35 Whelen Redux

[TXGunNut]

I'm starting over on the 35 Whelen. When I was gathering data & looking for a hunting load this past summer it was hot and barrel heat probably played a bigger part than I realized. As a 30-06 this rifle never had heat issues, that seems to have changed. My new goal is an accurate hunting load using the RD 359-190 for around 2100-2200 fps. I have an IMR4895 load @ 2400 fps that shows promise but just misses the mark for accuracy and consistency. I'll try tweaking it some more but may just move on. I have lots of notes and data to go over, may even come up with something to take to the range tomorrow if I don't go to the SCI show.

[35 shooter]

Looking forward to your tests with your whelen. Hope you find a good load in the speed range your looking for. I kind of found the same thing on the imr 4895 in the 2400 - 2500 range. It's been hard to find like a lot of powders but h 4895 works best in mine at those same speeds 2400 - 2500 fps but not so much once i try to push further. SR4759 has really shined from 24 to 33 grains with a filler(about 1700 to 2200 fps according to lyman manual 49th edition). Without the filler it was a dog in mine though. Naturally now that i found good loads with it, word is it's discontinued after 2014.
What powders are you going to work with for 2100 to 2200? Hope you find a good one i can try in mine!

Of course you already know i love these whelen tests! Looking forward to your results!:grin:

[rockrat]

Isn't it 4756 thats supposed to be discontinued, not 4759

[35 shooter]

Isn't it 4756 thats supposed to be discontinued, not 4759

I hope your right! But someone on one of the forums said it was all of the sr powders?

[waksupi]

Keep in mind if you hit a critter at much over 2200 fps, you are going to blow them all to hell. LOTS of destruction.

[Ben]

Isn't it 4756 thats supposed to be discontinued, not 4759

4759 is on the " hit list " also.

[TXGunNut]

Got to the range w/ Ol' Ugly and in spite if 30mph winds we had a pretty good outing. Too bright & windy for chronos, it was all we could do do keep ammo boxes, spotting scopes and rifles on the bench. I don't know how fast 46.0grs of IMR4895 is pushing that RD boolit but I'm thinking it'll be fast enough. 48grs was 2400fps or thereabouts. And no, I have no idea how I managed to mess up a perfectly good cloverleaf but it happens quite often with this loose nut behind the trigger.



93392

[35 shooter]

That's a fantastic group with the 46 grain load. Sure looks like it ought to repeat with that load, as you had 4 of em jammed! Good shootin TX. When i get good groups on windy days like that they generally hold up, kind of a signal of a well balanced load? I'll hazard a guess and say your still within 100 fps. of the 48 grain load you tried before. Hope so.:grin:
If it keeps shootin like that i really wouldn't care what the speed was tho.

BTW judging from lateral dispersment on your groups or actualy lack of it, looks like you did a stellar job doping the wind. Tough to do on a day like that.....again, good shooting.

[TXGunNut]

Thanks! Must admit the wind was straight down the muzzle but it did present it's challenges. Good thing I mark my cases with a Sharpie as the wind blew over my ammo box during the first string. I'll be loading up my next three try loads with 45.8, 46.0 and 46.2grs. And I'll try not to mess it up. I'll also weigh & QC my boolits a little closer next time. Flier was actually the 2nd or 3rd shot and the last two slipped in between earlier shots. Love it when (most of) a group comes together! Also dropped back to a HT'd 50/50 alloy with just a bit of tin. It's the same alloy and boolit my 35 Rem likes so everybody's happy!

[texassako]

Heard we had 40+ mph wind gusts today. Real nice group you have there considering the wind.

[TXGunNut]

I'll hazard a guess and say your still within 100 fps. of the 48 grain load you tried before. Hope so.
If it keeps shootin like that i really wouldn't care what the speed was tho.-35 shooter

Maybe so, but Waksupi has me thinking about that. That HT'd 50'50 alloy is pretty tough but I've yet to hit anything with it @ much over 2000fps. Should have some beta test loads ready in a week or two, all I'll need is a test medium......Heeeeerrrrre Piggy Piggy! LOL

[TXGunNut]

Heard we had 40+ mph wind gusts today. Real nice group you have there considering the wind.

I believe it! I was figuring 30mph sustained and some of the gusts were pretty fierce. Range faces south so I used lots of staples and hunkered down best I could. I do my best shooting under adverse conditions, those years of comp shooting pay off sometimes. Almost needed an Amarrillo wind flag today but I wouldn't have wanted to be downwind when the links started snapping off, lol.

[TXGunNut]

Loaded up another 20 tonight @ 46.0. Not a fan of fillers but this load has more airspace than I normally like. Weighed all the boolits, 2 grs ES on the weight. Should be close enough to keep things interesting. Same 30 cases have been loaded 5-6 times now, thinking I need to anneal or recycle soon.

[35 shooter]

Can't wait for the re-play. Tx i found some old metal cans of imr 4350 i had that's probably 30 years old but no rust inside or out and still had a good smell to it, powder looks good. Got some loaded @ 50 gr. behind a 200 gr. I've seen that on these forums chroned around 2000 plus. The tests i've seen here were with h 4350 and aa 4350 but the imr is what i've got. I hope that load repeats for you, sure looks good so far!:grin:

[TXGunNut]

Looking forward to it myself, should be a good weekend for it. I have H and IMR4350, the Hodgdon powder makes my SG M70 30-06 sit up and print decent little j-word groups. I'm thinking your powder is actually DuPont, not IMR. 50grs should be near 100% powder density but I can't recall if I ever got around to trying it. Too late to research that tonight.

[35 shooter]

Believe it or not it says both on the can. Dupont at the top and imr4895 in the middle of the can. I hadn't even noticed till you said that. Also sold for $12.58 which would have been full retail at the store i got it from back then.....Dang i'm gettin old!:grin: Got an older can of 4320 that i believe says $9.89 but the sticker is so faded it's hard to tell.

[TXGunNut]

Finally headed to the range shortly, fog should clear but the overcast skies will make a nice skyscreen for my Chrony. This should wind up my 35 Whelen project and I'll be playing with a few other toys as well.

[sthwestvictoria]

I had a disappointing shoot with the whelen yesterday, just pushing them too fast I think. The RCBS 200grain, oven HT over 49.0grains H4895 for 2340fps, seven inch group or 48.5grains for six inch group at 2270fps.

[TXGunNut]

I had a disappointing shoot with the whelen yesterday, just pushing them too fast I think. The RCBS 200grain, oven HT over 49.0grains H4895 for 2340fps, seven inch group or 48.5grains for six inch group at 2270fps.

I hear you, my brother from Down Under! The Ranch Dog 359-190 doesn't much care for loads around 2400 fps. 46grs of IMR4895 got me just under 2270 for my rifle, more importantly it got me a nice group when I did my part. I don't shoot well over a chronograph but I managed to get 3 out of 5 touching in two groups before I quit shooting well. I generally prefer the Hodgdon powder when given the choice but couldn't find any, IMR seems to be doing well enough indeed!
I think in your shoes I'd work up from 46 or 47 grs and if that doesn't work I hope you can get some IMR4895. I hope you can get the Hodgdon powder to work, I'd use it if I could find it!

[35 shooter]

I've been playing with some al checks lately and couldn't get them to shoot consistently over 1800 fps. They made my 4895 loads shoot terrible. Thought they might need another powder, so i started working with imr 4350. Started at 50 gr. with a 2oogr. boolit in the whelen with a light crimp and worked up to 53 grains with about 3" groups @ 100 yards. Figured i needed to tighten the crimp cause i wasn't getting good powder burn.
This weekend i tried annealing the checks and putting a fairly hard crimp to em and loaded 54 and 54.5 gr. of 4350. The clean bbl. shot went about 1" out then jammed 4 in less than 1/2" center to center. Shot the 54.5 load next and put the 1st 4 jammed again and dropped the last shot 1 1/4" straight down. Powder burned much cleaner with the harder crimp. I think annealing finally made al. checks take the speed and the crimp worked with the 4350.
Naturally 2 groups are not enough to tell yet but it sure looks good and i'm gonna try em again this weekend. No chrono but 357 maximum seems to think it's in the 2400 fps give or take range but the kick is not near as sharp as with h4895 loads but just a big push.
Gotta load 50 thru 53 gr. again and give it another chance with the harder crimp. Looks like i might get to 56 grains at least with it as there was NO pressure signs or case stretch with any of those loads. This was that 30 odd year old powder i told you about before, guess it's still good.
Tx. i couldn't remember if you mentioned 4350 in your inventory or not but i was thinking you did. Just lettin you know what it did in mine so far. Looks like it's worth working with. It was a go to powder in my old 06.

BTW... no ...your not the only one who can mess up a perfectly good clover leaf group.:wink: I do it all the time!

[TXGunNut]

Wow, nice shooting. I think you're onto something. I have IMR and Hodgdon 4350, my 30-06 likes H4350. That's a pretty stout load but my lube and boolit work OK at those speeds, just need more consistency in the powder charge. I agree that a more aggressive crimp is part of the key to this round, at least with the powders we're using. 2400 sounds about right, maybe a bit conservative.
Thanks for the tips, they're going in my load notes.

[35 shooter]

Got a new can of imr 4350(couldn't find any h4350) this week and tried it again with a pretty hard crimp. Shot two 5 shot groups each with 54 and 54 1/2 gr and the 200 gr. noe. and the groups stayed well under an inch. 55 gr. went just over an inch and 56 gr. was a shotgun pattern. Doesn't burn as clean in my rifle as h4895 but it sure seems consistent. So far it's grouping much better than my 4895 loads at what i think is a faster speed.(no chrono) I've still gotta hand full of those THOR boolits you sent...gotta try them next with the 4350. Wish i could find a can of h4350 locally to try...it seems to be scarce around here for now.

BTW i'm using homeade al. checks .014" annealed now. They stick on firm but not quite as tight as the hornadys. Evidently their staying on the boolit to the target. They wouldn't shoot much at all past 2000 fps.. then i tried annealing them and they seem to shoot as well as commercial checks now.[smilie=2:

[TXGunNut]

Interesting. I didn't get good results with 4350 in my Whelen but my loads were much more conservative than yours.
Have seen very little Hodgdon powder for awhile, stocked up on H4350 after I found my 30-06 liked it....just months before powders disppeared.

[TXGunNut]

Time to move forward on this project before it gets too hot! Decided to get brave and glassbed the recoil lug on Ol' Ugly. Discovered most of the woodwork was already done, only needed some minor relieving. This time tomorrow I'll know if I did it right. ;-) This time next week I'll know if it helped!

[Blammer]

Nice! Keep us posted.

I'm working with the NOE version of the rcbs 35-200, WQ WW's and 51gr of IMR4895 for around 2400 fps and good accuracy.

Hoping I can be real consisitent for practicing. :)

[TXGunNut]

Nice! Keep us posted.

I'm working with the NOE version of the rcbs 35-200, WQ WW's and 51gr of IMR4895 for around 2400 fps and good accuracy.

Hoping I can be real consisitent for practicing. :)

I like that boolit, Blammer. Rifle isn't so sure so may revisit it at a later time. Your load is pretty close to where I am, 47 grs IMR4895 under the RD 359-190. I suspect you're going a little faster than you think. I'm using the same alloy (and boolit) that works in my 35 Rem; HT 50/50 plus a little tin. I think I'm running 2200-2300 but haven't checked lately. I think I'm at the limit for my alloy so may have to skip or cut back on the Pb. I think I'll start over again @ 47grs IMR4895 but 35 shooter nas convinced me to invade my IMR/H4350 stash to see how it works in the 35 Whelen. I bought it for a j-word rifle so it's no big deal. ;-)
Bedding turned out quite well, all things considered.

[35 shooter]

TxGuNut if you try 4350 i hope it works for you. Old contrary loves it, just remember i named that rifle for a reason....it loves it or hates it, there's absolutely no grey area to it with that rifle. It's about made me pull what hair i've got left out a few times..lol. I went back today and worked with one of the lighter loads with a tighter crimp (50 gr.) and put 5 in about a quarter size group @ 100 yd. so maybe i found a lighter load with it. The heavier loads held up again so it looks like the juries in on it and all this was with a different lube. I think i'm gonna like the lube too. Only problem the powder's about gone...only had the one can.

[35 shooter]

Got lucky on the imr 4350. Same store i got the one pound at has about 60 to 70 pounds in now. They even have some bullseye which has been scarce locally for quite a while. Hopefully i'll get stocked on some by the end of the week.

[TXGunNut]

Congrats on the powder score! If I walked into a store with 60-70 lbs I wouldn't know what to think. It's been quite some time since I've seen more powder in a store than I have on my shelves...and I'm still looking for more!

[Blammer]

used the old chronograph 2475fps. :) saying 2500fps just sound Sooo FAST, so I say 2400fps. :)

[TXGunNut]

used the old chronograph 2475fps. :) saying 2500fps just sound Sooo FAST, so I say 2400fps. :)

I'm beginning to think the 35 Whelen is happiest above 2300 and 2500 isn't out of reach. I've been looking for a load around 2100 but just can't get the consistency I'm looking for. Some of my better loads ES wise were around 2400 IIRC but I haven't taken the Chrony out in awhile. I've learned I shoot better with the Chrony behind me in my car, not out front distracting me.
I'll be sitting down with load notes (and forum notes) to load a few tomorrow night. Ol' Ugly doen't much like the heat much any more so I better get things figured out soon.

[Blammer]

I never worried about vel in my whelen, just accuracy. then I chrono'ed to see what I had. :)

all of my lighter loads just didn't cut the mustard accuracy wise.

[TXGunNut]

I'm taking the same approach, Blammer. I'm not giving up on the lighter loads but I don't think recoil will be an issue until above 2500 fps in this rifle. When I find a load it likes I'll set up the Chrony, I've got a pretty good idea how fast it's going anyway. Loaded 10 rds of your 51 gr load to settle it back into the stock, then I'll load some ladder loads with IMR4895 amd IMR or H4350.

[35 shooter]

You realize of course there is at least 3 seperate whelen tests ongoing on cast boolit forums right now? It just doesn't get any better than that! At least as far as i'm concerned it doesn't. I can't wait for all the results! Was gonna skip shooting this week end but with all this going on.....no way i can just go fishing now.

[badbob454]

gotta love a 35 whelen , but i couldnt decide ......... so i got a 35 winchester also

[TXGunNut]

You realize of course there is at least 3 seperate whelen tests ongoing on cast boolit forums right now? It just doesn't get any better than that! At least as far as i'm concerned it doesn't. I can't wait for all the results! Was gonna skip shooting this week end but with all this going on.....no way i can just go fishing now.

Yes, been studying them pretty close and now that I've probably overcome any shortcomings the rifle had I'll be able to move forward. It was tough picking a load for tomorrow's range trip but it doesn't matter much, just want to get the rifle ready for some serious load work.
Come to think of it, haven't been fishing since I started casting.

[TXGunNut]

gotta love a 35 whelen , but i couldnt decide ......... so i got a 35 winchester also

I understand totally, my 35 Rem is headed to the range tomorrow also. Now that it has new glass I'm looking forward to trying some of those 360-235 Thor boolits in it. It does quite well with the RD 359-190 but I figure it's worth a try. If that doesn't work out someone about 600 miles east of here won't be going fishing anytime soon. ;-)

[35 shooter]

Bet it shoots that Thor boolit like it was made for it. If it does it'll be a hammer for sure.....there's just something about that boolit. Cuts clean holes on targets too. Who's got time to fish....it's whelen time!

[TXGunNut]

NOE's 360318 just caught my eye while I was doing unrelated research on his site. I think the profile might work for the 35 Whelen, looks a little long. Need to do some measuring.

[35 shooter]

Been looking at that same boolit and called em about it. They said the nose bearing part was only about 1/3 the nose length. You would think being a round nose and tapered like that it would feed in most anything. Just guessing though. If i'm not wrong Ben has the old lyman mould for that boolit.

[Blammer]

NOE 360318, with a HP and FP option will act just like the Thor, me thinks. :)

[TXGunNut]

I think it will be better, Blammer.
Had a Thor dummy load lying around, according to the measurements on Al's site the NOE 360318 will fit in the magazine, looking at the profile it should feed much better than the Thor. Not a fan of HP's, didn't see the FP option but I think I like the RN configuration just fine. This rifle doesn't seem to like long FP boolits.
Should be here on the 18th. :-)

[35 shooter]

Think your on to something with your new mould. I've been waiting for 2 months or more for them to make up some 2 cavitys in that very boolit. About 30 days ago they said they should have some 358009's out in a month (should be any day now) so i got interested in them in the meantime.
So you can easily see the crisis you have now caused, right?;-) Now i'll probably end up with 2 new NOE'S rather than one or the other. Then of course they have that 285 spitzer type boolit too....gotta wonder how that one works on targets? Shooting 35 cal. is an addiction!

[TXGunNut]

I understand completely. I was doing some unrelated research on the NOE site and it just caught my eye; chalk one up for the "what's new" site feature. They had the 358009's awhile back and I kicked it around, decided I wanted something closer to 250 grs. The 360318 never caught my eye before because I wanted a big meplat boolit, now I know my rifle has different tastes.
I'll be proud owner of two new NOE moulds before the week is out, gonna be hard to get any yard work done this weekend. :-)

[TXGunNut]

360318 mould showed up today. Has less taper in the nose than I expected. Have some weather coming in Sunday so I suspect I'll be firing up the casting pot.

[35 shooter]

Does it look like it's gonna feed in your bolt gun ok? Did a search here the other night and found quite a few old threads on that boolit. Found where one member claimed it was originally designed for the 1895 win. in 35 wcf. Don't know for sure if that is true or not but it kind of surprised me.

[TXGunNut]

Pretty sure it'll feed quite well. Have done a little homework on the subject as well but didn't see the WCF post you referenced, will keep looking. Have yardwork scheduled from can to can't tomorrow but will do a little casting Sunday while the bad weather moves thru. As soon as a few cool off enough to handle & load I'll have an answer. ;-)

[35 shooter]

Took a trip to the range today. I've been having a problem of where to place the forearm on the front bag for best results lately, but today it came together. I had been putting it about 4" from the fore end but every now and then would blow a group and thought i needed to tweak the loads. Well last weekend that was no help and i just thought it was the wind conditions.
I started that way today and blew a group or two. Moved the rest to within about 4" of the reciever and everything came together. Found out real quick "old contrary" wasn't so contrary after all. Still had to fight the wind a bit today but she shot all my "loads" just fine. What's so bad is i found in my notes that's where i had it rested when i shot those cloverleafs last month.Guess i had a senior moment and forgot about it.Won't be forgetting again.

BTW Tx....no cloverleafs but it was a solid performer with the 4350 today @ 1 to 1 1/2" @ 100 yd.:-)







'

[TXGunNut]

Slipped out to the range myself between storms, pretty deserted for some reason.
Ol' Ugly settled right in and printed some decent 2+" groups. Not great, just decent and round. That's all I was expecting, will step things up a bit next time and see how she likes that.

[35 shooter]

Was that with the 360318? Feeding ok? The well rounded groups after the bedding job you did on it sounds good. You must have done it right.:-)

[TXGunNut]

Not with the 360318, had a choice of breaking in that mould or shooting. Had lots of range work to do ;-) so the new mould will have to wait. I was shooting the RD 359-190 but the results were helpful anyway.

[35 shooter]

TxGuNut had to let you know the imr 4350 held up in "old contrary". Went to the range again this afternoon and it looks like 54 1/2 gr. behind the NOE 200 gr. boolit is going in the load book. Wish i could find my rods and sky-screen for my chrony but i'm guessing it's a bit over 2400 fps at least. I really don't care what the speed is, it's a rock solid load in the Encore. What i'm really liking is the fact that it shoots basically the same from 54 to 54 1/2 gr. with 54 1/2 maybe just a bit tighter and more consistent on average. I think i could find a lee dipper that throws 54 gr and just use that to throw these charges. If it threw a 1/2 gr. over every now and then i don't think it would make a difference with this load. Might try that just for fun.
Gotta feeling h4350 or especially aa4350 would do even better but i'm happy with the imr results. The fired cases never stretch more than 1/2 thou. Makes me wonder if they would stretch at all with the aa powder? Don't know if any of this would work in your rifle, but it's got me in a happy place thanks to 357maximum's work that he did with it in his whelen that i gladly copied.:twisted:

[TXGunNut]

Only one way to find out, wrote the load down in my book will see if Ol' Ugly likes it. Feel pretty confident it will be a good place to start, at least. Thanks!
As it turns out I have a little over a pound of H4350 and no IMR4350. Can't see where I've tried either powder in this cartridge. Must have been thinking about 4064.

[35 shooter]

358009's in stock at NOE. Ordering one in the morning. I'm glad you've got the h 4350, it's probably gonna work better than the imr i have. But i'm happy with it and i'm definitly gonna stock up on some more before it's all gone here locally. If you start reporting good groups with your 360318 i may pick one of those up too. Pretty sure i might as well go ahead and do it.[smilie=l:

[black mamba]

I bought some Montana Bulletworks RCBS 35-250 GCs sized at .359 for my Whelen AI. I shoot 32.5 gr of A5744 over Fed 215 primer without fillers, for right at 1950 fps. I've only used them to fireform cases, but they shoot minute of angle at 50 yards. I have a 14 twist stainless 24" barrel on a Mauser custom.

[TXGunNut]

358009's in stock at NOE. Ordering one in the morning. I'm glad you've got the h 4350, it's probably gonna work better than the imr i have. But i'm happy with it and i'm definitly gonna stock up on some more before it's all gone here locally. If you start reporting good groups with your 360318 i may pick one of those up too. Pretty sure i might as well go ahead and do it.[smilie=l:


Hard to say, the 358009 IS the classic 35 Whelen boolit. Studied on it pretty hard last time he had some, even passed up a spot on a GB. I just don't think it is what I have in mind. I think I could eventually overcome the feeding problems it looks like I'd have but my goal has always been a boolit in the neighborhood of 250 grns.

[bigted]

TX ... how is your 35 project coming? hope you got a reprieve from the weather and got some shooting in.

[TXGunNut]

Yes, reality was much better than the forecast and I did indeed get a little shooting in, housework be damned! RD 359-190 over 52 and 52.5 grs of H4350 showed some promise, 100 yd groups about 3". 53 grs of H4350 was terrible so I'll work tweak the other loads a bit with primers and possibly crimp. Scored two pounds IMR4350 @ Cabelas and a thousand 9 1/2 primers so I think I can get things under 2" before concentrating on the 360318.

[bigted]

awesome ... keep us posted ... im suspicious that your trials are gonna mirror my steps with my project.

[TXGunNut]

Will do, thinking if you run across some 4895 or similar powder you may want to gather it up. My impression is that the Whelen family favors healthy charges of slow powders under heavy boolits. I'm toying with the idea of another lubrisizer to give me more flexibility on lube. Made the mistake of doing a little reading and U-tubing on the Star lube/sizer. Pretty awesome but just don't need all it has to offer, already have dies for the Lyman anyway.

[35 shooter]

Tx. the 360280 NOE should be here mon. or tues. Guess i'll go to the range with a couple of bricks in my back pockets to try em out when the time comes. May have bit off more than i can chew?:violin:

[TXGunNut]

Tx. the 360280 NOE should be here mon. or tues. Guess i'll go to the range with a couple of bricks in my back pockets to try em out when the time comes. May have bit off more than i can chew?:violin:

Naw, piece of cake. I'll have the boys wax the bench and score your landing. ;-)
358009?

[35 shooter]

LOL i think i'll take a pillow or two to put on the ground behind me just in case. Yep, it's the 358009 clone. Can't wait to cast some and try em out. Sure looks like it oughta shoot.We'll see what ol contrary thinks about it.

[JesterGrin_1]

I will be looking forward to the report on the 358009 :). As I have the Mold just in case of a run away Elephant with a bad attitude comes knocking lol. Or a Wild Hog lol.

[35 shooter]

Thanks Jester...i do intend to go a few rounds with a heavyweight in the Whelen. I'd like to find a sensible load or two for it and then push it till it quits shooting good or i can't stand anymore lol. It's probably gonna turn out to be lethal on both ends of the rifle.
I've got my eye on TxGuNut and his 360318 right now. Gotta feeling he's fixing to make me want that boolit too. Hanging around you guys is gonna make me have to get a better job.:bigsmyl2:

[JesterGrin_1]

Just put a Good Recoil pad on it. :). On mine that as of yet I have not fired in its current configuration is a 35 Whelen AI with a Good Recoil pad and added a Brownells Muzzle Brake lol. As really I was having a hard time keeping my scope from moving when it was a standard 35 Whelen.

When I sent it off to be re-chambered into a AI I pretty much decided that it would be a jacketed bullet only Hunting Rifle. But now I am having Second,Third,Fourth thoughts lol.

But I will tell you what when it was a 35 Whelen with a upper end load and the Speer 250Gr Grand Slam bullet it almost flipped a 200+LB Hog over at a little over 100 yards.

[35 shooter]

I'd feed that baby some cast boolits in a heartbeat. Sounds like it oughta be a shooter!

[JesterGrin_1]

Well I hope to hear some good reports with the 358009. :). As I just happen to have some IMR-4350 laying around. :). I did try some RL-15 but did not have good luck with it. But then again I did not put much time into it. So I was short on time so I jumped to the Speer 250Gr Grand Slam and they do Grand Slam lol. But it is late so if I attempt to explain nobody could understand lol. But things happened so in all honesty I have probably not even really looked at the rifle since I got it back from being changed to the 35 Whelen AI and the Muzzle Brake added. It is a BEAUTIFUL rifle. But looking at it makes me well very upset. Not the Rifle but what the rifle was built for that I will never be able to use it for its purpose.

So I put my energy in my .358 Winchester build and I really LIKE IT. :)

[357maximum]

TxGuNut had to let you know the imr 4350 held up in "old contrary". Went to the range again this afternoon and it looks like 54 1/2 gr. behind the NOE 200 gr. boolit is going in the load book. Wish i could find my rods and sky-screen for my chrony but i'm guessing it's a bit over 2400 fps at least. I really don't care what the speed is, it's a rock solid load in the Encore. What i'm really liking is the fact that it shoots basically the same from 54 to 54 1/2 gr. with 54 1/2 maybe just a bit tighter and more consistent on average. I think i could find a lee dipper that throws 54 gr and just use that to throw these charges. If it threw a 1/2 gr. over every now and then i don't think it would make a difference with this load. Might try that just for fun.
Gotta feeling h4350 or especially aa4350 would do even better but i'm happy with the imr results. The fired cases never stretch more than 1/2 thou. Makes me wonder if they would stretch at all with the aa powder? Don't know if any of this would work in your rifle, but it's got me in a happy place thanks to 357maximum's work that he did with it in his whelen that i gladly copied.:twisted:


:drinks: Glad it panned out for you :drinks: BTW....My Mausr 98 Sporter 35Whelen (a.k.a "Miss Reliable") will also digest H414 and H-Hybrid100 with similar results when the charge is tweaked accordingly, and all 3 powders can be run faster than one needs to for deer whackin and still maintains really good accuracy.

[TXGunNut]

Sounds like we all need to wander out to the casting bench, me included. Some very interesting projects underway and not much range data being generated. :-( I cleaned a couple of rifles last night but haven't even decapped brass, let alone load it. 360318 is on the bench setting on top of a new set of handles.Think I just shamed myself into giving it a good scrubbing! ;-)

[TXGunNut]

Mold is scrubbed, brass is sized. My fellow Texan (you know who you are!) got me curious about a mould and while I was researching it I discovered Larry had a promotion that made a Lyman sizer quite affordable. I think the Thor needs a hard lube and the 360318 may also. Added a box of GC's and a tube of 50/50 and I "saved" $45. I think I need to hide my credit cards when I "research" stuff. ;-)

[35 shooter]

Just dropped about 200 358009's from my new mould yesterday. What a boolit!!! Pb's weighed 290 gr.,and the gc's weighed 286 gr. Gonna start with unique and 4759 with the pb. Any suggestions on the gc boolit with imr4895, h4895, imr3031, imr4350 or 4759? I've got some start up loads in mind but open to suggestions.

BTW these were all cast from straight ww so far. Gonna soften the alloy for the pb in the future for expansion on them hopefully.

[Blammer]

Yea, try this
http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g81/blammer8mm/Targets/35Whelen/35Whelen3589.jpg (http://s54.photobucket.com/user/blammer8mm/media/Targets/35Whelen/35Whelen3589.jpg.html)

[Blammer]

or this
http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g81/blammer8mm/Targets/35Whelen/File0112.jpg (http://s54.photobucket.com/user/blammer8mm/media/Targets/35Whelen/File0112.jpg.html)

[TXGunNut]

Gotta feeling h4350 or especially aa4350 would do even better but i'm happy with the imr results. The fired cases never stretch more than 1/2 thou. Makes me wonder if they would stretch at all with the aa powder? Don't know if any of this would work in your rifle, but it's got me in a happy place thanks to 357maximum's work that he did with it in his whelen that i gladly copied.-35 shooter

I'm not so sure the H4350 is a better powder for this cartridge, my rifle isn't too crazy about it. Now that I have some IMR4350 I may be able to answer that question, at least as far as Ol' Ugly is concerned. A few years back I did quite a bit of load development with a couple of 30-06's (and j-words) and learned that for my purposes H4350 and IMR4350 were very different powders. With some loads the H had a clear advantage and with others the IMR powder was better. May have had something to do with the rifle, pretty sure she could show your Ol' Contrary a trick or two. She has a name, nut this is a family-friendly site. ;-)

[35 shooter]

I sure hope the imr4350 will work for you. I didn't think it was working for me untill i hit 54 gr. and it got even better at 54 1/2 gr. and it's held together with the 200 gr. boolits ever since. Just hope i find a load with it for that 358009 boolit. It'd be nice to use one powder for both boolits.

OK i'm ready for a 360318 report!:smile:

[TXGunNut]

I'll try the IMR and H 4350 head to head under the RD boolit next range trip, hope to cast a few 360318's as well. Problem is I have two acres of weeds to tame and a dead golf cart to recover so I'm not overly optimistic.

[Shuz]

Shhhh...Don't anybody tell my old Lyman 358009 mould that I just ordered a 360318HP from Swede Nelson for my 2 ea .35 Whelens.

[TXGunNut]

Your secret's safe with us, Shuz.
Got some boolits loaded, even weight-sorted some boolits for the Whelen and the Remington. Loaded up five different trial loads and have a range trip scheduled for Sun AM.

[TXGunNut]

I sure hope the imr4350 will work for you. I didn't think it was working for me untill i hit 54 gr. and it got even better at 54 1/2 gr. and it's held together with the 200 gr. boolits ever since. Just hope i find a load with it for that 358009 boolit. It'd be nice to use one powder for both boolits.

OK i'm ready for a 360318 report!:smile:

I like the way 54grs of IMR4350 fills the Hornady case. Loaded up 5 ea @ 53.5, 54.0, and 54.5. I hope the RD 359-190 likes this powder as much as your 200gr boolit does. Thanks for the recipe!

[bigted]

or this
http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g81/blammer8mm/Targets/35Whelen/File0112.jpg (http://s54.photobucket.com/user/blammer8mm/media/Targets/35Whelen/File0112.jpg.html)

Blammer ... good shooting my friend. that would qualify for the stuff that tips elk over.

I got my 375 Ruger back yesterday and blistered my arm with it so im all the more anxious to get the 35 Whelen or the 375 Whelen in the works ... man this Ruger round is just over the top for me.

this post makes me want to trade my 375 Ruger for a 35 Whelen ... I like what im reading and like the already configured chamber/loads going for it. I like the Winchesters and Rugers so may just keep me peepers open when the dust settles for one chambered in the 35 Whelen.

I wouldn't mind seeing some photo's of these various boolits ... just to see what ya'll talkin about. maybe some gun porn as well. HA

[35 shooter]

TxGuNut...good luck at the range. If it doesn't work out the way you hope, maybe try it again when you get your new lube going. It might make a difference. My brother tried the imr4350 in his h&r 35 whelen today in co. He was only shooting 3 shot groups @ 75 yards and he got a tight cloverleaf @ 52 gr. His bbl. is only 22 inches so i guess it liked the lighter load? He was using simple lube on his 200 gr. NOE's. Hope that load holds up for him!

[TXGunNut]

Thanks, looking forward to this range trip.
Already looking forward to the next trip as well. Cast a little pile of NOE 360318 boolits tonight. As soon as a couple were cool enough to handle I loaded up some dummies and cycled them thru Ol' Ugly. SWEET! Feed just like JSP's (best I can recall ;-) ). Can't wait for them to cure & go thru the new lubrisizer. :-)

[clodhopper]

Funny how you fellas all have pet names for your Whelens.
I really like the IMR 4064 with RCBS 200 grain Flat points.
I call my rifle The Whelenator, seems like what ever I shoot with it becomes alienated from their herd.
The other deer or elk take off over the hill or in the brush, while the alienated one just lays down to take it easy.

[Blammer]

Ok, Ready, Set, GO!

Identify them.

http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g81/blammer8mm/Cast%20boolits/DSCN7523.jpg (http://s54.photobucket.com/user/blammer8mm/media/Cast%20boolits/DSCN7523.jpg.html)

[Blammer]

from L to R
Saeco 351
RCBS 35 200
JTL 200gr
I dunno
358315
358318
358009 'flat point' my design
358009
200gr SWC
200gr SWC HP
360 180 NEI

[Blammer]

I'm missing about 6.

I need to get a new picture put together.

[35 shooter]

Blammer i do believe you have any hunting situation well covered. That's quite a "herd"!

[TXGunNut]

Well, I got three of them right, lol.
Clodhopper, I named Ol' Ugly before I knew much of anything about the 35 Whelen. She was a Winchester M670 30-06 in a junk composite stock but she thought she was a target rifle. She's not a 30-06 (or ugly) anymore but the name stuck. I named her sister "Even Uglier" when I bought her a year or so ago. I restocked her, cleaned her up and call her "Annie" these days.

[TXGunNut]

Took Ol' Ugly to the range today, didn't get to try any IMR 4350 loads but I did re-fire the H4350 to good effect-sort of. Wind was swirling and gusting 10-20 mph from R-L so I had a group about 3" wide and 1.25" tall. Temps were climbing into the 90's so I made a mark in the "win" column and cased up Ol' Ugly to try again another day.
Hope the IMR 4350 works as well, scored another 2 #'s of it today. ;-)

[35 shooter]

That sounds promising. Which load held up the best?

[TXGunNut]

I was re-testing the 52.5 gr H4350 from last trip, substituted RP 9 1/2 for the Fed GMM. Now I remember why the RP was my standard LR primer for so many years.

[35 shooter]

My brother was using that same primer with the 52 gr. imr4350 load yesterday that shot so well for him. I'm still using my old cci 200 primers, maybe i need to give the remington's a try. Sounds like i need to go back and try 52 gr. again too, i might have missed something there, or maybe it just didn't like the cci primer with that charge. There are just so many variables that can affect a load till it boggles the mind sometimes!

[TXGunNut]

I don't pretend to understand why some rifle primers and powders play well together while others don't. I think overall the Fed GMM is the better primer but sometimes the CCI or RP (or even Wolf) will do better. I do know GMM primers haven't been on the shelves I've checked for a long time.

[TXGunNut]

Got to use my new 4500 on those 360318's today, should be interesting. RCBS 50/50 wasn't what I was expecting, think I need to go get educated a bit more on lubes.

[35 shooter]

Tx. what do you think about a start load with the 358009 using imr 4350? I started with 50 gr. with the 200 gr. boolit. I was thinking 48 gr with the 280 gr. for a start point. The only book data i've found is an old hornady manual that lists 55.6 gr.for a start load with a 250 gr. jacketed. If i remember right that was for 2200 fps.

Glad you've got the 360318s in the works. Hope they shoot as good as they look.:smile:

[TXGunNut]

Tx. what do you think about a start load with the 358009 using imr 4350? I started with 50 gr. with the 200 gr. boolit. I was thinking 48 gr with the 280 gr. for a start point. The only book data i've found is an old hornady manual that lists 55.6 gr.for a start load with a 250 gr. jacketed. If i remember right that was for 2200 fps.

Glad you've got the 360318s in the works. Hope they shoot as good as they look.:smile:

Honestly can't say, been contemplating a starting load for the 360318 myself. Can't argue with your starting point for the 358009, sounds prudent. I'm thinking 50 grs for the 360318's starting load, suspect I'll wind up around 51-52.

[TXGunNut]

Been doing a lot of thinking (and reading) about our powder choices, 35 shooter, and have concluded that IMR and H 4350 are too slow for the 35 Whelen. That said, I loaded 50 grs IMR4350 under five of my freshly minted 360318's.

[Blammer]

LOL

you a funny man!

my whelen dotes on 4530

http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g81/blammer8mm/Targets/35Whelen/WQWWIMR435052gr001.jpg (http://s54.photobucket.com/user/blammer8mm/media/Targets/35Whelen/WQWWIMR435052gr001.jpg.html)

[TXGunNut]

LOL

you a funny man!

my whelen dotes on 4530

LOL. That was a bit tongue-in-cheek but I based that conclusion on a thorough perusing of my loading manuals and a new Western Powder reloading guide. I'll see what Ol' Ugly has to say on the subject Sat AM.

[35 shooter]

Blammer what was the velocity of that 52 gr. 4350 load with the 200 gr. boolit? That's a nice group btw.

[35 shooter]

Been doing a lot of thinking (and reading) about our powder choices, 35 shooter, and have concluded that IMR and H 4350 are too slow for the 35 Whelen. That said, I loaded 50 grs IMR4350 under five of my freshly minted 360318's.

Can't wait for the results. There's just something about that boolit. Or maybe i just like the way a round nose looks loaded and ready to go. We've got rain in the forecast at least the next four days, but i hope to try my new boolits out maybe by sunday....good luck with yours....i'm watching this test with interest!:popcorn:

BTW i do get a bit of powder residue not totally burned it seems with the imr 4350 but "ol contrary" sure likes it. What's odd about it to me is the fact it seems not to get any worse from 50 all the way to 56 gr. Anyway the groups have stayed consistent.
Seems like my old rifle always likes something a bit out of the ordinary.

[TXGunNut]

I'll have an answer for you tomorrow; meeting texassako at the range and if we get there before the wind starts blowing we should be able to get some testing done. No rain in the forecast until Sun pm.
That 360318 does look rather handsome all loaded up and ready to go, now that you mention it. :-)

[Blammer]

no velocity was for the IMR4895 load.

[TXGunNut]

Nice day for it, even if a bit windy. Got to meet Texassako and we had a good outing. Jeff has some VERY interesting rifles!
The H4350 load that showed promise on earlier outings (8A) really showed it's stuff today, believe it or not I pulled the last one a little, it's the one @ 10 o'clock. The #9 loads showed promise as well but the boolits were blown about a bit by the wind, I'm thinking that 9B load needs another look.
360318 was unremarkable, only had five empty cases and I loaded them with damaged boolits.

104484

104511

[35 shooter]

Glad you found a good load with it. I couldn't get the pics up though.

[TXGunNut]

Glad you found a good load with it. I couldn't get the pics up though.

I'll try again. 5th round of load # 9 is on another target but within the group. Got a little excited over the first group, I guess. ;-)

[texassako]

I still think you should just go find some more H4350 instead of figuring out why IMR4350 will not do the same because that is a great group. It was fun shooting with you and seeing that group in person.

[35 shooter]

Oh yeah! Got the pics now! Good shootin Tx. Now that's what you've been looking for!

I agree , shoot 9b again on a calmer day just for a speed load (just cause that's the one ol contrary likes with the imr). But target 8a pretty well says it all. Looks like i can breathe easy now cause after the trouble you ran into with 4895 i was ready to run for cover if 4350 didn't work lol.

Looks like you and i owe 357 maximum the beverage of his choice if we ever run into him lol! Hope my range trip just goes half that good tommorrow.

BTW...pretty obvious you did a good bedding job on ol ugly.

[TXGunNut]

Pretty happy with that group but really haven't given IMR4350 a fair trial. Come to think of it, really need to try 4895 again.

[35 shooter]

Maybe so. That bedding work you did on it may have made a difference for the 4895. I do like the way 4350 fills that case though. Just a thought, but i wonder if the hotter cci primer i'm using is making the difference on the 54 1/2 gr. load. Now i've gotta go back and try that 52 gr. load again.

[TXGunNut]

It truly needed bedding, recess for recoil lug was already relieved for the bedding compound. Now I need to go back and try some loads that should have worked. Have a new M70 Super Grade that, I kid you not, has a string of hot glue for "bedding". Guess you know what my next bedding project will be.
Was very pleased with the RP primer, much better than the Fed GMM primer.

[35 shooter]

Too windy to test new loads here sunday (or that was my excuse), so i cast a few more 358009s and just had a good day heat treating, lubing, and sizing boolits. Just had to come back and look at those pics again.....#8a...wow...just wow! Also may have found a place to do some hog hunting. Guy says he's over run with em.

[TXGunNut]

Just had to come back and look at those pics again.....#8a...wow...just wow! -35 shooter


Ol' Ugly always was a shooter. When she was new she'd shoot MOA (as soon as I could) with RP factory ammo. It was over a year before I learned to load rounds that would do as well.
Way to windy here as well, built shelves in the closet of my loading room to store boolits, brass, powder, and moulds.

[TXGunNut]

Ol' Ugly likes IMR4350 just fine! Load #9, one of the good loads from last week came in at 1.5" and a new load using the NOE 360318 over 53.5gr IMR4350 put four out of five into just a hair over an inch! Flyer was probably due to me not weighing boolits. The RP 9 1/2 primers along with weighing boolits have reduced my groups considerably over the last few weeks.
My shooting buddy sent me a text earlier saying he was bringing his flinter today, I dug out my T/C Hawken in .54 and we had a little fun after the serious shooting was over. Neither of us had fired our frontstuffers in several years so we were both missing essential items in our kits, between us we had all we needed. Big, dirty fun at the range today!
Dropped by Cabelas "on the way home" and scored a couple thousand RP 9 1/2's. Talked with the mustachioed one and he told me my favorite rifle powders were at most two weeks out. PM me if you're interested in knowing what's in the pipeline.
There's a rifle in the Library eating on me, would someone please drop by and buy it so I won't be tempted next week? Actually, there's two. ;)

[35 shooter]

Sure am glad the 4350 has worked out so well for you. Looks like it's gonna work with the 358009 boolit as well. I tried 48 gr. of imr4350 for a start load with 5 shots. For whatever reason the first shot was 2" out but the next 4 were in about 1.3".

Turned out i didn't need the bricks in my pockets after all.;). Still i think i kind of tightened up just in case on the first shot.lol. Especially since i had about .151" engraving on the nose just to keep the gc in the neck. The good news was there was no pressure signs and it seemed to like 4350. This boolit does dig a big hole in the ground when it hits....I like it!

Now your making me wish i had that 360318 noe too....seems like there's always something else to try when you have a whelen!

[TXGunNut]

Wow, sounds like you hit one out of the park on the first pitch! More testing will tell you about that flyer. Are you weighing your boolits? I'm thinking that's more important than I was willing to admit. Did you swipe some 9 1/2's from your brother? I'm thinking with a little tweaking you might have a pretty sweet load there.
What twist is your rifle? I've heard 1:14 may be a bit slow for that 358009 but I'm still pretty sure 4350 is too slow for the 200-250 grn boolits in the 35 Whelen, lol.
I think Al's got a few 360318 moulds lying around, I'll put in a good word for you and I'm sure he'll sell you one and have it shipped out in a day or two. ;-)

[35 shooter]

Well it did not like 4759 with the two loads i tried first. Gave groups of 3 and 4" but good straight holes in the target. Things did get better in a hurry with 4350, but i only had the one load. I think brother is guarding those 9 1/2's pretty close, they seemed to have perked his h&r right up. From everything i've heard the 1/14 twist is supposed to handle this boolit just fine, guess we'll see.

I used to weigh within 1/2 gr. on my boolits but both of these noe moulds i have pour so close on weight (- or+ 1/2 gr.) i quit doing that. The 200 gr. started out + or - 1 gr. but now they both pour equally close. Maybe my casting technique is getting better. I may need to try weighing a few again just to see if it makes a diff though? I really never expected this rifle to shoot cast as well as it has just a year ago, tho now i don't know why. I've learned a lot from all you guys and gals in the short time i've been here.

Congratulations on what looks like is gonna be a real shooter tx. You have really worked hard with that rifle for quite some time now....YOU DESERVE IT!!!

[TXGunNut]

Got some NOE 360318 boolits weighed, lubed and sized tonight. Have some RD 359190's standing by too. Cases are sized and clean. Good supply of IMR4350 and some likely recipes to continue testing.....sure hope this wind stops blowing! Need to do some serious load testing this weekend.

[TXGunNut]

Another windy day at the range, pretty much confirmed what happened last trip. Have a nice load for the 200gr RD 359190 pretty much hammered down @ 54.5grns IMR4350. Didn't chrono it, probably would have needed tent pegs and guy lines to keep my Chrony in place today.
Still haven't figured out the NOE 360318, got vertical strings on the loads it seems to like best. Think I'm one tweak away from a decent load. Could be a little snugger crimp, maybe a different powder.
With all my 30-06 experience this looked like a pretty simple cartridge several months and a few dozen loads ago. Been using the same thirty cases for load development and one split today.
As soon as my Droid gets over being mad at the internet I'll put some pics up. [smilie=b:

[TXGunNut]

Think I need to come up with a new name for Ol' Ugly.
106072

[bigted]

yepper ... that IS an ugly rifle my friend ... I would be certain that if you send it to me ... I could make it be some less uncomfortable for you and allow you to heal nicely for 5 or 6 years ... at which time we can discuss the "stable fee" for it while you are in recovery from owning such a looking rifle. honestly TX ... I doubt I could ever come to grips knowing your awful burden you been carrying.

yep ... that IS the lengths I am willing to go ... to keep a friend away from such ugly-ness. just give out a lil yell if I could be any more help in such dire circumstances.

[35 shooter]

If you keep finding good cast loads with her like with the ranch dog, it might not hurt to pet her a bit. What name are you thinking of? I'm afraid my "ol contrary" is stuck with it's name. It did a bit of vertical today too with a hotter load and the 280 gr. Usually means it wants to go faster with my rifle and it knew darn well i didn't want to go much faster. Oh well, we'll see.

Shot a few pb 280's today with unique...that's just too much fun.

[TXGunNut]

Thanks, guys. I appreciate the offer, Ted, but she's my first centerfire rifle and she's stuck with me all these years so I'll keep her around. Scored a couple of pounds of H4350 (and a purty "new" Winchester) Saturday to keep her fed. Put the latest addition in the other safe to prevent sibling rivalries, of course. ;-)

[bigted]

naaa ... she is a dandy in the looks dept. and judging from the data shared ... she be a shooter as well. congrats on a beauty and I see why you get along so well.

[TXGunNut]

To be quite honest she hasn't always been such a looker. She's had some work done, as they say. ;-) She's always been a shooter tho, and an ugly old fart like me is lucky to have such a handsome old girl hanging around.

[TXGunNut]

Did a couple more tweaks yesterday but the benchrest folks had the 100/200 yd ranges tied up. Tried tightening up the crimp just a little and changed the alloy from ACWW to HT 50/50. Both tweaks seemed to help. Think a little more IMR4350 is called for, tin roof got pretty well rattled yesterday. Will take some screws and a cordless drill next trip. ;-)

[35 shooter]

Sounds like you're getting it all tracked down. I'm still betting that 360381 is gonna turn out to be one accurate boolit. You should be set for some serious hunting before long.

BTW...finally found my rods and skyscreens for my chrony. I put it all up about 6 years ago and started looking for it about 2 years ago. Yep, right where i left em. I was looking for something else when i found em.....now if i could just find the other thing i was looking for.

Can't wait to find what speed those 280 gr. boolits are bumping along at. If the rain ever quits around here we'll find out. I'm very curious to see what load you come up with with your 250's. One things for sure....they're gonna be a hog stomper!

[TXGunNut]

Sounds like you're getting it all tracked down. I'm still betting that 360381 is gonna turn out to be one accurate boolit. You should be set for some serious hunting before long. -35 shooter


Maybe so, think I'll tweak this load a bit more before I try the H4350 and quite possibly the 4895 again. Thinking my Chrony's going along next trip as well. I don't bother with the skyscreens, just shoot early or on overcast days.
How fast do you think that 009 is going? I've SWAG'd my latest @ 2200 but quite honestly don't know, could be 2400 for all I know.

[35 shooter]

Not sure at all on the 009. I started with 48 gr imr 4350...so 1800 maybe 1900 fps.? Could be 2000 for all i know cause i just can't find any hard data on it except for jacketed. I'll find out before long though now that i've found all my chrony equipment. I've got loads through 53 gr. for the next trip. And of course several unique and red dot loads for the pb boolit.

[TXGunNut]

I jumped up to 54 grs IMR4350 and laddered up a bit ftom there under the 250gr boolit. I don't think that was too big a step. We'll hopefully get a chance to try it tomorrow morning.

[35 shooter]

With my 200 gr. boolits the primers were just starting to flatten a "bit" at 56 gr. imr4350.
Still had rounded edges and plenty of room in the pocket though. Diameter on the base of the case head stayed the same. Got some of my 280's loaded with 53 gr. imr4350 for tommorrow....good luck with yours.

[TXGunNut]

Range trip cancelled. :-( Showers moved thru this morning and got involved in a research project. Shooting buddy tied up too and weather too unstable this afternoon to plan a trip. May slip out later, hope you make it out there and do a little testing.

[35 shooter]

Yep...slipped out early. It went sorta, kinda, okay. You know....one of "those" trips where you have to go back again to make sure? Hate it when that happens. You have to go back to verify a load, but i gotta go back and re verify i've got something to verify.:groner:

[TXGunNut]

That's the downside in five-shot groups, they need confirmation. Beats loading up 10 of each of "try" loads but I think two 5-shot groups tell me more than a 10-shot group. As long as you got and recorded some useful data it wasn't a wasted trip. Weather seems to be clearing here, think I'll slip out and warm up some shootin' irons.

[TXGunNut]

Slipped out for awhile but it went from a pleasant 79 degrees to a sticky indicated 100 on my car's thermometer before I got done. 54.5grs of IMR4350 showed some promise but today wasn't one of my better days. Matter of fact, I pretty much wasted powder & lead.:-( Haven't come up with a new name for Ol' Ugly but I may have a name for my 336; Scopekiller. Got the new Weaver sighted in inside of 5 rounds and after that it became unpredictable. Las two shots were almost a foot apart.:-(
Had the pleasure of meeting Michael Plaxco, sometime member of the S&W shooting team, factory rep and general good guy. I met him years ago and it was good to catch up on some of the folks I used to shoot with.

[35 shooter]

Hate that happened with the weaver. I know you didn't need that to happen after what you went through with the redfields. I was hoping the new weavers would be tough scopes.
You've got your load with the ranchdog boolit and 4350 right? Now it's just the 250 gr. your still working on in the whelen?

[TXGunNut]

Dunno what happened to the Weaver. Will take it out again but something went bad wrong.
Still working on the Whelen, will have to suspend that soon. Getting too hot to shoot it much. I have a couple of good loads for the RD that need final testing and the 360318 is getting close....I think.

[JesterGrin_1]

That is part of the reason I went with a Muzzle Brake. I could not keep my scope from moving lol.

[TXGunNut]

That is part of the reason I went with a Muzzle Brake. I could not keep my scope from moving lol.

I wouldn't be opposed to a brake on Ol' Ugly. She really comes up off the bags and moves my fat butt back a bit with some of the newer loads. I really don't think that 336 is recoiling that hard but it's possible.

[TXGunNut]

Ol' Ugly had a good day at the range, worked out one issue and made progress on others. Seems the brass was getting a little tired and needs annealing-thanks for the tip, 357maximum! I didn't want to fool with learning a new process right now so I broke out a few pieces of new brass. I'll give it a try when I have a big pile of it, only have 29 to anneal for now. I knew the neck wasn't sealing well but just didn't think it thru, brass has at least 8-10 firings and only one split case body so far. Also decided she likes a minimal crimp, somehow I got the idea she liked a moderate roll crimp. Wind was too tricky to draw too many conclusions on the powder charge but looks like 54-54.5 grs is going to be very close.

Reports of my new Weaver scope's demise were incorrect, or at least premature. Scopekiller shot OK today but mag tube needs tweaking again, putting a bit of pressure near the muzzle. Still had some annoying fliers but no dramatic shifts like the Redfield scopes.

[35 shooter]

Glad to hear it wasn't the scope cause i've been considering picking up a weaver in a higher power range just for range work. Sure sounds like your closing in on a load. I'm closing in fast on that same load density with the 009 and imr4350. 53 1/2 gr. did well today but i think it wants a bit more. Sure seems to be something special about the 54 to 54 1/2 gr. range with 4350.

[TXGunNut]

Seems odd that two boolits 30 grs apart would like similar powder charges, 200 gr isn't far from that either. Interesting.
Got the mag tube tweaked on Scopekiller, also noticed the 35 Rem necks weren't sealing so these cases will go in the "to be annealed" bag and will put some new(er) ones in service. There was a time when I didn't reload my hunting brass more than once or twice. Those days are gone.

[Yodogsandman]

While doing initial ladder loads for my 35 Whelen with jacketed, I got 26 loadings before retiring the cases. At the time all I had was 20 R-P cases from the only factory loads the barrel has seen. No annealing but, I didn't crimp the case mouths either.

[TXGunNut]

Wow, and I thought I was pushing the envelope with around 10 loadings. I've been noticing neck sealing problems with the Whelen for 2-3 firings now and attribute that to case necks losing elasticity. I read a very good post a few months back about the effects of hard case necks and inconsistent neck tension on accuracy. Wish I could recall who wrote it because it was well written and documented, as I recall. I was discussing this project in a PM and the subject of annealing came up. I recalled the aforementioned post and realized that neck condition was a variable that I could and should address and minimize in my quest for a more accurate load for this rifle and cartridge. The results haven't been dramatic so far but I have another 70 pieces of brass to play with; more to come soon, I hope.

[TXGunNut]

While doing initial ladder loads for my 35 Whelen with jacketed.....Yodogsandman

Doing any cast boolit development in your 35 Whelen?

[Yodogsandman]

I played with some 150 gr SWC 358477's and 204 gr 358315's about 15 years ago, got poor groups (3"-4" or so). I lost interest due to family time constraints and lack of available rifle bullet molds in 35 caliber. Found a NEI 358-282GC recently. This has a flat nose and drops at 301 gr, .360" with my alloy of AC COWW + 2% SN. Started initial load testing with IMR4064 (ala Shuz's posts) and the vertical stadia on the scope broke. The scope had grown cloudy in the past year anyway. Awaiting repair or replacement on that. Best so far is 42 gr IMR4064, 7/8" group/ 5 shots/50 yds. The fogged up scope limited me to 50 yard tests. Put another scope on, an un-proven scope, couldn't get it sighted in. Adjusted it all the way down and bore sighting showed it shooting over the berm. Will try another scope. I'm using expanded 30-06 cases for cast in the 35 Whelen... I have plenty and I see no difference. Saving my 35 Whelen H/S cases for hunting.

[Yodogsandman]

I didn't think of it until you put your finger on it but, I guess accuracy does seem to drop off after the first few firings. That's why I've always saved my good ,newer brass for hunting loads. Hopefully cast boolit hunting loads. I've always looked at annealing cases as something benchresters did to shave a few thousands off. Perhaps with cast boolits it's more important than that. It's certainly worthy of a try out.

[35 shooter]

Yodogsandman that's quite a boolit you have there. I'd sure like to know how it works out. Sounds like you may already have a load nailed down with it. Good luck with it when you get your scope working again.

[TXGunNut]

I figured you'd perk up at the NEI mould, 35 shooter. Does sound like an awesome hunting boolit.
Bummer about the scope issues, yodogsandman. Been catching up on many nearly trouble-free years of good performance from glass. I'm amazed at the quality of glass found in so many scopes today. The mechanicals and QC, however, have been frustrating of late. 20 yrs ago an inexpensive scope had marginal optics and good mechanicals. Now the reverse seems to be true.

[35 shooter]

Yepper! Didn't see that one coming at all. That thing is gonna be like a Mack truck with that flat nose on it! Lol

[Yodogsandman]

Well, the original scope was twenty years old, when it's "repaired or replaced" I hope it lasts another 20. I mounted another scope on the 35 and will try that out. $38 new, about twenty years ago.

The better brand scope makers all have high quality, affordable models now for the masses.

I had wanted a 358009 but, couldn't find one. I didn't hear that NOE was making them. Purchased the NEI on evil bay this winter. Should be a real moose thumpah!

The 35 Whelen is my all time favorite caliber and I've just begun to develop anything resembling a cast load for it (again). I'm going to try a few powders, H/Ting the boolits, maybe PCing them also. I haven't even slugged the bore...I only had a .358 sizer, anyway! I have a .359 now to try. A .360 may follow me home soon, too. It's also my favorite rifle and I like to shoot it a lot. I think these tests will take a long, long time! My "Redux" will be from about 15 years ago. TxGunNut, your thread has been a real primer for me, thanks. 35shooter, I will keep you guys posted, probably with my own thread, once I get to a place where I think I can keep it moving forward.

[TXGunNut]

35 Whelen is indeed an interesting cartridge, thought it would be easy to figure out but my "easy" cartridges are almost boring. The 35 Whelen has kept me busy (and broke) for several months now and it's been fun comparing notes with the other members here.
Once again it will be my focus when I head to the range tomorrow, still need to load some rounds for it....after I get the yard done. ;-)

[35 shooter]

yodogsandman you've got a 358009 on steroids lol. Gonna be interesting to see how that one turns out.

TxGunNut bring us back some good groups tomorrow. Got rain in the forecast here,but we'll see.

[TXGunNut]

Had a good rain earlier this morning here. Shooting buddy cancelled but I may slip out later. Was in the loading room this morning trying to decide what to load for today's trip and a bottle of IMR4895 was staring at me from my closet cache.

Here's what I'm wondering about: is IMR/H4350 too slow for Ol' Ugly's 22" bbl? According to my notes I've gotten decent results with IMR4350 in the lighter boolits but better with H4350 and IMR4895. Results with the 250gr 360318 over IMR4350 have been a bit discouraging but are almost within the parameters I set for a hunting load. Does 4350 need a 24" bbl in the 35 Whelen? I don't know what length bbl any of you guys are shooting and I wonder if that may be a factor. There are other factors I'm working on but I'm tempted to try IMR4895 under the 360318.

[35 shooter]

Sure won't hurt to try something else. 4895 should do well with the 22" bbl. I've been a bit dissapointed with 4350 so far with the 280 gr., but still have a ways to go with it. I do have a 24" bbl and 4350 is burning very clean behind the heavier boolit in it. I still want to try some 3031 with it also. Looks like i'm rained out here too, but i needed to do some casting anyway.

[TXGunNut]

Thanks for the info, 35 shooter.
Think I will load some 4895 today. Will also load 54.0 IMR4350 for one more look. I have Varget and 4064 as well if 4895 doesn't work out. Only have 20 cases prepped but have learned that my first 20 rounds with this rifle & boolit combo are my best 20. ;-)

[35 shooter]

You got me thinking about all the load data i've compiled over the last year with different powders and different burn rates etc. So i pulled out my load records and started browsing through and noticed something i thought was kind of odd. imr3031, imr4895, h4895, and imr4350 have all shot very well @ 48 gr. of powder.....What's up with that? Remember Shuz's load of aa4064? Makes me wonder what would happen with that old can of imr4320 i have on hand with that same load.

Of course they're all giving different pressures and velocities with that load and that makes it even stranger, especially when you consider case fill is a bit different with each powder too. The data is all on the noe 200 gr. boolit. Of course with the slower burning 4350 i did wind up with a better load at 50 and better again at 54 1/2 gr. but it shot well at 48 gr. too.

When i started work with the 280 gr. boolit i started with 48 gr. imr4350 and it shot well there right off the bat. Not sure what all this means except the fact that 48 gr. of powder has been a good load over a fair range of different powders, burn rates, and boolit weight in the 35 whelen.
Kind of funny how things like that jump out at you when browsing back through your load notes.

[TXGunNut]

Oddly enough the 4895 loads I loaded today are around 46 grs.

Did a fair bit of rainy day browsing and pondering myself, the thing that jumped out @ me today was that I have had no problem coming up with 1.5 or less MOA groups for the RD 359190 with three different powders and counting. Problem is I feel like the 35 Whelen comes into it's own with boolit weights somewhere between 235 gr and 290 gr. I may be wrong about the heavies but I don't think so.
OTOH Larry Gibson noted months ago that a 35 cal., 200 gr boolit at the velocities I was attaining then were more than adequate for TX deer and hogs. He's right, of course....but this sure has been fun! My goal is and always has been to take a decisive step above the very adequate 35 Rem. I don't truly feel it's necessary because the 200 gr 35 Rem drops large hogs as decisively as a 350 gr 45-70 but I want a round that will absolutely exit a large hog's far shoulder after destroying large bones on the way thru. I think a 250 gr 35 Whelen round @ 2100-2200 fps will do that, but I'm still looking for repeatable accuracy under 2 MOA.

