Who wants to yak bout my 94 30-30 with me?

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Malamute
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Re: Who wants to yak bout my 94 30-30 with me?

Post by Malamute »

Camel73 wrote:Ya, not sure about that even... I don't think I'll be getting those again anytime soon. I think I'll try ordering over the Internet from the place one of the guys mentioned to me earlier. Bulk and hopefully less $. Gotta check it out.
May have been me.

They are $36.90 US for 8 lbs, which has 1280 pellets. I don't recall what the Hornady round balls cost, $8-$10/100? The ones in bulk are harder also.


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"Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs even though checkered by failure, than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much because they live in the gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat." -Theodore Roosevelt-

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Camel73
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Re: Who wants to yak bout my 94 30-30 with me?

Post by Camel73 »

Ha, ya, if I could shoot like that all the time!

I think it's luck of the draw with these things.. some slide right in the case and others I have to push pretty hard, depending on how the ball is oriented. A lotto for group size? I don't know... I guess I'll just have to shoot some more! :D

So, a little treat for everyone.. the folks stopped in for the weekend and brought the cousins for a visit

Image

So, to introduce... but I'm sure a lot of you are far more familiar than I...
That's mine on the far left, then ol' grand poobah's 1895G 45-70 Gov., his stainless 336C 30-30 and 38-55 Alberta Diamond Jubilee.

We had a blast, literally. Went for a small hike and then blasted some more. Ma even put a couple 170 grainers downrange right from the shoulder lol! I guess I worked over that action not bad after all.. she had me at 22 so you do the math. You go ma!! Ha!

Image
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Camel73
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Re: Who wants to yak bout my 94 30-30 with me?

Post by Camel73 »

Malamute - Yes sir, twas you.. and a smokin deal that is.. compared to, I think it was $16+ for that hornady box. Stupid.

I wonder if something like that would be held up at the border for any length of time..
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Camel73
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Re: Who wants to yak bout my 94 30-30 with me?

Post by Camel73 »

Went out again this morning. Shot some 2.0 gr loads but thought, na.. still to loud. Made up some 1.5ers and got this

Image

Sure, 1 flier but still 3/4". Couldn't duplicate it though. The rest came in at 1 3/4" - 2".

Then I tried a smidgen less than 1.5grs and got this

Image

Not sure what the deal was with being to the right... I actually pulled the shot that ended up under the red dot. The three were 7/8".

Supposed to rain tomorrow so as soon as I can get out there I'm gonna give the >1.5gr loads a shot.

In the middle of shooting the 1.5grs I had an audience of 1 for a bit... stayed through the string too, just sittin, munchin away. See if you can spot him...

Image

Oh ya, apparently 38-55 shells are $75 a box... !! Which is why it never got shot that day. Good thing I have reloading gear, that's nuts.
My first child - '94 30-30
w30wcf
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Re: Who wants to yak bout my 94 30-30 with me?

Post by w30wcf »

Camel 73,
Nice lineup of leverguns! Nice to see your mom getting in some shooting as well!

Thank you for the additional range report.

Later tomorrow, if all goes well, I will be shooting some additional test loads.
I am using large pistol primers for this batch to see if that might cut down on the velocity variation.
Also, a bit of crimp over the front of the ball to see if that has any affect.
And....1 loading of 4 grs of Trailboss with no filler.
We shall see..........

w30wcf
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Camel73
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Re: Who wants to yak bout my 94 30-30 with me?

Post by Camel73 »

w30wcf, I was thinking about doing the slight crimp also, but thought it might do weird pressure things so I decided against it..

I flare the case mouth with a couple taps of a small hammer onto a duct tape centered punch, so when I chamber them they kind of have to be squeezed the last half inch into the chamber, basically sizing the mouth back down... Someone tell me if this is a no-no...

Large pistol primers - looking forward to the results.

As to the filler... Scary! Lol
I'm amazed some don't secure their powder better... maybe I'm just a big scaredycat... I don't mess around there. My cases are full with polyester fill, right to the ball. Just finished all that work on it - don't want to blow it up! Never mind lose fingers or eyes....

Be safe friend.
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Re: Who wants to yak bout my 94 30-30 with me?

