Have you shot a rifle as single shot to utilize a mold?

[Jevyod]

I have a Noe 360-232-RF-U5 mold with a nice and wide meplat. I believe it is a copy of the Ranch Dog design? Anyway, it drops a beautiful 232 grain slug that I was hoping to use in my 358 win, but you guessed it, the meplat is too wide to feed properly. I really like the looks of the bullet and am still tempted to use it this year. Cast soft (12ish bhn), powdercoated, and pushed to 1800-1900 fps or so should make a superb whitetail killer to 150 yards or so. Just curious if anybody has limited themselves to single shot before (using a non single shot gun) and if you had any regrets. I am a stand hunter, and wait for deer to come by. Pa woods, longest possible shot may be 75 yards. Often only 1 shot is all I need, but last year I shot at and missed a doe, and the shot made the other deer head in different directions. When they split i saw a decent buck, and was fortunate enough to connect with him. Had I had a single shot, I am not sure I could have reloaded quickly enough to get another shot. Or if I had, I am afraid all that extra movement would have helped the deer pinpoint me. As it was, they had no idea where I was, which helped get the second shot off. So dumb idea? I am also thinking that if I knew I had one shot, it may make me be extra careful on the first.

Edit to add.. I do also have a RCBS 35-200 mold that I am able to get to about 2 1/2 inches at 100 yards, app 2100 fps. It is an option to use that as well, and that one feeds ok. Was just wanting a bit heavier bullet.

[rtyler8140]

I have done all my deer hunting with break action single shots. Like you said, take your time and 1 shot will be all you need. I have taken two deer back to back with a single shot before. I had a shell holder on the stock which allowed for a quick reload. I'd say if you are concerned about needing a second shot, spend some time at home with dummy rounds practicing a quick reload, then give it a try at the range.

[444ttd]

i hunt in swPA too. i use the ruger #1 and the tc encore rifles. this year however, i'll use the win m94 in 35/30-30(top eject/200gr rcbs fn gc) and the husqvarna m46 in 9.3x57(280gr fn gc). i haven't needed(cross my fingers) a 2nd shot for years. its either the deer drop right there or it runs about 20-50 yards then it dies. i have an 1898 springfield armory(bubbasized) in 30-40 krag with a 165gr ranch dog(1924fps) with a redfield aperture sight and it is only a single shot. i and my son have killed 12-13 deer at 173 yards(my son/laser range finder) and under. 50 yards and under is what i usually do. DRT rifle is what the 30-40 krag calls itself.

just pick your shots(i use behind the shoulder shots or a double lung, but i used to use a shoulder shots) and prepare yourself to drag out the deer.

btw, this was years back, i shot a doe with my rem m7 in 7-08 on the second shot. the doe was about 40+/- yards from me and she was broadside. back then the shot was a shoulder shot. i looked thru the scope, decided what hair i could cut and boom, the salping(which i couldn't see) came straight down and the doe looked at me or the sapling:oops:. i quickly reloaded my rifle and the i shot her. i dragged the doe out but i left the salping:lol:

[joatmon]

Put two or three down the mag that feed well and your big boolit in the barrel.
Aaron

[skeettx]

Yes, pointed bullets in lever action gun will be safer with single shot
Mike

[hc18flyer]

Put two or three down the mag that feed well and your big boolit in the barrel.
Aaron

That's exactly what I did 2 years ago! 100 yard whitetail buck, had 2 RCBS 35-200's in the well for 'backup'. The NOE 230 grainer did the job! Tom

[Jevyod]

That's exactly what I did 2 years ago! 100 yard whitetail buck, had 2 RCBS 35-200's in the well for 'backup'. The NOE 230 grainer did the job! Tom

Duh didn't think of that! Hopefully they impact close to the same...will check that out! Thanks

[Gone_rabid]

My friend is in love with 45-70’s so he’ll buy a lever gun and sell it a few days later for a single shot. Why? Because he likes the heavy boolits and the levers won’t chamber them.

This will happen every few months until he gets bored.

So in a way he does what it takes to utilize it for a single shot.

[cwlongshot]

I have this same bullet mold.

I bought it for my 358 Ruger.

I shoot it in a few 35's and it feeds fine for me. (So far) It even feeds in my 350 Legend AR!

Try adjusting OAL.

Cw

[Larry Gibson]

Many WFN bullets and others with a large meplat will feed reliably with one round from the right side of the magazine, especially Mauser and other CRF actions. Simply load one in the magazine and then one in the chamber. That gives you a "two shooter". Same can be done with pointed bullets in a lever action.....one up the spout and one in the tube magazine.

One shot is all we're supposed to need but it's nice to have that second shot available.

[MaLar]

I have the same mold. I couldn't get it to feed also.
I looked at the back of the chamber and found I hadn't chamfered the chamber.
It didn't take much to get it feed well.

I'm going to use it this year for deer 35 Whelen.
I powder coat and get 1.375" groups at 100 yards at 2274 fps.

[Jevyod]

So I did try seating the bullet deeper... i don't have record here how deep I went but i am thinking i went something like at least 50 thousandths and i could still see clearly where the edge of the meplat was getting hung up. I could check to see if I could get some work done on the feeding ramp, but not sure that will help much. I really did try to make it work, and when I realized how far I had pushed the boolit into the powder space, I figured I won't be able to get it to feed properly. I mean that boolit was shoved in pretty far. My next step at this point is to see where point of impact is with the 230 grain boolit and the 200. If they are acceptable, I will put several 200's in the magazine and a 232 in the chamber. If they are not close enough to use that way, I will make a few dummy rounds and practice reloading to see if I can in a reasonable time and with minimal movement reload it. Fact of the matter is, I really want to use that boolit. Another thing that helped solidify it is I hunt with a crossbow. That is a single shot because I will not be cocking that thing 25 feet in a climber. And I don't feel nervous about that, I have accepted the limitations it has. I think I should be able to do the same if I need to for my 358 Win.

[8mmFan]

This is a GREAT thread!!! I’m really glad you posted this, Jevyod. I have shot many deer using my Yugo M48A and jacketed bullets, but would really like to use it with cast. A couple of years ago, I bought a LEE Karabiner mold, which casts at about 235g or so, and which has the same problem your bullet has. As bad as it sounds, I never even thought to A) put cartridges in the magazine which WILL feed, to follow the Karabiner, or B) as Larry said, put another one in the magazine to use the Yugo as a two-shooter. It does feed the second round, but not the third (if I remember correctly).

I’d really like to hunt deer with that Karabiner: I know it’d be a very hard-hitting boolit. Fortunately, you posted this, and the folks here gave me some ideas for avoiding turning the Yugo into a single-shot.

Thanks again, Jevyod, for posting this.

Sincerely,

8mmFan

[fcvan]

Although not in the same category, I have a level gun that gave me fits with a certain boolit. $1 Magnum, SAECO mold for a 220 Keith style boolit. The crimp groove is such that if I use it, the boolit is long in the S&W M57, almost flush with the cylinder. I would just load it a little deeper, crimping on the front driving band, and the load was not near max so no worries pressure wise. I had bought a SAECO 220 grain TC boolit mold, fed like butter in my carbine.

Flash forward, I cast a bunch at my brothers house and he loaded them in my brass. Not thinking about it, I loaded the mag tube and whammo. The overall length was such that it was not able to lift and load into the chamber. I had to invert the rifle and shake but with such little wiggle room it took a while for gravity to work. Think teetering like a Jacob's ladder. I asked my brother why he loaded them to the crimp groove. "Hey, they shoot fine in my M57 and my Contender." Dad just laughed at us, they shot fine in his M57 as well.

What's a guy to do when you have loads that won't chamber in your rifle? Yup we blew them off in his contender and I reloaded them with my TC boolits. They were cast and sized on the bench right next to the Kieth boolits I cast for him.

