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Philip Massaro

Reloading: Bearing Surface, Pressure and Accuracy

The bullet’s bearing surface — the portion of the bullet that contacts the rifling in the barrel — directly correlates to the amount of pressure generated within your barrel, and it can have a definite effect on accuracy.

Considering the minor details that affect accuracy:

  • Subtleties in bullet dimension and shape and how they perform in a particular barrel can vary widely.
  • This is why a reloader may not get the results similar to what they find in a manual.
  • The data set is published for as many as four or five different bullet shapes.
  • Additionally, the test barrel length, action, primer and case may also differ from a reloader’s.
  • The question also arises, can a bullet with the right amount of bearing surface improve accuracy?

Not all bullets are created equally. The subtleties of dimension, shape and how they correspond to the performance within a particular barrel can give a ballistician fits of rage. There are times where things don’t go according to the script, and it might leave you scratching your head. I experienced just such a situation recently, and it got me thinking about the relationships between a bullet’s bearing surface, and the correlative load data.

Three different 7mm 140-grain bullets, all of different conformation, and all require a different approach.
Three different 7mm 140-grain bullets, all of different conformation, and all require a different approach.

The Starting Point

Firstly, let’s take a renewed look at the reloading manuals, and the online data, that we all use on a day-to-day basis. I’ve heard the argument way too many times: “The load data in Reloading Manual (Insert Company Name Here) is the best data; it gave me exactly what I needed and they really know what they’re talking about. The (Insert Competitive Company Name Here) manual is a load of hogwash.”

This requires a bit of explaining.

A reloading manual is not a definitive piece of work; it’s more of a laboratory report. Obviously, every company that produces a reloading manual takes great pains to ensure that the data printed therein is sound and true, but you need to understand where it came from. There are listed parameters within each set of data that will indicate the test rifle, cartridge case and primer used to obtain that data. It would be not only insanely expensive, but unbelievably time consuming, to test every bullet, in every case, in a number of rifles, with each available primer, to give the reloader the exact data he or she would need — and even then certain parameters unique to your rifle would render the data imperfect.

I’m fortunate enough to call many of the people who have an integral part of producing these manuals my friends, and they will openly discuss the methodology of obtaining their data. Universally, the response is that the data provided in a particular manual is the result of one particular situation, and it’s not necessarily the final word on the topic.
Allow me to demonstrate what I mean: Using a .30-06 Springfield as an example, and the 180-grain bullet to further fine-tune the point, you might see quickly that the reloading manual lists a set of data — for numerous powders — for that particular weight.

The difference in bearing surface (the parallel sides which are of caliber dimension) is easily seen among these different .30-caliber bullets.
The difference in bearing surface (the parallel sides which are of caliber dimension) is easily seen among these different .30-caliber bullets.

However, that data set is published for as many as four or five different bullet shapes. In addition, the test barrel length might not be the same as yours, the action type might be completely different, and the primer and case brand might also differ. How can you then assume that the data is definitive?

“Well, it’s published by Brand X, and I’m using Brand X bullets, so it’s gotta be right.” Nope, that’s not necessarily the case. Those four or five different bullet profiles will all produce a different pressure curve, and while in some instances it might be minute, it can be rather drastic. But, we’ll talk more about that pressure-bearing surface relationship in a minute.

When a set of data is released, it needs to be safe in the majority of rifles on the market. Even if the data set is labeled for use in a particular firearm only, the slight variations within that firearm group can certainly change the outcome.

So, let’s try and look at the data as a report; the combination of rifle/case/primer gave results of X, giving you a guideline for establishing a load in your rifle. The top end of the load data — where pressures will be the greatest — might not be attainable in your particular situation and combination of components. Likewise, the top end of the data might not be the maximum that your rifle can safely withstand. And furthermore, that maximum charge can change for each and every bullet profile.

Some .338-inch diameter bullets, showing the length difference as weight increases, and the differences in each bullet's profile.
Some .338-inch diameter bullets, showing the length difference as weight increases, and the differences in each bullet's profile.

Working Up The Grain Scale

Success really does require starting at the ground floor and experimenting to see where the line needs to be drawn. For example, while developing a load for my .404 Jeffery, the particular load data for the brand and weight of bullet I was using topped off at 74.0 grains of a particular powder, and it was supposed to produce 2,400 fps. Well, when I cobbled the components together, not only did I miss the velocity mark by 300 fps, but I also worked upward (safely, with no pressure signs whatsoever) to 80.0 grains, at a muzzle velocity of 2,280 fps, and found the accuracy I wanted.

