Mold Recomed.. Mod 94 .25-35

[square butte]

Had a very nice Win. 94 in 25-35 fall right into my lap on Tuesday. In good condition and well carried - But the bore looks as if it is brand new. Made in 1921. Shotgun butt, 2/3's magazine, 20 inch barrel. I would call it a modified "Eastern" carbine configuration. I have numerous 25-20 molds from 60 to 89 grains. Can anyone recomend a heavier mold (available) with a crimp groove for this rifle/cartidge configuration? Factory looks to be 117 gr.. Worst part of a new caliber is putting together reloading gear and components. Cases seem to be readily available - at the moment. I am very happy to have had this gun come out of the closet and offered to me from a friend.

[looseprojectile]

A few months ago I bought a well worn on the outside 94 Win. flat band carbine. Has a really nice bore. Soon after I got mine my shooting partner bought a really nice one.
He does not cast and he bought the RCBS .25-100-fn mould. Gave it to me.
I cast up a couple of hundred and sized and checked and lubed them and supplied him with half of them.
He has a receiver sight and he gets about one inch groups with those boolits.
My rifle has a regular Buckhorn rear sight and the best I can get is about two inch groups at fifty. These boolits finish at 108 grains and I sized them to .257"
I am going to size the next batch to .258 or .259".
I loaded 24 grains of IMR 4064 which seems to work good for this boolit.
This mould is not the lowest cost mould but it is the right one in our guns.

Life is good

[william iorg]

I have a Model 94 AE in 25-35 and shoot the NEI #23 110-grain gas check bullet. The bullet feeds well through the magazine and carries plenty of lube.
I have not shot this bullet over 1,650 fps but restricted to this velocity it will shoot sub 2 1/2” at 100-yards from the bench.
I have found my best accuracy using fast, pistol type powders. Using slower powders, I have found the bullet not quite as accurate with higher extreme spreads.
In my single shot, I shoot the NEI #21 114-grain gas check bullet with slightly better results - probably due to a heavier barrel and better scope. #21 has a longer bore ride nose and wide drive bands, which helps in both rifles. No crimp groove on #21.
I have looked at the 100-grain RCBS bullet and I would like to try it someday.

[6pt-sika]

I had a Marlin 1893 in 25-36 for awhile and used the Lyman 257325 in it quite a bit ! Also the Lyman 257312 . The 325 was a 113 grain GC RN and the 312 is a 88 grain GC FP . Also used a NEI mold that was about 114 grains with a GC and FP . But since I got rid of the 25-36 so have followed the molds !

[square butte]

Thanks for your thoughts and comment. Looseprojectile, The RCBS mold sounds like a good start. I've looked at a picture and can't tell if it actually has a crimp groove. And am not 100% sure I must have one - but would think it would give better security to loaded rounds in a mag. tube. Can you tell me what your largest as cast diameter with this mold is? Would hope at least .259 - better .260.. Like the looks of the NEI molds #'s 21 & 23 - But have not heard good things about the NEI molds since Walt is gone. What I have done so far is to order a couple hundres Lyman 257-231 100gr sized to .258 which was as large as he could go (Mt Bullet works). It's a plain base but the alloy is about 22 on the hardness scale. Enough to get me started anyway. I don't think Accurate molds can make anything under 30 cal, but have thought about a custom. The .25 Heavy group buy looks good But - To late on that one, and no crimp groove.

[looseprojectile]

The RCBS boolit has a crimp groove. I crimped my first loads in the top lube groove as the nose is short and OAL would be very short if I used the crimp groove.
Boolit has two lube grooves and is .845" long without the thickness of the check. The length of the nose foreward of the crimp groove is .400".
My loads have .550" sticking out of the case for an OAL of 2.550" with new winchester cases. The neck is near a half inch long so no problem keeping the check captive.
I will size them to .258" next time and expect a little better accuracy. I get zero leading with my lube which is basically SPG.
I started with 20 grains of IMR 4064 and went to 24 grains to make it a deer load.
I try to keep my alloy as soft as possible.
Any of the medium burning rate powder will work good with near the same charge weights.
I think that is what Felix said.
I will try SR 4759 also as I have a bunch of it. Maybe not so much as 24 grains though.
All of my loading manuals don't have the 25 35 in them.

