Cast boolits in 308

[Yooper003]

Is anyone shooting cast in any of the new inexpensive bolt action rifles. If so what is the load? I have a Rem 600 in 308 & I have not been able to find a load that shoots worth a hoot.

[WebMonkey]

what are you 'shooting for' ?
paper punching or hunting etc?

i reliably drop deer with a ruger american rifle predator version using the lee 170gn flat.
i use 2400 for my powder.
i can cover a magazine full with a quarter at 100yds but that may not be what you mean.
certainly won't stand up to 300yds
:)
'monkey

[bmortell]

what have you tried? projectiles, alloy, diameter, powders, velocity. im not sure why my early rifle loads didn't work well, but once I started doing powder coated gas check'd around .3095 and 1800fps I got usable results

[Yooper003]

Mainly just paperpunching & I only have 100 yds here. Just like to shoot and mess with loads.was thinking of maybe new rifle in 308. I have N American predator in 6.5 creed, shoots jacketed great but would rather have a locking bolt .

[ole_270]

Been playing with an old JC Higgins 51-L in 308. Basically a Husky HVA action stocked and barreled by High Standard for Sears catalog sales back in the 50s-60s. The groove and throat are oversized at .3100. I've had best luck so far with a NOE clone of the Saeco #315, powder coated, water dropped from the oven, and sized .3115. I use a special expansion plug from NOE to expand the neck of the case and bell the mouth for seating the bullet.
I've tried several powders so far, some loads up to 2400 fps with the 180 gr bullet. H4895, RL-15, Varget, N202, H4350, and H4831sc. Best accuracy so far has been at 1900-2200 fps with several of the powders. Groups average around 1.5-1.75" at 100 yards with some going 1.25" or better. If I took more care inspecting for flaws and weighing bullets I could probably get down to 1" or so. I'm not competing so only the worst get thrown back.
Fiver sent me some Accurate 31-165a and XCB that also did pretty well. Popper sent some as well, but since the ones from my mold are working, thats what I've concentrated on.

[Oily]

Yooper what diameter of boolits are you shooting? all my 308 rifles shoot decent with most boolits and loads, but getting to the 1to 1 1/2 inches at 100 yds is more challenging. If you are punching paper the Lee 309-113-F is fun to shoot and easy on your lead supply and really accurate with 2400 or Unique at around 1800 fps or so depending on your rifle. Most of mine shoot the best sized at .311. 11 gr of red dot,12 to 13 gr unique or 15to 16 gr 2400 are all good places to start with the 113 gr boolit. Quiet low recoil and just alot of fun. Great for new or young shooters. I powder coat mine by the half gallon jug once a year just to have fun with.

[rsrocket1]

Lee C309-170-F gas checked in a $119 Remington 788 (what I paid in 1980 or somewhere around there). Pan lubed with 2:1 Beeswax:Vaseline and seated to 0.3" depth.

https://images3.imgbox.com/18/34/WLqxBT8p_o.jpg

Subsonic (1007 fps) load with the C309-200-R bare base at 100 yards. Notice the difference in POA vs POI. 5 shot group.

https://images2.imgbox.com/df/1a/5miB3T3V_o.jpeg

The nice thing about the Lee 309 bullets is that the bands are the same height so that if you seat to the same seating depth, the portion of the bullet below the case rim is the same. The bullet has a little resistance while chambering which means the exposed driving bands are lining up in the throat which helps accuracy.

[Yooper003]

I appreciate the replies guys, sounds like I might need a little larger boolit. I don't have a mod for this, didn't know how much I would shoot 308 cast. I have molds for and shoot cast in 45/70 44 mag& 357. Bought some coated boolits from Missouri bullet co. & they are .309

[Kraschenbirn]

Both my commercial .308s...an M700, an M10...seem to prefer .310 dia. with PC. On a calm day, both will print close to MOA @ 200 yd.

Bill

[MostlyLeverGuns]

I shoot .310 bullets, 185gr from Matt's Bullets or the NOE 195 FN RCBS clone, in a several Savage 99's in 308 Win and 300 Savage. Everyday accuracy of 1.5 MOA or better using IMR4227 (15-18 gr), 5744 (16-20 grains), Reloder 7 (20-25) grains, 170 to 180 grain boolits. It is easier to get good accuracy with gas checks. I would also try .311 if .310 did not work. Savage 99's have very long throats, so I seat to work through magazine, longer seating can help accuracy, especially with boolits.