New Member With A Few Questions

[BruceHMX]

First let me wish everyone a Merry Christmas. Sitting here getting ready to play Santa.

My son who is 10 is an avid milsurp collector. I started a little younger than him. Four years ago after my divorce I found a nice little place in the country. We have a small 50 meter range off the deck.

Last year I got back into reloading. It has been a blast for he and I both.

So far we load 30-06, 303, 32 S&W, 38 S&W, 44 Special and 455 Webley. We have not started to cast yet but that is our next goal for this spring.

Since he is 10 and we shoot and 50 meters or less we are using the standard 10gr Unique with cream of wheat buffer. Shooting cast 100gr bullets out of the 30-06 and 303. The 303 is a 312 bullet intended for a 32-20. They are a lot of fun and very accurate. The 30-06 is a standard 308 cast.

With that said we have several 8mm Mauser's, 6.5 Carcano's, 7.5 French, 7.62 Nagants and a few 8mm Lebels.

Is there anyone who cast lighter bullets for these for sale? I would like to experiment with some.

Thank you all in advance

Bruce

[Dschuttig]

The 8mm lebel I think you would have problems finding a light bullet for. The normal groove diameter on these is around .327. I've found the best bullet to be the lee 8x56r .329 bullet.
7.5 french would be easier, as they have a wider selection. I have alot of the .30 caliber old ideal/lyman designs. If there is a design you want to try let me know.
6.5 carcano is also somewhat limited, as they tend to run .268, which is larger than most 6.5s will cast. I have some bullets that cast that large, but they aren't "lightweight". Also, small, short bullets probably won't feed to well out of the clip on these.
8mm mauser I have a few smaller bullets for, this may be the easiest rifle to shoot lightweight loads out of.
7.62 nagant, revolver, or 7.62x54r rifle?



Dan

[MtGun44]

I think you can drop the COW and find the same result with less hassle.

I think that Montana Cast Bullets makes most of these calibers. Brian Pearce
has recommend Dry Creek Bullet Works, too. I have not tried either one.

I have personally used Mt. Baldy bullets and found them to be very well made.

Bill

[sisiphunter]

I as well use the lee 100gr cast rn at. 311 with 6.2gr unique...no cow. Works great in the 303 and 7.62x54R. My 8yr old can shoot these all day and they are surprisingly accurate at 1245fps and lla lube....i have a 75gr cast rn at 311 but i use that in 32acp. Havnt bothered tryin it in the rifle. The 100gr works so well to start with..

Another old trick is use a lite load of unique. 2400. 5744 etc. With a round ball just pushed into the brass case mouth. These are fun close range projectiles with ok accuracy. Good enough for milk jugs and such and they r made in a large variety of sizes. I cast. 311 rb .401rb and big ones for 12 ga rb.....they also work great in sling shots.

If you need any of these sizes let me know i dont mind helpin out with a few...shipping can get pricey though from canada. Pm me if you need anything.

Oh and lee and.lyman both make roundball molds and you can find them on the swappin selling forum here quite often and they usually dont cost as much as standard molds...best of luck. Matt

[Bullet Caster]

Welcome to the Cast Boolits forum, BruceHMX. A wealth of information is available here on this forum; all you have to do is search. I would like to think that most of the members here are really nice guys (and gals) and will offer help to you on just about anything you ask. Since I'm also new to casting and reloading, I've found a plethora of information as well as help in starting loads. Many members who cast will be able to provide you with a sample of a certain boolit that you may want to try. It usually involves just covering the shipping costs.

I don't have much lead at the moment, but I would be glad to send you a sample of what I've cast and what I'll be casting next week. I have a .312 155 grain Lee mould that I will break in next week. It may not be heavy enough to cycle the action on a .30-06 autoloader. I don't have anything else in .30 caliber, however, I'd be glad to send you a few of what I do have or will have by the end of next week. Just PM me and we can go from there. Others have helped me and I want to be able to do the same for another newbie.

I think it's great that your 10 year old is into the shooting sport. I just wish that more people like you would introduce a youngster into the art of making ammunition and shooting. I'll bet he thoroughly enjoys the time spent with you and you both have the same interests in shooting. If I had a kid you'd better know that he/she would be an active shooter. BC

[BruceHMX]

Thank you all for your kind responses. I got my RCBS 8x57 dies today. Santa brought us a M38 6.5 Carcano. I have an M1 Garand but we have not shot it yet. Our 1903 Remington and P17 Enfield get the 30-06 loads. Matt we actually started out with this project last spring with the round balls. Lot's of fun. I did some research on here today for the carcano. I'm going to slug the bore over the weekend. For now I need the lightest 8mm Mauser bullet that would work with the unique load. Going to order the carcano dies this week.

I've included a few pics.

http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w58/BruceHMX/WebleyNavyReload.jpg

My 455 Navy loads

http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w58/BruceHMX/Christmas2010007.jpg

My son Ed with his 1917 Remington Enfield last Christmas

Thank you all again and Happy New Year!!

[mroliver77]

No need for the light boolits. I use the standard weight boolits with light charges.
Here is good read.
Paco Kelly

http://www.leverguns.com/articles/paco/small_charges.htm

And Ed Harris "The Load"
http://members.shaw.ca/cronhelm/TheLoad.html

If I may be so bold. Casting is easy. It can be done on the cheap. $20 Lee 2 cav mold. Any old steel saucepan. A heat source such as electric hot plate, Coleman stove, small camp fire. A ladle of some sort. I prefer a Lyman or RCBS type but many use a large deep spoon with a pouring divot bent into it. Lube the boolit, possibly size it and load.
Another good read for casting or shooting cast is;
http://www.lasc.us/Fryxell_Book_Contents.htm

[Three44s]

I feel like it was easier to start with casting for revolvers.

Autos and rifles second.

Three44s