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Thread: 310 round ball from 30-30

  1. #1
    Boolit Mold
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    310 round ball from 30-30

    In my misguided youth I loaded .310 round balls for a 30-30 bolt gun to dispatch squirrels and other invading varmints . Effective range was about 25 yards. Didn't use much powder. I didn't want to attract too much attention. Might have been Red Dot or Unique. I don't remember and at the time I wasn't keeping records.

    Once again I have a need for such fodder. Is anyone doing something similar and care to share information?

    Thanks

  2. #2
    Boolit Master
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    I have tried round balls in my 308 but was a pain to load and didint shoot accurate past 25 yards. I found a .314 90-100 gr lead pistole bullet sized to .0311 with 2.7 to 3.0 of bullseye shoots past 50 yards like a good 22lr. Try it out you will like it .

  3. #3
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    I would think 4-5 grains of Bullseye would work fine.

  4. #4
    Boolit Master
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    I had a buddy that did that long ago. I seem to remember an unsized case primed with a few grains of some powder...thumb the ball into the m-died case mouth and wipe some alox on the top of the ball.... it was amazingly accurate at 15 yards but "your mileage may vary"... Watch for sticking one in the bore.... Good luck & let us know...

  5. #5
    Boolit Mold
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    That was fast.
    Thank you guys.
    No BE on hand. I am leaning toward about 5 gr Unique. Hope to work on it tomorrow.
    I will post feedback when I get some.

  6. #6
    Boolit Master
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    In my 30-30 I run the 311008 which weighs 115 gr to about 1200 fps with 5 gr of clays. I don’t know how far out it’s accurate but certainly to squirrel hunting distance
    Some people live and learn but I mostly just live

  7. #7
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    PM sent the OP. Just so happens I'm in the midst of stocking up on round ball stash using the recent Group Buy molds from MP Molds.

    I already had .310 Lee 6 cavity round ball mold from Track of the Wolf. Lee has their #00 string of pearls .33 mold but the MP molds offered .33 size in 8 cavity straight round ball which seemed like a better approach in a high quality mold that with Group Buy discount was very competitive price. I also have a .32 round ball mold aka #0 buck.

    Seem like I might be able to help OP with his war on tree rats and as a long time Standard Schnauzer owner I feel an obligation to do what I can to discourage rodents from being in trees where they can't be caught and shaken properly. Although our 10 year old did nail the bugger that got bold and went for the bird feeder. Squirrel has to win race to fence or tree every time, dog she only needs to win once.
    Scrap.... because all the really pithy and emphatic four letter words were taken and we had to describe this source of casting material somehow so we added an "S" to what non casters and wives call what we collect.

    Kind of hard to claim to love America while one is hating half the Americans that disagree with you. One nation indivisible requires work.

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  8. #8
    Boolit Master


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    I used 2.2gr Clay's with a .311 round ball in my .30-30 for ~870fps. 25 yd accuracy was very good, easily 1" 3 shot groups.
    I made a note in my records to try 2.5gr Clays, but haven't gotten back to it.

  9. #9
    Boolit Master
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    I have tried round balls in my 308 but was a pain to load and didint shoot accurate past 20 yards. I found a .314 90-100 gr lead pistole bullet sized to .0311 with 2.7 to 3.0 of bullseye shoots past 50 yards like a good 22lr. Try it out you will like it .the round ball load I wanted to like but I had problems loading the ball in the case and having it go deaper or fall in past the neck .they did shoot decent to 15 yards or so and at 20 yards or farther they started opening up the group. The cast lead bullet used for 32 long or 32 h&rmag ,32 colt worked great. I ordered some hard cast bullets to use at first. Then I ordered a lee .314 90 gr swc and a lee .311 100 gr 2R. I tried the .314 as cast and the bolt was very hard to close on my savage axis in 308. So I tried them sized to .312 .still a little hard to close but .311 worked out great. They shoot a ragged hole at 25 yards and 50 yards they still shoot really good. I have also used the lee .312 160 2R for the sks and ak sized .311. They also shoot very good to 100 yards or more.i load them with 5 to 7
    gr of bullseye and tried them with gas checks and without lubed with with lee Lla or white label lube 45/45/10 . It’s a real light load but every body that shoot this load really likes it .

  10. #10
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    Texas by God's Avatar
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    I've killed several squirrels with the .310" Hornady rb lubed with LLA over 3 grs of Bullseye or Red Dot in a 94 Win 30-30. Loaded single shot and they worked fine dropping fancy rats from Pecan trees. They worked pretty good on Terrapins as well. The Lee 31490TL SWC is the go to for magazine use. I just cast some for this use the other day.

  11. #11
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    I really never found RBs that effective/accurate past 20 yards or so even with the best lad of 2.1 gr Bullseye.

    I too favor using my own cast TL314-90-SWCs TL'd in LLA, dried and then sized down to .311 loaded over 2.7 gr Bullseye in my 30-30s. An excellent and accurate load.

    However, if you've not got the RBs yet I suggest you try to find some of Hornady's 90 gr swaged .32 cal SWCs as they are essentially the same as the Lee cast bullets. I do size them down to .311 also with a Lee .311 push through sizer and load them over the same 2.7 gr Bullseye.

    Or the Hornady 90 gr .32 cal swaged HBWCs or the Speer 32 cal 98 gr swaged HBWCs. Size them .311 (push base first through the Lee sizer to not crush/collapse the HB skirt) and load them over 3 - 3.5 gr Unique for 850 - 950 fps. They will give excellent accuracy to 50 yards, much better than the RBs do at 20 yards. The soft flat nose WCs are also very deadly on small vermin, all out of proportion to their velocity.
    Larry Gibson

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  12. #12
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    I've used 3 grains of Promo (same by weight, but not volume as red dot) under a 311 RB in the 30-30 with good results to 20-25 yards. I never tried them past that. I never got the round tuit to try anything else, or shoot many of them. If I was hunting with a 30-30 I'd want something like that in my pocket for small game I encountered.
    Nozombies.com Practical Zombie Survival

    Collecting .32 molds. Please let me know if you have one you don't need, cause I might "need" it!

  13. #13
    Boolit Master trapper9260's Avatar
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    Some time ago I size the 00 buck for the 30 cal rifles and I do not remember what I use for powder but works and tuber lube in Alox water down some. and works .Like Larry stated.I did it just to do it. Other then that I use size down 32 cal boolits and load that way .
    Life Member of NRA,NTA,DAV ,ITA. Also member of FTA,CBA

  14. #14
    Boolit Master Thumbcocker's Avatar
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    Size "0" buck shot liquid alox 3 grains of red dot. Seated 1/2 of ball diameter in unsized case and light crimp was accurate at 25 yards and would feed through Marlin action.
    Paper targets aren't your friends. They won't lie for you and they don't care if your feelings get hurt.

  15. #15
    Boolit Buddy
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    I am currently loading 155 and 170 gr cast boolits over 3.0 and 3.1 gr of titegroup. Crono says about 850fps. Appears to be fairly accurate at 50yds. still a work in progress.

  16. #16
    Boolit Master
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    " I didn't want to attract too much attention."

    Sounds like in the past the OP wanted to be stealthy around residential areas, and probably still wants to do the same with the present issue he is trying to resolve. Thus, the RB and a small amount of powder to keep things quiet. A larger boolit might make a louder pop, is my guess.

    Years ago Rick Jamison wrote of a light, quiet load to dispatch coyotes around a subdivision on the edge of an Arizona town. The coy-dogs were killing and carrying away domestic dog pups in the area, but still, a loud boom would not bode well with the neighbors. His solution was to use a .32 pistol boolit over a small dose of pistol powder in a long gun to dispel the problem without attracting undue attention. It inspired me to cook up the same, but of course being younger and prone to want speed I hopped the Lyman #2 112 grain flat nose rounds up to 2,000fps out of the 30/06. It was the real deal on a particular coyote, but it wasn't quiet by any means. Didn't need to be where I was, though. This thread brings back those memories. Fun round to practice with. I recently gave my eldest son the remainder of those loads to take back to the prairie dog towns he works over out west. Thought he would have much enjoyment with the old Ruger I used to use that he now hunts Elk with.
    Hope the OP finds success in his endeavor.

  17. #17
    Boolit Master Thumbcocker's Avatar
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    Ball fly much shorter distances than boolits.
    Paper targets aren't your friends. They won't lie for you and they don't care if your feelings get hurt.

  18. #18
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mule View Post
    That was fast.
    Thank you guys.
    No BE on hand. I am leaning toward about 5 gr Unique. Hope to work on it tomorrow.
    I will post feedback when I get some.
    I I would use a 32 cal or .314" rb run it through a sizer to get the maximum flat area on the equator, and roll it in liquid alox. It wouldn't hurt to paint the edge of the loaded ball with liquid lube either. Try 2 gr of a fast powder, AA2, Red Dot, BE or similar.
    http://www.castbullet.com/shooting/rb30.htm Junior had good luck with Unique but my best results with a 32 wadcutter have been with 2 gr Red Dot.
    [The Montana Gianni] Front sight and squeeze

  19. #19
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    Round balls are great fun.

    I shoot 1, 2 & 3 in my 45-70 & 458 No. 1

    20 yd results w/3



    my FL loading bench.


  20. #20
    Boolit Grand Master Outpost75's Avatar
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    In the .30-30 my experience has been that the minimum charge which always exits the barrel, with a conventional, plain-based bullet which "fits" is the most accurate "Cat Sneeze" load.

    Accurate 31-155D was designed just for this purpose in the .30-30 and gives best results when cast soft, no harder than 8-10 BHN. I prefer 1:40 tin-lead from Roto Metals and LS Stuff 45-45-10. I use the bullet as-cast and unsized.

    Attachment 236529

    The lightest charge which reliably exits a 20" barrel and is stable in the usual 1:12" twist used in the 94 Winchester is 3 grains of Bullseye, or alternately you can use with success 3.5 grains of 452AA, WST or 231, or 5 grains of WSF, Unique, Universal or Herco.

    The forepart of this Accurate bullet engraves like chambering Eley Tenex in a .22 match rifle, This load is fully capable of inch groups at 50 yards if you do your part.

    Attachment 236530

    If you want a heavier load which approximates .32-40 black powder ballistics and will shoot through whitetail deer from any angle, you can use 1/2 of the listed charge for a 150-grain jacketed bullet with most popular rifle powders suitable for the .30-30, about 14-15 grains of IMR3031, IMR4895, IMR4064, RL15, or Varget with a 1 grain Dacron filler tucked loosely into the case neck, NOT pushed down upon the powder! AND a pea-sized "grease cookie" of white lithium grease or Crisco.

    Attachment 236531Attachment 236532
    Last edited by Outpost75; 02-21-2019 at 10:32 PM.
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Abbreviations used in Reloading

BP Bronze Point IMR Improved Military Rifle PTD Pointed
BR Bench Rest M Magnum RN Round Nose
BT Boat Tail PL Power-Lokt SP Soft Point
C Compressed Charge PR Primer SPCL Soft Point "Core-Lokt"
HP Hollow Point PSPCL Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" C.O.L. Cartridge Overall Length
PSP Pointed Soft Point Spz Spitzer Point SBT Spitzer Boat Tail
LRN Lead Round Nose LWC Lead Wad Cutter LSWC Lead Semi Wad Cutter
GC Gas Check