Lyman #310620 good for moose?

[7.62Man]

Hi all,

I recently purchased a single cavity Lyamn #301620 200 grain NRA paper patched bullet. I plan to cast a bunch up and sight the rifle cast out of lyman #2. I figure I will work my way up to about 2200-2400 fps in my old husky 30-06.

I was wondering if this bullet is enough for moose? At 100 yards that is 2113 ft/lb of energy according to lyman, I mean how much more do you need for moose?

Anyone ever use this bullet for hunting or plinking? Also anyone have a brass patch guide or know where I can purchase one?

Anyone have a lyman #301618 they care to part with?

[JDL]

I've never hunted moose and don't know how hard they are to kill but, I believe I'd rather have a bigger bore when using cast boolits. I can't even make myself go from my .45-70 to my .358 for elk even though a member here has great results with his. Just my thoughts. -JDL

[hunter64]

In Canada after WW2 the government got rid of alot of there surplus Lee Enfield .303's, you could buy a rifle and 2000 rounds of hard ball ( just pull the bullet and put a lead one in) for 30 bucks. So as you can guess alot of hunters just got rid of the extra wood out front and used the .303 to hunt with. I would assume that at least 1/2 of all moose in Canada have fallen to the .303 if not more , before the 1990's so it is plenty of power for a moose. It shoots a 180 grn bullet at 2400fps so that is what you are going to use. I personally took 4 moose and 2 elk and scads of deer with the .303 when I was in high school and university, couldn't afford a fancy gun at the time.

[BruceB]

I HAVE hunted moose, and killed them with a variety of cartridges and SOFTPOINT bullets. A non-expanding bullet is inhumane and inefficient.

Since you intend to use a paper-patch bullet, I'd say that it would work pretty well if cast of an alloy that is guaranteed to expand, and pure lead would be great.

A 200-grain expanding bullet at .303 velocities should be a cinch to kill moose. As mentioned already, you're in the .303 British ballpark, and I've killed them cleanly with .303s using both 180s and 215s.

My PERSONAL take on hunting big game with cast bullets is that I want nothing smaller than .338 diameter, and with a softnose bullet at that, but the paper-patched SOFT bullet puts a different light on the subject.

It should work at reasonable ranges, and your suggestion of 100 yards is very reasonable. My longest shot on moose was not much over that, and the closest was under 15 yards.

It HAS to be a soft bullet, though!

[KCSO]

A 22 is enough for moose if you can put the bullet in just the right spot. The rub is that you are not shootng a penned animal in a slaughter house and you might not get the right shot. I have dropped Buffalo (American Bison) with one shot from a 30-40 Krag cast bullet ( 220x 1950 fps cast from W/W). I stalked to within 70 yards and waited out for the shot I wanted. If I had to shoot a moose and a 30 was all I had I would not be afraid that the cast slug wouldn't do the job, but if i were on the hunt of a lifetime and wanted to go home with a moose for sure i would opt for as much gun as I could shoot comfortably. I'd start in the 35 Whelen range and go up from there. As to how soft you bullet needs to by you need to do some test shooting. I have foound that my w/w alloy expands about as well as a jacketed slug when pushed to 1900 or above but I have a custom fp mould.

[JDL]

A paper patched lead boolit with a BHN of 5 will certainly expand and I have taken 3 elk with one shot each from my .45-70 with none traveling over 30-50 yards. The problem is with penetration as this boolit weighed 510 grains and stopped just under the hide on the far side, no bones bigger than a rib being hit. If you are patient and wait for a good broadside shot, I'm sure it will indeed kill a moose but, I still feel more confortable with a bigger bore when using cast boolits. -JDL

[MT Gianni]

My experience with moose is that they don't know that they are suppossed to be dead. They can absorb a lot of bullet until the brain says it's time to shut down. Gianni

[gray wolf]

Here in Maine there are a lot of moose killed. Mostly guided hunts and a guide wont Even look at you if you have less than an O6 with good expanding bullets.
You have almost a full inch of hide and skin which is tough be for you get to the meet. 1000 Lb. animal here. Sure you can use lighter bullets and less Cal.
But what kind of kill are we talking about.
I would not hesitate with a 45/70 at factory ballistics. Or at least an 06 with a 180 grain bullet. Moose are not 30/30 animals. I would want to be as high up on the ballistic chain as possible for a good clean kill.
Cast bullet would not bother me as long as it will expand, have the foot pounds of energy and be at least a minimal 30 caliber.
There have been times I hunted deer with a 223,-----but that don't make it right.
Please don't go under gunned. Ain't no fun tracking a wounded Moose through the brush for 3 hours. Take the advice the guys have given, and don't take a bad shot.