reloading 30-30 Winchester
- Thread starter lyman54
- Start date
Sure they can be neck sized, if the cases are from your rifle. If not, you may run into probs, depending on if your chamber is tighter than the one that the spent brass was fired in. Lee sold thousands of their hand loaders for the 30-30.
Just remeber that with any bottle neck cartridge, they can only be neck sized for a number of times, before they get too long to go back in the chamber and must be full length resized.
This magic number, before resizing, may be four or five firings, depending on factors, such the calibre and how heavy are the loads.
A 30-30 should go quite a few firings, or maybe even forever, if they are not loaded very heavy.
This magic number, before resizing, may be four or five firings, depending on factors, such the calibre and how heavy are the loads.
A 30-30 should go quite a few firings, or maybe even forever, if they are not loaded very heavy.
Doesn't trimming them fix that? I have cases I've fired 7+ times with hot loads (6.5x55mm Swedish) and only ever neck sized. I trim them after each firing and they aren't any harder to chamber than cartridges that have been fired and neck sized once.
- Location
- The Conservative part of Ontario
I also started reloading with an old hammer type Lee loader in 30-30. The issue I had was bullets slipping back in the tube mag, but that may be due to me. I was likely crimping too hard, as I didn't understand the ins and outs well at the time.
I then began casting bullets, and the lee loader did an excellent job with them. Makes completely satisfactory ammo
Before buying one of these, look carefully at the other entry level loaders available. Lee's hand press for example. They are much more capable, will full length resize, and are usable for other calibres with just a change of dies.
I then began casting bullets, and the lee loader did an excellent job with them. Makes completely satisfactory ammo
Before buying one of these, look carefully at the other entry level loaders available. Lee's hand press for example. They are much more capable, will full length resize, and are usable for other calibres with just a change of dies.
Trimming and Full Length sizing (or at least pushing the shoulder back) will both likely need to be done eventually on bottle neck cases like yours. If you stick with just the Lee Loader you might find someone who can just FL size your brass and trim when it needs it. Or you will eventually find your way into a press and dies etc
No, it's the shoulder that just gradually creeps ahead.
If the necks got so long as to hold back easy loading, they would be extremely dangerous to shoot. Even then, a bolt action would cam the dangerous case in, with scarcely noticeable extra pressure.
In the mid 1960s I started quite a number of people reloading with the Lee kitchen table method, all with quite a high power cartridge, like 30-06 or 308. I always also sold them a scale and told them sooner or later the cases woudn't chamber. They invariably came back after a few firings and then usually purchased a press and dies, because the reloading bug had bit them.
If two or more had the same calibre rifle, they would sometimes buy one press and dies among them, and keep using the little Lee loader.