Life is good

[william iorg]

Thanks for the dimension of the RCBS bullet.
The Lyman Cast Bullet Handbook No. 1 lists the 106-grain Lyman 257231 ahead of 9.3 grains of SR 4759 at 1,425 fps.
A slightly bigger listed load is 10.0 grains of SR 4759 behind the 257231 bullet at 1,500 fps.
Lyman said they were using a 26” Winchester Model 94. Seems like the bullet would be slowing down by the time is got to the muzzle.

[NHlever]

I have a Model 94 AE in 25-35 and shoot the NEI #23 110-grain gas check bullet. The bullet feeds well through the magazine and carries plenty of lube.
I have not shot this bullet over 1,650 fps but restricted to this velocity it will shoot sub 2 1/2” at 100-yards from the bench.
I have found my best accuracy using fast, pistol type powders. Using slower powders, I have found the bullet not quite as accurate with higher extreme spreads.
In my single shot, I shoot the NEI #21 114-grain gas check bullet with slightly better results - probably due to a heavier barrel and better scope. #21 has a longer bore ride nose and wide drive bands, which helps in both rifles. No crimp groove on #21.
I have looked at the 100-grain RCBS bullet and I would like to try it someday.

I guess your part of the country is where all those 25-35's went. I had two of them ordered, and Winchester went under before they ever shipped. Oh well, sometimes I am lucky, and sometimes not.

[9.3X62AL]

The 25-35 WCF has a sort of "speed limit" built in with cast boolits due to its 1-8" twist. I have an NEI 114 grain flatpoint bought before Mr. Melander passed away, and it is a JEWEL. My flatband carbine will hold 1.5" at 100 yards IF I keep speeds at or below 1600 FPS. 10.0-11.0 grains of 2400 has been a sweet spot with my rifle.

Those of you with milsurp 6.5 x 55 Swedes can relate, I'm sure.

[square butte]

Wonder if anyone makes something close to the NEI mold? The 2400 load sounds like one worth trying. From what I read, the jacketed 25-35 factory loads do about 2200 fps. I don't think any of the jacketed bullet makers are selling a 117 flat nose slug that duplicates the Winchester factory projectile. Doubt i'll be shooting much factory ammo although I do have 31 factory winchester rounds which I will hold on to for a special occasion.

[looseprojectile]

They always cast their boolits from linotype metal. I don't cast boolits with linotype metal, and I have a lot of it. The Hornady Seventh has loads for jacketed. I Interpolate!
I just realized that I did not answer the question about diameter. I never have any problems with diameter as I will lap a mould that drops under sized boolits.
The nose of this boolit engraves slightly when pushed in the guns muzzle, about a quarter inch in length so I would call it a bore rider.
These Winchester carbines will never be target rifles but every little bit helps.
I always have thought that Beageling a mould is just a temporary stop gap method of making a slightly larger imperfect boolit.
This mould makes boolits big enough to size them to .258" at least, just as it comes out of the box. I don't have any that I didn't size, to measure.
As I said before. this RCBS .25 100 FN boolit is ideal for my needs. It is thirty bucks more than their standard moulds and worth it, especially if you can get someone else to buy it for you ;-).

Life is good

[william iorg]

My new rifles are a different project than loading for an older rifle.
For shooting cast bullets there is a lot of information in the 1920’s and ‘30’s American Rifleman magazines. My local Library has them bound and on microfilm.

Many small game hunters and varminter used both slow and fast twist 25-35’s. Harvey Donaldson, W.F. Vickery, Townsend Whelen and Paul Estey, Vernon McGee and Francis Sell along with other, lesser-known writers used the cartridge.

With jacketed bullets, I have long said the 100-grain bullet is the best selection. In the modern 25-35 rifles, I push the 100-grain Speer JHP to 2,650 fps with excellent accuracy and case life. Alliant Reloder 10x is my powder of choice but Hodgdon 4895 will do the deed. IMR 4320 may be the best all around powder for high velocity and accuracy with the 25-35.

Dr. A gave me several leads when I was looking for the AE. They were never easy to come by.

The 8" twist does keep velocities down. Greg Mushial at GMDR had a 25-35 slow twist rifle and it was a tack driver at any reasonable velocity using cast bulletss. Greg's gunsmith ruined the barrel while working on it.