7.62x25mm from .223 loads

zippy_the_wonder_chimp

zippy_the_wonder_chimp

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Anyone have any load suggestions?

I understand the case volume will be totally different and I will be using
Hornady 86 grain SPRN bullets and various range pickup cases in a
1947 TT-33 Tokarev pistol.

Case was cut to 1.000, sized in a Lee 7.62x25mm FL die and now needs
trimming. On the plus side, it's only .011 thinner than the Czech surplus round
I fireformed in my pistol. Surprised how close it is in size.


Thanks,

zip
 
An interesting project. Looked into it myself a while back but still have lots of good brass. Let us know how the loads cycle in your T33.
I use 96 grain hard lead bullets, sized to .309" (bought from The bullet barn) in front of 5 to 5.5 grains of W231. The bullets are a flat round nose but have worked very well for me. Out of about 300 rounds so far, only 2 jams. The pistol is fun to shoot and very accurate.
 
I had an old magazine article about this somewhere. Also intended for making .30 Mauser brass. Didnt try it though. Please keep us posted.
 
Zippy, the load I posted earlier is in factory S&B brass and not a max load for my gun (norc). I have no idea of the case capacity of a cut off 223. Can you compare with water or corn meal etc. but unless it is a lot less I'd be comfortable with starting at 4.2 grains.
 
commonman said:
Zippy, the load I posted earlier is in factory S&B brass and not a max load for my gun (norc). I have no idea of the case capacity of a cut off 223. Can you compare with water or corn meal etc. but unless it is a lot less I'd be comfortable with starting at 4.2 grains.
Click to expand...


Thanks. That 4.2 grains may too low to cycle the action- we'll see.

Went to buy pistol powder from my local shop but they were all out.
Will have to get some this weekend.

Also, will try the water volume test to see how different the two are.


-zip
 
It would be able to cycle the action better if a weaker spring were used. I use the same spring in my pistol when I shoot both the 7.62x25 as well as the much weaker 9mm. With the latter round the slide seems to move slower and will "throw" the 9mm casings all the way onto the top of my shooting hand. The point is it is still able to feed and extract the weaker rounds.
I am sure your 5.56 casings with less powder capacity will still work. I am actually excited to see how your experiment goes. It will be nice to shoot spitzer and ballistic tips from the pistol (hand loaded of course) and see what kind of medium range accuracy results. But even just having a plentiful supply of casings to reload would be a leap forward.
Keep us informed on your progress Zippy.
 
223to762x25mmblankjpg.jpg


great info Teapot. i'm interested to see how it turns out too as it means i can shoot my Tokarev
without using my dwindling supply of surplus ammo, and don't have to clean it right after.
AND with an endless supply of brass for free. :D

i cut this blank with a small tube cutter from Cdn Tire. seemed to work ok-
i just put the bottom of the case in small visegrip pliers (no vise here) and
it worked with minor deformation. less mess than a hacksaw and a mitre box.
 
Interesting, but since Starline makes such excellent and inexpensive brass, I see no reason to go through all the effort.
 
Funny, I was testing the same approach... :)

Intermediate results:

1. Out of various brands of 223 brass converted (Win, LC, S&B, WCC, R-P), only S&B was REALLY bad to work with - neck turning stage was too much for my turner.

2. Starting load was 5.4 gr Unique, 90 gr Hornady XTP, WSP primer, OAL=1.30", final load 6.2gr Unique - 1450 fps from Russian TT.

3. Out of 30 converted pieces of WCC brass and shot with 6.2 gr load, 5 times each, NONE was destroyed or damaged beyond repair.

Accuracy 2" @ 25m 8 rds group.

4. Winchester, WCC and LC brass did not produce measurable difference in loading and muzzle velocity.


Here is the picture of my test rounds:

223to762x39_2.jpg
 
Last edited:
Stranger said:
Funny, I was testing the same approach... :)

Intermediate results:

1. Out of various brands of 223 brass converted (Win, LC, S&B, WCC, R-P), only S&B was REALLY bad to work with - neck turning stage was too much for my turner.

2. Starting load was 5.4 gr Unique, 90 gr Hornady XTP, WSP primer, OAL=1.30", final load 6.2gr Unique - 1450 fps from Russian TT.

3. Out of 30 converted pieces of WCC brass and shot with 6.2 gr load, 5 times each, NONE was destroyed or damaged beyond repair.

Accuracy 2" @ 25m 8 rds group.

4. Winchester, WCC and LC brass did not produce measurable difference in loading and muzzle velocity.


Here is the picture of my test rounds:

223to762x39_2.jpg
Click to expand...


Thanks for the post. Great looking rounds and quite decent accuracy.

How did you cut your .223 rounds down?
 
Teapot said:
90 gr Hornady XTP's; where did you buy them, Stranger? You did a good job on those rounds.
Click to expand...

Thanks! ;)

Try Higginson, it's Hornady's #31000 bullet: 30 CAL .308 90 GR HP/XTP according to the price list:
http://www.higginsonpowders.com/images/Hornady.pdf

... but on the box it says ".309".

#3100 30 MAUSER .308 86 GR RN is another one to consider. That's actually what most people use for TT according to various forums.

Slug the barrel, mine is .312, so bigger is better. In fact I also tested .32 cast bullets, 100 gr RN, 5.2 gr Unique ~1240 fps, nice accurate load.
The problem with TT and "fat" bullets (.312) is a very tight chamber in the neck and throat area. That's the main reason to neck turn brass (after forming) to .010" thickness even with .308 bullets.

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