martini -henry reloading were to get gear??

NB.nagantsniper

NB.nagantsniper

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ok im in need of a set of reloading dies and a bullet mold for a 450-577 martini........new or used is ok.
lots fer sale in the usa (midway or direct from lee) but nobody wants to ship................well.............
lee precision want to charge me a 35$ surcharge plus 20$postage and cost of dies!! 110ish! :eek: = 165$$.........:eek::mad::runaway:

any help getting a reasonable set within canada, of new or used dies an a mold at a reasonable cost most welcomed .....
send me pm or posts
thanks
 
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Im with you!!

I tried the good folk at the brit militaria forum....One gent said he had a mold, told me to get to him with my contact info....2.5 weeks later...no word.

Things happen I suppose.

I have some cases and a line on some more the new ones will take a month to get here, but at 30$$ for 20 it has the possibility to bring goodness indeed.

Or they may be junk.....What the hell a card laid is a card played, as dad would say.


I am trying to find a proper mold that doesnt cost the same price of my rifle

so far I have found the whitworth mold that has 45 cal in 475 grains, patched with thick linen should do.

Or the tyron creedmore mould 451 cal in 500 grains paper patched might do the trick aswell.

Both molds are under 100$$

I myself am a bit, skittish slugging a tighter bullet in a 120 year old arm.

But with a good paper or linen patch I do believe it may do.??

I will be sending for the moulds early july I can send ya some bullets for you to try if you fancy?

And if the cases are not complete bullocks, your welcome to one for free to try and then mayhap we can go in on a group buy with a few others who have martini henrys???

Glory to the Empire!!!

Cheers

Rob
 
Lee dies

I see Higginson powder has them listed. I believe they are listed as a "1 1/4-12 series die". You will need to purchase Lee's "Classic Cast Press" to use them as the dies will not fit into a standard press. The press comes with some type of adapter bushing so you can use standard dies in it though.
Higginson powder has a website and the Lee products are listed in an Adobe format.
Still pricy just to get into reloading for one cartridge but you only have to buy it once....

Steve.
 
If your going to shoot Herny Martinis be prepared to spend some money. Remember this caliber in obsolete , so as far as dies and brass it can get really expensive.There is a site that produces custom Mold and dies. It's called "Old Yoti"

CLICK HERE


Cheers Mephisto
 
Don't make this any harder than you have to guys! There are many dealers in Canada who can and do order regularly from Lee Precision. I know that it may cost a bit more with the shipping but not what you were quoted from Lee. Cases are available from many sources. The cheapest are made from MagTech 24 guage brass and formed to 577-450. Bullet moulds are also available from Lee I believe for a lot less than $100.00. If you're really brave order the best, a custom mould from Paul Jones Moulds. He makes a .470" mould listed in particular for the Martini Henry. The shooters are using .470" diameter bullets as the throat size in these rifles is large and the bullet will swage to the rifling when fired. Don't worry about firing these old rifles as they are very strong. No, you can't get the components and dies and moulds everywhere but then again...it is a 120 year old rifle. My local dealer, I believe , has dies in stock and can order from Lee. Try Brian Dwyer at GunMart in Brockville....613-342-4037. Last I was there he had Magtech 24 guage brass as well. Spend time on the British Militaria web forum as they all have answers there. Good luck, Dave...yikes, I see you are in Alberta. There are many on the BMF from your Province.
 
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For a bit of casual shooting you don't need dies. Just fill the case most of the way full with 1F or 2F black powder and press in the bullet. The first time it might be a bit tough to get them in but after that they will probably fall out if you turn them over.

Don't know what the original bore diameter would be - probably varies a lot in any case. You shouldn't worry about using cast bullets that are up to about 3 thousands over bore dia. Anything undersized will not shoot well at all.

You should be able to get shells from Buffalo Arms in Idaho. (they shipped me 2 boxes of brass 12ga shells a couple weeks ago no problem)
If you do get dies you can neck down 24ga brass too I've heard. Try CH4D for dies. Not sure the price but they make something like 1800 different die sets.

Might be a bit of a pain to get started but press on. Its well worth the effort to shoot those old irons!!
 
Dies from CH4D are $182.57 us , Lee dies are $110 try w ww.higginsonpowders.com his Canadian prices are close to the catalog price. they both require a large die opening like on an old RCBS Rockchucker or the new Lee Classic for $120 read about it on the ww w.leeprecision.com site. Lee also has for $26 a 405 grain .459 hollow base bullet which made with pure lead might work, maybe someone here has tried it.
 
No, .459" bullets won't work all that well. From Mk.1 to Mk.3 the bore size is .462" while the Mk.4 is .464" and can be as large as .466". People who know from much experiance use .470" cast bullets. I have a .465" mould and would rather have the .470". There are all sorts of enthusiasts in Alberta who I am sure, would send you some various bullets to try. Dave
 
so far good info.......still not decided on wich dies...cost is a minor but important factor .......as to molds i was reccomended by an experianced martini shooter,,,,,,,to try the lee .459 hollow base /405 grain mold....an a load of 60 to 70 grains 1f or 2f or the pyrodex equivalent ....
am told by him that as cast, bullets using wheel weight/lead measure come out as .463 to .465-ish and shoot well as cast,
or could be paper patched up to .465- or .470 as needed. (depending on gun /mold an all other factors /quirks of each old gun )
anyway any more info /discussion most welcomed
what about BRASS .........any preference ....reccomendations ??
from don
 
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