Is the 25/06 worth casting for

[peter nap]

I had a moment of insanity at the gunshow....I bought a Ruger 77 in 25/06. The fellow was going overseas and almost giving it away. $200.00, mint condition, dies, 100 once fired cases and 3 boxes of factory loads.

Does anyone cast for theirs or is this a jacketed bullet gun only?

[Heavy lead]

Sir, that would have been insanity not to buy, not TO buy.
With that said, I don't cast for the 25-06, but it is one of my favorite rounds. I stoke my current one with Reloader 22, a WLR and the Hornady 120 hollow point, it is extremely accurate. I imagine it would be a good cast shooter with the long neck, but don't know for sure.
Good Luck.

[lylejb]

I'll gladly give you your $200 back if you ever decide it's too much trouble:kidding:

That's a deal you just HAVE TO take.

It's a good rifle, it should do fine.

[dk17hmr]

I agree, insanity not to buy. Im not big one the Ruger 77 but my wallet would of been $200 lighter if I got a deal like that.
I really like the 25-06 I have. Its a semi custom Remington 700 here is what it will do with J-bullets.
http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showpost.php?p=588502&postcount=22

I have never shot cast in it but I dont see why it wouldnt work. You could always paper patch them also.

[docone31]

The .25 paper patches real well.

[snaggdit]

I bought my son a Browning Stainless A series 25-06 as his first deer rifle last fall (he was 12). He is a lefty and the friend selling it was too. It came with the Leopold 3-9 scope for $400. Another can't pass it up deal. I found a decent lighter load for him with 100gr Sierra BT Spitzers and 34gr surplus 4198. Now I am thinking about trying to find a cast load for it. Obviously my first question would be what boolit (mold) to try first?

[MT Gianni]

The only deterrents IMO would be a shortage of gas checks and probably relying on custom molds for heavier than minimum boolits. Great buy.

[Leftoverdj]

I shoot cast in a variety of .25s including several .25-06s. With bullets of 100 grains and under, I've never found it difficult to get inch groups at 50 yards. I've never had great success with the 115-120 grain bullets and suspect they are too long to stabilize properly with the usual twists and cast bullet velocities.

The RCBS 100 grain GC has done very well for me in an assortment of rifles. It's still available on special order. The Lyman 65 grain GC does very well for small game loads. Other than those two, pickings are slim. RCBS does offer a 120 grain GC spitzer, and a CAS mould or two are available, but I'm not inclined to try another long bullet, and velocity is going to be very limited with plain base. NEI probably has some designs I am not familiar with so you should try them.

Practical applications are pretty limited, too. Cast in the .25s makes for fun shooting which is enough for me, but otherwise it's a small game and short range varmint proposition. I don't think you can get a suitable deer load, and I am not minded to try.

[qajaq59]

If I didn't cast at all I'm not sure I'd run out and buy all the equipment to cast for that rifle. But if I already had the equipment then I certainly would give it a try. You can get in a lot of cheap practice with cast, and practicing at the range sure does help once you're in the woods.

[grouch]

I get 5 shot groups under 1" at 100 yds if it's not too windy and I do my part with Cast bullet Engineering's 25790 and 10gr of H110 in my 257 roberts. I don't see why a 25 - 06 would be a lost cause.
Grouch

[Shiloh]

Well it's even more used now so I'll take it off your hands for $175.:coffee:

Make it a project. There is absolutely NO reason you cannot get superb accuracy with it from cast. I saw a custom heavy barrel .25-06 years ago that gave fine results with cast.

Whats the trigger like? The older Mod 77 triggers were very heavy and nonadjustable.

Shiloh

[snaggdit]

The guy who sold me the browning had trigger work done. I swear it is under 2 lbs! It is downright scary, just brush your finger along it... Fine for bench work, but I had a long talk with my son about always having the safety on until he was ready to fire.

[1Shirt]

Just my 2 cents worth on this! With one exception, any centerfire ctg. is worth trying cast in. That is part of the fun of casting and loading. The exception for me is the 25ACP! That ^%*%!! of a ctg would be more than a waste of time for anybody.
1Shirt!:coffee: