Best Military Rifle You Have for Cast Loads

[RU shooter]

Another vote for the O3A3 two groove. Pet load was the Lee 185 and 17,5 gr of 2400

[sghart3578]

1930's vintage Czech made VZ-24 Mauser, chambered in 7X57.

Moved into a Boyd's stock.

NOE 291-170-FN w/gc loaded over 16 gr of 2400.





Steve in N CA

[Streetwalker]

My favorite rifle is a 1944 03A3 Remington with a two groove barrel. It shoots the 200 gr. RCBS sil. bullet cast from a 50/50 wheelweight and linotype mixture over 20 gr. of Reloader 7 and any magnum primer. This load shoots tighter than I can hold and was developed from Jim Carmichael's old cast bullet load that he used for 200 yd. practice for his 300 Mag. target rifle many years ago.

[4570guy]

Most accurate is an 03A3. Right behind it by a quarter inch or so group-wise is my 1898 Krag. Unfortunately, my 1917 is just not that great a shooter. I have tried oversized bullets and several different load recipes. Finally I re-crowned the barrel. That helped but it doesn't hold a candle to the 03A3 and Krag... they sneer at the '17 from across the gunsafe

[Winger Ed.]

I'll have to go along with Springfield too.

I had one that was a Remington, 03-A3, mid-40's production that was unissued/unfired until I got ahold of it.
It was amazingly accurate with cast, and I don't think I shot more than 10-12 'J' bullets through it.

[TankerDon]

Other hobby's kept my busy the last 15yrs. and decided to get back to shooting last year. Picked up a 1916 Mauser in 7.62x51. I don't cast so picked up a box of Berry's 150g FP. It's showing promise with those over 16g of 2400. Many years ago I bought a Savage Enfield and a Polish M44. The best I've got with the Enfield is 118g FP .314 .32-20 boolets over 7g of HP38. Shot a ladder load of HP38 under Berry's 123g SP AK boolets out of the Mosin this week. 7g was the best there also.

[TCLouis]

So far my best 50 yard group is from Type 99 7.7X58 with a horrendous trigger
0.311 Ranch Dog, 18. 10B101
16 and 17 showed promise too.
Pictures of the group on theCast Boolit forums somewhere.
I need to chronograph that load.

Seems like I am out of that batch of boolits also.
I need to get back on that project to include working on a lighter trigger spring.

[Bad Ass Wallace]

FN Mauser in 7 mm - 29gns 3031 with 145gn RCBS silly-wet boolit

[Texas by God]

Both my milsurps have new commercial barrels so I don't guess they count. My 1916 Spanish 30-30 is brilliant and my 1898 Krag will be I hope........

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using Tapatalk

[dale2242]

I have only shot cast in my Garand and my Mosin-Nagant.
With the little I have experimented with the two, the MN seems to have a slight edge....dale

[Abert Rim]

1898 krag made in 1901. 311399 sized to .309.

Bob, did you mean Lyman 311299?

[Bigslug]

I seem to have gone Limey. Been playing a lot with Enfields lately SMLE, No. 4, P14, and 1917 - the last having both a nice Redfield peeped sporter (from the '30's maybe?) and an unaltered. 316299 with AA5744 for a touch over 2000 fps for the .303's, and 311299 and IMR4064 (probably to be revisited with Varget) for about the same with the '06's. I might just have to try my NOE .308 Ranch Dog in those two - uses less lead; smacks water bottles better; tumble lube is quicker; and MIGHT hit closer to sights that are set up for jacketed. . .

What I typically get with all of the above is about a 2.5 MOA overall spread containing really tight clusters of 1.5 MOA or less. There's an eyeball limitation factoring in there somewhere, but seeing as the belligerent governments of their era were typically happy with about 3 MOA, I'm a happy range monkey .

[Rich/WIS]

Remington 1903A3 two groove in a CMP C stock.

[northmn]

I have had a couple of Lee Enfield #4MK1's. I got a deer with one in full battle dress using a bullet as cast weighing in at 208 grains. The velocity was near 2000 fps. Had to sue the ladder sight to get impact at POI but it was a very good load.

DEP

[Winger Ed.]

Rem. O3A3 multi groove barrel with anything sized to .309..

[Lloyd Smale]

I know im cheating and maybe skirting the rules but my choice is my psa 300 bo. It will shoot rcbs 130 spitz gas checks into an 1 1/2 all day long at a 100 yards and its basically one of only two loads ive tried with the only bullet ive tried so my guess is if I thought it nessisary (which I don't) to find more accuracy its probably there.

[6bg6ga]

I guess you really have to love shooting lead in a rifle to work up a decent load. I'm to be blunt not very tolerant when trying to come up with something that will shoot into the black. I just open a box of jacketed bullets and load up 50. No gas checks to put on just decent accuracy without the fuss. My hat is off to you guys.

[Lloyd Smale]

im right with you if your talking a bolt gun that I might shoot 20 rounds out once a week. But ive probably shot AT LEAST 3k out of my 300 this summer. I could have bought another gun for what that many bulk pull down 30 cal bullets would have cost. Probably two guns if I was buy brand name jacketed and the summer hasn't even started yet. Like you though im not competing in any bench rest comp so minute of beer can at even 50 yards and im happy. Had an awakening about 10 years ago. Found I was spending WAY to much time being anal about loading and casting and spending 3/4s of my shooting time on bags on a bench. Got so that it was about work. Now im all about taking 300 rounds to the range and killing targets. It brings the fun back you had when you were 10 years old and dad handed you that first 22.

I guess you really have to love shooting lead in a rifle to work up a decent load. I'm to be blunt not very tolerant when trying to come up with something that will shoot into the black. I just open a box of jacketed bullets and load up 50. No gas checks to put on just decent accuracy without the fuss. My hat is off to you guys.

[6bg6ga]

The wife and I probably have 8 or 10 300 blackouts. While not a military round or military rifle they are awesome. I would consider trying lead bullets the low and slow kind if I had the mold for my bullet caster.

[jmort]

The ACC .300 Blackout is a military round
Operators have been using them
For supressed CQC they work real good
Otherwise, I am a big fan from 110 grains to 230 grains
Not a good match for the 416s, but SIG got them what they wanted
Being adopted by military and LEO worldwide
It is a specialized round for LEO and military, but it is being used