Boolits that are long, wide meplat, etc., can be problematic in some lever guns. I have a longer 310 boolit for 45 Colt. It shoots fine in my Ruger Old Model Vaquero, and a single shot. I would like to think it would work in a lever gun but I don't think I will buy one. A 45-70? Maybe, but the 45 Colt is a Classic Carbine, and a Buffalo Classic makes my eyes twinkle at the thought. A 38-40 WCF would be nice to go with my other Ruger Old Model Vaquero but those carbines are a tad rich for my blood.

The 38-40 would not be an issue loading a wide meplat boolit due to the necked cartridge so a bit off topic. My Wife has a Ruger SBH in 44 Mag, and I can see getting her a carbine. I have a Lee 429-208 WC mold I would like to try in a carbine sometime. I figure to load them with a bit of the WC sticking out of the case to see how they would shoot in the carbine. Subsonic load, probably a bunny thumper.

[EMC45]

I doubled on a Saturday morning deer hunting once. I was using a Handi Rifle in 45-70. 405gr. bullet loaded over 16gr Unique. I had a spare round in my off hand and shot the big doe under my stand through the shoulders, the rest of the deer scattered and went running. I opened the gun up and ejected the shell and popped the other round in and shot the running yearling through the spine. It was quicker than I realized it could be.

[Tripplebeards]

I almost did in my Ruger American 450BM because it was the first gun I tried cast in and failed to makes dummy round first to see if it cycled. The gun never would cycle cast and it’s properly of Ruger now. I they swapped me out with a gun site scout 45BM that won’t cycle cast either out of the box. I haven’t got around to messing with it yet. I also have a 7600 35 whelen I can get to cycle cast as well. My 7600 35 Rem cycles cast just fine. I have learned that some guns will drive me nuts and just are finicky when it comes to wide metplate feeding and clearance.

My 77/44 eats lee 300 grain wide metplate boolits as smooth as silk. My marlin 336 and Remington 7600 pump in 35 Rem will cycle our MP 200 grain group buy HP and lee 200 grainers. But some of my guns just won’t cycle cast. I have bent magazine feeding lips, polished ramps, adjusted my boolit seating depth,... you name it. I got to the point of polishing that I could get one side of My 7600 to feed cast and my boolot would jam on the next round because it fed to the opposite side and jamed. I don’t remember if it was the left or right side. After so long I just grab another gun to try cast in. The ones that feed and cycle cast I stick with. I tried with my 450bm on and off for two summers to get to feed lee 300 grain WF and our group buy HP cast boolits and moved on. I don’t feel so bad after watch Ruger themselves and Hockock45 work the bolts back and forth on YouTube with cycling issues to even get pistol jacketed ammo to feed in it. Others had good luck here with it. Not me. I’ll stick to the “easy” to feed calibers. Lol

[gumbo333]

You can always put 1 or 2 in your mouth. As many have said practice speedy reloading or tinker with your chamber.

[megasupermagnum]

Not a rifle, but a bolt action shotgun. Actually every bolt action shotgun I ever shot, I shot as a single shot. My method was the same as shooting a break action, I kept one shell between my fingers on my offhand on the forend. I fire, open the bolt, insert the shell (strong hand holding up the gun), and close the bolt. I'm left handed, and with a right handed gun, this is easy. It's really not that much slower than a bolt action normally is.

You can even get yourself one of these to keep them right where you need them.

https://www.shortactionprecision.com/products/sap-two-round-holder

Another option is to simply carry a second gun, maybe a handgun.

[8mmFan]

I’m going to see if I can’t make a couple of cartridges with the Karabiner this evening and see if the first one out of the mag will cycle. That boolit would be my woods/stand cartridge with no probably long shots. If I can’t get it done in two, it’s a bigger problem than not feeding multiple rounds from the mag.

