Reloading, definitely.
JTD
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Reloading, definitely.
JTD
I enjoy playing video games occasionally, it's a good escape. And if the election year panic doesn't lighten up soon I won't have any components left to load up anyway.
I'm down to my last box of small rifle primers and about 1500 small pistol left.
Went to the range today. Took 9 rifles and a chronograph. I finalized hunting loads for 5 of those rifles, the other 4 need a little more work.
Now I’ve got to load up some ammo.
JTD
34gn hp going 2000 fps in a 5" barrel.
Gotta love the Belgium. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...79bdf17ce5.jpg
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That’s awesome! FN5.7 or Ruger57?Quote:
Originally Posted by Jamesr160@yahoo.com
JTD
Fn57 and ps90.
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Outstanding!
JTD
After last weeks range outing, I had a few things to load up. I have my hunting ammo for this season all loaded up. 6.5x55 with 140gr Sierra SPBT Gamekings. 6.5-284 with 140gr Speer Gold Dots. 375 Whelen Improved with 270gr Speer SPBT. And 45-70 with 300gr Nosler Ballistic Tips.
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...5508ce7367.jpg
Ive also got some more test loads made up for .308, 6.5x55, and 30-06.
JTD
Looking good! I think that .375 Whelen is too cool!Quote:
Originally Posted by JeffreyDeGraff
According to my records I haven’t sat down to the bench in about a month. Was trying hard this week to find some .243 brass and I almost went out and bought some, but I almost KNEW I had a bag somewhere, I just had to find it. Was searching all the reloading stuff for this bag I thought I had, and for whatever reason kept looking past a beer box of reloading items. Well I finally started digging through it for kicks only to realize that every bag in that box was .243 brass,including the Federal brass I needed. Ended up going through it, found in excess of 100 rounds in various stages of prep. This is brass I had forgotten about from two moves ago, notes were dated February 2016 when I was using my buddy’s bench as my living arrangement wasn’t conducive for reloading. Anyways, I got all the brass sized, trimmed, and prepped! Ready to reload, went for my favorite bullets, and realized I was out. Oh well, I know a small store a town over that had them in stock a week ago, so I’ll check them. If not, I’ve still got 40 some rounds to get through hunting season for my wife’s two deer tags. We should be good to go!
After dead-ending myself on .243, I think I’ll switch gears and work on my .30-06/E-tip load this week to see if I can’t squeeze any more accuracy out of it. It’s holding under 1.5” after my last range trip, but I want it to go a bit better than that.
Hope you all have a great weekend!
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I find stuff, all the time, that I’ve rat holed, or put away for later. Sometimes digging through what I already have is more exciting than going to the store.Quote:
Originally Posted by Jbotto
I have been having a bunch of fun with that 375. Right now it is at the top of my favorite list to load and shoot.
What is your old faithful bullet for 243?
I hope you have a great weekend too! We are about to head out to the 5th grade football game. We need a win!
JTD
I too am fascinated by the 375 Whelen. I have a Remington 700 Classic in 35 Whelen that I love, but don't shoot much anymore. I am hoping it will have some value some day, maybe for my grand children.Quote:
Originally Posted by JeffreyDeGraff
I love the old Remington 700 classics. Ive got one in 300H&H.Quote:
Originally Posted by Flyeralan
JTD
Yep, it is a beautiful gun. I shot one PA buck with it years ago, 35 Whelen is not necessary for PA whitetails, lol.
Ha! Most of the guns I shoot are way more than a whitetail needs.
I shoot the Hornady 250gr RN out of my 35 whelen. It’s way overboard but does a great job on deer and hogs.
JTD
I shoot the 200gr Hornady over a good charge of Win 760, that is what I shot the deer with. Under an inch at 100 yards all day . . . or as long as my shoulder would put up with the abuse, lol. I also had good luck with the Speer 250gr spitzer, but that hurt even more.Quote:
Originally Posted by JeffreyDeGraff
I melted down the undersized pulls from my learning experience. Something like 500 40cal bullets that got post sized down to .397-.399” by the factory crimp die. Powder coat really stinks when melting down. I was going to make a couple ingots and pour the rest as bullets, but noticed I had crap flow, so I ended up pouring some ugly ingots and cleaning the nozzle. I might get back out there and turn them into bullets, but I might just wait until next week or so.