I am in no way suggesting that you can blindly start to drastically exceed what is listed as maximum, but if you work up in small increments (less than ½ grain) you might find that your rifle’s limit will differ from published data, and sometimes by a considerable amount. Does this mean that Brand X’s manual is wrong, or at least flawed? No — it means their lab report (regarding their rifle) differs from my lab report (regarding my own rifle). Changing case brand, changing primers and even bore variations play a great part in the final equation.

Secondly — getting back to the relationship between pressure and bullet bearing surface — a recent case involving a friend’s 7×57 Mauser had (and to a certain degree still has) us scratching our heads. This particular rifle, a push-feed Winchester Model 70 XTR Featherweight, showed excellent accuracy with 175-grain bullets, with group size hanging around ¾ MOA, from both factory loads and handloads. We were doing some load development with 140-grain bullets to develop a deer load, and we couldn’t get the rifle to shoot to anywhere near that level of accuracy. Some of the flat-based 140s showed better accuracy than the boat-tail designs, and the monometals showed a slight advantage over the cup-and-core bullets, but nothing was delivering the goods.

Both these manuals — while providing excellent data — cover many different bullet shapes, and each might react differently to the same powder charge.
Both these manuals — while providing excellent data — cover many different bullet shapes, and each might react differently to the same powder charge.

Getting a bit desperate, we tried five different 140-grain factory loads — some of which were lights out in other 7x57s — and still nothing doing. Norma’s 156-grain Oryx load stayed at about 1 MOA (more than acceptable for a hunting rifle), but the lighter bullets just didn’t want to cooperate. Our thoughts are that it’s an issue with a minimum amount of bullet bearing surface being required to produce repeatable results.

That got me wondering about how many rifles might have the potential for stellar accuracy if we could just find a bullet with the right amount of bearing surface to obtain the repeatability that equals accuracy. Using our previous .30-06 example, a sleek, high ballistic coefficient (BC) 180-grain boat-tail bullet will obviously have less bearing surface on the rifling than a short-ogive, flat-base 180-grain bullet will, and while the latter is a detriment to the trajectory and wind values at long ranges, it might make for a perfectly acceptable hunting choice.

Is it the evidence of a worn barrel? Possibly, but I know this gun’s history and don’t feel it’s got anywhere near the mileage on it to blame barrel wear. Is it cut “loose,” or slightly oversize? Another possibility, but it would take some extensive science to accurately determine that fact. Let’s just say that this gun likes the pressures produced by the longer bearing surfaces and leave it there for now, as part of the voodoo that’s mixed with science when it comes to reloading.

Two 6.5mm bullets. While the heavier 160-grain (L) has all sorts of bearing surface, the sleek 140-grain bullet (R) has less contact with the rifling in spite of being longer.
Two 6.5mm bullets. While the heavier 160-grain (L) has all sorts of bearing surface, the sleek 140-grain bullet (R) has less contact with the rifling in spite of being longer.

I will, however, start to consider the correlation between the amount of bearing surface that the “accurate” bullets in a particular rifle possess, and how that relates to the powder charge used. It’s an interesting experiment in any rifle, and while each barrel seems to be as unique as a fingerprint, I’d be willing to wager that the correlation can be used to solve some accuracy problems in the future.

Editor's Note: This article originally appeared in the February 2018 issue of Gun Digest the Magazine.

Reloading: Does Perfect Ammo Mean Becoming A Control Freak?

If you reload, your ultimate pursuit might be absolute control over your handloads … just don’t fall too far down the rabbit hole.

Why go to the trouble of reloading ammunition?

  • A common thread among serious reloader is the ability to control the parameter of ammunition.
  • Some people ask why? give the excellent bullet choices and the tight tolerances of today’s factory ammunition.
  • Reloading, however, allows us to tailor each round to its job.
  • Additionally, it leads to a better understanding of ammo and the experimentation can make you a better rifleman.

“The control — and possible obsession — over our ammunition gives us another small facet of the shooting equation, and it makes things fun.”

If there’s one common thread among serious reloaders, it’s the ability, or more accurately — the need — to control the parameters of our ammunition. Many people ask me why I reload my ammunition, whether for target use or for the largest game animals on earth, when modern factory ammunition is so good. And, while they might have a good point, my response is simple: I prefer the control I have in every aspect of the ammunition. We reloaders are control freaks. There's no denying it.

Handloading gives the shooter complete control over his or her ammunition.
Handloading gives the shooter complete control over his or her ammunition.

