Ive been reading a lot about casting lead ammo, specifically for .30-30 in the 170gr range with gas checks for faster velocity. I know that a lot of rifles like over sized lead rounds, but how much is too much? Would you recommend .309 or .311? Also would the neck of the case need to be reaized a little larger to seat in the .311 rounds?
Recommend a mold for casting .30-30?
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TargetAcquired
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
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- S. Ontario
165 gn .309 casts from the Bullet Barn shoot like a dream in my '94. I've put over 500 down the pipe and no problems - leading, etc.
Is it a Marlin Micro-Groove barrel or a normally rifled barrel?
Normal barrels you can get away with 1-2 thou over bore diameter (should slug it).
MG barrels generally want 3-4 thou over and still can't reach the same velocities without lots of leading.
I'm running .311" gas checked cast in my Marlin and I can't get much past 1100-1200fps without lots of leading.
With a good hard alloy, a gas check, 1-2 thou over bore diameter, and a conventionally rifled barrel you can probably get up to 1700+fps before you have issues. With some tweaking you can probably break 2000fps.
You do want to flare your case mouths before seating so it doesn't shave the bullet (I use a Lee universal case mouth flaring die) but I've never found a need to overside the entire neck. Some do for match shooting of cast bullets but I just use them for plinking and haven't had any issues. I've seated .311" bullets in a neck sized for a .308" jacketed and after pulling the bullet it still mics .311"; the brass gives, the bullet doesn't get swaged.
Normal barrels you can get away with 1-2 thou over bore diameter (should slug it).
MG barrels generally want 3-4 thou over and still can't reach the same velocities without lots of leading.
I'm running .311" gas checked cast in my Marlin and I can't get much past 1100-1200fps without lots of leading.
With a good hard alloy, a gas check, 1-2 thou over bore diameter, and a conventionally rifled barrel you can probably get up to 1700+fps before you have issues. With some tweaking you can probably break 2000fps.
You do want to flare your case mouths before seating so it doesn't shave the bullet (I use a Lee universal case mouth flaring die) but I've never found a need to overside the entire neck. Some do for match shooting of cast bullets but I just use them for plinking and haven't had any issues. I've seated .311" bullets in a neck sized for a .308" jacketed and after pulling the bullet it still mics .311"; the brass gives, the bullet doesn't get swaged.
Lee liquid alox. I tried some pan lubed bullets with some home made lube using a recipe I found online (can't remember it at the moment) as well and there was no difference. Worked fine with normal rifling, leaded in MG rifling when above ~1100fps.
I use Lee alox in all my other cartridges and they work fine up to 1700-1900fps. With pure WW alloy that's good enough for me.
Plain base bullets that measure .434" in my 44 mag Marlin with MG rifling has to be kept below ~800fps to not lead. I'm told gas checks can fix that but for the cost of cast bullets and how much I shoot it I wont bother buying a new mould.
I use Lee alox in all my other cartridges and they work fine up to 1700-1900fps. With pure WW alloy that's good enough for me.
Plain base bullets that measure .434" in my 44 mag Marlin with MG rifling has to be kept below ~800fps to not lead. I'm told gas checks can fix that but for the cost of cast bullets and how much I shoot it I wont bother buying a new mould.
Have you tried paper patching?? Might fix your leading issue...
RCBS and Lyman make great moulds.
Lee on the other hand is cheaper, and I mean really cheap, you get what you pay for.
I put my last Lee mould where it should have stayed from the beginning, into the garbage , and bought a Lyman instead, which is absolutely great, as are my RCBS moulds.
Lee on the other hand is cheaper, and I mean really cheap, you get what you pay for.
I put my last Lee mould where it should have stayed from the beginning, into the garbage , and bought a Lyman instead, which is absolutely great, as are my RCBS moulds.
Micro groove rifling is not intended for lead bullet shooting, that's why Marlin (re)introduced the Ballard type rifling for their 94 Cowboy model.
I owned a Marlin 94 with Micro grooves, and the bore leaded to the point, that I had to scrape out "lead spaghettis" after only a few rounds with commercial lead bullets.
Bassmaster
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- WMU 48 - Whitetail country
meant specifically for the 30-30I have a Win 94 and a Marin 336 that Id like to shoot from with cast lead bullets. Ive also thought about paper patching .309 bullets with .002 of paper, but Ive heard it causes significantly more barrel wear and I wouldnt want to intentionally hurt my pre 64 Winchester when it can be avoided.
Goldenlakepete
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- Golden Lake
I use a Lee 170 grain flat nose gas check bullet. It is very accurate in my .30-30 with 26 grs of H4895 or 28 grs of BL-C(2). Sized to .309.
from what I read, if lubed, the paper patched bullets cause no noticeable extra wear.
I forgot to mention. This is the mould I'm using for .30-30:
http://ww w.accuratemolds.com/bullet_detail.php?bullet=31-170D-D.png
I do much prefer my NOE and Accurate Molds aluminum moulds though. Easier to use and more forgiving even though they are still aluminum.
http://ww w.accuratemolds.com/bullet_detail.php?bullet=31-170D-D.png
I haven't yet tried paper patching but it is on my to-do list. I have looked into the principals, process, and material for it but haven't gotten around to it yet.
I've got Lee moulds that have successfully cast a couple thousand bullets. They are far more picky and more tedious to use but they aren't garbage. They produce good, consistent bullets when used right but are not nearly as user friendly as RCBS, Lyman, or other makers. My current .308 cast load with a 160gr spire point is from a Lee mould and they are shooting a hair over 1" at 100yds.
I do much prefer my NOE and Accurate Molds aluminum moulds though. Easier to use and more forgiving even though they are still aluminum.
I haven't started that yet... Still looking for a lubrisizer, and doing some reading. Just starting to cast bullets. Gathering WW lead, etc. As I heard, with the 45-70, WW lead paper patched will fly as fast as jacketed bullets...
My lead bullets were bought from the bullet barn, .309 diameter 165gr (altough my balance says it's 163.5). I have a marlin 336 with MG and so far I am having success with trail boss. I tried IMR 4064 but I had shotgun pattern...I'm not sure why? Could a powder make a bullet so innacurate, or the FPS were too high for lead bullet? I havn't noticed any lead fouling tough.
Lyman #311291 (170 grain)
Lyman #311041 (173 grain)
Both are gas check bullets. Loading data for these bullets has both of them pushing over 2000 fps with some powders. They are both .311 diameter. Lyman sized to .308 for their testing.
Slug your bore first to make sure you get the right sizing die. Generally want to be about 0.001" over size of your bore diameter.