I was wondering how the powder coating was going to work out when you melted it downQuote:
Originally Posted by Mbaker78
JTD
My favorite so far is the 85gr Barnes TSX charged with a warm load of IMR 4064. I bought a sample pack of the 80gr TTSX and really want to try those out too. Might wait for them in the 6mm Rem though.Quote:
Originally Posted by JeffreyDeGraff
Hope you have get your win with the kiddos!
My wife is on call this weekend so mostly hanging around home in case the phone rings.
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It just made a huge stink and all settled to the top. I skimmed it off when I fluxed.Quote:
Originally Posted by JeffreyDeGraff
The plugged nozzle was just from use, I've probably run close to 200lbs of material through it now, so it was due for a cleaning anyway.
Great bullets for 243, from what I’ve read everywhere. I remembered that you really like the non lead bullets, and was fully expecting the tsx to be your favorite.Quote:
Originally Posted by Jbotto
JTD
I found a little more time for the bench and made up some 257 Roberts AI test loads with 117gr SST and H4831. Also loaded up some 7.5x55 test loads with 178gr ELDX and AA4350.
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...7a9159db92.jpg
They look like they could be related.
JTD
They have been great so far. My brother had borrowed that rifle for a couple years and seemed to do well at close range in MN. Under 60 yards sometimes they exit, sometimes not. Nothing ran more than 40 yards. About the same results we’ve had with a couple different jacketed lead bullets at those distances. Last weekend, my wife used it to shoot her pronghorn doe. 230 yards, both rounds that she shot at the doe entered,expanded, and exited. I wish I had taken a few pictures of the exits as they were exactly what I was looking for.Quote:
Originally Posted by JeffreyDeGraff
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I had some free time today and was able to throw together some test loads for my 250 savage, 100gr ballistic tips and W760, and 300 savage, 150gr Sierra pro hunter and IMR4064.
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...973a510129.jpg
And just finished up some test loads for 257 Roberts, 117gr Hornady BTSP and H4350. These are being tested for seating depth.
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...b28ad6b299.jpg
JTD
7mm Mauser test loads with 139gr Hornady SP and IMR3031, IMR4064, IMR4320, IMR4895, and H4895, are done. All are minimum charges from Hogdgons website. I’m hoping one will stand out from the others so I can work up a load for my 10 year olds rifle. I’m looking for 1.5” or better and mild recoil.
JTD
Today at the other bench. 180gn tc for the 10mm, and 600gn hp for the 458 socom. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...01e0d80182.jpg
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Oh nice! Ive never cast my own bullets, but have always wondered about it. Maybe one of these daysQuote:
Originally Posted by Jamesr160@yahoo.com
JTD
Been too long away from the bench and too busy with work, BUT I got 20 rounds of .30-06 brass trimmed with the lee lock stud and cutter while on the phone last night giving biased gun advice to my cousin. Ha! I haven’t used that trimmer by itself in awhile and got a blister from it. I put the stud back in the drill this morning to chamfer and debur them. Silly to not use the drill to trim. I won’t do that again! Have a great weekend!
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I used to use the lee trimmers on everything. They did a good job, but it was tedious. I haven’t used them in years and I don’t miss them.Quote:
Originally Posted by Jbotto
JTD
They are quicker for me than my Lyman large style trimmer so I use them quite a bit still. I don’t use them for any .223 as the brass varies so much and certain brands are bad for having off-center flash holes. I got tired of not noticing until after the brass was trimmed and the case mouth was cut so off-square that I’d junk the case. I like them as once the case is in the lock stud it’s a pretty easy process to chamfer and debur as well. Not the most efficient method by any means, but it works well enough. I’ve been meaning to order a custom length case length gauge from Lee for my .338-06 as when forming from .30-06 the brass is always a shorter than spec. If I got one made to the shorter length, I’d be able to trim them all the same so they start out consistent and then wait to see if they ever grow much after that.
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They definitely work well. I wore out so many of the cutters and lock studs. I didn’t realize you could get custom lengths made for them.
JTD
You can! I’ve never done it but remembered seeing it on Lee’s website. The problem now though is they keep sending me back to the homepage every time I click on it so I have contacted Lee’s customer support over this.
They are cheap enough that I just keep one set up for each caliber. When the cutter starts to wear down,I move it up to the next size so I keep using different parts of the cutter.
