Dialing in a load for 30-30

[greenwart]

50 yds Peep sights. 59 year old eyes. r15 and LEE 309-170-F. 50-50 ww/range lead. It started getting so hot here that I was having a hard time due to the sweat. Not bad for a $50 rifle. The velocities were 1820, 1753,1798. I am tempeted to go up a little in powder weight to 29-30 grains and see if accuracy suffers. If not this seems to be an acceptable bambi load.

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[Yodogsandman]

Nice shooting! That should get the meat locker filled up! Any more of those $50 rifles laying around?

[725]

Nice going. I'd stand in line for $50 rifles!

[gordie]

can't hurt to check 29-30 grs..

[blixen]

Did you get any leading at those velocities? I'm thinking about trying cast boolits at 1700-1800 fps. with tumble lubing myself. What is the rifle? I'll guess a Sav. 340 bolt-action.

[leeggen]

As a meat rifle I don't care where rounds 3,4,and 5 go but I do care where round 1 went and if a followup round 2 goes. Mighty good shooting, I know about old eyes. Keep up the shooting.
CD

[greenwart]

It is a savage 325C with the butter knife bolt handle. We get alot of truck guns around here. Some time they look like "junk" on the outside but the bores shine up if you spend some time cleaning. I steel wooled the barrel then cold reblued. Recrowning was necessary. I also refinished the stock, put on a 3$ recoil pad from the removed bucket and a 10$ sling. I alway need to increase the pull distance since I am 6'4". The problem is that I have some expensive hunting rifles which rarely get used. I would rather grab the sporterized 303 enfield or m96 swede which are both moa rifles and were each under 100$ with scopes. I have shot them both so many times getting them cleaned up I am very confident of shot placement. The confidence that the rifle will do what I want it to do when the target is in my sights is more important than the "quality" of the rifle.

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[greenwart]

I also just picked up a savage 340A from a pawn shop with no serial number. This gun looks like it has never been shot. There is a difference in the rifling between the rifle the 340 has equally sized lands and grooves whereas the 325c has small lands about 1 to 3 sized. The 325C shot better, but that may be due to peep sights vs a buckhorn. It may be due to the rifling? I am getting away from hypothesizing and just stick with what shoots well.

Bob

[dg31872]

I too, have a 325C that shoots great. Do not care for the butter knife handle though.
Stevens/ Savage stopped production of the 325 about 1950, and I read that Savage had a gov't contract making machine gun barrels and had some left over. They used the MG barrels in the 325.

[6.5 mike]

I have a 325B that likes that boolit over 29 grs of 748 real well.

[Rustyleee]

My best .30-30 loads were loaded with 3031. You might give that a try as well.

[richhodg66]

$50 rifle? I'll give you $60 for it.

My first "small bore" cast deer kill a few years ago was with a Savage 340, old Ideal 31141 and 25 grains of the old B-West BW 36 powder (very similar to IMR 3031). Results were very good, I watched the doe fall. Of course the range was almost point plank from the tree stand I was in, but I think the loads you have now will work great on deer at any sane range.

[blixen01]

I have a 325B that likes that boolit over 29 grs of 748 real well.

I had a 325c 30-30 butter bolt that I used as a .22 LR camping gun substitute when .22 prices went through the roof. But beyond 50 yards accuracy went south no matter what I tried it was also finicky about CBs. Like 'em .311 and touching the rifling for accuracy but wouldn't feed or chamber them consistently. Did fine with jacketed.

I like the way that Sav./Stevens model handles, but I wish it was more mechanically robust.

[greenwart]

I have a ebay search for 311041 and 31141 to see if a decent on comes up. The lee mold is good for what it is and has dropped some pretty nice looking bullets, but I found that over time they tend to wear out quicker than lyman molds. So if the bullet performs well out to 100-125 then I will hunt for a replacement when the time comes. I am a little rough with my molds and over time the alignment pins get pushed back and the sprueplate starts galling the top surface. Steel is more forgiving than aluminum. I just noticed that Lee make a 6 gang mold for the same bullet. I have found that the Lee 6 cavity molds are usually very well made compared to the 2 cavity molds. So that might be an option.

I have found the trigger to be not to my liking on either the 325C or the 340A. I do like a 2 stage trigger so that you can put pressure on the trigger before it lets go. with the 325C there is a tiny bit ofslack , but not enough to get some pressure on the trigger before it releases. I don't mind not having a 2 stage which I have a timmey on a 6.5 Swede with no take up. When you put pressure on the trigger it is snapping glass. it is set at 2 lbs.

[Uncle Duckie]

I'm not really happy with the trigger on my Springfield 840 (Savage 340E by another number) either, unfortunately other than doing some polishing on the parts there is not much you can do to fix it. There are no drop in replacements that I've ever found.

[A pause for the COZ]

I love my 340!! I sort of happened upon a bullet mine really likes.
A few years ago I picked up a HM 311-160-5 mold for my SKS. Found that not only does my SKS and AK really like it.
But sized to .310 my 30-30's think its the Cats "meow" ahead of 16gr of 2400. I think they are going about 1700fps using range scrap lead.

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d66/Kelly2215/100_8894_zps4c44d0e6.jpg

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d66/Kelly2215/100_8898_zps5fd5e60d.jpg

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d66/Kelly2215/100_8889_zps35a9622c.jpg

[sghart3578]

I have just traded for a Stevens 325 in 30-30. The rifle overall is in very good shape and the bore is perfect. I have shot it one time so far with factory jacketed ammo. It did very well. The bore slugs at .300" X .3075". I am casting a few Lee 309-150's and -170's to try. My Lee molds both drop at .309" which has always been too small for my other 30 cal rifles. I am hoping that sizing them to .309" with gas checks they will perform in this rifle.

I have 3031 on hand. Have you guys tried SR4759? I have a pound taking up space and would like to use it on something.

[UBER7MM]

....I have 3031 on hand. Have you guys tried SR4759? I have a pound taking up space and would like to use it on something.

SgHart,

I use to think the same about SR-4759, until I found a use for it. It's a great powder for cast boolits. Its high pressure and lower velocity relatively speaking, designed originally to replicate recoil with reduced loads, (or so I've been told.) The down side is that it's been discontinued. I hope you come up with your pet load early on in the development process, so you'll have more to load and shot in the field.

Enjoy!

[greenwart]

I got out on the 4th and shot 29.0, 29.5 ,and 30.0 grain. R15. Sorry no pictures or chrony there were a lot of folks and it was more of a fun shoot. the 29 and 29.5 performed great. the 30 grain started to open up a bit , but that may be due to fatigue and wind. No pressure signs and they all seemed to preform well. I am loading up a set in .2 grain increments and will get velocities and pictures.