likelihood, that was a mistake. A1680 is a fi ne choice for those
who want to use a case full of propel- lant and do not want to worry about pressure. However, H110, Lil’ Gun, and several other propellants have similar versatility. Several will develop more velocity. For those less interested in velocity and more interested in an easy propellant with which to develop accu- racy loads and one which is unusually clean burning, IMR 4227 propellant is a far superior choice. Uniformly poor ballistic uni-
formity of tested A1680 and Lil’ Gun loads suggests that some other primer might be a better choice. With H110, a signifi cant and interesting decrease in ballistic uniformity occurred as bullet mass increased. This might be indicative of something important but I am hard pressed to fi gure out what that might be. Several other propellants that one
could use in the Hornet simply do not deliver comparable ballistics. Therefore, I omitted testing those. Note that I list all data for H110
and W296 under H110. Despite the distinction in name and brand, these two numbers are now, and always have been, technically identical. Any apparent distinction, as when both are listed in a loading manual with all other components identical but show- ing different charges and velocities, is merely a result of normal— rather wide — lot-to-lot variation. I happened to use H110 for this testing; I could just as well have used W296 — same thing, different name. A new propellant from Alliant
called Power Pro 300-MP (hereafter, 300-MP) offers signifi cantly higher ve- locity in appropriate applications, one of which should be the Hornet. A priori, I expected it to show at least 50 fps greater velocity at any given pressure than any other propellant in any given Hornet loading. Results were evidently at least this good but it was impossible to get enough 300-MP in the case to develop full pressure with any tested bullet — another good reason to rechamber to the K-Hornet! (For now, these are available only
in 1-lb. containers. This is unfortunate. DOT regulations and delays get in the way and add to cost. If I were to explain the foolishness and cost associated with DOT approval of new propellants and
Often, one load would produce stringing in one direction, then, after a scope adjustment to move the group center, it would produce stringing at a 90-degree angle to the original stringing, as in these two groups fi red with the same load. Similarly, several times one of the two groups was a very tight cluster and the other was a string. If these things had happened a few times, it would have been interesting, but these happened many times. I suspect this refl ects a loose nut behind the stock. My front rest does not work with the narrow forearm on this rifl e and I never did fi gure out how to rest this gun consistently. Makes me wonder what this CZ might do with ideal bags and technique.
While these were some of the best groups fi red during this testing, any experienced Hornet shooter will appreciate the satisfaction these gave me. When considering that I was not deliberately doing anything to develop accuracy loads, such results are even more satisfying. I am confi dent that with a bit of tinkering (especially with seating depth) I can fi nd better consistency and accuracy.
new containers the average reader sim- ply would not believe it. Suffi ce to say that this process adds a signifi cant per- centage to the cost of propellants [which shooters must pay] and that, in gen- eral, it serves no purpose. Anyone who knows anything about anything would know instantly that any container that is safe for shipping the fastest-burning of a series of chemically and physically similar propellants would necessarily be even safer for shipping slower-burning, related propellants — the DOT cannot understand this.) Overall, for those Hornet hand-
loaders who are most interested in ve- locity, it would be hard to argue against using the Federal 100 primer and H110
with any bullet. Just use between about 14.0 and about 15.0 grains and seat the bullet. Excepting 300-MP, for the pres- sure produced, velocity will be as good as or better than any other propellant will give and accuracy is apt to be better than many other combinations. A1680 and Lil’ Gun also are easy
choices. Just fi ll the case and seat the bullet. However, both fall signifi cantly short of H110 performance, so I see little reason to use either. Separate primer testing proved that the Federal 100 was also a good choice for these propellants. I have never been very much
impressed with 2400 propellant in the Hornet and that fact could well have biased these test results. Accuracy and
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