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I’ve been crazy busy lately, but have found a little time to size some 257 Roberts brass. I have 98 pieces and halfway done.
I dug out my 35 whelen and 338-06 improved brass in hopes that I can get it processed sometime soon.
JTD
Same here JTD! I did end up ordering a case length gauge from Lee for my .338-06 as they had some overstock but was unable to order a custom length version as they aren’t filling custom orders at this time. I got that in the mail late last week and it’s sat on my bench since then.
I got out hunting with my wife on Saturday morning and she filled another tag, this one a nice whitetail doe, with the .243 and 85gr TSX. Shot was around 80 yards, quartering towards us. Didn’t break any shoulder bones and slipped that bullet just past it, took out both lungs, poked through the very corner of the diaphragm and exited. Shot was higher in the rib cage so the blood trail wasn’t great at first but still relatively easy to follow. The doe made it back into a patch of Russian Olives and maybe made it 50 yards in total. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...d672961ec0.jpg
She’s been making me look like I know what I’m actually doing at the reloading bench, with that rifle lately! We were out at the range Friday evening and she hit a steel plate on her first round at 300 after shooting groups and 100, 200, and 300.
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Outstanding!!! Nice doe!
JTD
Finally got my 257 Roberts brass done and in the tumbler. Ive got a list of projects next.
Prep once fired 6.5 creedmoor
Prep new 6.5 creedmoor
Prep 243 brass
Clean and prep 35 whelen brass
Clean and prep 338-06 brass
Neck 35 whelen brass up to 375 to fireform
Neck 30-06 brass up to 338 to fireform
Neck 30-06 brass up to 8mm to fireform
I’m sure there is more to do but that stuff is at the top of my list.
JTD
You got a couple of fav's there to work on! I am a big 243 fan, almost all of the deer I have harvested in my life have been with the 243 and all but one was 1 shot. I love the 35 Whelen, but it hurts too much and I am a pre 257 Roberts owner, lol. I have been pretty focused on learning the sub-sonic 300 Blackout game at the bench recently, hoping to nail down another load this weekend at the hunting camp.Quote:
Originally Posted by JeffreyDeGraff
Ive never killed anything with my 243, but I’m going to play around with it and see what happens.Quote:
Originally Posted by Flyeralan
I took the 35 whelen to the range Sunday. I shot the last 6 rounds I had loaded up from years ago. My shoulder still hurts.
What are you using for your subsonic loads, are you shooting a bolt, AR, or single shot?
JTD
I've killed many a PA groundhog with the 243 as well, I have always had good success with IMR 4350 for accuracy. My 300 BO is an AR, BCA upper that I won in a raffle (otherwise I would probably not still own an AR) on a PSA lower. Nothing special, but it eats just about anything I feed it and is reasonably accurate. Been working with an array of 175gn and up for subsonic and am finally trying the Berry's 220gn this weekend. AA1680, and a similar surplus have been pretty good suppressed, but IMR 4227 has been so quiet that I am focused on it to see if I can get it to cycle consistently. At any rate, I am having fun learning.Quote:
Originally Posted by JeffreyDeGraff
Ive used 243 on many prairie dog hunts. What bullet do you use for deer?Quote:
Originally Posted by Flyeralan
I have a bolt action blackout. Ive had great success with 180gr plated with unique. Super quiet but won’t cycle an AR. 4227 was almost as quiet and is supposed to cycle the action. I didn’t like 1680.
JTD
JTD, what are you planning on loading for your .243? I’ve played around with mine for years and shot a small variety of bullets. My Savage 11 doesn’t seem to hate anything I’ve fed it as usually with a bit of tinkering all loads have been hunting worthy. It’s even a few years since I touched anything besides the Barnes 85 TSX in mine, but I know I’ve shot the 95gr SST, 100gr Sierra ProHunter as well as a Sierra GameKing too, I just don’t remember which one. I some old 65gr Speer or Hornady HP’s loaded up for mine that I’ve wanted to test for a couple years, but there is just always something more pressing to get to when I’m at the range. I can honestly say I’ve never shot a deer with the .243 as it is always my loaner rifle. Loaned it to my brother for a few years when he was getting into hunting during high school, and didn’t buy his own rifle. Now my wife seems to have commandeered it until we have her 6mm all finished for her. Someday I’ll get to shoot it! Ha!
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