308 plinking recipe

[pennys dad]

Does anyone have a decent recipe for 308 that can be used as a plinker round. So not for match, plinking at 100 to 200 yards, 2in groups. Will be used in REM 700's and mybe Howa 1500.
The same question for .45 ACP in 185grn. but not for 100 yrd :-)
Will be used in an 1911 gold cup and S&W 625.

Thx

[Army GI]

What wrong with the info in your load manual? Starting load, RL15 or IMR 4895, 150gr Hornady FMJ is what I would use.

[merritt]

you can use 30 carbine style loads for bolt gun plinking also you can try these trail boss loads on surplusrifle.com

I haven't gotten around to having a good 45 ACP 185gr load but I use 9gr Accurate #5 for my 200gr plinkers

[pennys dad]

cool will check out the info. My loading manual info is awesome but I am fairly new to reloading and I am not really sure what would be considered plinker loads and what would be considered match. Thx for the help

[Army GI]

cool will check out the info. My loading manual info is awesome but I am fairly new to reloading and I am not really sure what would be considered plinker loads and what would be considered match. Thx for the help

[pennys dad]

Do I need to lube cast bullets?

[Army GI]

Negative. Most factory cast bullets for smokeless powder already come with lube. It's usually blue, green, or red.


This is where I get them:

http://www.midwayusa.com/viewProduct/?productnumber=116346

http://gardnerscache.com/cgi-bin/image/templates/30195SPT.jpg

-GI

[Point of Impact]

My stock Howa 1500 will shoot 1/2moa or better all day with the following load:

44.5 gr of Varget
150 gr Hornady FMJ
Winchester or CCI Large rifle primer
I would list the oal but don't want to lead you the wrong way. The OAL I use on my .308 loads were measured to leave the bullet sitting approximately .003" off the lands.

Hope this helps.

[pennys dad]

Thank You. Very Awesome information i didnt know I could use cast bullets in a rifle or in anything that was pushing speeds higher then 1k fps. I thought that cast needed to always be under 1k fps.

[Army GI]

Glad I could help.

If you take a look at your reloading manual (if it's worth a crap), there should be load information for cast bullets in there along with loads for regular bullets.

[vwynn]

wait so whats the difference between cast and regular FMJ? besides the copper.

also can you load FMJ with the same powder load as the Cast? if not why?

[Army GI]

wait so whats the difference between cast and regular FMJ? besides the copper.

1. FMJ is more expensive
2. Cast can't be driven too fast

also can you load FMJ with the same powder load as the Cast? if not why?

Negative. Jacketed bullets have have higher friction than lead. You can get a bullet stuck in your barrel.

Now a days, people shoot cast bullets for two reasons.

1) They own a firearm developed for use with black powder and cast bullets (the 1873 Sharps, for example) or
2) They want to save money since a simple lead bullet is cheaper to produce than a bullet with a hard metal case.

A long time ago, military rifles fired lead bullets with black powder. Once the more powerful smokeless powder was introduced to American firearms, which nearly doubled the expected velocity, bullets were encased with some sort of gilding metal (copper for example) to prevent the soft malleable lead bullet from "stripping" itself inside the barrel. This is known as "barrel leading". So generally, cast bullets can't be driven too fast. Lots of 30-cal type rifles have cast bullet loads of 1400-1800 fps.

[buffybuster]

Cast Bullet plinking load:

Bullet: 170gr FP Lead (aka: 30WCF bullet)
Powder: IMR Trailboss 10grs
Case/Primer: Whatever I have on hand.
Crimp at crimp goove ~ 2.5-6"

Impossible to double charge. Shoots 1200fps from my rifles. No leading. More than enough for 100-200yd plates. Kicks like a 22lr.

[coltguy]

bump

bump

[vwynn]

Cast Bullet plinking load:

Bullet: 170gr FP Lead (aka: 30WCF bullet)
Powder: IMR Trailboss 10grs
Case/Primer: Whatever I have on hand.
Crimp at crimp goove ~ 2.5-6"

Impossible to double charge. Shoots 1200fps from my rifles. No leading. More than enough for 100-200yd plates. Kicks like a 22lr.

im assuming the brass wont be stressed much at all huh? =D