Factory ammunition is better than it has ever been, and I even own a couple of rifles that will shoot factory ammunition better than any of my handloads. We have excellent bullet choices, and the tolerances have become very tight.

However, in the same manner that I carefully choose a rifle/cartridge/scope combination, I like to tailor the ammunition to the job at hand. Yes, there are times where a factory load might get the job done in an equally effective manner, and there are times where I do opt to use factory ammunition, but I much prefer to handload whenever possible.

Indulging In The Obsession

Reloading ammunition has undoubtedly led to a better understanding of how ammunition works, and the resulting experimentation has made me a better rifleman. It has also led to an unquenchable thirst for knowledge in the field of terminal ballistics. I’m a bullet hound, and I will eagerly root through the entrails of an animal in pursuit of my bullet. However, sometimes all of this control can pull you down the rabbit hole.

That’s not necessarily a bad thing, though I do see some handloaders become argumentative regarding this technique or that, and that’s more than likely just our human traits rearing their ugly heads. Let us not lose sight of the prize — especially in the hunting world — and that is to effectively kill an animal with the first shot, and put the second and third in the same spot if needed.

While this 100-yard target doesn’t exactly represent hair-splitting accuracy, it will certainly suffice for big game hunting.
While this 100-yard target doesn’t exactly represent hair-splitting accuracy, it will certainly suffice for big game hunting.

How you get there is up to you, and that’s one of the individual beauties of creating ammunition. A rifle/shooter combination that will put three shots into a group measuring 1.5 MOA will certainly get the job done in the hunting world — big game, anyhow — and perhaps he or she is content to stop right there.

Then there are those who absolutely will not stop until they get the rifle to print sub-MOA, preferably ½ MOA or less. I might or might not be guilty of holding a life membership to that organization, but that’s not the point. The control — and possible obsession — over our ammunition gives us another small facet of the shooting equation, and it makes things fun.

I recently saw an Internet video in which the narrator condemned neck-sizing ammunition. Now, I’ve used neck-sized ammunition as a last-ditch effort to get troublesome rifles to shoot for a couple decades now, but the orator had a valid point in that the difficulty in chambering a round precluded the process.

That got me to thinking about how to obtain accuracy without those issues, and I came back to the Redding Custom Competition shell holders. These little gems, along with the Redding Instant Comparator, allow us to match the overall datum line of our ammunition to the chamber of our rifle, all the while full-length resizing the cases. This gives us ammunition that will match the chamber length of a particular rifle, yet feed like factory ammo. Accuracy undoubtedly will improve, and the issue is resolved.

Bushing dies are also a recent development that will fit right in with reloading OCD; they definitely increase brass life, and in my experiences they help improve accuracy as well. Simply measuring the outside diameter of a loaded cartridge — using a singular brand of brass, and assuming that it’s all rather uniform — the correlative bushing will, when inserted into the resizing die, stretch and shrink the brass as little as possible, thus extending the overall life of the case.

Dies are important for any reloading pursuit. The author recommends getting the best reloading dies you can afford after purchasing a solid press.
Dies are important for any reloading pursuit. The author recommends getting the best reloading dies you can afford after purchasing a solid press.

These are just two examples of modern reloading gear dramatically affecting the capability of our ammunition, and it brings me to another thought: Reloading, like golf and fishing, can suffer from “gadget-itis.” You’ll read — even within the confines of this column — about a good many pieces of gear that can, and often will, make life a bit easier, but that’s in no way intended to infer the idea that all of it is absolutely necessary.

The Bare Minimum

I clearly remember, in the not too distant past, having to make do with what gear I could afford. I scooped powder into a balance beam scale with either a plastic scoop repurposed from some other application, or with a homemade design, saving spare change for the best dies I could buy. Some items are not that expensive at all, and some others cost more but offer a great value.

Were I to advise a new reloader about where to spend the most and what to avoid, I would say that a rock-solid press should come first, and then the best dies I could afford. There are many choices, but I really like the Redding UltraMag press — a simple but beastly one-hole single stage press — and even their basic die sets will give results that will turn heads. Add in a means of measuring powder and even bullets (a reliable balance beam scale will always be a part of your bench) and a means of trimming your cases, and you can make ammunition with the best of them. It doesn’t require a major financial investment — however, when I look at what I’ve spent over the years, I question that statement — but it does require a special level of dedication and attention to detail.