Post by Camel73 »

Raining today so I got to looking at the brass I've been using for my sub rb loads. Noticed rings around all of them... Is this bad?

Then I compared it to a 170 factory load and noticed two big tongues of soot going down opposing sides of the neck pretty far..

Anything I should be worried about?

Image
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w30wcf
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Re: Who wants to yak bout my 94 30-30 with me?

Post by w30wcf »

I don't think so. Looks like where the original crimp baseline was.

As it turned out, I did not make it to the range yesterday as planned. Hopefully this Friday or Saturday.......

w30wcf
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Re: Who wants to yak bout my 94 30-30 with me?

Post by Camel73 »

No range day? I feel for you. Looks like you'll just have to live vicariously through me till then :D

This morning after running a bunch through the chrony (6 @ 1.5grs - avg. 660ish fps, variation of 60fps) I decided to shoot offhand at 10 out to 25 yards.

They just wanted to go right. Even loaded up some 2.5grs... same thing.

Image

Seemed like they shot straight off a rest.. and I can't be pulling that consistently? Not sure what to think other than I was getting consistently higher velocity readings with the first six I shot at first... 613 - 672fps... All just a bit faster than the last.

I haven't cleaned my barrel since I began all this. That would be about 130 sub rb's down the tube. Figured I'd treat it like a .22 and not clean it till it started shooting really wonky. Maybe that's a bad idea. I'll post a new topic about that specifically, just cuz it only seems to be you and me left here... maybe I'm too long winded, maybe I'm boring, maybe too many pics..

So, with 5 cases left for the day I decided to give 50 yards a go, sitting on a tree that fell over, elbows on knees - like my brother does. First shot didn't even hit paper! K, I knew I was hitting right so, up goes another paper towel. Shoot 4 and walk up..

Image

Pulled the paper towel back and found that the first shot was in with the three! Ha! 1 1/4" Started doin a jig right there in the forest lol. Now if I can only get them into the red.....

Image

I have 12 of those hornady balls left and only have until Sunday to be out here so I went and got a box of 9 pellet 00 buck (that was the last box of hornady). Pound them through my bullet seater and back to .312's I guess.

I'm gonna shoot the rest of the hornady's at 50 yards, then compare to the sized 00.

This is crazy fun!
My first child - '94 30-30
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Re: Who wants to yak bout my 94 30-30 with me?

Post by JerryB »

Reckon you are getting some real good load data from all your testing. I might load up a few to try. But I can carry a hand gun in Arkansaw, so a .38 or .22 sixgun will do for the same job for me.
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Re: Who wants to yak bout my 94 30-30 with me?

Post by Camel73 »

Man, I wish.. too much red tape here for a hand gun to be fun. :evil: Get caught once and you're screwed.

As for load data, I suppose - just learning as i go. And not only for me... It's all here. The reason I'm doing it this way is because I wish I had something like this to glean from when I first started looking into it years ago.

Disclaimer: Don't blow yourself up - and I hope I don't either!

... A six gun... Ahhhh only in my dreams :cry:
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Re: Who wants to yak bout my 94 30-30 with me?

Post by Camel73 »

As much as I didn't like those .310's i think they shot better out of my rifle, ha.

The .312's did ok close up but at 50 yards kinda tend to spread out more than the other.

Had fun learning and experimenting though :D

Image

Crazy squirrel.. we cant shoot reds up here, lucky for him else he would have been lunch :D

Image

Image
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w30wcf
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Re: Who wants to yak bout my 94 30-30 with me?

Post by w30wcf »

It is fun, that's for sure. :D

Ok, finally made it to the range yesterday.
The primers used were Federal 150 pistol primers.
Cases: R-P
Range: 25 yards

Results:
Crimped rounds *-
Appeared to produce just slightly better groups and velocity variation was a bit less.

Large Pistol Primers -
This was interesting. With Trailboss, velocities were 100+ f.p.s. less than with the large rifle primers. However, with Titegroup & Unique, there was no significant difference.

All in all though, 5 shot groups at 25 yards ran from 3/4" to 1 1/4".

1" square 1 ply toilet paper folded twice and placed down on the powder.

