Can't believe I've waited this long.

[Ben]

I began casting in 1967. I'd always read that the 311291 was a great bullet in .30 cal. rifles. Through the years I've always spent my time with .30 cal. cast bullets other than the 311291- - Why I don't know ?

I finally got a nice Lyman 311291 mold from a friend. The " numbers " on the bands and the nose ( bands .312 " and nose .3005 " ) are great for my own particular application . WOW, it is a shooter ! ! The group below was shot with my stainless heavy barrel 308 Win. bench rifle. Wish I'd done this long ago.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v494/haysb/012-1.jpg

5 rounds at 100 yds
g/cs were .014 " thickness Amerimax AL made with Pat's g/c making tool :

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v494/haysb/002-6.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v494/haysb/07282011001-1.jpg

[handyman25]

Very nice. What alloy and lube?

[Ben]

Air cooled WW's with about 2% tin added.
I'm using my own lube , here is a link to the lube :

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?t=81031

[PatMarlin]

And the gas checks?

Nice shooting Ben.

That booit and the 311284 are 30 cal gods... :mrgreen:

[ph4570]

Now you have done it -- gotten me in a fever again to try cast loads for my Rem 700 .308 (again). It looks like Tom's Accurate mold #31-170E may be a clone (close) of the Lyman 311291. Maybe I'll save up and get it. I really like Tom's molds.

[Ben]

:-DOOOpps ! !:-D

Pat :

I did leave out an important detail..........the g/cs were .014 " thickness Amerimax AL made with Pat's g/c making tool.

Ben

[Greg]

Ben-

any idea on the velocity of this load ?

[Ben]

I'm guessing 1,500 - 1,600 fps.
Maybe someone else who has shot this particular load
through a chrony can help us out on the speed.

[Char-Gar]

When Mr. Barlow of Ideal designed 311291 and 311284 over a hundred years ago, he did things right. All of these years latter these designs are still among the best.

I attribute this to the almost 50/50 body to nose ratio. The nose can be a less than perfect fit still do well. When the nose does fit, it is true cast bullet magic.

One the negative side, I am suprised you did so well with bullets that were air cooled and not water dropped! Just imagine how much better it would have been if those bullets had been birthed into a bucket of water. :-)

I am also suprised you did so well, after sizing those bullets .002 and a tad more. Doing that destroys accuracy don't you know. :-) #2.

[kbstenberg]

Ben Were my eyes deceiving me. In the picture of the bullets in the can, It looked like the sprue holes were mostly off center! What gives?
Kevin

[Ben]

kbstenberg:

I picked up a bullet ( at random ) from the container that you are
referring to, and photographed it for you.

Possibly the sprue plate was being opened a little " early ".
The base of the bullet is smooth however ? ? I use a double
cavity mold, but to help with weight uniformity, I cast from only 1 cav.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v494/haysb/6754.jpg

[zuke]

Great job!

[462]

Hey, Chargar, not so loud. My '03-A3 is in the safe, about four feet away, and I don't want her to hear you. She is having a rather intimate affair with air-cooled boolits from a very old Ideal 308291. Additionally, they are sized down from .312" to .310".

If she ever finds out that she's not supposed to shoot sub-MOA (at 50-yards) with that kind of boolit, she'll sulk and refuse to come out of her safe.

Super, Ben!

[Char-Gar]

462... I have 20 or more rifles I shoot cast bullets in and all perform like show ponies with air cooled bullets. I couldn't resist getting in a lick or two at the water dropping clan. I guess I should just let sleeping dogs alone, but such does not lay within me. I also have to size 99.9% of the rifles bullet I shoot and still get sterling accuracy.

[PatMarlin]

It will be interesting to see the results of my 30PB cal Checkmaker dies. I don't have any 30 cal plain base molds, as I sold my one and only that was a CB group buy because of dismal shooting performance.

There's got to be some 30 plain base molds out there judging by the dies I've recently sold. Maybe the PB check might make those baby's shoot.

You got any 30 cal plain base molds Ben?

[94Doug]

Oh, Ben's got some PB moulds all right.

Doug

[Ben]

Oh yes, I've got plain based .30 cal. molds.
Here is my 308241 :
( Sorry, I left out the make of primer in the load data listed in
the photo below .....It was Wolf Large rifle )

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v494/haysb/SAECO%20%20315%20Plain%20Base/029.jpg

Here is the SAECO # 315 that has been " plain based " from my .308 Win.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v494/haysb/SAECO%20%20315%20Plain%20Base/009800x600.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v494/haysb/SAECO%20%20315%20Plain%20Base/007800x600.jpg

[selmerfan]

Oh Ben, now you have me confused again! Here I've been watching your .30 caliber rifle success with cast boolits, distinctly noticing that you don't post pics of any 311291 boolits, so I figured you have tried the mold and just didn't like it! I've got a bunch of these that fit my gun very well that I received in trade from a member here. Now they'll have to be incorporated into my load development....dang you! :)

[Ben]

OOOpppps :

Looks like I'm in trouble again. Yes, the 291' is a fine bullet !

Best,

Ben

[nanuk]

all you guys talking "shootin' this here boolit... shootin' that thar boolit" and me sitting here thinking, "Hmmmm, I was born in '63.... Ben was casting boolits in '67.... Hmmm...."

[Ben]

nanuk

Are you by chance " implying " that I'm an old man ?
If you are , you've hit it square on the head.

Ben

[94Doug]

funny how it all comes back to a 311291 and 16-something grains of 2400.

Doug

[Ben]

I guess that it is hard to re-invent the wheel , Uhh ? ?

[1Shirt]

Kinda hard to beat what works. Have used 311291 and 311284 for years. Not real pretty blts, but they work well, and ya shouldn't try to fix what works.
1Shirt!:coffeecom

[Char-Gar]

I was born in 1942, started reloading in 1958 and casting in 1960. Yep, that makes me 69!

[Ben]

Chargar

Back in 58', you were shooting $1.00 @ pound Hodgdon powder and $3.00 per hundred jacketed .30 cal. bullets weren't you ? I bought ECHO dies in the late 60's for $3.50. I bought many pounds of Herter's powder for about $3.50 a lb in the mid to late 60's also.

[bmanis]

And to think, you bought a 308291 a couple of years ago at a gun show and cleaned it up and sent it my way to get me started in this casting chaos. I thought for sure that you already had this mold.

[Char-Gar]

Ben.. Yes..those prices seem about right. But at the same time I was a kid in High School and a dollar was a big as a wagon wheel.

[Ben]

Chargar:

I bought a J-9 Herter's 264 Win. Mag. NIB in 1967 from Herter's. The US Post Office delivered it to my door ( those were the good old days ) .

I paid $87.50 for the rifle. It took me " 15 Forevers " to save up the money to get the rifle. I know exactly what you're saying.

____________________________________________

bmanis :

If you end up as addicited to all this as I am, you'll some day wonder whether you want to thank me or throw something at me..........

Ben

[bmanis]

And to think I got into this to save money. When is that going to start? I think I just shoot a lot more than I used to.

[Ben]

When you get to the $40 K expenditure mark, you'll slowly begin to see a cost savings.