Going All In

To become one of the Control Freaks, you’ll have to delve deep into the wealth of knowledge that has been printed in between the covers of the numerous reloading manuals. There are many books written on the subject, including my own efforts, but they are merely stepping-stones on the path of knowledge.

A balance beam scale will be an integral part of your bench, no matter how many gadgets are developed. Gravity doesn’t wear out.
A balance beam scale will be an integral part of your bench, no matter how many gadgets are developed. Gravity doesn’t wear out.

One thing is for certain: The basic technique of reloading metallic cases hasn’t changed in almost a century. Philip B. Sharpe’s Complete Guide to Handloading (the much more famous reloading Philip) has been in print since 1937, yet the processes described therein are still sound. Read, ask questions, make friends with other handloaders, compare notes, and follow the processes outlined by reliable sources.

As your knowledge base grows, you’ll be able to decipher which gadgets will actually make a difference in your life and which are the pet rocks of the reloading industry. And, as my dad always told me, “There are no shortcuts.” We’re all doing it the same way, if we’re doing it right.

Learn about headspace. Experiment with seating depth to see for yourself what effect it has on things. Consult the powder companies about their new developments. My favorite loads might not work in your rifle; reloading can be a highly rifle-specific science. I’ve seen some reloading recipes printed on internet forums that are downright dangerous, so please take everything you read with a grain of salt, and consult as many different sources as you can.

If you’re an old hand at reloading ammunition, you’ll be able to relate to these concepts. And if you’re new to the reloading game, spend some time with the veterans.

I’ll see you guys somewhere down the rabbit hole.

Editor's Note: This article originally appeared in the March 2018 issue of Gun Digest the Magazine.

Reloading Bench: Reloading The Obsolete Cartridge

If you’re having trouble finding factory ammunition or brass for rifles chambered in obscure or obsolete cartridges, don’t fret: You can make your own.

Thinking straight about obsolete cartridges:

  • With a good working knowledge of converting cartridges, a world of old guns in obscure calibers is opened.
  • An indispensable tool for the process is John J. Donnelly’s The Handloader’s Manual of Cartridge Conversions.
  • The process can be as complex as removing a belt from a magnum cartridge.
  • But it can be as simple as reducing a cartridge’s length and resizing its neck.
  • Reloaders shouldn’t be shy, contact reloading companies — they are invaluable resources.
  • On more complex, obscure projects you may need to invest in forming dies.

What do you do when you find that old rifle — sitting in the dusty corner of the gun shop, unloved, unwanted — that simply has your name written all over it, but it’s chambered for an obscure or obsolete cartridge? Why, you buy it of course! And if needs be, you make the ammunition yourself.

There have been several instances where this course of action has been warranted; there are some times when loaded ammunition — or even component ammunition — is simply not readily available.

The .30-.338 Magnum, created from new 7mm Remington Magnum brass, with one pass through a resizing die.
The .30-.338 Magnum, created from new 7mm Remington Magnum brass, with one pass through a resizing die.

The transformation of one cartridge case to another can be as simple or complex as your selection of tools will allow, but quite often making one cartridge from another will only require your reloading tools. A case trimmer can and will cut a cartridge down considerably, and a full-length resizing die can change the diameter of a case mouth, to a certain degree. But the first stop on your tour should be a particular book that warrants a place in every reloader’s library: John J. Donnelly’s The Handloader’s Manual of Cartridge Conversions.

It’s thick and largely technical, but it can and will be invaluable to those needing to create ammunition for a centerfire rifle when component brass isn’t available. My copy is more than 30 years old, and some of the reloading tools mentioned might be considered antiques these days, but the principles are still completely relevant. It makes an excellent full-service reference guide for the handloader, even if just in a learning capacity.

I’ve used it to create that which I could not purchase, and it’s worked out just fine. Now, while the book contains instructions on some of the more radical transformations, such as removing the belt from the Holland & Holland family of cases or reducing the diameter of a cartridge’s rim, I have yet to need to perform those operations; my own transformations have been less complicated, yet they filled the need in the same manner.

An Easy Example

My colleague and good friend Craig Boddington called me one day to inform me that he was having a problem with a rifle he had just acquired. Craig said the barrel was marked .30-338 Magnum, and while that is — in essence — the definition of the .308 Norma Magnum, the chamber wouldn’t handle the Norma factory ammunition.

(Above) .318 Westley Richards ammunition, created from .30-06 brass, driving a 250-grain Woodleigh roundnose at 2,475 fps. The conversion was simple, and the rifle shoots exceptionally well.
(Above) .318 Westley Richards ammunition, created from .30-06 brass, driving a 250-grain Woodleigh roundnose at 2,475 fps. The conversion was simple, and the rifle shoots exceptionally well.