2.2* / Trailboss / 747 avg. f.p.s. / std. dev. 33.2
2.0* / Titegroup / 868 avg. f.p.s. / std. dev. 22.1
3.0* / Unique / 818 avg. f.p.s. / std. dev. 19.6

No filler
4.0 / Trailboss / 917 avg. f.p.s. / std. dev. 34.8
group size 1 3/4"
With the Large Rifle primer, avg velocity was 1120(!) / std. dev. 49.8

w30wcf
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aka Jack Christian SASS 11993 "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Philippians 4:13
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Camel73
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Re: Who wants to yak bout my 94 30-30 with me?

Post by Camel73 »

The whole primer thing is interesting for sure.
I read a guy pushing a ball out with just a primer, might have to try that.

Not sure why I'm into the "how low can you go" phase... A lot of fun for half the lead and way less powder I suppose :D
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PriseDeFer
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Re: Who wants to yak bout my 94 30-30 with me?

Post by PriseDeFer »

Wax. Wax goes with primers. Shoot indoors etc.
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Re: Who wants to yak bout my 94 30-30 with me?

Post by Camel73 »

PriseDeFer wrote:Wax. Wax goes with primers. Shoot indoors etc.
:?: Could you please elaborate? Not exactly sure what you're meaning...
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Re: Who wants to yak bout my 94 30-30 with me?

Post by Griff »

Wax bullets, no powder, primer only. Like the quick draw guys used to use. I ain't ever tried it with a 20" barrel tho'! :P
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Re: Who wants to yak bout my 94 30-30 with me?

Post by PriseDeFer »

If you're going to shoot with just primers as propellant you can leave a lead ball in the barrel. I know you could get it out but it's still sort of scary, to me at least. Wax bullets are another thing. I shot them inside a New York apartment out of a 300 Savage 99. Got an initial zero with the Redfield peep.
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Re: Who wants to yak bout my 94 30-30 with me?

Post by 1894cfan »

PriseDeFer wrote:If you're going to shoot with just primers as propellant you can leave a lead ball in the barrel. I know you could get it out but it's still sort of scary, to me at least. Wax bullets are another thing. I shot them inside a New York apartment out of a 300 Savage 99. Got an initial zero with the Redfield peep.

If you're still with us, must have been REALLY quiet rounds! :P
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Re: Who wants to yak bout my 94 30-30 with me?

Post by JerryB »

I used wax bullets for my Colt SAA .45 when we lived in town for a while. Just prime the cases and push the case down through the wax. Use the canning wax for jelly glasses. Ask your wife she may have some.
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Re: Who wants to yak bout my 94 30-30 with me?

Post by Camel73 »

Thanks for the responses on the wax section there guys..

Been busy with Dr. appointments and life lately. Can't shoot all the time I suppose :x

Just got a bone scan and now waiting for an mri on my lower back and neck. They wanted to start poking my spine with needles - I said forget it. I'll wait for the mri.

Here's something I found that I thought was interesting... I've noticed rings semi consistently on the brass I use for my sub round ball loads (earlier in this thread) - compared to other fired brass which doesn't have them. You can see the rings in the pic of the two cases further up this page. It's the one on the right.

I've been wondering about them and think maybe I'm ringing the chamber. I use dacron. There are two rings below the shoulder, spaced a bit apart.

I'll be able to crack a few off this weekend so I'm goin to get some cotton ball type stuff and use that in place of the dacron with a different bunch of cases. We'll see if I still get rings...

Thoughts on the subject?
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Re: Who wants to yak bout my 94 30-30 with me?

Post by Catshooter »

Camel,

If you fire a full power load it'll tell you if you've ringed the chamber. The empty won't want to come out. I couldn't see a pic so that's all I can tell you.

Using a filler isn't nessesary you know. Lot's of guys don't, including me.


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Re: Who wants to yak bout my 94 30-30 with me?

Post by Camel73 »

No filler, even with a 1.5gr load?
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Re: Who wants to yak bout my 94 30-30 with me?

Post by Catshooter »

The lowest powder charge I've used is 3.0 grains in a 38-55. But no, never any filler. Not with bulleted loads. I've used Cream of Wheat when I was fire forming, but that's all.

