reloading 7.62 x 54R

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AlsoUnknown

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hi all. i am new to reloading, did a few last year with a hand reloader, with marginal results... got a lee single stage press and wanted to try again but i have a couple (maybe newbie) questions...

I like fooling around with 7.62 x 54R rounds, M44 was my first rifle ever, and my only moose gun to date... i have tons of bulk FMJ ammo, non-corrosive, but i believe berdan primed... i pulled the bullets on 20 last year and reloaded 180 gr SP hunting rounds in them with the existing powder load.... the original FMJ bullet was lighter and the results were - too high a pressure; the old bolt gun was locked up, had to use a mallet on the bolt handle to get the empties out - not practical for moose hunting!

so, question one, (if i try this again): Can i somehow calculate the amount of powder to remove, considering the ratio of original bullet weight to new bullet weight, to get an acceptable pressure load? this is without knowing anything about the powder itself, other than weight, if i dump a cartridge and weigh it...

OR, question two; if I dump the powder and reload with some varget (for example); does it matter that it is the existing berdan primer in a surplus case? (I am thinking that doesn't matter since case size, new powder and new bullet would all match up to reloading specs, am i right?)

any educated / experienced opinions?

thanks for any help!
 
IMR4350 for 180gr soft points. My honey load is about 52grains of powder on a .312 bullet. Actually, its my opinion that everything Mosin shoots better with a .312 bullet.


Although I do a lot of hand loading, the LVE and MFS soft points in 203 grain bullets are the best deal going. I think I buy them bulk for about 60 cents/round. I can't load bullets for that cheap. THey are top quality bullets. Just saying there is a second very easy option. Its worth a look at.
 
What was the old bullet weight? If you want to still use 180gr get some 174 stuff.

Otherwise empty 20 rounds of whatever bullet weight you have (150gr my guess) then average them out and reduce by 10%. Work up a load from there until it shoots good with the bullets you want. Just make sure you use the same surplus lot numbers so the powder is the same.

Using berdan primed brass with new powder is fine.
 
AlsoUnknown said:
so, question one, (if i try this again): Can i somehow calculate the amount of powder to remove, considering the ratio of original bullet weight to new bullet weight, to get an acceptable pressure load? this is without knowing anything about the powder itself, other than weight, if i dump a cartridge and weigh it...

OR, question two; if I dump the powder and reload with some varget (for example); does it matter that it is the existing berdan primer in a surplus case? (I am thinking that doesn't matter since case size, new powder and new bullet would all match up to reloading specs, am i right?)

any educated / experienced opinions?

thanks for any help!
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I never mess with powder that I don't know what it is. I've been loading for almost 40 years. IMO questions 1 and 2 are not ever a consideration.
 
thanks for the advice guys. i appreciate it all!

I just checked the label, the surplus are 148gr FMJ, steel cased too,

i agree too on the MFS 203gr, great ammo, i have an unopened box in the safe right now; my brother killed his last 3 moose with a box i gave him about 5 years back! (he doesnt target shoot it, a couple rounds a year at most for his moose LOL), he seems to think the MFS is too much cartridge / bullet even for an animal as big as moose....

plus, i just like experimenting with loads, my dad swore by his 303 brit in 180 gr SP for moose from '65 to his last hunt 1999 til he passed away; so i thought i'd try and make some nice 180 hand loads for the mosin.
 
I've only been reloading for a year and a half so I'm no expert here.

However, I feel like you are playing with fire (literally). Don't go cheap! Buy the proper components with a manual and work up your loads.

Experimenting with different powders and bullet weights is part of the fun of reloading....as long as you follow published load data.
 
Putting a 180gr in a pulled case that a 147gr came out of is just asking for trouble. I even use different powders for those bullet weights when loading 7.62x54R (4895 for 147 and 150gr and 4831 for 174 and 180gr).
I would have no issue loading in a 150gr soft point hunting bullet into the pulled cases if they had 147gr before.
I wouldn't reduce or increase the amount of an unknown powder. When I pull bullets, if I'm not loading a different bullet of similar weight back into the cartridge, the powder gets dumped in my Canada Day powder jar. You can probably guess what it gets used for ;)
 
sounds like new powder and proper load data is the way to go, its not about price, just about making something that is your own and performs well... i'll dump the old powder. (oh and i wont wait for canada day, anyday is good for blowing stuff up in the back yard! LOL)

thank you to you all!
 
"Throw it out" is typical advice for a novice reloader, and I'd have to agree is sound advice for the novice, but having devised many loads with pulled "unknown" powder, I can say that it's not the only "safe" approach and is in fact wasteful. You can't simply pull a lighter bullet and substitute a heavier bullet - you'd have to reduce the powder charge as well. It's the amount of powder to remove that requires some careful thought, load tables, and equipment such as a weigh scale and chronograph.

For the OP however, I'll leave it at that.
 
Boomhauer440 said:
I've had a lot of issues with MFS ammo, lots of misfires and one severely undercharged case that left a bullet lodged about 1/2" into the bore. Just my experience.
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Which caliber/load did you have issues with? I've used several MFS loads and calibers, and lots of it, but never had issues of what you describe. My experiences have been of consistency and accuracy.
 
fiddler said:
Which caliber/load did you have issues with? I've used several MFS loads and calibers, and lots of it, but never had issues of what you describe. My experiences have been of consistency and accuracy.
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7.62x54R 203Gr Soft point were all ok but the FMJs, 185gr. Out of 100 rds over a couple days i had roughly 20 misfires and one seemed like it had no powder and just the primer went off, sounded like a misfire but when I ejected it the case was empty, primer fired, and bullet was lodged in the bore. It must have been just one bad batch.
 
Boomhauer440 said:
7.62x54R 203Gr Soft point were all ok but the FMJs, 185gr. Out of 100 rds over a couple days i had roughly 20 misfires and one seemed like it had no powder and just the primer went off, sounded like a misfire but when I ejected it the case was empty, primer fired, and bullet was lodged in the bore. It must have been just one bad batch.
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Thanks Boom,

I've heard comments of the FMJ,s but I thought 180gr? It does sounds like a bad batch. Any one else?

I've shot 203gr sp and they are awesome, accurate, and they Bang/Flop deer with one shot.
 
fiddler said:
Thanks Boom,

I've heard comments of the FMJ,s but I thought 180gr? It does sounds like a bad batch. Any one else?

I've shot 203gr sp and they are awesome, accurate, and they Bang/Flop deer with one shot.
Click to expand...

They might be 180, I'm not positive as I haven't shot any since that incident happened a couple months ago.
 
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