A Tale of Two 7mms

[Ray1946]

I have a few 7mm rifles I aquired several years ago. One is a 1908 Brazilian and the other is a 1912 Chilean. Both of them wear the 29" tubes and balance quite nicely. I have a few molds for them, but haven't made anything up yet. I have an opportunity to purchase one or both of the following molds; Lyman 287641 or Lyman 287308.

The newer of the two is slightly lighter and supposedly has a better ballistic coefficient. I like the looks of both of them, but am not sure which one to get. Is there a preference by anyone who has used one or both of these molds? I think the 308' resembles the original 7mm bullet more so than the newer offering. I'm hoping to find a load that will shoot accurately and feed smoothly, I want to compete in the Vintage Military Rifle matches.

Any help would be greatly appreciated,....................Ray

[Larry Gibson]

You might want to slug the bores of those rifles. If in very good condition they probably are .286 to .287 groove diameter. Of the 2 Lyman moulds mentioned I would opt for the 287308 as it doesn't have the scraper groove in front of the drive band. That is not needed with todays lubes and is a weak point.

However, since you want to use the rifles in military matches I suggest looking at the NOE Loverin style mould; 285-150-FN or the slightly larger 288-150-FN depending on the groove diameter of your rifles. Those will fit the longer throats and give excellent accuracy.

NOE also has the 287-168-RF in a 3 cavity mould for $86. That NOE is very similar to the Lyman 287308 but will cast large enough for your milsurps since it is cut for WWs......probably close to .289 with #2 alloy It also will feed w/o problems, even from a full magazine, which is a problem with many cast designs in Mauser rifles. This NOE would be my 1st choice for a milsurp 7x57, even over the Lyman moulds.

Larry Gibson

[Ray1946]

Larry;....Thanks so much for your input! I have about 500 lbs. of #2 alloy. I am going to start casting this spring as soon as I get my garage cleaned out and have a place for everything. I have an RCBS 168 gr. semi-point I bought years ago and a Lyman 285377, but I haven't made any boolits with either one. I really like the long neck on these 7mms and am looking forward to reloading for them. Have you had any experience with the 285377? This is a really dandy looking spitzer,.............Ray

[Larry Gibson]

I've had a 287377 for a number of years. My 7x57s I've used cast in have all been milsurps requiring a minimum .286 sizing. The 287377 does okay up to about 1500 fps then goes down hill after that. As with many spritzer cast bullets it has too little bearing surface and too much unsupported nose to maintain accuracy much above 1500 - 1600 fps. I'd cast a few RCBS 168s with #2 alloy and see if they at least are groove diameter o the lands. If so I'd try it first using H4895 and a Dacron filler.

Larry Gibson

[Buckshot]

http://www.fototime.com/93DF7AC146DC001/standard.jpghttp://www.fototime.com/FAE697FAF99DE7A/standard.jpg

.............I too have a M1908 Brazilian Mauser, and to think when I bought this (I had an 01 FFL) it was only $89 :-) My first 7mm mould was the 172gr RCBS 2 Cav. With 42.0grs of WC872 ball & dacron it went 1885 fps and was very accurate. I lube-sized the slugs to .285". In fact this was one of the rifles I'd use in our club's monthly 200 meter silhouette match (in their non sanctioned 'Cowboy' event for us uncarded heathens).

However in the meantime I picked up three M95 Chilean Mausers. An infantry rifle, a short rifle and a cute little cavalry carbine. Between the 3 of'em their grooves ran from .286" to .288". Never did slug the Brazilian, and never shot the Chileans again until I'd picked up a nice NOE mould dropping at .289".

.................Buckshot

[Ray1946]

Nice looking rifle you have there; I think those South American contract rifles are just about the prettiest rifles ever made. Those "in the white" receivers and figured walnut stocks are truly elegant. I have an 08' Brazilian, an 09' Argentine, an 09' Peruvian and a 1912 Chilean(Steyr) that have been in the safe for too long; this year I'm going to start shooting them. I especially like the Peruvian; that huge receiver ring and the roller coaster sight, can't get much better.................

[sghart3578]

I too have a South American 7X57. It slugs at .287" with a long throat.

I bought this mold from NOE and size my bullets to .290". It is very, very accurate.

http://noebulletmolds.com/NV/product_info.php?cPath=29_195&products_id=1831

The bore and action were in great shape but the stock was a little weathered. I bought a stock from Boyd's and my son finished it with stain and Tru Oil. It is now my favorite rifle.

195588

You will like the way your rifle shoots.

Best of luck,

Steve in N CA

[Sur-shot]

The secret to the RCBS 145 and the 168 is that they are both bore riders. I shot both bullets for about 20 years in silhouette competition, they are both very accurate if they fit your barrel corectly. The fit of the RCBS base is important, however the nose of the RCBS is a bore rider and must fit the diameter of the lands also, to be real accurate. If you have an oversized bore those bullets might not be accurate in your rifle, even if the base is big enough to seal properly. You should slug the bore and then measure the grove and the land diameter, plus the corresponding part of the bullet.
Ed

[Ray1946]

Thanks so much for your input! I'm planning on making some bullets and see if they will push in the muzzle. If they slide in the muzzle, I'm planning on chucking the mold in my 4-jaw and polishing it out a little bit. Its OK with me if its a tad oversize as the Mausers are the only rifles I have in 7mm. I recently acquired a Lyman 287641 and it may have the same condition, they are both 2-cavity molds, so I have more than one cavity to work with. Thanks again for the help,.................Ray