So, I delved into the matter a bit more and found that after the .338 Winchester Magnum was released, yet before the .308 Norma Magnum was unveiled, wildcatters simply necked down the .338 case to hold .308-inch diameter bullets and maintain the same shoulder angle and datum line. There is a dimensional difference of a few thousandths between the two designs, explaining why Craig couldn’t close the bolt.

I made a call to Redding Reloading and found that — miraculously — they had a set of dies available for the wildcat. Because it maintained the same dimensions as both the .338 and 7mm Remington Magnum, either would be a suitable candidate for surgery. I decided it would be easier to neck up than to neck down and settled on new 7mm Rem. Mag. brass.

One run through the full-length resizing die — equipped with a tapered expander ball – and I was in business. Datum line was maintained, case length was just a few thousandths below maximum (a bit of length was lost in the stretching process) and the inside of the necks didn’t need to be turned. Loading for the rifle blindly, Craig reported that it gave him good velocities and 1 ¼ MOA accuracy (from a low-powered vintage scope), but most importantly, it was safe in the rifle with no pressure signs.

A More Involved Project

My own rifle was a bit of a different story, requiring some trimming and reworking to bring it to life. I have always wanted a .318 Westley Richards, yet finances dictated that the purchase of a genuine vintage rifle would see me sleeping on the couch.

A 7mm Remington Magnum case (L), and a converted .30-338 Magnum case (R), made with one pass through a Redding resizing die.
A 7mm Remington Magnum case (L), and a converted .30-338 Magnum case (R), made with one pass through a Redding resizing die.

Instead, I embarked on a custom rifle build, giving new life to a WWI Gew. 98 Mauser — re-barreling it with a Kreiger .318 WR barrel. The rifle came out just fine, with the appointments I wanted. One little issue: The only available factory ammunition is very expensive, approaching and in some instances exceeding 10 dollars per round. Being a handloader, I thumbed through the aforementioned Manual of Cartridge Conversions and confirmed my assumptions: .318 Westley Richards cases can be easily made from plentiful .30-06 Springfield brass.

Step No. 1 was to trim the .30-06 brass from 2.494 inches down to 2.370 inches, and for that I used a good, piloted trimmer. Once cut to proper length, I cleaned up the case mouth — which was now square and rough from trimming — giving it a good chamfer and deburring.

Step No. 2 was applying a liberal dose of Imperial Sizing Wax along the base of the case, and Imperial Dry Neck Lube at the case mouth; one pass through the resizing die resulted in perfectly formed .318 Westley Richards brass.

The case mouth has been expanded from .308 inch to .330 inch, and once cleaned up, they can be used without the need to fire-form. Now, the true case head dimension of the .318 Westley Richards is 0.468 inch vs. the .30-06’s 0.473 inch, so to be completely transformed, a rim turning might be in order, but my rifle began life as an 8×57 Mauser, which shares the 06 case head.

Therefore, the bolt face and cartridge case head are completely compatible. When I choose to use actual .318 Westley Brass — a rarity sometimes available from Bertram — the 0.008 inch in case head diameter won’t make a bit of difference.

When Forming Dies Are Needed

These two examples are relatively simple solutions to the need for brass that is either unavailable or ridiculously expensive. The more radical transformations might require the use of forming dies — which will work the brass up or down in small increments — and brass annealing. Cases like the 6.5 Remington Magnum — capable of being made from .350 Remington Magnum brass or, in extreme cases, from .300 H&H brass — should see the use of a forming die in order to radically change the diameter of the case mouth. The same could be said for creating .35 Whelen brass from .30-06 cases; though, I’ve seen it done in a single step, albeit with varying degrees of success.

Trimming .30-06 brass to proper length to create the .318 Westley Richards cartridges.
Trimming .30-06 brass to proper length to create the .318 Westley Richards cartridges.

The .475 Turnbull — that lever-action gem that Doug Turnbull designed for the 1886 Winchester — is based upon the .348 Winchester case, and it will definitely require forming dies. There are so many designs based upon the .30-06, .308 Winchester or the belted .375 H&H case that many different cartridges can be made from this trio alone. Some of the obscure rimmed cartridges will require a bit more creativity, but with the Cartridge Conversion book, a good handloader can get the job done.

