Consider Alliant Reloder 26 for Magnum Cartridges
We’ve told fans of Hodgdon H4350 to give Alliant Reloder 16 (RL16) a try. In our tests, Reloder 16 has proven a very promising rival to H4350 for accuracy, low ES/SD, and temp stability.
Now you can get the advantages of Reloder 16 in a slower powder formulated for magnum cartridges — Reloder 26 (RL26). Alliant says RL26’s burn speed falls between that of Reloder® 22 and Reloder® 33. That means it’s slower than H4831 but faster than powders that would suit the .338 Lapua Magnum. Reloder 26 has a high bulk density that allows larger powder charges, and high velocities. RL26 also provides a consistent, controlled response to temperature changes.
We are hearing very good things about RL26 from friends and Forum members who are testing it with big calibers for Long Range applications. Accuracy is good and velocities are impressive. Alliant says RL26 “incorporates EI® technology to produce extremely high velocities in magnum cartridges”. In big magnums, shooters have reported gaining 100+ fps with RL26 compared to H1000 or Retumbo. And to our surprise some guys have even tried replacing H4350 with RL26 (in smaller cartridge types) and they have picked up meaningful velocities. We don’t think Alliant ever intended RL26 as a substitute for H4350, but if you’ve got the case capacity… it may be worth a try.
Alliant Reloder 26 Features
- EI® technology delivers high velocities in magnum cartridges
- Contains proprietary de-coppering additive
- Controlled temperature stability
- Excellent lot-to-lot consistency
- Formulation contains no DNT or DBP
- Made in Switzerland for Alliant Powder
Alliant’s Tech Expert Talks about Reloder 26
What are the characteristics of Reloder 26? That question was answered recently by Paul Furrier who works for ATK, the parent company of Alliant Powders. Posting in our Shooters’ Forum, Paul writes:“Reloder 26 is produced in Switzerland by our extremely capable partner Nitrochemie. I have seen it stated that they [it is] made by Bofors, so that is incorrect. I have also noticed people are equating … Reloder 26 to Reloder 25. Reloder 26 is definitely slower burning than Reloder 25, so there shouldn’t be any confusion there either.”
Speed and More Speed with RL 26
Think of Reloder 26 as a high-velocity powder for big cartridges. Furrier explains: “Reloder 26 is produced with Nitrochemie’s latest generation EI® process technology. This is the same impregnation coating process used to produce Reloder 17, Reloder 33, and Reloder 50 for us, and it is fantastic. Reloder 26 [offers] great ballistic efficiency, high bulk density so you can get more of the slow powder into the case to harness the energy, and decent, predictable extreme temp response. Reloder 26 is not as flat at temps as the TZ or Australian materials, but it is very manageable, usually in the 0.5 fps/°F range (depending on the application). Just as important, the pressure increases at hot are very manageable. We are using quite a bit of this RL26 powder in our Federal factory ammo due to the fantastic ballistics and accuracy.” — Paul Furrier, ATK
Similar Posts:
- Reloder 23 and Reloder 26 — Good for Magnum Cartridges
- New, Advanced Alliant Powders: Reloder 23 and Reloder 26
- Advanced RL 23 and RL 26 Powders for Magnum Cartridges
- Alliant Reloder 16 — Great Powder for Match Cartridges
- New Temp-Stable Alliant Reloder 16 Now Available
Tags: .300 WM, 300 Win Mag, Alliant, Magnum Cartridge, Reloder 26, RL 26, RL26
It works decently in 6mm’s that use 308 sized cases as well. You can pack a ton more of it into a case than you can of H4350.
Looking at RL 26 for my .264 win. My first two 264 loved 63 grns off IMR 4831 with a nosler partition great accuracy at 3170 avg. But my new one gives to much pressure. Is RL 26 a good choice to try and get something close to my old load? Is there any data out there yet?
I recently completed a test of 4 powders in 7mm Rem Mag using 139 gr SST’s. RL-26 was the clear winner over RL-19, IMR-4350 and IMR-7828-SSC. I now need Alliant data for my .264 Win Mag using RL-26 over 129 gr SST’s. I’m hoping for similar results as the brass are nearly identical and both slugs are on the light side of ‘medium-weight’ for caliber. Would very much like to see the data for RL-25 in .264 Win Mag.
I use RL26 with my 6 Creedmoor, 300 Winmag, and 338 Lapua Mag. It works phenomenally well in these applications:
6 CM uses 46 grains with a 115 DTAC and pushes around 3145 fp/s with sub .25MOA accuracy. No pressure signs whatsoever.
300 Winmag uses 77 grains with a Berger 215HT and pushes around 3060 fp/s with sub .25MOA accuracy. No pressure signs whatsoever.
338 Lapua loaf is still in development but the first test of 90 grains with a 250 Scenar pushes it 2930 fp/s with less than .5MOA accuracy. No pressure signs whatsoever.
I use Alliant with other cartridges after switching from using primarily Hodgdon powders and Reliant downright outperforms Hodgdon in many areas: high velocity with low pressure, great accuracy, excellent temperature stability, etc. Try it if you haven’t already!!
want to try Reloader 26 with 150 berger classic hunter have 6 cases 3 with 78.5 grains and 3 with 79 grains for 7MM STW what are your thoughts please thanks
I developed a load with Reloder 26 for my Rem 700 7mmWSM hunting rifle with a factory 24″ barrel. Hornady 162 ELD-X and 59.gr RL-26 produces 3150 fps, 5-shot ES of 8fps and 3/4 MOA. I tested it against H4350 and RL-17, and it had the best fps, ES and accuracy.
Sugested starting grs.of powder for 7mm rem mag useing 160gr bullet in the rl26 powder and max load.
How BOUT a starting LOAD for RL-26 for a 26 nosler with 123 grain bullets. And a 7mm rum with with a 120 grain nosler…
i have a 338 ultra magnum using a 225 gr. nosler accubond bullet. what is my best load using RL 26 powder?