going to cast for my lee enfield

[amwdc]

im looking to do some reloading for my long branch 1943 number 4 mark1 * it has a excellent bore .back when u could get primers and reloading components i bought a bag a of Winchester 303 un primed brass http://i251.photobucket.com/albums/gg283/amwdc/HPIM1878.jpg
im going to be buying a lee classic loader in a couple of days . i also got 9oz little keg of imr trail boss I bought a while back . ive got some primers too.all i need left is a mold .i slugged my barrel came out a .312 on the money what would u guy recommend for a mold?

[Calamity Jake]

Lyman 314299

[curator]

A '43 Long Branch is most likely a 2-groover unless the barrel has been replaced. I have never ahd very good results with 314299 in my 2-groove Lee Enfields, but you may be luckier. One thing I have found was an article that helped me go from shotgun-like groups and key holes to reasonable accuracy. It is on Steve Regwell's website. Here is a link: http://www.303british.com/id37.html

Check it out. His tips made all the difference.

[amwdc]

yea its a 2 grove thanks for the info

[dubber123]

Welcome to the forum. Good luck with your .303.

[303Guy]

amwdc
I have a two-groover I am trying to get to shoot with cast. It at least doesn't seem to lead foul. So far, I have had poor results which seem to be due to boolit base deformation - due to the amount of swaging the boolit undergoes. It has been suggested to me to try Louverin style boolits. In the meantime I am trying paper patching. I'll keep you posted on my progress.

PS - The Lee Enfield is an ideal CB rifle and the No4 is an excellent hunting rifle (or any other use, including target. They say the two-groove is extremely accurate with match bullets).

[Gee_Wizz01]

I have had excellent results with the Lee C312-155-2R in my 2-groove Lee Enfields. I generally use 2400, RL-7 and Unique. I can get some very tight groups with this bullet and 2400. The combo works well in a Savage No.4 and 2 LB No. 4's with 2 groove barrels. I personally have better results with 2 Groove barrels than I do with the 5 groove barrels.

G

[amwdc]

i had and old timer turn me on to trail boss and and he told me that if i use trail boss i wont need to use gas checks which is a big turn on to me and trail boss is not that expensive im just paper punching im not looking for hot loads . i found this article http://www.surplusrifle.com/articles2008/trailbosskiss/index.asp

[bruce drake]

buy a pound of Unique. You'll get a large number of boolits reloaded with that pound. Trail Boss is a nice starter powder in that it is bulky enough you can't double charge it without overflowing the cartridge case.

[dromia]

Use a Loverin style boolit that fits the throat and is as heavy as you can get.

[DaveInFloweryBranchGA]

dromia,

Would you be kind and explain what a Loverin style bullet is? I'm into casting, but not enough rifle bullets yet I understand what that means and I've seen it in several posts and am curious.

Thank you,

Dave

[n.h.schmidt]

Hi
The Lyman 311467 is a example of this style. Many grove and narrow bands . It can hold a lot of lube but with todays outstanding lubes that isn't needed. The many groove and bands do allow well for the distortion of being fired in a two groove barrel. The grooves give the metal someplace to go. This bullet seems to cast big .Mine cast at about .315 not bad for a Enfield . The same bullet can also perform well as a paper patched bullet in some 8mm rifles. Sized down and paper patched I used this design in a rather oversized 7.7 Jap rifle . It worked better than anything else I had tried in that rifle.
n.h.schmidt

[dromia]

What Mr Schmidt said.

Its called a Loverin after its designer Guy Loverin.

Here's a Loverin design boolit thats being done as a GB just now.

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?t=53743

[Bloodman14]

My .02; Try Lee's C312-185-R in front of 2.75 cc's of H414. I'm developing a load based on that. Look's promising. Good shooting!

[superior]

My loads are as follows: Lee TL-312-160-2r over 19 grains 2400, Lee c-312-185-1r over 19.5 grains 2400, and Lyman 314299 over 20 grains of ( you guessed it) 2400. They are all dialed in at 1.5 inches at 75 yards which is as well as I can see. Usually I water cool them from straight ww, lubed with LLA or lithium grease/ paraffin @ 50/50 and pushed through a LEE .314 sizer. gas checked. My cast boolits have made believers out of j-word shooters on more than one occaision and have dropped jaws with their outstanding performance characteristics. I'm literally having a blast making and shooting my home-made ammo and I hope it brings the same happiness to you. I have already made up soft-points in quantity for each boolit design as they should make for superb hunting fodder. Be safe and have fun!

" Better is the enemy of Good Enough"

[303Guy]

... H414. I'm developing a load based on that. Look's promising.OK You've got my attention!:roll: I have been working on AR2209 which used to be the same as H4350 but now falls between H4350 and H414. How does 2.75 cc's translate into grams or grains?


My cast boolits have made believers out of j-word shooters on more than one occasion and have dropped jaws with their outstanding performance characteristics. I love it!:drinks:
This one dropped a few jaws. (Including mine. Actually, especially mine!)
http://i388.photobucket.com/albums/oo327/303Guy/MVC-457F_edited.jpg225gr smooth side.


I'm literally having a blast making and shooting my home-made ammo and I hope it brings the same happiness to you.Hey,.... me too!:mrgreen: I don't care that it is slower or more work or whatever, 'cause it's more fun!:Fire:

PS. You want to try casting and paper patching boolits for the hornet .... Hee Hee! But I'll tell you what - when you hold those tiny little paper patched midgeds in your hand... ummmm... fingers - finger tips actually, well, that is really satisfying!:-D

[madsenshooter]

2.8cc of H414 (my kit doesn't have a 2.75) = 42.4gr and 2.8cc would be 39.3gr of your AR2209. Should be a 1900-2000fps load with a 185gr boolit. 42.4/15.43=2.75grams 39.3/15.43=2.55grams

[303Guy]

Thanks - that's great. I'm trying 40gr AR2209 behind PP'd 185gr Lee's. (I am also trying 40grs behind g/c'd 208grainers).

[mroliver77]

Call me crazy but I really have good performance with H414 and cast.
J

[Bloodman14]

Let me elaborate on the whole cc vs. grains topic; I use Lee's Perfect Powder Measure to load all my ammo. To convert grains to cc's, you must know the powders' VOLUMETRIC DENSITY (VMD). This is listed in the Lee books. Multiply the VMD by 437.5 ( the number of grains in 1 ounce) to get cc's. This method is used in volume loading, as opposed to weighing each individual charge.
Here are some numbers;
7000 grains per pound,
437.5 grains per ounce,
VMD = volume of 1 grain in cubic centimeters.

Confused yet?