If the change is extreme, annealing your cases will prevent premature cracking and splitting by keeping the brass soft and pliable; annealing will also help to keep any brass that must be fire-formed in working order for as long as possible. The annealing process is not extremely technical, but that’s best kept for another conversation …

Editor's Note: This article originally appeared in the April 2018 issue of Gun Digest the Magazine.

Cartridges: The .30-06 Springfield Family Tree

3006-family-tree

In addition to being a capable cartridge in its own right, the .30-06 Springfield has spawned a talented brood of offspring.

  • Perhaps only the .375 H&H Magnum is the parent case of more cartridges than the .30-06 Springfield.
  • The .30-06 has been modified to pitch everything from .25-caliber bullets all the way to .358 caliber.
  • Add in the .308 to the .30-06 family tree and really there's something for everyone.

All parents are proud of their children — with good cause — but few cartridges have the brood of offspring that the .30-06 does, save perhaps the .375 H&H Magnum. Just think about the immediate children of the Springfield: the .270 Winchester, the .25-06 Remington, the .280 Remington, the .35 Whelen and the .338-06 A-Square, just to mention the commercially produced lineup.

There are those other children who’ve stayed out of the limelight (commercially, that is), which include the 6.5-06 and the twins, the .375 and .400 Whelen. I’ve read of wildcats as small as .22 caliber based on the ’06 case; well, I believe you get the point. Hell, even the .308 Winchester can trace its lineage back to the .30-06, so you’d call them cousins, but the .243 Winchester, .260 Remington, 7mm-08, .338 Federal and .358 Winchester all get the invite to the family reunion.

Like the .375 H&H, the .404 Jeffery, the 8mm Mauser and the .308 Winchester, you can see that the ’06 case is an excellent platform to begin with; can we deny the successes of the .25-06, .270 and .280? And if you truly believe that more bullet weight or frontal diameter than .30 caliber has to offer is warranted, the .338-06 might be one of the sweetest shooting means of delivering a 250-grain bullet I’ve ever fired, save my pet .318 Westley Richards of course.

If that 61mm case length appeals to you more than the short-action .308 family, or the belted magnum of H&H lineage, there really is something for everyone within the .30-06 family tree.

Editor's Note: This article originally appeared in the October 2017 issue of Gun Digest the Magazine.

Reloading: Cup-And-Core, The King Of Deer Bullets?

There's no need to overthink deer bullets. While a number of intriguing new designs now exist, classic cup-and-cores still do the job.

Are cup-and-core designs the ultimate deer bullets?

  • Cup-and-core bullets have lead cores and copper jackets.
  • A bit of lead is exposed at the nose to aid expansion.
  • Given a deer’s thin hide, the bullets perform exceedingly well.
  • Cup-and-core bullets are economical, so they allow for ample experimentation.
  • And they don’t face the issues common to the newer, more radical projectile designs.

I don’t know if there’s anyone who loves heading on a hunt in foreign lands more than Yours Truly; it represents adventure to me on many different levels. However, there is a certain solace that comes with the local deer season, being a part of the traditions that started it all for me, and enjoying the areas where I cut my teeth as a hunter.

Deer Bullets -second
The author’s first truly accurate handload, and one responsible for quite a bit of deer meat in the freezer, utilized Sierra’s 165-grain Game King BTHP bullet.

In addition, I’m the guy who has and will continue to embrace advancing bullet technology; I find the premium bullets to be intriguing, and I enjoy testing them on large beasts. That said, there are times when a plain old traditional bullet suits the situation perfectly, and deer camp is a shining example of just that.

The cup-and-core bullets that hunters used for nearly every species of game throughout the first-half of the 20th century certainly needed an update, at least with regard to the larger game species. That said, they have been, are, and will continue to be absolutely perfect for hunting deer.

However, as we reloaders tend to learn early on, not all bullets are created equally, no matter what category we’re discussing. Let’s take a look at some good, great and not-so-great traditional deer bullets — and how they relate to your reloading bench.

Deer Bullet Basics

What is a cup-and-core bullet? Well, it’s a bullet with a lead core with an outer jacket of copper that forms a cup around the bottom and sides of the bullet, leaving a bit of lead exposed at the nose to allow the bullet to expand upon impact. That copper jacket is harder than lead — soft enough to be influenced by the rifling, yet hard enough not to leave the amount of residue in the barrel those pure lead bullets will. So, while these bullets have had questionable results against heavy hide and bone, they are, undoubtedly, perfect for deer hunting.

