Success with a 7x57 Remington Roller and cast bullets.
I have had this rifle for 2 plus years, and only shot it with a few jacketed loads and it did all right. I recently cast some 168 gr, GC on them, .286 with my alloy, and sized and lube them to .285 with Lyman Orange magic lube, thru a heated 450. I loaded up 5 with 21.6 grs of 5744, with best load in my Lyman manual of 20.00 grains to be exact. I settled in on the bags and put the 2" orange on top of my post front sight and squeezed one off, looked thru my spotter and confirmed it hit about 1" over my front post. I had also set my sights, for 400yds, which I find most rifles need to be set 150-200 yds high for cast bullets in the 1500-1700 fps zone. The next 4 formed a nice even circle about 2.5 inches. I was very pleased to that the rifle shot this good, but everything I had read about them, said they had a bigger bore, and that seems to be the case. Recoil is nice, but crisp. This rifle is in very, verygyood shape, retaining 90% of the blue and about 100% of case colors, and the bore is mint, no wear, nor corrosion, nice and bright. The wood looks like a military rifle should, with some dings, but it had been coarse sanded and dipped in linseed oil looks like, and the finish seems to be original. The fella I had gotten it off of in New York said it was his grand dads and he had inherited it from him, and he had no use for it. He also told me his grand dad had worked nearly 50 years at Remington. That might explains the rifles great condition.I ended up loading 100 of them after seeing that they shot as good as they did. I need to try them In a 7x57 98 I am finishing building, and my 7x57 Rolling Block I am also finishing up, as my retirement rifle. I may be shooting this in a upcoming match on the first Saturday of May here in KY, called the Victorian Rifle match, and has 3 different classes, Muzzle loading rifles and smooth bores, Single shot rifles and bolt actions, with all rifles being made between 1830-1910. I have a 96 Swede for the bolt action match, and a 12.7x44R that shoots good also for the single shots. Just thought I would share.
