Loading & Range Day for the SMLE

[klr]

My preference would be just my own special order through Lee. I'm sure Al would be interested but I probably would not be willing to go through the wait. I also know what his tooling costs and I hate putting him out on a limb on a new design. Finally, group buys always end up with too many cooks in the kitchen wanting this and that but I'm not one to compromise a design.

Thanks. I didn't need the temptation of a NOE group buy.

But that bullet looks great...

[Ranch Dog]

Thanks. I didn't need the temptation of a NOE group buy.

But that bullet looks great...

I hear you and thanks. Part of the problem is that I automatically think "cast bullet" but that sometimes doesn't even make sense in that I have so many rifles to begin with. Honestly, once the load work is done I doubt that I will end up shooting the rifle much. My guess is 20 rounds a year as it will only be used to hunt hogs. If I haven't shot in a couple of months, I will stop on the range and bang a couple of gongs and then head out. Given that and say over the next 10 years, I would be better off buying 200 bullets and forgetting about it.

Of course those Woodleighs are not cheap, 78¢ each! So that has some bearing on it! Hawk Precision makes the same bullet in New Jersey but you have to order 3 boxes at the same price so that is why I'm going to start with the Woodleighs. Just one box of 50.

I dropped the rifle off and it doesn't seem to be that big of an issue. Hope to get it back real quick.

[klr]

... Honestly, once the load work is done I doubt that I will end up shooting the rifle much. My guess is 20 rounds a year as it will only be used to hunt hogs.

That's exactly how I figure it. I also figure that it will take far fewer rounds to find an accurate load with jacketed than cast bullets.

I saw those Woodleigh bullets, but just couldn't pull the trigger at that price. Graf's has some 150gr Prvi for $23/100. I'm shooting deer and not hogs, so maybe I'll give them a try.

[Ranch Dog]

That's exactly how I figure it. I also figure that it will take far fewer rounds to find an accurate load with jacketed than cast bullets.

Yes, it sure is easier to figure out.

I saw those Woodleigh bullets, but just couldn't pull the trigger at that price. Graf's has some 150gr Prvi for $23/100. I'm shooting deer and not hogs, so maybe I'll give them a try.

What I don't like about the 150 & the 174-grain bullets is the huge jump the bullets must make to engage the rifling. It also explains why the throats of many of these rifles are so eroded.

[klr]

What I don't like about the 150 & the 174-grain bullets is the huge jump the bullets must make to engage the rifling. It also explains why the throats of many of these rifles are so eroded.

I know you're right, but the 150gr Prvi shot well in my rifle and I'm hoping to find a solution that doesn't involve casting or 78 cent bullets.

[Ranch Dog]

No doubt, I'm happy with the Hornady 174-grain round nose but I've just got'ta try a big bullet! I'd want to shoot it before I would consider part with my dollars or Al's for a cast bullet mold.

Oh, the gun shop really understood the work on that had been done on my rifle. I think the words were; "Holy SMLE! A 600!"

[Ranch Dog]

Went over and looked at Accurate Molds, don't visit there much to see what they have. I did find one that interested me. I took the time to layout the drawing in my software as I thought it might be what I was looking for. It is the 31-210H which is actually a .314" body diameter mold with a bore rider nose of .303" that can be taken out to .313".

Accurate 31-210H Modified.jpg

TLC314215RF_bullet.jpg

It is very similar to what I drew (on the bottom) but it does not provide throat contact at any point. The ogive of the Accurate design starts too early for the 303 British (although it probably was designed for this application). I also used a slightly larger meplat for killing authority and have one additional lube band. My base band is shorter but I've learned it can be as the gas check cup acts as a bearing surface.

I guess you can tell I'm still thinking about the cast. The Accurate mold is $146 but it is off the table for me now because of the fit.

[klr]

I was looking at that one too. Have you considered having Accurate cut your design?
At $76 for a single cavity it could be a good way to test your design before committing to spending big bucks for Lee to set up and run a custom mold.

You're going to get me sucked back in to casting bullets for mine...

[Ranch Dog]

I was looking at that one too. Have you considered having Accurate cut your design?
At $76 for a single cavity it could be a good way to test your design before committing to spending big bucks for Lee to set up and run a custom mold.

You're going to get me sucked back in to casting bullets for mine...

I know the single cavity mold is cheaper but they drive me absolutely bats. Funny thing is that I'm know as a cast bullet guy but I really don't like the task of casting. Just don't like anything about it other than the cheap bullets. I do love the bullet design end of it and handloading but the act of messing with lead is my least favorite thing that I do in this endeavour.

I'm not sure when my rifle will be ready but as soon as it is these long bullets will be down range to see how they do. From there, I might talk to Al Nelson at NOE and see what he thinks. The long bullets will be big game thumpers that will need to be loaded to the 40.7K PSI to perform. They become unstable at 1200 and won't make it back through the transition to subsonic without becoming upset. In that I drew the Accurate bullet in TMT software and was able to check this stuff, it has the same performance parameters.

[klr]

I know the single cavity mold is cheaper but they drive me absolutely bats. Funny thing is that I'm know as a cast bullet guy but I really don't like the task of casting. Just don't like anything about it other than the cheap bullets. I do love the bullet design end of it and handloading but the act of messing with lead is my least favorite thing that I do in this endeavour.

Yes, it does get tedious. I don't like the gas check/lubing/sizing part.

I'm not sure the economics work out for me either. For my 358 Winchester I bought a 5 cavity NOE mold, a box of gas checks, resizer, and lube materials. I shot a couple dozen working up a load and then took 6-8 deer. Then I bought another NOE mold with a larger meplat, but I don't want to sell my old mold in case I need it someday. If I shoot 10 rounds a year for the next 15 years... those $35/100 jacketed start to look cheap.

BTW, I bought a box of 150gr Prvi and Sierra SP bullets. I figured I'd test a few lightweights before moving up in weight.