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Thread: Lee 310 in 44 mag rifle

  1. #21
    Boolit Buddy
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    Am I correct in that barrel length doesn’t effect pressure. Velocity should increase but not necessarily pressure.is this correct? Thanks Bob

  2. #22
    Boolit Master
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    Quote Originally Posted by Armorer View Post
    Ye sir, exactly what I found. Mine slugs at .432 I have had to have custom molds that drop at .433-.434 and have had good luck out to 50 yds and mediocre at 100 yds with 2400. Working on loads with 4227 right now. Those Lee 310 boolits definitely drop small so I had a friend powder coat them which increases their diameter nicely.
    OLD POST but still alive--My LEE mold dropped at .429 so I got a .436 <common>drill bit an removed the gas check and ordered a .432 sizer and it worked. I use 2400 on the low side also and does fine. I use a SRH but haven't tried them in my JM Marlin yet. I liked it so much I did the same to my 240 LEE pan lube mold.
    Last edited by 45DUDE; 10-03-2024 at 06:49 PM.

  3. #23
    Boolit Master wilecoyote's Avatar
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    again, for what is worth...310Lee: sized at .430, seated at the lower crimp groove, gas check, Lee alox lubed_ 19 grains of Vihtavuori N110, Fiocchi brass, Fiocchi Lp primer_MTMrest-tested on Burris scoped 9,5"SRH _
    Heavy load with substantial recoil but without sign of overpressure, extremely accurate load_
    a joy to shoot it on SRH, but I wouldn't dare use this recipe in my 29s_
    Food is overrated. A nice rifle is way more important.
    Rob

  4. #24
    Boolit Grand Master Bazoo's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by shooter bob View Post
    Am I correct in that barrel length doesn’t effect pressure. Velocity should increase but not necessarily pressure.is this correct? Thanks Bob
    That's correct. The pressure spikes at some point in or very close to the chamber and begins to go down before the bullet leaves the bore. The pressure from the expanding gas pushes the bullet, but it doesn't have to stay at peak pressure once the bullet is moving, and with the bullet moving, the pressure begins to drop.

    Rifling twist rate affects pressure, with a faster twist causing higher pressure, all else being equal.

    Velocity will increase with barrel length up until the barrel is so long that the expanding gas no longer can push the bullet, in which case it would begin to slow while still in the bore. That of course is dependent on the cartridge and powder used.
    Last edited by Bazoo; 10-08-2024 at 10:50 AM.
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  5. #25
    Boolit Buddy glaciers's Avatar
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    Okay I have half a dozen 44 molds from 180 grain button to 330 grain SSK.
    I’m looking for a heavy bullet that will function in my two carbines, a Browning B92 and a Rossi 16 inch R92, reliability and also in my 4” Smith 29.
    I had been using the SSK J.D. Jones 330 grain bullet with a heavy dose of 2400 for 40 years. But it was 1.710 overall length. Won’t function in the carbines.
    The LEE 310’s have two crimp grooves. Upper measurement is 1.700 and the lower is 1.600 which works great for function. The only loading for this LEE bullet at the long COL in the 4th edition of the Lyman cast bullet manual. I’m using H110 starting at 15 grains ended up at 17 grains. 1025 fps in the Smith and 1375 fps in the 20” Browning. I plan on stepping up to 18 grains but have not yet.
    Now this is safe in my guns but you would need work up slowly using your own judgement.
    The LEE bullet looks good, nice and wide nose, cast soft and powder coated. The LEE mold drops at .430 but my guns need a .432 diameter, so powder coated brings the diameter to just a touch over .432. Gas checks were installed before powder coating.
    Click image for larger version. 

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    On the left is the 330 SSK seated beyond the front driving band. Next is the SSK seated in the crimp groove. Third from the left is the LEE 310 seated to the lower crimp groove. The right hand cartridge is the LEE 310 crimped in the upper crimp groove, 1.600 COL.
    Click image for larger version. 

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    310’s checked and powder coated.

  6. #26
    Boolit Master kir_kenix's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by TurnipEaterDown View Post
    In the past I had fine success w/ the 44 310 Lee sized at 0.430" in a Marlin 1894 I bought new in 1991 that had microgroove rifling.
    I cast them out of wheel weight & quenched, and they shot well loaded over healthy charges of W296. Supposedly the microgroove barrels do poorly w/ cast bullets, but it wasn't the case for me. Even with a bore that had so many tooling marks in it that it would give me days of blue patches when cleaning after shooting jacketed out of that gun.

    I dug through old records I have, and saw that I shot them both at the long seated position (1.71) singly fed, and the short seated position out of the magazine tube.

    In looking at current Lyman data, the loads I used readily exceeded their recommended (pressure tested) W296 powder charges, so I will not post what I used.

    In my defense, I will say that the quenched WW I used instead of their 10:1 lead tin may well have altered the pressure curve, as my commonly used LEE loads with W296 gave speeds equivalent or less than WC820 loads I had with the same bullet, and a friend pressure tested those WC820 loads on his equipment showing pressures equivalent to 305 gr Buffalo Bore ammunition. Due to variability on lot numbers of surplus powder, I won't post those WC820 loads either, but will say that we ran much more than seems expected guesstimating off Lyman data. NOT a endorsement of exceeding published data, just an example indicating that quenched WW may potentially produce lower pressure than identical load w/ 10:1 alloy. Who knows, maybe other assumptions I have are not quite right, but what I know points me in that direction.
    I'd also been loading the lee 310 over the published max for quite awhile. I went to give somebody load data, so I verified with a couple sources....and I was running quite hot. Never had any issues, and I've probably sent 1200 or more down range.

    Still, I figured it was probably prudent to knock it down a bit and make sure I didn't get myself in any trouble down the road.

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Abbreviations used in Reloading

BP Bronze Point IMR Improved Military Rifle PTD Pointed
BR Bench Rest M Magnum RN Round Nose
BT Boat Tail PL Power-Lokt SP Soft Point
C Compressed Charge PR Primer SPCL Soft Point "Core-Lokt"
HP Hollow Point PSPCL Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" C.O.L. Cartridge Overall Length
PSP Pointed Soft Point Spz Spitzer Point SBT Spitzer Boat Tail
LRN Lead Round Nose LWC Lead Wad Cutter LSWC Lead Semi Wad Cutter
GC Gas Check