Buckshot
05-13-2009, 03:34 AM
..............I think I mentioned in another thread that when I got it back I immediately ran a patch through the barrel and it just glided through? BIG improvement! I shot it for the first time last week, and then again today. Last week was 50 rounds of 220gr Hornady jacketed slugs as a kind of barrel break in deal. They were clocking about 1620 fps and I thought I was putting them all through the same hole.
Then I noticed a couple odd holes here and there. Like at extremes of the whole target paper! At the break I walked down to see and the jacketed slugs WERE tumbleing :-) Some good clean full silhuettes, some point on and some oval ones, HA! I wasn't concerned as the lands were only getting about a .002" bite, and I WAS kind of pushing them. Gopherslayer was there and had some cast ammo loaded for his M1885 Uberti he suggested I try. I didn't expect much after over 30 rounds of jacketed stuff but gave them a try.
He was calling my shots (50 yards) and the first 3 weren't real shiny. The 2nd was about 4" below the first, and then the 3rd landed about 1.5" above the second. However the 4th landed between the 2nd and 3rd, and as I continued to shoot it built a group which left the first high shot up there all alone. Seven rounds in maybe 2" after 30 some jacketed rounds.
Today I had 80 rounds of cast for 8 different loads just to see what might happen. The new barrel has a .380" groove but happily it will chamber ammo loaded with the swaged and paper patched slugs at .382" I'd fabbed up for the original barrel. Seventy rounds were loaded with the Lee 375-250F. These drop at .380" and a couple tenths and were lubed in a .380" die.
http://www.fototime.com/60E6988607F591E/standard.jpg
The rounds loaded with a 292gr swagged and patched HP slug. These were laoded over 25.0grs of surplus IMR4198, dacron and a cardwad. These 10 paper patched rounds did the best. They produced a group a bit shy of 1.5" at 50 yards.
http://www.fototime.com/2EEBEF6922E233B/standard.jpg
Some of the Lee's were seated to engrave and some were seated into the crimp groove and got a crimp. Some of the loads used dacron, some not. Not real scientific but it wasn't intended to be. It was just a smattering of previously accurate loads as used in a 1893 Marlin (except the PP'd ones).
The rifle WILL shoot! It did best with engraved slugs over loads using dacron, vs shorter seated crimped loads. One other thing it did was to be very consistant in needing a couple foulers when switching between loads to settle down. The paper patched rounds were the 3rd set fired so the rifle had 50 grease grooved Lee's fired through it afterwards. At home I wetted a patch with Hoppe's #9 and ran it through the barrel. The patch produced a couple bits of lead. A second patch showed none. Brushing and a patch also produced none.
Considering these last 50 rounds were of basically only groove size and visually inspected, then loaded over thrown charges in brand new FL sized cases, I was very happy with its overall performance. A couple of the loads and the paper patched ones pretty well proved that it WILL shoot. What a difference from the original barrel!
.................Buckshot
Then I noticed a couple odd holes here and there. Like at extremes of the whole target paper! At the break I walked down to see and the jacketed slugs WERE tumbleing :-) Some good clean full silhuettes, some point on and some oval ones, HA! I wasn't concerned as the lands were only getting about a .002" bite, and I WAS kind of pushing them. Gopherslayer was there and had some cast ammo loaded for his M1885 Uberti he suggested I try. I didn't expect much after over 30 rounds of jacketed stuff but gave them a try.
He was calling my shots (50 yards) and the first 3 weren't real shiny. The 2nd was about 4" below the first, and then the 3rd landed about 1.5" above the second. However the 4th landed between the 2nd and 3rd, and as I continued to shoot it built a group which left the first high shot up there all alone. Seven rounds in maybe 2" after 30 some jacketed rounds.
Today I had 80 rounds of cast for 8 different loads just to see what might happen. The new barrel has a .380" groove but happily it will chamber ammo loaded with the swaged and paper patched slugs at .382" I'd fabbed up for the original barrel. Seventy rounds were loaded with the Lee 375-250F. These drop at .380" and a couple tenths and were lubed in a .380" die.
http://www.fototime.com/60E6988607F591E/standard.jpg
The rounds loaded with a 292gr swagged and patched HP slug. These were laoded over 25.0grs of surplus IMR4198, dacron and a cardwad. These 10 paper patched rounds did the best. They produced a group a bit shy of 1.5" at 50 yards.
http://www.fototime.com/2EEBEF6922E233B/standard.jpg
Some of the Lee's were seated to engrave and some were seated into the crimp groove and got a crimp. Some of the loads used dacron, some not. Not real scientific but it wasn't intended to be. It was just a smattering of previously accurate loads as used in a 1893 Marlin (except the PP'd ones).
The rifle WILL shoot! It did best with engraved slugs over loads using dacron, vs shorter seated crimped loads. One other thing it did was to be very consistant in needing a couple foulers when switching between loads to settle down. The paper patched rounds were the 3rd set fired so the rifle had 50 grease grooved Lee's fired through it afterwards. At home I wetted a patch with Hoppe's #9 and ran it through the barrel. The patch produced a couple bits of lead. A second patch showed none. Brushing and a patch also produced none.
Considering these last 50 rounds were of basically only groove size and visually inspected, then loaded over thrown charges in brand new FL sized cases, I was very happy with its overall performance. A couple of the loads and the paper patched ones pretty well proved that it WILL shoot. What a difference from the original barrel!
.................Buckshot