Favorite rifle caliber for cast lead bullets for target shooting?

[iMigraine]

Just curious if anyone here cast lead bullets that they like to use for paper punching and ringing steel with their rifle?


I've cast for .223 haven't gotten around to play with them yet but have with 30-30. .30 cal is a lot easier to deal with than those small .223 boolits especially with gas checks.

So what's your favorite rifle caliber?

[sghart]

.........

[jsanch03]

I cast, coat for 9mm and 45 as well as 308 and 762 Russian which gets a gas check. Really keeps my cost low with the 762 Russian since 311 bullets are pricey and not as available









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[divingin]

Buddy of mine regularly shot .223, .308 and .30-06 at 100 yds with cast/wax-lubed bullets. Don't know what loads he used, but I suspect he wasn't pushing them too fast. I don't think he was running harder lead, either (just casting from reclaimed range lead.) All in all, they shot pretty well.

[Divernhunter]

The CARTRIDGE (not caliber) that I use cast bullets in is 45-70

[Che762x39]

I like cast bullets in my 30-30. I don't cast so I buy them at the Gun Show in the past.

[kevins750]

7.62x39 gas checked powder coated

7.62x54r ----10gr of unique with 110gr bullets

308w gas checked powder coated.

[BIGOX]

Just curious if anyone here cast lead bullets that they like to use for paper punching and ringing steel with their rifle?


I've cast for .223 haven't gotten around to play with them yet but have with 30-30. .30 cal is a lot easier to deal with than those small .223 boolits especially with gas checks.

So what's your favorite rifle caliber?

Well in general my favorite rifle caliber to cast is a 30 cal but in different diameters and bullet profile. Every thing from 30 carbine to 3006. I like a 150gr flat nose sized at .309 powder coated as a basic plinker. (The Lyman 311359 is a close second) Yes I'm not a fan of 22 caliber gas check also.
Can I ask what brands of gas checks have you tried so far?

[bigbossman]

38-55, for my Winchester. A 240gr bullet over 10gr of Unique works for me out to 200 yards. Kind of a rainbow trajectory, but it gets there!

[RNE228]

Have to toss it out there

50 and 58 cal, especially the big Minie ball in the 58.

Does black powder count? TC Hawken, '61 Springfield reproduction

[Cowboy T]

For me, it would have to be 7.62x54R, since finding affordable 0.312" jacketed bullets can be challenging. But it works equally well with .308 Win and of course .30-06. H322 powder lends itself rather nicely to cast boolit loads. You don't absolutely need a gas check if you size properly, use the proper lube, and use an appropriate hardness of lead alloy for your load's pressure. I find that BHN 12-15 works remarkably well in cast boolit rifle loads, up to about 40,000 PSI. Beyond that, I'd stick with BHN 15-16. That said, if you want to use one, Hornady's are affordable and available.

Now with all *that* said, which one do I actually shoot the most often? That would be the Rossi 92, 16" bbl, in .357 Magnum, using a 158gr LRNFP out of Lee Precision's 358-158-RF six-cavity mould.

[iMigraine]

Yes I'm not a fan of 22 caliber gas check also.
Can I ask what brands of gas checks have you tried so far?

Hornady & Gator Checks but I also bought a gas check maker to make my own. I haven't been able to due accuracy testing because the 30-30 was not mine. On the .224, I haven't shot any yet.

[iMigraine]

I cast, coat for 9mm and 45 as well as 308 and 762 Russian which gets a gas check. Really keeps my cost low with the 762 Russian since 311 bullets are pricey and not as available

Which Russian rifle Mosin-Nagant; looks like fun. Those PC boolit's look great! Also, what distances are you using those boolits? 100-200yrds? TIA

[iMigraine]

7.62x39 gas checked powder coated

7.62x54r ----10gr of unique with 110gr bullets

308w gas checked powder coated.

Curious on your 7.62x39, casting for semi or bolt action rifle? What mould and weight are you finding success? Have a Russian SKS but it bangs the sides of the brass like a bad Asian driver while it launches the spent case in orbit!

TIA

[jsanch03]

Which Russian rifle Mosin-Nagant; looks like fun. Those PC boolit's look great! Also, what distances are you using those boolits? 100-200yrds? TIA

It?s an m38 sitting in an m44 stock you can see the bayonet cut out on the right. Thought that was interesting when I bought it considering the seller advertised it as an m44.

I?ve pushed my current load out to 300 at angeles with both the 308w and 762x54r. The m39 with these boolits shoots way better then the m38.

My go to loads are straight from Ed Harris? ?The load? which is 13gr of Alliant red dot for 30 cal rifles. It?s very economical for my mosins and Israeli k98 (308w). I get tight groups with the m39 and k98 which both have pristine barrels.

When I want to push the distance I?m loading 16grs of alliant 2400 which still stretches a pound of powder and is plenty of accurate. Next powder in my Lyman manual is using IMR 4227 which calls for more powder but I happen to be sitting on 3 pounds of it and have no other use for it.

As for the boolit it?s the Lee 312-160 mold 6 cavity. After coating the boolits I do gas check them and size to .312 for the mosins and .309 for the k98.


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