In order to participate in the GunBroker Member forums, you must be logged in with your GunBroker.com account. Click the sign-in button at the top right of the forums page to get connected.
Options
Help me design a heeled bullet mould
1fisher
Member Posts: 1,012 ✭✭
I have an antique Alex Henry rook rifle and after a lot of investigation, it looks like I really need to have a custom mould made to get any accuracy.
When I bought the gun, the seller said that he thought it was chambered in .300 Rook, which takes a true .300" bullet. A 300 Rook case fits in the chamber perfectly, but a .300" bullet will fall right down the barrel and gives terrible accuracy. (It flings them anywhere but at the target.)
Based on all my measurements,I need to have a cast bullet at .308" or .309" with a heel that will fit into a case that comes out of the sizer at .290" inside diameter. It should work right, as the brass is .009" thick, so the outside diameter of the sized case is right at .308".
So -- with an inside case diameter of .290", what diameter should the bullet be across the heeled part that goes into the case? What will give me good neck tension?
By the way, I think that I want a bullet around 90 grains (probably one lube groove) and will be looking for around 1200 - 1400 fps velocity. (That is in the ballpark for most of the old rook rounds.)
I am totally new to this type of "custom" reloading, so any and all ideas will be appreciated.
When I bought the gun, the seller said that he thought it was chambered in .300 Rook, which takes a true .300" bullet. A 300 Rook case fits in the chamber perfectly, but a .300" bullet will fall right down the barrel and gives terrible accuracy. (It flings them anywhere but at the target.)
Based on all my measurements,I need to have a cast bullet at .308" or .309" with a heel that will fit into a case that comes out of the sizer at .290" inside diameter. It should work right, as the brass is .009" thick, so the outside diameter of the sized case is right at .308".
So -- with an inside case diameter of .290", what diameter should the bullet be across the heeled part that goes into the case? What will give me good neck tension?
By the way, I think that I want a bullet around 90 grains (probably one lube groove) and will be looking for around 1200 - 1400 fps velocity. (That is in the ballpark for most of the old rook rounds.)
I am totally new to this type of "custom" reloading, so any and all ideas will be appreciated.
Comments
Lyman had a 109 to 115 gr gas check bullet 311359. You could turn part of the driving band ahead of the gas check and still have at least one good grease grove.
If it were mine I'd make a breach seater and just use that bullet with a case that had a wad to hold the powder in and just shoot it as a single shot.
http://gadcustomcartridges.com/
They list a 95 grain with a .299 heel and a .311 bullet diameter.
That 32 colt bullet might be just what I need. For the cost, it is worth trying out.
Just curious - would there be a problem running a heeled bullet like that through a Lyman sizer (in .309")? It is a push-through sizer, not a top punch, so it probably would increase the diameter of the heeled portion?
I do wish you make sure your bore is .308 all the way thru, you may want to try {even tho very unscientific} a wrap of cellophane tape around a known {.300 ?} bullet and see if it still drops thru.
http://www.castboolits.gunloads.com/
You will find a ton of what you need.
I have slugged the bore with a lead sinker. When doing that, it felt tightest at the muzzle and just ahead of the chamber and loosened up a little in the middle part of the barrel.
I can see a little pitting in that area just with a light, but don't have access to a borescope.
I just want to get this beauty shooting again with some accuracy for plinking.
[img][/img]
If they don't work well, I will be back to the custom mold.