Looking for a Good .30 cal Boolit

[Littledog]

I was wondering if I could get a little help with finding a good .30 boolit to use in my 4 groove 1903A3. And by "good", I mean one that has reputation for being less problematic than others. I was leaning towards the Lyman 311332 but after searching some threads, I get the impression that this boolit may not be the best choice because of mold tolerances. I'd kind of like to stay in the 150-180 grain range as most of my shooting will be inside of 300 yards.

Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated. Thanks much.

[Le Loup Solitaire]

Hi and welcome to the forum. You are correct in mentioning the Lyman 311332; it is the proper shape for the 03-A3 barrel particularly if the barrel is a 2 groove. But you are also correct in pointing out that the bullet may not have the right dimensions anymore. The bullet body is supposed to be .309-.310 as-cast and the nose section has got to be .301-.302. Dimensions significantly below those will result in poor accuracy as the bullet tilts and goes down the bore off center. The story with Lyman is that you don't know what you are going to get for a mold. I would normally recommend 311291 or 3110041 or 311672 as they used to be really good choices, but again they may show up undersize. The Lee line includes some good designs, but you may wind up with a mold that needs all kinds of surgery to remedy weird quality control issues and aluminum molds are a bit different. Next is RCBS which makes good designs in their 30 cals; there is a 150 grain and a 180. RCBS quality control is still pretty good and they back up any problems very well. Saeco...made by Redding has some good choices and their lineup can be seen in the Midway catalog. Not the cheapest, but not undersize either. I have been using their #301 for a long time in my A-3. It works very well. I would also recommend Lyman 311334 now out of production for a long time. If you can find one it is the best choice for an A3 and is very accurate. LLS

[nighthunter]

Hmmmmmmm ............ , You just opened a can of worms. There is no best bullet for your requirements. There are some that I have had very good luck with useing them in my 03A3. My favorite is 311041 sized to .3095 over 32.0 grains of IMR 4895. This bullet and load shoot as well as I can hold. A lot of Pennsylvania groundhogs did not like this bullet and load. Another good bullet for me has been the .312-155 group buy from 2 or 3 years ago sized again to .3095. Swede Nelson's current group buy bullet, the .311-165 is almost an exact copy of the before mentioned bullet. I expect it to shoot just as well when sized to my rifle. I think sizeing to your rifles bore is more important than the exact selection of your mold. I suggest a bullet with a somewhat large meplat if you are going to hunt with it. I also suggest a gas check design as the gas check gives you a more uniform base to the bullet when you work up loads. Buy a well made mold and work up your loads to suit yourself. There are a lot of good designs available.

Nighthunter

[JIMinPHX]

I've had good luck with the 150-grain Lee flat point in my 30-30, but that's just me & my lever gun, not quite the same.

[sheepdog]

The Lee 180 grain .30 has a good reputation.

[docone31]

In my 03-A3, I use the Lee 180gn casting.
I size the prime casting to .308, then two wraps of computer printer paper, or notebook paper, then size to .309. It is the best loading I have done for my rifle.
45gns of Surplus 4895.
Dead on at 100yds. POI.
I use water dropped wheel weight mix, with a little zinc.

[sundog]

I've had excellent results with RCBS 30-180-SP (semi-point, not the flat point). Last Saturday I shot the military bolt match and scores were 99, 100-6X, 97-2x, for a 296-8X aggregate (not shabby for me!!) on the SR21 at 100 yards off the bench. This boolit is very reliable in every 03 variant I've used it in. Also what works good for me is Ly 311299 (or 314299 depending on size and fit) or 311284, and SAECO #301. Have I ever mentioned how much I like RCBS moulds? Ever...?

[felix]

Corky, what about that Saeco boolit Doc has? Looks like a good one to obtain.
Doc, did you have a custom luber sizer die made for that boolit, i.e., mimicking a swage die? ... felix

[sundog]

Felix, don't know what boolit that is. What I do know is that the 30-180-SP will shoot better than I can (100-6X ain't shabby, and should do close to that every time), so that means that me and the equipment are maxed out - can't expect any more from 'as issued' military iron sights. Would another boolit actually help at this point or just add a new variable? The potential is there for another experienced shooter with better eyes to shoot consistently at 298+ with good X count.

[zomby woof]

I having great results with the LEE C309-180-R in my 03A3 2 groove. I've hard goods results with it in the Garand also.

[R.C. Hatter]

In my old 4 groove '03-A3 Remington, I have had good luck with Lyman #311291 and the Saeco # 301, copy of the old RG-4 Cramer bullet. You need to KNOW what the barrel & throat dimensions are, and choose your bullet accordingly.

[MtGun44]

You need to slug your bbl and it will help to cast the throat area, too. You want to
fit the boolit into the throat for best opportunity to shoot accurately. That said, my
biggest issue has been too large a boolit nose to fit in a lot of my rifles' throats.

311291 and 311413 have both worked well for me in limited testing in several different
.30 cals.

Bill

[Ben]

I'd like to cast my " Vote " for the SAECO # 315 , I've shot it in my 2 groove ( and 4 groove ) Springfields with excellent accuracy.

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?t=32521

[TAWILDCATT]

I have a 1903 made in 1914.I shoot the lyman 311291 with 13 gr Red Dot and its a tack driver at 100.the one that told me shot it at 200 with same results.I also used the lee 312-160 TL.and shot just as good,I am preety good rifle shooter for 85.and can handle a 1911 well. :coffee:[smilie=1: