Phlier
11-24-2016, 01:44 AM
181377
Darn it, my pictures always get turned sideways no matter what size I select when I put them in the post. Ah well.
Anyway, I took 80 rounds to the indoor range today. All 80 were loaded up with my very first set of cast boolits ( Lee TL356-124-RN sized to .357). I split them 40 for me, 40 for my son.
I shot mine ten rounds at a time through my S&W M&P CORE 9L with a Burris FastFire red dot. It was interesting to see the progression of the groups. I wish I had pics of the first three groups, but one of the range guys asked if he could borrow my lane for a bit. I said yes, and before I could retrieve the target, he stepped in my booth, grabbed the old one down, and wadded it up in a ball before I could get it from him. The first group was just kinda meh. I wasn't getting the accuracy of my usual fmj round. The second tightened up some, as did the third. But the fourth group was very nice. Every bit as accurate as my favorite FMJ load.
The group in the picture is ten rounds off hand at seven yards. The one flier was my fault, not the boolits. The guy in the lane next to me (indoor range) touched off an AR-15 with a compensator on it and startled me a bit. So yeah... the flier is me, not the boolit.
I now understand what I've been reading around here about having to get the barrel all lubed up and warm before really getting top notch accuracy from cast bullets. Unfortunately, I was out of my cast loads after this group was shot. Tomorrow night when my wife enters a turkey coma, I'll sneak up to the reloading room and load up a bunch (I think I have about 400 or so left to load) for some extensive accuracy testing of this boolit.
I was a bit surprised by the result of this. I had shot two groups of ten with this boolit the previous night, and I got very good accuracy right from the first shot (I then proceeded to shoot about 250 fmj's afterward, so I doubt any lube from the cast boolits was left at the end of the session). Tonight the barrel needed a bit of love to really do well with this load.
Is it possible to develop a 9mm cast boolit load that shoots accurately from the very first shot? While I'm very happy with the results, it really would be nice to have a load that shoots well right from the start of a shooting session.
I'll typically shoot 250 to 500 rounds every session, so I'd really like a load that can not only shoot accurately through a cold barrel, but also one that's getting on the "darn, that barrel is hot!" side of things.
What do you guys think, is this an obtainable goal with cast boolits? If so, any pointers on how I might proceed?
Edit: Just realized it might help if I actually told you a bit more about the load. :)
After sizing the boolits to .357, I tumble lubed them twice with 45/45/10.
Load Data (for reference only! Use at your own risk):
Lee TL356-124-RN (cast with Lyman #2, BHN 15, average boolit weight 122.7 grains)
4.6grs CFE-Pistol
CCI 500 Primer
1.125 OAL
I haven't yet chrono'd this load, but it should be just a bit over 1,000 fps.
Darn it, my pictures always get turned sideways no matter what size I select when I put them in the post. Ah well.
Anyway, I took 80 rounds to the indoor range today. All 80 were loaded up with my very first set of cast boolits ( Lee TL356-124-RN sized to .357). I split them 40 for me, 40 for my son.
I shot mine ten rounds at a time through my S&W M&P CORE 9L with a Burris FastFire red dot. It was interesting to see the progression of the groups. I wish I had pics of the first three groups, but one of the range guys asked if he could borrow my lane for a bit. I said yes, and before I could retrieve the target, he stepped in my booth, grabbed the old one down, and wadded it up in a ball before I could get it from him. The first group was just kinda meh. I wasn't getting the accuracy of my usual fmj round. The second tightened up some, as did the third. But the fourth group was very nice. Every bit as accurate as my favorite FMJ load.
The group in the picture is ten rounds off hand at seven yards. The one flier was my fault, not the boolits. The guy in the lane next to me (indoor range) touched off an AR-15 with a compensator on it and startled me a bit. So yeah... the flier is me, not the boolit.
I now understand what I've been reading around here about having to get the barrel all lubed up and warm before really getting top notch accuracy from cast bullets. Unfortunately, I was out of my cast loads after this group was shot. Tomorrow night when my wife enters a turkey coma, I'll sneak up to the reloading room and load up a bunch (I think I have about 400 or so left to load) for some extensive accuracy testing of this boolit.
I was a bit surprised by the result of this. I had shot two groups of ten with this boolit the previous night, and I got very good accuracy right from the first shot (I then proceeded to shoot about 250 fmj's afterward, so I doubt any lube from the cast boolits was left at the end of the session). Tonight the barrel needed a bit of love to really do well with this load.
Is it possible to develop a 9mm cast boolit load that shoots accurately from the very first shot? While I'm very happy with the results, it really would be nice to have a load that shoots well right from the start of a shooting session.
I'll typically shoot 250 to 500 rounds every session, so I'd really like a load that can not only shoot accurately through a cold barrel, but also one that's getting on the "darn, that barrel is hot!" side of things.
What do you guys think, is this an obtainable goal with cast boolits? If so, any pointers on how I might proceed?
Edit: Just realized it might help if I actually told you a bit more about the load. :)
After sizing the boolits to .357, I tumble lubed them twice with 45/45/10.
Load Data (for reference only! Use at your own risk):
Lee TL356-124-RN (cast with Lyman #2, BHN 15, average boolit weight 122.7 grains)
4.6grs CFE-Pistol
CCI 500 Primer
1.125 OAL
I haven't yet chrono'd this load, but it should be just a bit over 1,000 fps.