375 win from 30-30

[bearcove]

I have a bunch of 30-30 brass and I figure I'll probably make about 100 into 375 win. These will be for lighter loads, I know they aren't as thick as 375 win brass. I have a lyman mould #37583. I think they run about 145 gr. I plan on using them for fireform and plinker bullets. I bet they would do for a deer bullet also. I bet the 30-30 brass will be wasp waist after I size the first time. Anybody have a good fireform load? :Fire:

[garandsrus]

Bearcove,

I used 6gr Red Dot and a case full (to the neck) of Cream of Wheat. A small piece of toilet paper stuffed in the case neck kept everything from spilling.

Single load only into the chamber and keep the muzzle pointed up while shooting them.

They worked great and I didn't lose a single case...

John

[bearcove]

I've read about that method. Thanks for the recipe. I hate wasting good bullets fireforming.

[Harry O]

About the statement that .375 Win cases are heavier than 30-30 cases:

I weighed a bunch of new .375 Win cases and a bunch of 30-30 cases some time ago. The .375 Win was a little heavier -- just barely less than 5% heavier. I don't know if that was planned or if the tolerances just overlapped. It does not seem that 5% is enough if they thought they really needed more strength. In any case, there is not really much difference.

I have not fire formed this combination, but I have fired others. I usually end up using a little more Red Dot (a 12gr or 13gr Lee scoop), fill the rest of the case with plastic filler (shot buffer) and cap the top with wax. The reason I use more is probably because the ones I have done it with are still bottlenecked and that much more is needed to fill out the shoulder. They fireform beautifully, anyway.

[bearcove]

When you fireform them do you size them? All of the stuff I have done before I sized to change caliber and shot the cheapest bullet I could find. Will it expand the neck to 375?

[ktw]

I run mine through a full length sizer (38-55) prior to fireforming. I had a few where I didn't and then had problems chambering them.

I use a fireforming load similar to that listed by garandsrus. Works well, but around 10% of the cases get splits in the neck, some large and some very small, varies with the brass headstamp.

-ktw

[garandsrus]

Bearcove,

I don't... You put the 30-30 in the chamber with the powder and filler material and no boolit, pull the trigger, and a .375 Win will be there in it's place when you open the action.

I didn't have any bottleneck left with the load I described. Maybe the COW performs differently than the plastic shot buffer. I am pretty sure COW is a lot cheaper!

Treat the re-formed brass as you would any other fired cartridge. As I said, I didn't lose any cartridges to neck splits. I used 1x fired brass to the best of my knowledge.

John

[lathesmith]

If your brass will fit in your chamber before fireforming, it's a waste of time sizing them before forming, IMHO.
To make 375's out of 30/30, I don't fireform. I ordered a 375 H&H neck expander from Lee, and installed it in my universal decapper. I just lube the case and neck, open it with a 35 expander, then the 375 expander, re-size with my 375 sizer, and I have a case ready for any safe and sane 38-55 load. This is actually much faster than any other method, as I use my Lee turret press. NO noise or messy clean-up, either.
lathesmith

[jjamna]

I used Garandsrus formula to make 38-55 brass from 30-30
It works like a charm.

[jhalcott]

I would either anneal used 30-30 brass or use NEW brass to do this. It doesn't take much to "work harden" the used cases. I have done similar neck expanding and found this out.

[woody1]

bearcove, FWIW I've prob'ly formed a couple hundred 1x fired 30-30's to 375 Win using the 6 gr. Red Dot load topped with cornmeal and capped with a smear of boolit lube. The lube is just to keep them together until I get out the shop door. I think firing keeping the rifle more or less vertical makes a more even case. Since I lost a few to splits at first, I now anneal prior to fire forming and have got no more splits. Don't size prior to fireforming. Just take the fired 30-30 case prime, add powder and top with filler, cap and shoot. After fireforming just trim to even up the neck and load as fired cases. Regards, Woody

[bearcove]

I'd like to thank everyone for the info. Back inthe 70's as a kid trying to cast bullets and load 357 herrets and 7 mm TCU's this kind of info would have been great! Its great to be able to share what has worked with other people. And its so EASY! This has me ready to experiment now. I have 6.5 bullberry imp to form from some of those 30-30 brass, and 338-06 to form from 30-06.

Like woody says "Take a kid along"

[twotrees]

I took some 1X fired 30-30 brass annealed the case to the shoulder. The straight tapered expander I made is run into the case in the 38-55 sizing die. When they are done there is a lip at the old shoulder, but a normal load of Unique and a 250 gr boolit irons all that out.

I load for the 38-55 so all the loads in the reformed brass get the boolit seated out to the full length for the chamber. These are used for hunting loads and the 38-55 cases are saved for target matches.

Good Shooting,

TwoTrees