550 gr cast load in 450 marlin

[canuck4570]

made a search but found loads for 425 gr only
have a mountain mold that cast 550 gr bullets
looking at IMR 3031
able to put 46 gr of 3031 up to the bottom of the bullets
is this to much?
the rifle is a Steyr big bore rifle
very strong bolt action rifle
thanks canuck

[BABore]

Alot would depend on the boolits seating depth. I've only used 550 gr boolits in my 450 Marlin that were designed for leverguns. These were the 550 gr Crater's made by JB Young. IIRC, the nose length was around 0.400 so that puts alot of boolit in the case. A max Marlin 1895 load for this was 39.0 grains of H322. 3031 would have a similar charge weight. The H322 load was pressure tested and came in at just under 42,500 psi.

I'm sure your bolt gun will handle more pressure than a Marlin, but it's all in the seating depth and effective case capacity.

[canuck4570]

my mountain mold was copied of a crator bullet by J.B. young
has I said I am able to put 46 gr of IMR 3031 to the bottom of the bullet in the 450 case
here is a pic of this bullet
the rifle is a magazine feed so the over all length fit ok with this bullet
I have a 4570 and with the saeco 540 gr I am able to put 38 gr of 3031 to the bottom of the bullet because it occupies more space in the case
got very good accuracy and no pressure signs this in a ruger no 1
fps was 1687...
trying to find if someone has tried this powder loaded to the bottom of the bullet in the 450 marlin
in doing so very light crimp is used because the powder keep the bullet from going in the case during recoil.

http://i705.photobucket.com/albums/ww57/michelmongrain/IMG_0532.jpg

[BABore]

Ok, that's actually the "Crater 2" and was designed for bolt guns and single shots whereas the original "Crater" has a short, levergun nose on it. Alot less boolit in the case with yours.

The 450 Marlin has a 5-7 grains less case capacity than the 45-70. Winchester 45-70 cases hold the most, Starline in the middle, and Remington the least. You should be able to look up some 45-70, Ruger #1 data and extrapolate a bit. You'll need to pay particular attention to case brand, OAL, and boolit bearing surface. Start low and work up. 3031 can be downloaded quite abit, so don't be afraid to start on the low side. On typical 43 kpsi and below loads, primer condition and extraction are poor pressure indicators. The same goes for CHE and PRE. You'll likely be well above that pressure so they'll start to come into play and be more reliable indicators. You might want to look up a buddy of mine on Levergunlovers forum. His handle there is Reflex264. He was getting into the Big Bore, commercial ammo thing, and has extensive data on the 450 Marlin and 45-70, including pressure lab data. Most of his boolits came from JB, so he's very familiar with his stuff. I'm almost postitive he's worked up the Crater 2 in his Ruger #1, 45-70 as we both got some samples at about the same time. He should be able to get you a good starting point in your 450. He has his own sub-forum on LGL where he responds to just this type of question. If for some reason you can't get in touch with him in a reasonable amount of time, send me a PM and I'll call him up.

[canuck4570]

thank you
big help will get hold of reflex....
canuck

[Ron60]

Richard Gibson who casts very nice bullets at very nice prices has the following for his 550 grain bullets: 45-70 Guide gun
39 grains of IMR 3031.
I loaded some of these for a Marlin Guid Gun and found that if you trim the cases to the factory 2.105" they will be too long to go in the loading gate and or cycle through the action. You have to trim the cases to the Hornady specification of 2.035.
These shot very fine groups with open sights at 50 yards.

[Ole]

I loaded up some Beartooth 525 grain Pile drivers a couple years ago and used 39 grains of H322.

The load was safe in my rifle (Marlin Guide Gun). Wish I could say the same for my shoulder.