Deer are not hard to kill; they are soft skinned and their bones are not especially large. Hit them wrong, however, and they will show you a different side, taking what seems to be a pounding and still going much farther than anyone would believe. As it is with any game animal, shot placement trumps all, but for deer you want the consummate blend of expansion and penetration, and the cup-and-core bullets will give just that.

Humble Beginnings

For years, the only serious big game rifles I owned were a classic Winchester Model 94, in .30-30 Winchester — with all of its blessings and limitations — and a Ruger Model 77 Mark II in .308 Winchester. Both of them have moderate velocities, and both of them run well on standard cup-and-core bullets. And, both have their own special place in the deer woods, possibly among the top of the heap as far as deer cartridges are concerned. The .30-30 was, in living memory, one of the staples of deer season, though that is changing. But, the .308 Winchester is among the do-all cartridges, offering all sorts of flexibility.

For deer, bullets weighing from 150 to 180 grains have been the historical choices, with the tradeoff being the flatter trajectory of the 150-grain bullets versus the heavier bullet weight and energy figures of the 180-grain slugs.

Deer Bullets -fourth
Deer, with their soft skin and bones — and not being as thick and large as some big game species — are not especially difficult to kill. A decent cup-and-core bullet and good shot placement are usually enough to do the job efficiently.

I preferred to stay in the middle, especially for deer, with 165-grain bullets. My first handloads were built around the Hornady InterLock Spire Point bullets, and they served very well. The InterLock is a bullet I’ve used in many different situations, and while I usually don’t take advantage of the cannelure for crimping, as the .308 Win. offers enough neck tension that I don’t feel the need to crimp my loads, the terminal performance is excellent on deer.

In those early days of reloading — as the distances at which the Northeast deer woods allowed were short — if my loads were of 2 MOA accuracy or less, that was fine. Shots over 60 yards were a rarity, and they got the job done. But, if nothing else, they planted the seed for a reloading nut, and I was eager to load and test many different deer bullets for both accuracy and terminal performance.

Ample Options For Deer Season

I ended up feeding that .308 Winchester what I consider to be one of the best deer bullets on the market: the 165-grain Sierra GameKing hollowpoint. This bullet was part of the equation that resulted in what was my first truly accurate handload, as well as resulting in a considerable amount of meat in the freezer.

It has a hollowpoint crimped to look like the letter X — for reliable expansion — yet has a thick jacket to keep that expansion rate in check, and a boat tail for longer ranges. I’ve loaded this bullet not only in the .308 Win., but also in the .30-06 and .300 Winchester Magnum, and it stood up to all three. No crimping groove, just a plain old bullet built right, and one that continues to serve to this day.

The Nosler Ballistic Tip is another good choice when it comes to deer bullets that has served well in many different situations. It’s certainly accurate, though it has developed a reputation for being overly frangible on game larger than deer. However, on deer and deer-sized animals, if of sufficient weight, the Ballistic Tip is lights out. My little .308 Win. loves the 165-grain BTs, and there’s enough bullet there for good penetration in addition to the expansion and resulting wound channels that deer hunters love. It’s sleek with a good ballistic coefficient (BC), but not so sleek as to require a longer-than-normal seating depth.

Deer Bullets -thrid
Round-nose bullets are valid options when shots run fairly close. These Hornady 220-grain InterLock RNs are perfect for large game at reasonable distances.

The Speer softpoints, as well as the Remington Core-Lokt, have received mixed reviews over the years, but I’ve used both to take deer. They aren’t the strongest of deer bullets, and when I use them I do my best to keep two ideas in mind: I want a bullet in the middle to heavy end of the spectrum, and I want to keep the velocities mild. Quite obviously, they’ve worked for decades, but I have found some of the Speer line to be damned near explosive.

Reloading Considerations

What do these all have in common for the reloader? Well, a couple of things:

First, they are an affordable means of developing your handloads — and handloading skills — allowing for quite a bit of experimentation without breaking the bank. Second, they are usually of simple design and will avoid some of the more complex reloading ideas associated with the more radical developments. They take up considerably less room in the case than the monometals and really high BC bullets do, making life a bit easier for the reloader. The ogives of the spitzers tend to be more rounded, making bullet seating a bit easier as well.

And, one last point: If you hunt in the forests and woodlands where shots tend to be a bit closer, don’t overlook the old round nose designs; I use the Hornady InterLock quite regularly, and the Sierra round noses are equally dependable. They impart their energy wonderfully, and keeping their weight forward, they give all sorts of room in the case, making loading for the .308 Winchester, .250-3000 Savage and other shorter cases a breeze.

