Advise on which of my Rifle cartridges I should learn to cast rifle boolits.

[Gofaaast]

I have cast pistol boolits for several years, but never any for rifle. My options are .223, 22/250, and .243 in factory bolt action rifles, with the common twist rate.
I have read numerous posts here about each of them, and now under the impression that .223 would be the most fickle.
I will be shooting 100 yard groups the most and a few steel targets at further distances if possible. I get the most enjoyment out of shooting groups and trying to better them if needed. I want to use the cartridge that is the most inherently accurate shooting cast, if one of them is that.
Opinions on moulds, alloy, lubes and powder would all be greatly appreciated.
I have an extra Lube a matic to dedicate to rifle lube. I will be procuring the rest of the supplies needed.

[dondiego]

You don't own a 30-30? .35 Rem? 45-70? The larger bores are typically easier to get to shoot. You can get your listed calibers to shoot though. I would start with the .243. Good luck! A lot of the fun is in the pursuit!

[wcp4570]

I agree with the above comment. If you had anything 30 cal that would be my suggestion. So the 243 may be the easiest place to start. I load the light Loverin 245496 boolit for my 243 and it shoots fairly good, kinda like shooting a 22mag. I just have not done a lot of load development for the 243. I'm having too much fun with the 30-06 and 300 blackout. I have shot some 223 and Hornet but those little 22s are not much fun to put checks on.

wcp

[MarkP]

The RCBS 244-95 FN has always shot well for me with many powders and load combinations to date, and these are pretty easy to cast. I have seen on this site that LEE has a new 22 cal mod that looks similar to the 55 gr RCBS 22 cal so that would be a low cost option to try. Also the 22 Bator mold (LEE) from Midsouth would be a low cost option.

I have several 22 molds, the issue I have is due to having large fingers the small 22's are difficult for me to pick up when putting thru my sizer. More of an issue with the shorter 22's such as the 37 grainers (225107)

[Gofaaast]

My 30 cal rifles are either magnums, or gas operated semi autos that aren't that accurate. I have a couple 25-06's also, but I want to cast for short actions so I get "rounds to the pound not pounds to the round" as a old timer once preached to me. Sounds like the 25 cal though would have a shorter learning curve.
If I go with casting for .243 would water quenched coww with 1-2% tin added be a good alloy, or should I use Lino? I am not looking to set speed records with these boolits.

[Blackwater]

You've been given good advice .... AND a good excuse to get a good ol' thutty thutty! Congratulations on that last! ;-)

[wcp4570]

Your goals are realistic and doable. What you said about alloy is an excellent place to start. Tin sweetens the COWW and helps the mold fill out better. No need to go straight Lino type. I cast straight COWW and water drop. I run my pot a little hot and get good results, also use a hot plate to get the mold up to temp so I spend less time making rejects. If I had a 25-06 I would certainly try cast in it. There are some good looking molds for the 1/4 inch bore and even at 120 gr you still get 58 boolits per pound. Good luck on your quest and happy shooting.

wcp

[GabbyM]

Any of the three will work just fine. Kind of depends on which gun you want to shoot.

If you go with the 22 caliber boolits you’ll be able to load cast for both your 22-250 and 223.

I like cast bullet shooting in my 243 A.I. It's a ten pound rifle with a 6.5x24 power scope. I have three bullet molds for it from 80 to 87 grain. any of them will shoot slightly sub MOA at 100 yards. Have not played with my newest. NOE Egan bullet. With the big over bore case I find shotgun powder gets them going as fast as they want to shoot anyway. 11.0 grains of Unique does the trick. Around 1,900 fps or under.

For a 22 rifle boolit loading kit. I highly recommend the RCBS .224" neck expander and .225" size die. Uniform neck tension is very important IMHO. So if you have old cases or mil surplus I highly recommend annealing all necks. Then use a neck die with graphite lube and the bullet expander. I don't weigh my 22 bullets or anything special.

[MarkP]

My 30 cal rifles are either magnums, or gas operated semi autos that aren't that accurate. I have a couple 25-06's also, but I want to cast for short actions so I get "rounds to the pound not pounds to the round" as a old timer once preached to me. Sounds like the 25 cal though would have a shorter learning curve.
If I go with casting for .243 would water quenched coww with 1-2% tin added be a good alloy, or should I use Lino? I am not looking to set speed records with these boolits.

My Rem 700 Mountain in 300 Wby shoots cast very well; I tried it just to see, having low expectaions, I was very surprised with the results. Rem M SEVEN in 300 SAUM shoots cast well.

[GhostHawk]

Ok, in theory I would agree that 30 cal and up is easier.

But, I got to thinking one day about the little .223 Handi Rifle I had, and SHTF, and similar scenarios. And I decided the time was ripe to find out just how bad it can be.

So I order the Bator .224 55 gr 6 cavity mold, then the handles, and sizer, and started casting.

At this point I probably only have cast some 80-90 total. As the gas checks for these little buggers are just a wee bit tedious.

But, I know for a fact that I have not thrown out more than 10 out of the 100 I cast.

Common sense, pot to right temp, mold preheated, stick the corner of the mold into the pot until it doesn't stick. Couple of dipperfulls onto the sprue plate. Then close up and started casting.