[RU shooter]

For simples sake I'd just load up the 200 gr bullets and go hunt . Your expected ranges are like mine in the Pa woods .

[Jevyod]

Actually I was working on those again last evening finding my C.O.A.L. with a dummy cartridge. 2.445 was just kissing the rifling. I decided to mess around again with the feeding issue and discovered something that I should have figured out before:veryconfu
The magazine is long because it was built off a Mauser. If i keep the cartridge all the way in the back of the magazine, it feeds fine. It is only if it move up towards the front that it gets jammed when closing the bolt. I assume it is because it is a sharper angle. Now I only had one bullet, so I couldn't fill the magazine, but with what I found last evening it seems like I can have at least 2 shots! That excites me because that 230 grain bullet has a wicked meplat. Should absolutely be a hammer!

[Hick]

Not to utilize a mold, but I have a very large stock of 30 caliber J-bullets in 150 grain, boat-tail, spitzers. They load waaaaay to long to put in a Win 94 magazine (which would be stupid anyway with the spitzer points) but they shoot very accurately in my Win 94 30-30. So-- when I use them its strictly single shot.

[cwlongshot]

Not to utilize a mold, but I have a very large stock of 30 caliber J-bullets in 150 grain, boat-tail, spitzers. They load waaaaay to long to put in a Win 94 magazine (which would be stupid anyway with the spitzer points) but they shoot very accurately in my Win 94 30-30. So-- when I use them its strictly single shot.

If short enough OAL ya can always use them as a "TWO SHOT" lever. OR single load one and back it with the FP/RN from magazine.

Been there myself!! A max load with 3031 and a 150 NBT is insanely accurate and also very effective for me in the 30/30.

CW

[missionary5155]

I am not sure how many of you need more than one shot. But in my case it is so rare hunting the river bottoms as I do that a SS would serve me well.
But I still like hauling around some old lever flipper ! And that 1st shot is always the most important.

[444ttd]

I am not sure how many of you need more than one shot. But in my case it is so rare hunting the river bottoms as I do that a SS would serve me well.
But I still like hauling around some old lever flipper ! And that 1st shot is always the most important.


but...but......factory ammo manufactures must hate you!!!!!!!

i have a win m94 (35/30-30) that i load two shots(200gr fn gc) for. every other rifle(krag, rem, 91-98 mausers....) i load one for deer/black bear. its been said(trust me, i was a private at one time) "one shot, one kill".

[country gent]

One thing to put this in perspective is In NRA high power the 2 slow fire stages are mandatory single loaded. 200 yd off hand and 600 yd prone. This is both match rifle and service rifle. Its not a big thing. En block clips are even made to single load the garand.

I have used some rifles as single shots to run bullets closer to rifling on rifles with a long throat. Or rifles with high round count and worn throats.

[KCcactus]

My Wife has a Ruger SBH in 44 Mag, and I can see getting her a carbine. I have a Lee 429-208 WC mold I would like to try in a carbine sometime. I figure to load them with a bit of the WC sticking out of the case to see how they would shoot in the carbine. Subsonic load, probably a bunny thumper.

I have the same mold. It works well in my 20" Rossi 92 in 44 mag. It would get more use if I didn't have a MP 44 HBWC mold. I load the HBWC backwards with 1/8" - 1/4" outside the case. Both loads feed just fine. If they didn't, I would still use the HBWC single shot. Works great on varmints, reduced danger of ricochet and extremely impressive on gallon jugs of water. My 357 M92 also gets a steady diet of backwards HBWC in mag brass. The 44 is way more impressive, but the 357 is still fun.

[Eddie Southgate]

Nope .

[warren5421]

I will load the magazine tube on my .45-70 Marlin with 405 gr then drop a 525 gr in the chamber. I know where they shoot at 100-200 yards. No deer has asked for another one. With the smoke don't know if I could have gotten a second shot anyway. I use 777 or FFFg as much as I can get into the case with a card wad.