Posted on 03/03/2019 12:24:12 PM PST by Lando Lincoln
I ogled the K31 adverts many times, but never bit. The one rifle I took the most care reloading for was a Chilean Mauser 95 that was given to me. I rebarreled it with a Madsen Machine gun barrel and chambered it in 7mm Mauser. I was using book loads but taking care in case prep I was able to consistently shoot ragged 100yd one-holers with it. I am now doing load prep for a cartridge that’s not in the books, the 358Yeti. I have just started, prepped the cases, and loaded 50 fireform loads. I haven’t shot them yet. I am using Quickload for load development. Make sure you know the signs of pressure.
Quickload
Setting the seating depth based on the rifles throat. What's better for your rifle? On the lands? One mil off the lands? Two?
Preciseley setting the shoulder bump using flat gauge stock.
Sizing the neck for optimum tension.
Annealing.
Sorting bullets by weight and length.
Measuring runout.
There's more. I think a very important part is to establish, control, and measure your process.
I’ve been reloading since I was 15. That was a long time ago. Never used any kind of software. Ever.
I know what you mean. I’m Medicare age myself. But, computers and software apps are powerful tools.
If you don’t have or cannot borrow one the Sierra book has a number of loads for this caliber. Let me know if you want me to send you a picture of the pages, but although a bit expensive, I really like the Sierra book. I say this as an individual that has about 75 load manuals.
Lando
.223 rem , 303B , .308 win , 5.x58mm FN , 30-378 Wby , 38-40 win , and quite a few more ......
Gun folks are the best. Thank you to all.
That's usually the case with me too, but one time many years ago, I was chasing that tight group in my .243. I was using 55 gr Speers. The hotter I loaded, the tighter my groups got. Primers got flatter and flatter as groups got smaller and smaller. Until I had a primer blow. I quit the chase at that point. And what was unusual, when I collected that target, there was an extra firing pin sized hole in the paper. Did that piece of blown primer get sucked behind the bullet all the way to the target?
Nah!!! Had to be a coincidence.
And remember max loads differ on the type of firearm you are using. And some cartridge cases are stronger than others. And don't forget to back down when you load even a proven load with a new can of powder. Burning rate may change from lot to lot.
And remember too start over when you switch from regulator to magnum primers as the pressure increases . As for the brass I've had quite a few case separations with the .303 British No4-Mk1 using Remington brass .Finally went with only a neck sizing die and Star-line brass
A self-reloader guy at the outdoor range EXPLODED his .AR-10/ 7.62x51/.308cal last Fall, and I caught a piece in my right hand, while firing a Beowulf .50cal.
He was suspended from the range. Now, I always as either side bench if they’re shooting factory loads or doing their own reloads.
It was bloody and painful, and required 5 stitches on my face; fragment just missed my eye. He didn’t fare as well; lost his right eye and his face is a scarred-up mess.
Please be careful.
Go to the manufacturer’s website of whatever powder that you are using and they’ll have all the loading info.
You clearly don't know what QuickLoad is for. It's a computer modeling software that must be 'calibrated' against real world testing to account for minute differences in everything from chamber dimensions to primer brisance to powder hydration. But it's brilliant for quick-n-dirty answers to questions like, "What happens to my pressure curve if I switch from BLC-2 to RL-10X?", that sort of thing. You need at least a decent chrono to keep it honest and preferably a chrono and PressureTrace2. A chrono and a PressureTrace2 make Optimum Barrel Time load development a breeze.
How I came into the K31 is a bit strange. I live in Illinois but I told a friend in Pittsburgh I was looking for K31. My friend, who is a big gun guy, was setting up his tables at a gun show in Morgantown, WV when he noticed a guy setting up with 3 K31’s. The doors hadn’t even opened and I was on the phone with this guy. The K31 was made from 1933 to 1958 and he had one from every year. He said it was an addiction but his wife was making him sell his duplicates. Turns out, he had two that were produced in 1943. Nice. Nice. Nice. All matching serial numbers, original sling, muzzle cap and two original charging magazines. In 1943, because of the high wartime production, the Swiss were running low on walnut and they used a “pool cue” splicing method to produce the stocks. Kind of rare actually. I got one of them and it is a unique piece. I love it.
Do you just plain like firearms? Or do you support the American 2nd Amendment in principle? If so, do check out this BOLD new website before they censor it: https://GunDynamics.com
Where QuickLoad really comes into its own is when you’re off into uncharted waters, such as a bullet and powder combination that no one has a chart for. Or if you load slick-coated bullets.
Slick-coated bullets (moly, WS2 or hBN) reduce fouling and can improve barrel life but they also reduce chamber pressure and cost you a little MV. So you have to increase the charge weight beyond the manufacturer’s suggested max load to get reasonable velocity, so mfgr’s data no longer applies. QuickLoad gives you the means to work up a safe load with less guesswork (you still need to watch for signs of excessive pressure on spent casings).
I bought QuickLoad specifically to do Optimum Barrel Time load development with it. OBT uses exactly the same principles as Optimum Charge Weight load development except it measures what it’s looking for in terms internal ballistics rather than external ballistics. They’re both looking for the same solution but from different ends of the rifle range. It lets me work up a round that shoots bugholes with the fewest rounds expended and fewest trips to the range. It’s half science and half voodoo and as long as you sprinkle the blood of a fresh-killed rooster on your loading bench and do your work under the light of a full moon, it can’t miss.
I had a chronograph - I shot it, oops
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.