[robroy]

I'm glad to keep reading the threads you guys have going on the Whelen. I took mine out today and started to find joy with the 360 Thor @ 45gr of 3031 with filler. They tightened up a bit as I got up to 49 gr. About 1 1/2" @ 100 yds. I'm going to keep on increasing charge till I get pressure signs or accuracy goes south. This was my first time using filler and did not find it a problem. As the AI case gets fuller I'll quit it though.

[TXGunNut]

I like the 360 Thor mould very much, too bad Ol' Ugly didn't. Only powder I tried was IMR4895, seemed to like 48.0 grs pretty well. Never could get it to feed, especially from the rt side of the magazine. I think my 336 in 35 Rem kinda likes the Thor. Still working out the details but I think they'll get along fine.

[35 shooter]

I'm glad to keep reading the threads you guys have going on the Whelen. I took mine out today and started to find joy with the 360 Thor @ 45gr of 3031 with filler. They tightened up a bit as I got up to 49 gr. About 1 1/2" @ 100 yds. I'm going to keep on increasing charge till I get pressure signs or accuracy goes south. This was my first time using filler and did not find it a problem. As the AI case gets fuller I'll quit it though.

Glad to hear your still working with that AI. I did the same as you with imr3031 and the filler with 200 gr. boolits till i hit about 85...90% case fill and it shot good on the low end and top end. Imr and h4895 worked well like that too.

I love that THOR boolit and my brother has got hooked on it too. Probably the only boolit a person would need in the .35 bore so long as it feeds well.One things for sure....that boolit sure cuts clean holes in a paper target.

[35 shooter]

I'm just waiting on TxGunNut to shoot a couple of 1 big ragged holers with his 360318 so i can order that mould from noe too! :kidding:

[TXGunNut]

I'm just waiting on TxGunNut to shoot a couple of 1 big ragged holers with his 360318 so i can order that mould from noe too! :kidding:


At this point I'll have to hang the target @ 25 yards. I'm hoping you'll go ahead and order it and give me a few pointers.

[35 shooter]

LOL i can't seem to get away from 3 to 5" groups lately with the one i'm working with now.
It did seem to settle down on the vertical with the last load i tried. If i had to guess at this point i'd say it's gonna settle in right where the 200 gr. boolit load did. Kind of in the same range you predicted it might the other day. Somewhere around 54 to 54 1/2 gr. If it doesn't settle down soon i may have to try another powder. 54 gr. shot pretty well yesterday...we'll see if it repeats.

I'll just go by your results with the 360318. LOL all i'll have to do is buy the mould and the powder you come up with.
Got total confidence in you!:-)

[TXGunNut]

We'll see. This time of week I'm pretty sure I have it figured out. Data studied, notes read, variables pondered, options explored and finally cartridges loaded. Come Sunday morning and it's reality check time. I think the Chrony's going along this time. I have a hard time shooting good groups over a Chrony but I may get some valuable data, we'll see.

[35 shooter]

Hope you get some good results with the chrony. I've been pondering over loads myself this week. Hope "ol contrary" has too.

[Yodogsandman]

+1 on the good results! I dug out my chrony today but, didn't use it because now I can't find the tripod! I'd rather check the velocity after finding the best groups anyway.

I got the sweats when you mentioned the feed of the 360 Thor from your magazine. I Didn't even think of that! Tried my boolits from the magazine today and they feed slick, like they were greased.... whew.

[TXGunNut]

Glad the Thor boolit worked for you, Yodogsandman. It's a pretty awesome looking hunting boolit. Ol' Ugly shoots it pretty well, just won't feed it reliably.
My range day didn't go well but I identified some loads that didn't work on my rifle and determined why so it was a good day. I don't know the velocity but I was launching the 360318 with 54.0 and up of IMR 4350 and 46.0 and up of IMR4895. Groups were miserable but I figured out why. Over half the boolit holes were out of round! I checked an earlier target with similar loads and found oblong holes in those targets as well. It seems the threshold for this boolit, in this rifle (1:14 twist) is somewhere south of 54.0 grs of 4350 and north of 51.5 grs. First noticed it @ 51.7 grs. Wish I had a chrono reading but I don't.
Groups weren't that great @ 51.5 but that's as good as they got, I think it's time to move back to the Ranch Dog 359-190. I don't think Ol' Ugly likes the 360318 so it's high time I listened to my rifle and gave it the boolits it likes instead of the boolits I like. My research tells me that a 1:14 twist should stabilize a 250 gr boolit, Ol' Ugly is telling me different.[smilie=b:
I have three good loads for the RD boolit, H4350 and IMR4895 have both produced MOA groups and the IMR4350 is close behind. Looks like I've had the right boolit all along, just didn't want to use it. Ol' Ugly has spoken, guess I better listen this time.:bigsmyl2:

[35 shooter]

I had high hopes for the 360318 for you but you've gotta go with what works for sure. Besides, didn't Dan Walker shoot through both shoulders on a warthog with the ranch dog? I know there's nothing in North America i wouldn't take on with my 200 gr. noe's.
LOL we can argue with em all we want, but the rifle always wins the final choice.

[TXGunNut]

I don't know, thought it was a 45 Colt and Dan is a Ranch Dog fan. Will have to check.
I've learned a lot from Ol' Ugly over a lot of years, she was my first hunting rifle and we've been together for over 30 years. Seems she taught me another lesson today.

[35 shooter]

I don't know, thought it was a 45 Colt and Dan is a Ranch Dog fan. Will have to check.
I've learned a lot from Ol' Ugly over a lot of years, she was my first hunting rifle and we've been together for over 30 years. Seems she taught me another lesson today.

Yep, found it under his thread and sticky, velocity threshold for cast boolit rifles. I think it's in his first post. 35 rem. lever gun @ 2000 fps with the ranch dog and broke both shoulders at i think 65 yds....WOW!

[TXGunNut]

I know the RD 359190 will break both shoulders on a 150 (300 TV!) lb hog so I know it's tough enough to do the job for me. I'd have been happier if it had exited tho. I think Dan used the 45 Colt on a recent trip, maybe both. Good excuse to find that thread, good read.

[TXGunNut]

Seems I'm back where I was several months ago, looking for the best 200 gr load for the 35 Whelen. I thought Ol' Ugly would like a heavier boolit but it looks like I was wrong. I'll try the heavier boolit again someday but it's time to choose a hunting load and wind this project up until after hunting season. Except for the occasional feral Buick Electra 225 I really have little use for a 250 or heavier boolit here in TX... but it was fun!

[Yodogsandman]

TXGunNut, You gave it a good try, thanks for sharing your work with us.

BTW, From what I've read, You and Ol' Ugly aren't the only ones that have had a hard time with the 358318 (360318).

[TXGunNut]

BTW, From what I've read, You and Ol' Ugly aren't the only ones that have had a hard time with the 358318 (360318).

Maybe so. I have three very promising loads for the 359190, will send them across the Chrony Sunday and wind up this adventure. The RD 359190 is a proven hunting boolit for me so it's a mark in the "win" column for me and Ol' Ugly. I still think the 360318 has potential but I've learned that shooting hunting rifles this time of year in TX is an exercise in futility. Once ambient temp reaches 95 degrees a sporting contour barrel simply won't cool down anytime soon.
A boolit in the 225-250 gr range just makes too much sense for this cartridge. The 280 is an awesome choice as well but the profile would cause feeding problems in Ol' Ugly.

[35 shooter]

Can't wait for the chrony results. I fully understand about the hot bbl. in the heat. My rifle has the pro-hunter series bbl. complete with fluting and a thick contour and within ten shots about 1 to 2 min. apart, you could fry bacon on it. Takes that big bbl. forever to cool down, but it sure "hangs" well for, off hand shots.
The only gun shop that has powder open on Sunday is about 60 miles from me, but i think i'm gonna go cruise the powder aisles tommorrow. Got about ten rounds loaded with a 300 gr. .454" minie ball boolit to try out in a bond arms derringer 45/410 if i get a chance too!

[TXGunNut]

Had a decent range session today but didn't get there early enough and it was HOT! Summer hasn't really gotten a good start yet but as usual when the temp got above 95 Ol' Ugly and Scopekiller quit shooting and wouldn't cool down. Scopekiller shot pretty well but had an odd diagonal group due to the heat. Had a few bizarre flyers as well. SK used to be a pretty good rifle until she decided she didn't like scopes. I think Ol' Ugly was a bit dirty too, think she's up over 100 rds since I cleaned her last but she shot pretty good for a couple of groups. Can't believe that LLA is hanging in there at these velocities, I think I'm up over 2200 but Chrony had "Lb" on the display and my spare battery was missing. Too sunny for good results today anyway.
I'm gonna put away CF my rifles for the summer, too frustrating to shoot them this time of year. I think I'll play with BP revolvers and rimfires for awhile. Fondled a nice O/U and I really need to take up shotgun shooting to get my money's worth at the range where I'm a member. We have very nice Trap and Skeet fields and it's only $3/round. Five stand Sporting Clays as well.

Derringer sounds like fun. Probably won't take long to get all you want of that, I'll bet.

[35 shooter]

Which boolit and which load is over 2200 fps? Picked up some 4759,4227,and h4350 today.They had a limit of 1 pound each per customer, but i had two ladys with me so it worked out okay. Especially since they could buy powder but don't reload.
Too bad about the chronograph. I'll be taking mine on my next trip,hopefully next weekend.

[TXGunNut]

RD 359190 over IMR4895 and IMR4350...I think. Can't recall chronographing either so I could be off 100fps either way. I only have a limited amount of H4350 but I think that's probably the best powder for this rifle/boolit combo. Unfortunately it's also the best powder for my 30-06's. I suspect in will serve you well under that 358009 as well.
Congrats on the powder score, was sorely tempted when some 4227 hit the shelves I cruise but I truly think based on my shooting results and your reports that I have powders on my shelf that will do what I want this cartridge to do.