A lot of people don't.


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Re: Who wants to yak bout my 94 30-30 with me?

Post by Camel73 »

Just to follow up.. I had a chat with a trail boss tech guy today and even he said to ditch the wad, careful not to squib one pointing down, and have fun!

So I finally ended up getting a .311" sizer.
I was about to load some more up when i remembered having fat bullet issues last fall. This will solve a few issues at once.

I also got the pistol primers this time so hopefully the spread comes down some.

I was looking at some bullet molds today... oooh boy.
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Re: Who wants to yak bout my 94 30-30 with me?

Post by Malamute »

I have the Lyman 311252 32 auto 77 gr mold. I haven't cast with it yet, but it should be a great extra-light load bullet. It was listed in some of the old Ideal load manuals in many 30 cals as a gallery/cellar or small game load.
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Re: Who wants to yak bout my 94 30-30 with me?

Post by Griff »

Camel73 wrote: Tue Sep 20, 2016 5:23 pmImage
Noticed rings around all of them... Is this bad?
The rings appear in the same approximate locations on my brass. I believe that it's caused by using aftermarket generic ammo boxes. the one size fits all! But doesn't fit ANY well. As the ammo wobbles around in its own little square "world", the sides contact the edge of that "world" and eventually, a shiny ring appears. Near the top of the body when sitting rim down; and near the bottom of the case when sitting empty, and neck down.
Then I compared it to a 170 factory load and noticed two big tongues of soot going down opposing sides of the neck pretty far..
Anything I should be worried about?
Low pressure loads won't expand the neck quite enough to get a good seal. Worry? No, but it's something that one needs to remain cognizant of, and know that you'll have to clean the chamber more often.
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Re: Who wants to yak bout my 94 30-30 with me?

Post by Camel73 »

Well, I scored on a 5 gallon pail of wheel weights for $30 today. My first lead haul ha.

I know some of you guys have unlimited lead sources but it's better than a buck a pound at the recyclers. Hopefully little to no zinc, I pick it up tomorrow.

Man, now that I've got access to lead, my brain kind of frizzled. Oh, the possibilities ha.

Not sure what I want now... I saw a Lee double cavity .309 gc'd 113gr mould that looked pretty cool... I'm interested in a heavy one too, with a big flat nose.

I was happy just fartin around with those rb loads. In fact I put some .311 sized ones down the tube last week.. this time with pistol primers (which seemed to do well) and no wad. No extreme spread #s. Same velocity, poi, and still pretty accurate.

As far as the brass Griff, yes, thank you. I hadn't thought of that.
The sooty one was a factory 150 or 170 load, so, still not sure there..

Anyhow, back to bullet learnin!
My first child - '94 30-30
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Re: Who wants to yak bout my 94 30-30 with me?

Post by Griff »

Camel73 wrote: Wed May 17, 2017 12:29 am...The sooty one was a factory 150 or 170 load, so, still not sure there..
Yes, I find that factory loads are often way less than they advertise. For firearms that have been in production for 122 years, I'm sure the ammo makers are just being cautious. It could also be "hard" brass, not given to expand quite enough... Until you do a chamber cast and measure it, you'll not know if your chamber is "generous" or not.

I've never shot game with any factory ammo, except in .30-30... where I've never shot game with anything but factory ammo, (with the sole exception of the occasional coyote).
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Re: Who wants to yak bout my 94 30-30 with me?

Post by AJMD429 »

Screenshot_2017-05-18-00-04-34-1.png
I need to print you up some targets....!
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Re: Who wants to yak bout my 94 30-30 with me?

Post by Camel73 »

Lol! I guess it does look a little archaic.
I've since upgraded to big thumbtacks :)

Paper towel and whatever color marker has been my go to bush targets for a bit now. Easily customizable and easy to see... fairly hardy and seems to make decent bullet holes.

Thanks for the info Griff.
As far as bullets go, I still haven't decided on which mold(s) yet.

I'll probably start with a lee ball mold cuz I like plinking. Then something in case of bears. My brother and I camp with a shotgun too but I'd still like to find a heavy bullet/load for my 30-30.

I have to refresh on 30-30 bear bullets...
My first child - '94 30-30
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