It isn't that bad! I have been water dropping mine, just cause. When I get a bunch, fish them out of the water, drop them into a towel, start sorting and gas checking. I've done 2 sessions with this mold, about 60 or so each time. I did have a few more rejects with the first session that were finning badly. Realised I was not holding the mold closed, had my hand on the sprue plate handle.

Ok, operator error. But other than that it casts well. I did treat it with the liquid wrench dry lubricant. (There is a seperate thread on this)

But my advice, spend the 40$ and give it a shot.

So I'd say .223 as it has a good mold at a reasonable price, and work out from there.
I've also been finding that 4-6 grains of Red Dot below one of those bator bullets makes a nice quiet load. I have not shot it out to 100 yet, but it was certainly tight enough to kill any rabbit, squirrel or ground hog in that 25-100 yard range. And it is cheaper to load than a .22lr shell and hits a little harder.

[MT Chambers]

30/30, .308,.30/06, and up through the .35s, and bigger, these are calibers where cast performance can match j-word, or in the case of the 45/70 exceed anything factory or j-word. C.F. 22s or 24s can only come in with light cast loads.

[Frank46]

Get yourself a cheap moisin nagant rifle or carbine or Finnish one and have fun. In my book moisins are the most underrated rifles or carbines on the market today. Lotta bang for the buck. Like we need an excuse to get another rifle?. Frank

[azrednek]

My Rem 700 Mountain in 300 Wby shoots cast very well; I tried it just to see, having low expectaions, I was very surprised with the results. Rem M SEVEN in 300 SAUM shoots cast well.

Same results shooting cast in my 308 Norma Mag. Been about 20 or so years ago and I don't recall the data except using a bare-assed Lee casting weighing about 190 grs. I neck sized the brass opening the mouth with just enough flare to start the slug. I shot a mild load of Unique but do not recall the weight of the charge. 100 yard bench rested accuracy with the long free bored chamber was mediocre at best but the big plus was the ability to shoot and practice with the rifle without taking a beating.

[Bzcraig]

Well really it's all a moot point! Start wherever you want cause you'll be buying new guns, molds, sizers, powders, gas checks, etc. anyway! :bigsmyl2:

[Wayne Smith]

Use any of the but keep your velocities low. Use it as a 22 Hornet and you won't (shouldn't) have problems. These come when you try to push the velocities and you then need to think about boolit hardness and rotation speed.

[azrednek]

Well really it's all a moot point! Start wherever you want cause you'll be buying new guns, molds, sizers, powders, gas checks, etc. anyway! :bigsmyl2:

He forgot to mention THERE IS NO CURE!!

[Blammer]

of your choices I would go with the largest caliber (diameter bullet) you have

[JeffinNZ]

I don't understand all the comments about .22 cast bullets being fiddly. Do none of you load .224 jacketed? They're the same size you know.

[GhostHawk]

Well for one thing sir, you don't have to put a gas check on a jacketed bullet. It is jacketted, already has one. But shooting naked cast over 1400 fps tends to do bad things to cast bullets unless you have a gas check on it.

Imagine if you can snapping a small copper disk with a slightly raised edge onto the base of each bullet. Now, you can't set it down, or half of the checks will fall off and have to be redone.

About the best system I have found is to do 5, laying each new bullet/check in the cracks between your fingers. When you have 5 or so, run them one at a time through a sizing die to crimp the check into place. fiddly is exactly what it is. Still it is better than having to spend 7 to 10 cents per bullet so that you can reload them.

And if you have a fair stock of reloading supply's like lead, powder, primers. You have the ability to craft good ammo long after all other ammo is gone in a SHTF or such scenario.

It is that independence that drove me.
That same independence that drove me to buy 1,000 rounds of both .223 rem and 7.62x39 recently. Brand new Privi Partizan ammo with brass cases and boxer primers. I hope to never need it for anything more than teaching my grandson to shoot. But if I do, it sucks to not have it.

[Duckiller]

You should have 3 or 4 molds for every rifle you own. If you have two rifles with the same bore dia then you need 6-8 molds for them. Even 45/70 use less than an ounce for most repeater loads.

[rogn]

I spent a lot of time in the late 50s shooting anything I could load in a 222 Rem. I had a lovering design mold that I recall a 55gr and the gas checks were frustrating to deal with. I think a lot were shed in flight and my have impaired accuracy. The best I could accomplish was 3-4" at 100. Jacketed were very good. Since I have played with 7mm, 30, 375, and 45. The 7 and thirty shoot well with minimal preps and the 375 will shoot <moa. My early experiments were limited by my $ resources and much more limited powder primer choices. I guess I have to agree, the little guys are more finicky and the bigger ones are mor forgiving.

[gloob]

I would tend to cast for 243 first, from the perspective of cost. Jacketed 243 bullets can't be purchased particularly cheap.

From an accuracy-chasing standpoint, well, I don't really go there with my cast rifle loads, so I can't really add any experience from that perspective. My 223 gas checked bullets shoot good enough for my purposes.

In theory, your 22-250 should be able to shoot cast bullets at higher velocities than your 223, if that's a concern. Slower twist rate, and all. But in either case, I would favor somewhere between 50% and 100% lino for 223, if you want to shoot paper at long range, because you will be able to get higher velocities (less drift and drop).