[35 shooter]

I agree on the powder. After all the testing we've both done to this point and considering your results and mine, I would be totally happy with some flavor of 4350 and unique for my whelen. LOL if i quit going to the range all the time, 8 lbs. of each would last from now on.

[robroy]

Well what's the point of having powder if'n ya don't shoot it?:kidding:

[TXGunNut]

Well what's the point of having powder if'n ya don't shoot it?:kidding:

I don't think that will be a problem, seems I need to keep 2-3 lbs on hand of several varieties and at least one empty bottle leaves every time I empty the trash in my loading room. Better question is "where the heck did it all go?":bigsmyl2:

[TXGunNut]

I'm thinking about a new mould, all I can figure is that the 360318 just isn't going to work in this rifle.
http://www.accuratemolds.com/bullet_detail.php?bullet=36-250A-D.png

[bigted]

TX ... thats a good looking boolit. wonder how it would feed outta the mag tho with the wide meplate? i do think by the drive bands tho that it would be a rifling hugging hummer.

[bigted]

would your rifling require the short section of the nose? i had looked at the 36-270 B or C boolit with the longer nose section and the slightly heavier weight ... do you think a fella would experience nose slump with the 270 grain boolits? looks like the nose would be pretty long and slip into the rifling begining to get a good start in the speed dept.

[35 shooter]

Tom sure has got a lot of 35 cal. boolits to choose from. Everytime i go to his site i find something i like on there.

Wow! Just took another look. A, c, and d ARE good looking boolits on the 250 gr. B looked like it had a tapered nose profile kind of like the 360318?
I need to stay away from that site!lol:smile:

[TXGunNut]

Based on my experience with the RD 359190, 360235 Thor and NOE/Lyman 360318 I'm thinking Ol' Ugly likes a big meplat as long as it's not very long (359190). A boolit with a longer nose needs a bit of taper to feed properly (360318). The 360318 doesn't have the meplat I want for hunting and I've had little success getting the accuracy I want at the velocity I desire. A boolit with a long nose, a big meplat and little taper (360235 Thor) won't feed in Ol' Ugly. I need to get drawings of all the above along with the 36-235A.
Don't have an answer for your later questions, Bigted, but I think the answer to the first question is "yes". Quite honestly I don't fully understand bullet slump but in my limited understanding that may be the issue with the 360318.
And yes, 35 shooter, hanging out on boolit mould manufacturer sites has proved expensive for me a time or two. ;-) Could be a long summer!

[Yodogsandman]

Could Ol' Uglys feed ramp be modified, ground or polished to accept that 360235 Thor? Or is the extractor not catching the rim when feeding from the magazine? That Accurate 36-250 looks like a thumper! Do you know the length and the length of the bore riding section? I didn't see those dimensions listed. That's nice that they'll fit it to your lands.

[TXGunNut]

Could Ol' Uglys feed ramp be modified, ground or polished to accept that 360235 Thor? Or is the extractor not catching the rim when feeding from the magazine? That Accurate 36-250 looks like a thumper! Do you know the length and the length of the bore riding section? I didn't see those dimensions listed. That's nice that they'll fit it to your lands.

Possibly. I polished it as best I could and it helped a bit. Not willing to change the contours of the feed ramp, simply don't know what I'm doing in that area. Problem is the leading edge of the meplat would catch the ramp and pop the round out of the magazine lips prematurely. The 670 is a push feed so the extractor doesn't engage the rim while feeding. I tuned the magazine lips and even replaced the follower and spring. Didn't help much with the Thor but helped a bit with the RD 359190.
Still studying on the 360-250A. Does look like a thumper, doesn't it?

[Yodogsandman]

Sure does! Would Accurate send you some test boolits to try?

[35 shooter]

The 250-A nose profile looks closer to the ranch dog than the others doesn't it? Looked like the others had longer noses? My problem is everything on his site looks good lol. I like all the dia. options he offers with his moulds. Sounds like he can make em fit any throat or bbl.

[TXGunNut]

Sure does! Would Accurate send you some test boolits to try?

No need, just need to gather up measurements on the boolits I've tried and compare. The other 250's would likely have the same issues the Thor had but the 250A has promise, especially with a craftsman like Tom ready to tweak it a bit.

[bigted]

looks like that boolit ... the 36-250A would be considerable as it is just under 2 calibers in groove grabbing length along with a fairly short nose section and that big wicked meplate for thumpin whatever it contacts. did you say you ordered the mold yet?

[TXGunNut]

Haven't ordered it yet. Need to do a little homework and headscratching first. I like the bore riding feature too. No hurry, too hot to get serious about rifles for awhile.

[TXGunNut]

Took advantage of today's unseasonably cool weather to interrupt Ol' Ugly's vacation. Unfortunately the benchrest shooters were having a match on the rifle range so I had to shoot on an adjacent 50 yd rifle range. I needed to shoot Scopekiller @ 50 anyway so it wasn't all bad.
Decided to go back to the 52.5 gr H4350 load (8A), I have a few pounds I was saving for a j-word rifle but I don't shoot that rifle anyway. First group (upper left) had a couple of fouling shots in it but was pretty decent, all things considered. The IMR4350 loads at around 54 grs (load #9) showed promise but had a nagging habit of tossing a flyer high with annoying regularity.
I guess I have this year's hunting load for Ol' Ugly, think I need to cast another bucketful of those RD 359-190 boolits; Ol' Ugly and Scopekiller have been eating them like candy. ;-) Speaking of Scopekiller the new Weaver is still hanging tough and I've discovered she has a marked preference for a 41.0gr LVR load I found on a thread around here a few weeks back...as long as I don't let her get hot. She's still not shooting like she used to, maybe a bit of tweaking on this load or her old standby load and she'll be back to her old self and quit taking her anger out on my scopes. ;-)

[35 shooter]

It does show a preference for the h4350 even at 50 yds. It is indeed strange how different rifles of even the same caliber can often show a preference for different powder brands like that, even when their basically the same powder.
My rifle showed a definite preference for the imr 4350 today.
Looks like you've got a good load there indeed and that RD is a fine looking boolit. Glad you got to get out and shoot today!

[TXGunNut]

That load does quite well @ 100 as well, you may recall when I first tried that load awhile back. Couldn't find anything better so I came back.
My 30-06 had a hard time choosing between H4350 and IMR4350, very close in that rifle. Gave up trying to figure out that flyer when using the IMR4350 in the Whelen.
Thinking pretty seriously about lubing that RD boolit with BAC in my Lyman instead of TL'ing with LLA. Pretty amazed that LLA is hanging in there at what I believe to be 2300 fps or better. Got plenty of time to think about it, going to load up a few to chronograph and then load up some hunting ammo. Not going to change anything until after hunting season.

[35 shooter]

I remember that load well. I believe that's the one that was cloverleafing at 100 yds. It's definitely shooting Very well in your rifle.

[TXGunNut]

I agree. It's going hunting this fall. Now we need to get your hunting load figured out.

[Blammer]

if you're not pushing 2450fps with that 190gr RD and the 52gr of 4350 I will be surprised.

my 35 Whelen and 210gr RCBS 35 200 mould and 51gr of IMR4350 I get 2400 fps easy as I recall.

[TXGunNut]

if you're not pushing 2450fps with that 190gr RD and the 52gr of 4350 I will be surprised.

my 35 Whelen and 210gr RCBS 35 200 mould and 51gr of IMR4350 I get 2400 fps easy as I recall.

I SWAG'd it @ 2400 but that just sounded too fast. I had my Chrony along but didn't bother to set it up. Probably next trip. I chrono'd a few loads several months ago but the results got lost on the way to my notebook.

[35 shooter]

I'll be doing a chrono test on my 200 gr. noe boolit someday soon with 54 1/2 gr. imr4350. I was expecting about 2450 fps from that load. I may be a whole lot faster than i thought i was if you got that from 51 gr. I knew that load was rocking my shoulder a bit.
My 358009 boolit clocked 2222 fps. @ 54 gr. imr 4350 the other day but of course it's almost 90 gr. heavier.

[TXGunNut]

Got talked into a range trip today in spite of the heat, needed to chrono a few loads so took the Chrony along. Interesting how velocities went up with the barrel temps but we got some good data anyway. Rotated three rifles in an attempt to let them cool but with temps just under triple digits it didn't work. Velocities were quite a bit lower than I expected, 52.5grs H4350 under the RD 359-190 only yielded an avg of 1980 fps. First three were 1959, 1954 and 1953 so i figure much of the variation was due to the heat. Eight out of ten rounds went into a nice group so the way I see it Ol' Ugly has a hunting load. Distance was 100 yds.
Scopekiller was up to her usual tricks, the holes in her target can't be called a goup but the velocities were a pretty consistent average of 2046 with an extreme spread of 31 fps. Not going to bother posting her target, not worth the bandwidth.
111869

[35 shooter]

Not bad at all for ten shots in this heat. I did expect a bit more vel., but 2000 fps. should take care of anything on this continent.:smile: I cast some boolits today so didn't get to the range, but may get to one day this week. When i do i'll try to chrono the imr 4350 with my 200 gr. boolits and see what the difference, if any, there is between the two powders.

Congrats on a good load!

[TXGunNut]

I was expecting 2300 fps but 2400 would not have suprised me. I figure 1950 or so will work just fine, have killed a few hogs and deer with this boolit at similar velocities. Ol' Ugly's going hunting again, but first I need to do a bit of casting myself. All this load testing has taken a toll on my 359-190 supply.

[35 shooter]

Well i was expecting at least 2300 fps with my 200 gr. boolit with 54 1/2 gr. of imr 4350, but this is what happened today.
5 shots @ 100 yds. 1.359"

(1) 2230 fps.
(2) 2227
(3) 2208
(4) 2245
(5) 2232
2,228 fps. avg.
That's only 6 fps. faster than the 280 gr. boolit with a half gr. more powder?
Looks like not much difference in imr and h 4350 since i have a 2" longer bbl. and was burning 2 more gr. of powder than your load.

[TXGunNut]

Good shooting, nice consistency. I think my group size will decrease as temps cool but I don't think the velocity will improve. Been puzzling over the low velocity but haven't reached any conclusions other than "it is what it is". I may have another go with 4895 in a couple of months, seem to recall it was a bit faster.
Ol' Ugly stayed home today but Texassako came out, the man has some interesting guns!