in the chamber and it usually ruined the bullet. My situation was different than you are describing. DPMS website has a forum and a lot of people wrote in about the issue. The DPMS people that post on their own (and other) forum were pretty elusive about the whole thing. I wasn't impressed at all. On another note, I bought a DPMS 24" stainless barrel for mine and when I rebarreled, the bolt lugs didn't line up so I ended up with feeding and extracting problems as well as trashing the stock bolt. Come to find out, the alignment pin that slides up into the upper's threading was off, so the lugs in the extension weren't properly aligned with the lugs on the bolt. I suspect DPMS has some major quality control issues, and with enough warranty repairs and complaints, I'm sure they'll fix them.

http://www.midwayusa.com/viewProduct/?productNumber=287209 This is a sleeping giant. Excellent scope at discount scope price. I couldn't be more pleased with mine.

amazing how hard it is for somebody to understand "shall not be infringed".

Just received my longest wait item. It was Federal 215 primers. Seems like nobody had them for the longest time. Only thing I'm waiting for now is my Bartlein barrel for my super sniper.

I'd post a lot more if I had my .308 AR working, but the replacement barrel is still back at the manufacturer because it was improperly machined and I had to send it back after it trashed my original bolt and started trashing the replacement bolt I bought. What's worse is, the manufacturer has a reputation of, let's say, taking their time on repairs of their defective equipment. I got no confirmation that they received the barrel, so I have absolutely no idea where it is or what is being done to rectify the situation. Had said things not happened, I would have been the poster child of posts, because it was a new barrel, it was a long bull barrel for long range target stuff, and that's all new to me so I would have been full of questions to ask here. As it stands, I'll have no questions to ask about something I can't do, right or wrong, because I don't have the tool to do it. Should I post asking questions about the 338-378 Weatherby Magnum? That's what I'm doing load workups on while I wait for the .308. Agree from above, and on a serious note, seems like a good website. I'm lurking for any info I can get.

Not changing the buttstock. Almost all the shooting I do with this one will either be from a rest or prone with a bipod.

This must certainly show my lack of research, but when going from DPMS LR308 AP4 with carbine barrel and gas system to a 24" barrel with rifle length gas, do I need to change out the buffer too?

If you ever find out what the freebore is on that LR308, I'd be curious. Sooner or later I'll stick around work and make a gauge myself, but I just don't have time these days. I just read something a few days ago that mentioned freebore in the autoloaders being pretty long. I just did an OCW workup a few days ago and landed on 43.2 gr RL-15 with Sierra 168's. I don't use the A-max's in my LR308 because I had the tips come off in a match once and jammed up the action.

Just got my new barrel today along with rifle length gas tube and JP Industries adjustable gas block. FFT arrives tomorrow. I ordered the receiver claw and barrel nut spanner from DPMS, but I may not make it that long. I'd really like to get this barrel on. I've been waiting a long time to take advantage of .308 long range assets. Thanks a bunch for the warm welcome. Looking forward to learning from y'all.

Hey all. Found this site using. . .no surprise. . .Google. DPMS LR308 AP4 owner, moving to rifle length barrel and aftermarked FFT. My 308 is primarily my night machine, so eventually I'll thread the new barrel for a suppressor. Already have the scope. Adding a bipod. Interested in long range precision with this rifle.