in2anity wrote:Very, very nice my friend, and great photography to boot. Have you considered running lead through her?
SHV wrote:in2anity wrote:Very, very nice my friend, and great photography to boot. Have you considered running lead through her?
thanks
you mean lead projectiles? no idea about it, will be safe for all lead? the projectile .311 123GR is very hard to find, I thought about reload but really not easy to find the projectiles, if can make it by myself will be good news
in2anity wrote:SHV wrote:in2anity wrote:Very, very nice my friend, and great photography to boot. Have you considered running lead through her?
thanks
you mean lead projectiles? no idea about it, will be safe for all lead? the projectile .311 123GR is very hard to find, I thought about reload but really not easy to find the projectiles, if can make it by myself will be good news
Sure it's safe - worst case (fail) scenario you incorrectly use jacketed load data and the lead cuts and fails to obturate + plus makes a big leading mess of your barrel, leaving you in for a big cleanup job to rid the leading deposits (btw trust me, don't do this!). Nope you'd have to use reduced loads to stabilise the softer lead; in the realms of 1/2 a normal hot jacketed load. There is data out there regarding this if you do some digging.
Whilst I've never attempted it personally, I know for a fact the 7.62x39 cartridge can work with lead, especially in a bolt-gun. Most lead data points towards a heavier projectile; around the 160gn mark. If you don't want to cast yourself, a lighter projectile might still work. Hawkesbury River Bullet Company do 32-20s - they're a 115gn Round Nose Flat Point Bevel Base, sized to .313" (just about perfect for the grooves of the 7.62x39 cartridge). You could always request a sample and try them over 70% Trail Boss to err on the side of caution. A good bullet-to-bore fit is essential for accuracy, it would be worth slugging your barrel beforehand if possible. Actually come to think of it, Westcastings do a 165gn .30cal sized to .311 (it's a 30/30 round) - thats pretty close to what you'd need - they might even be able to size them to .312, that would be perfect for your rifle.
What's the twist rate on it? You might be able to get away with a 180gn .303 projectile sized to .311", but you'd have to seat them short so you'd need to be weary of compressing the load. Depends if it can stabilise the long 180gn bullet.
TBH acquiring and reloading lead for a 7.62x39 has been on my bucket list for some time, just never had the time or the funds - I've also had my eye on the Howa Mini-Action (which also comes in the 7.62x39 round), but your 527 could also fit this bill nicely. They're a beautiful rifle - nicer than the Howas IMO.
This rifle would make an excellent practice / plinker (cheap + accurate) if you can get it to group with lead. Prolly even be good out to 300m albeit a bit of a rainbow.
SHV wrote:a little bite complicated for me though
where is this ammo you speak of? as in you have it?No1Mk3 wrote:due to access to 1000's of rounds of leftover Norinco ammo, and this one looks very good. Just need a Howa owner to post his for comparison, Cheers.
in2anity wrote:SHV wrote:a little bite complicated for me though
Sorry to beat the dead horse, but if your rifle is a 1:9.5 twist (which I think it might be after a couple of quick searches), it might come close to stabilising a British 303 cast lead bullet (180gn), which HRBC produce. Trail Boss would do the trick at least to start with. In fact so long as you don't compress Trail Boss, it's a very safe powder that can be used without formal load data. Hodgon formally state the following practice for developing your own custom loads:
. . . . if you don't see Trail Boss data for your favourite cartridge we have a formula for developing loads for all cartridges and it's simple to follow. This formula may be used in both rifle and pistol applications.
1. Find where the base of the bullet to be loaded is located in the case and make a mark on the outside of the case at this location. Then fill the case to that mark with Trail Boss, pour into the scale pan and weight. This is your maximum load. Pressures will be below the maximum allowed for this cartridge and perfectly safe to use!
2. Take 70% of this powder charge weight ( multiply the maximum load from step 1 by .7 ), and this is your starting load.
3. Start with this beginning load and work up to your maximum charge, all the while searching for the most accurate reduced load. Once found, the fun begins!"
To get the correct seat-depth, simply cut down the side of an empty shell with a dremel or fine hacksaw, seat the round, chamber and carefully close the bolt. The projectile will engage with the lands, pushing it deeper giving you the minimum seat depth for that projectile. From there you can follow the steps above to get your 70% TB load. On a side note, this 70% TB load would almost certainly be well-subsonic, so a fantastic plinking load.
Does anybody else believe a 1:9.5 18.5" 7.62mm [ Ø lands = 7.62 millimetres (0.300 in), Ø grooves = 7.92 millimetres (0.312 in) ] barrel would stabilise the 180gr Brit? Blade?
Gun-nut wrote:Thanks for posting that, I'm thinking of getting into reloading for the .303 in the near future and when I do, I might just try that method out. Seems quite simple and should be great for a plinking load, just as you said.
No1Mk3 wrote:G'fday SHV,
If you want to reload jacketed projectiles for your rifle, Hornady 150g 303 projectiles are .3105" diameter and perfect for the Russian calibres. I load them in 7.62x54R for the Nagant. I have been thinking of a short rifle in this calibre, due to access to 1000's of rounds of leftover Norinco ammo, and this one looks very good. Just need a Howa owner to post his for comparison, Cheers.