new to Martini Henry MkII - help need for the bullet selection

[iryonora]

I got my first MH-MkII last weekend. cleaned and cast the camber, come out chamber side measure .463~.464 land to groove while muzzle side measured .461~.462, assuming bore diameter .471 at chamber side and 469 at muzzle end considering 0.007 difference between land and groove of MH rifling.

first question, have I measured it correctly? i.e is it sound correct range for MH-MkII? the rifling is real clean with almost no pit at all.
2nd question, what's the recommended cast bullet? I have limited budget and don't have any machining capability. considering this, what will be the choice of casting mold for me? Paper patch looks very interesting for me. can I do the Paper Patch for my MH?

[curator]

I often paper patch 430 grain .462 diameter boolits up to .471-472 to shoot in my M/H MkII and they work quite well. I also have found that the Lee .475/400FP cast of pure lead works great in the 577/450 for reduced recoil loads. With the Lee boolit, I don't resize the brass just re-prime and load powder, then thumb-start the slug. The M/H has a very long tapered throat that usually starts at the case mouth around .480 and over about 8 inches gradually becomes the specified bore diameter. .463-.464 groove diameter is just about right. You need to check out the britishmilitaria site for more info: http://britishmilitariaforums.yuku.c...m#.Ux9bNoUV_18

[iryonora]

appreciate for your information.
looks like Lee .457-405 or .459-405 cast mold is easy to start with. if I paper patch it, then will the bullet diameter to be .467 or .497? will it works for me? can I just use regular printing paper, or should I buy special paper? I read some general articles but not easy to connect them to my specific situation as a beginner.

[curator]

There is a lot of information on "generic" paper patching on this site. I personally use 9 pound 25% rag-content paper which two complete wraps add about .011 to the bullet size. Some guys use typing or computer paper although that is thicker. It is possible to size a patched bullet down a mite as well. In nearly pure lead they can be a bit on the small side and still work OK. The .475/4-- FP bullet doesn't need patching. I shoot them as cast after a tumble in Lee Alox.

[Gellot Wilde]

I started out with 'bought in' PP bullets, but quickly decided to switch over to GG mainly due to the fact that the competitions available here for the MH does not allow for wiping out between shots. It shot OK with the PP bullets, but it wasn't particulary happy shooting them in a fouled barrel...something us Brits found out the hard way I believe back in the day.

I had Steve Brooks make me up a .470 mould after having two bad RCBS moulds which wouldn't drop the bullet due to **** machining which left burrs all over the cavities...thankfully Buffalo Arms were great with their service as usual so after two failed cross-pond returns we gave up.

The Brooks mould is perfect, had the Creedmoor nose and three grooves and it's 480gn.

The RCBS bullet isn't a bad choice, I know folks who use it to great success, I was probably just unlucky?

[Gunor]

Lee .475/400FP - where do I get that. Old mold

Never mind found it....480 Ruger...

Geoff in Oregon