Maven
07-13-2012, 01:35 PM
Several months ago Ben sent me several hundred home made aluminum gas checks. Although I seated them quickly and without any problems regarding fit or difficult sizing, I only got to test them yesterday. I am overjoyed to report they are as accurate as the Bator and/or Hornady GC's I've been using.
To test the aluminum GC's, I used a CB of known accuracy in my tack driving .30-06 Win. Mod. 70 Westerner (blind magazine). The CB was cast from a brass CBE #313185 single cavity mold that I won on eBay years ago. It casts beautiful 185gr. CB's @ .304", nose and .313" body. I size them to .311" for the .30-06 (and .312" for my Sako M 39 Finnish Nagant). The CB's, Al gas checks, and rifle performed at least as well as, if not better than expected.
Normally I'd use something like WC 820, AA 5744, H/IMR 4198, or WC 860 with CB's in my nominally .30cal. rifles (including metrics). However, I'm out of all of the faster ones and didn't wish to endure the recoil or muzzle blast from 48gr. of WC860, so I opted for something "Unique." I.e., I've been experimenting with Alliant Unique as follows: 11.8gr., 12.0gr., 12.5gr., and 13.0gr. These charges were weighed, btw. Accuracy in my .30-06 and receiver sighted Mod. 1909 Arg. Mau. (CBE 190gr. fat Loverin) was excellent with the 11.8gr. charge (only one tested in the Arg. Mau.). The '06 was accurate with all three charges. Btw, 12.0gr. and 12.5gr. Unique are equally accurate with Saeco #315 in the '06 too.
Thanks again to Ben for a wonderful gift. And to those who think that using aluminum instead of guilding metal for gas checks is courting Armageddon, think again.
Here are 2 pics of the groups I got yesterday. The smaller group is 9 shots (I wanted 11, but 2 CCI #34 primers were duds). The larger one, with the red circled flyer due to my lack of concentration, is 15 shots. Both were fired at 50 yd.
To test the aluminum GC's, I used a CB of known accuracy in my tack driving .30-06 Win. Mod. 70 Westerner (blind magazine). The CB was cast from a brass CBE #313185 single cavity mold that I won on eBay years ago. It casts beautiful 185gr. CB's @ .304", nose and .313" body. I size them to .311" for the .30-06 (and .312" for my Sako M 39 Finnish Nagant). The CB's, Al gas checks, and rifle performed at least as well as, if not better than expected.
Normally I'd use something like WC 820, AA 5744, H/IMR 4198, or WC 860 with CB's in my nominally .30cal. rifles (including metrics). However, I'm out of all of the faster ones and didn't wish to endure the recoil or muzzle blast from 48gr. of WC860, so I opted for something "Unique." I.e., I've been experimenting with Alliant Unique as follows: 11.8gr., 12.0gr., 12.5gr., and 13.0gr. These charges were weighed, btw. Accuracy in my .30-06 and receiver sighted Mod. 1909 Arg. Mau. (CBE 190gr. fat Loverin) was excellent with the 11.8gr. charge (only one tested in the Arg. Mau.). The '06 was accurate with all three charges. Btw, 12.0gr. and 12.5gr. Unique are equally accurate with Saeco #315 in the '06 too.
Thanks again to Ben for a wonderful gift. And to those who think that using aluminum instead of guilding metal for gas checks is courting Armageddon, think again.
Here are 2 pics of the groups I got yesterday. The smaller group is 9 shots (I wanted 11, but 2 CCI #34 primers were duds). The larger one, with the red circled flyer due to my lack of concentration, is 15 shots. Both were fired at 50 yd.