8mm danish Krag

[LWSTARKS]

Brass is very expensive for my 8mm danish krag. I’ve heard that they can be made from 45-70. Has any one tried, and what were the results.

[Reverend Al]

It can be done (I've done it for mine), but they do end up on the short side. Different brands seem to have different rim dimensions and I found the Federals were a bit sticky on the rims and caused tough extraction from my chamber. (WW were fine in my gun.) .45-90's will make a full length 8x58R case after forming, but of course the brass is much more expensive. For my .45-70 cases I did it in steps using dies that I already had on hand. I annealed the cases, then ran them through my .40-82 WCF sizer, then through my .38-56 WCF sizer, and then finally through the 8x58R sizer. Worked fine for me in 3 steps and they fire-formed OK. I use Imperial sizing wax and love the stuff. It always gives me great results, even when radically reforming cases. Even though I'm using an old Lyman Ideal mould that casts a nice long 8mm boolit of well over 200 grains I still have to seat them out so far that they are barely being held in the case mouth to get them anywhere near the throat of my HVA sporter. I've been procrastinating of course, but I eventually plan to stretch some .45-70 WW cases with my Kal Max Case Stretcher and reform them into some full length 8x58R cases. Just not enough hours in the days or days in the week to get to everything!

[Reverend Al]

PS: Mine seems to shoot OK with a dose of my hoarded SR4759 and that old Lyman / Ideal bullet ...

[LWSTARKS]

What kind of rifle—krag action or a rolling block?

[Reverend Al]

I'm shooting the HVA Swedish Rolling Block sporters ... they are quite common up here in Canada. Our distributor Tradex has brought in boat loads of them over the past 15 years or so. Cheap to buy and fun to shoot. They've been averaging about $325 to $400 (Canadian) depending on overall condition so I couldn't help myself and bought 2 nice clean ones for about $375 each ...



https://www.tradeexcanada.com/produits/66

[Reverend Al]

A gunsmith buddy of mine has one of these HVA Rolling Block sporter actions at his shop that is partially rebuilt. It started as an 8x58R sporter and it's been re-barreled with a medium heavy round barrel into .30-30 Ackley Improved, has brand new replacement walnut butt and forend, and has a Soule tang sight fitted to it. He's willing to sell it "as is" at a very reasonable price and I am sooooo tempted! It's just crying out to be a cast boolit gun!

[arlon]

I have a Danish Krag that was rebarreled to 45-70. I've had to turn down the 45-70 rims on the brass I have. Are there brands of 45-70 brass with smaller diameter rims? I just have not had a 45-70 rim that fit the 8mm bolt head. Seems if you were making 8mm from 45-70 brass you would be having a similar issue. I'd love to find a brand of brass that actually fits the 8mm bolt head.

[17nut]

If you have acces to a lathe then dirt cheap belted magnum cases can be converted!

Remove expander ball and run brass into sizer as far as the belt will allow.
Turn base down to .500"
Rezise full length.
Trim to length and deburr.






The rim is on the small side but it works.
I have found that 300WM is the easiest to work on and virgin or once fired is best (cases tend to expand at the belt and that makes resizing almost impossible).

[yarro]

I used Starline .45-90 to make mine. I turn down the rims then anneal before doing the reforming. I used .45-70 culls to work out the process as I have a lot of that laying around. The neck is just shorter, but would probably work OK. Haven't got around to loading any yet, but I gave someone 10 cases and he said they worked better than the ones that he had bought. Will have more time this fall when the boy goes off to college. Mine gun is a HV that was sporterized. Sad because it was unissued when it was cut down then whoever got it never shot it. 100% case, perfect bore and bluing, excellent stock. I hand picked it out at an importer's warehouse around 2003ish along with a 55A 22lr with perfect bore. Paid $75 for both.

-yarro

-yarro

[vagrantviking]

A gunsmith buddy of mine has one of these HVA Rolling Block sporter actions at his shop that is partially rebuilt. It started as an 8x58R sporter and it's been re-barreled with a medium heavy round barrel into .30-30 Ackley Improved, has brand new replacement walnut butt and forend, and has a Soule tang sight fitted to it. He's willing to sell it "as is" at a very reasonable price and I am sooooo tempted! It's just crying out to be a cast boolit gun!

That sounds like a roller with real potential. I'm partial to cartridges with black powder history bit that sounds like it would be fun and a satisfactory project if the price is right.

[salpal48]

I have several 8x58RD rifles and the Rim sizes are all different. Your safe with a .575 rim and I use to Form 45/90 star line brass. But all Mine will chamber a 45/90 rim size

[17nut]

Then someone altered it!

8x58RD rims have always been the same and even brass from Norway and Sweden they are pretty much the same.

[Wolfer]

Like 17 nut I use belted magnum cases. I have a lathe but it's a 4 jaw chuck so I put them in my drill press and use a file to remove the belt.
My cases have been fired several times and are too big at the back. I made a die that I drive them into to swage them down. I can go in with a press but pull the rim off getting them back out.
Now I drive them in and punch them back out. This is a one time process.
While making cases this way is certainly cheap it is time consuming.