Here’s to a great deer season!

Editor's Note: This article originally appeared in the November 2017 issue of Gun Digest the Magazine.

Reloading Dangerous Game Cartridges: Life in the .40s

  • Reloaded ammunition is just as reliable as factory ammo when facing dangerous game, assuming you have put in your time at the bench and shooting range to verify.
  • Handloading dangerous game cartridges allows you to select high-performance bullets for the toughest critters.
  • Many classic safari cartridges are inherently versatile, a trait handloaders can take full advantage of.

Is reloading your own dangerous game cartridges a good idea? Phil Massaro takes several .40-caliber rifle cartridges to the Dark Continent to find out.

The .416 Remington Magnum and 400-grain Swift A-Frames and Hornady Solids. Photo: J.D. Fielding
The .416 Remington Magnum and 400-grain Swift A-Frames and Hornady Solids. Photo: J.D. Fielding

Deep into the Nyaminga block of Zambia’s Luangwa Valley, Professional Hunter Nicky Wightman gingerly spread the shooting sticks, eyeballing the Cape buffalo bull that was lying down 40 yards away. He and Lamec, his tracker and right-hand man, were silently communicating about the bull and whether or not he was old enough to take, while I stood by, with my Model 70 in .416 Remington, handloaded with 400-grain Swift A-Frames.

Although every nerve stood on edge, I knew exactly what the rifle would do, as I had spent countless hours at the bench, and in practice from field positions. While the gun gave acceptable accuracy with factory ammunition, it shot sub-MOA with my handloads, and I knew that was the proper ammunition to use.

We sorted that bull out with a well-placed first shot, and a second A-Frame to ‘pay the insurance,’ as the saying goes, and both bullets rested against the offside shoulder skin. They gave perfect performance, imparting all 5,000 ft.-lbs. within the bull, and killed quickly and humanely.

Buffalo bull taken with .416 Rem handloads.
Buffalo bull taken with .416 Rem handloads.

Fast forward almost four years and I stood with PHs Tim Schultz and Danie Wingard in Matabeleland North in Zimbabwe, with a huge-bodied bull elephant on the other end of the line. This time I carried a Heym Express in .404 Jeffery, handloaded with 400-grain Woodleigh Hydrostatically Stabilized Solids, at a muzzle velocity of 2,280 fps. It was a short hunt, and the bull was essentially gift-wrapped, feeding at 16 yards.

The first shot nearly put the bull down on his haunches, and the second sealed the deal. My hunting buddy Dave deMoulpied had booked this hunt for me, and had come along as a camera man. After the bull was down, and the respects were paid, Dave showed me the footage. The Woodleigh solid had hit exactly where aimed, and the video showed the effect of that well-designed bullet, a heart/lung shot which penetrated the entire elephant.

“Buddy, I’m glad you went with the Woodleigh,” said Dave. “That hit was as impressive as the shots I’ve seen from .470s.” Now, I know for certain that the .404 Jeff is not the equal of the mighty .470 Nitro Express, but it is a perfectly viable big game cartridge, suitable for absolutely anything on earth. That’s what I want to discuss: the benefits of handloading rifles in the .410-.423 calibers, and why they make so much sense for the traveling hunter.

Everybody who has hunted Africa is aware of the versatility of the famous .375 H&H Belted Rimless Magnum; there’s simply no denying the fact that a good .375 H&H will get the job done, regardless of species. I’ve heard from more than one PH, “When in doubt, bring a .375 H&H.”

That said, when it comes to the heavyweights like buffalo and elephant, there’s no denying that the .40s hit harder, and the visible effect of the shot is plainly evident. However, the beauty of the .375 is its versatility; it can take the biggest elephant bull, but is also suitable for oribi, duiker and steenbok.

I own a .375, I shoot it and I love it, but I’m also a huge fan of the .40s for reasons we’ll outline shortly. What I like to do as a handloader, is to do my best to approximate the versatility of the .375s in the .40 calibers.

Accuracy of .404 Jeffery Heym rifle with Woodleigh Hydro solids.
Accuracy of .404 Jeffery Heym rifle with Woodleigh Hydro solids.

In this class of rifles, I like the following cartridges (in order of caliber) for a versatile hunting rifle: the .450/400 3” Nitro Express, the .416 Rigby, the .416 Remington, the .416 Ruger, the wildcat .416 Taylor, and the venerable .404 Jeffery. All of them have made their reputations shooting a 400-grain bullet of good sectional density, at muzzle velocities of 2,050 fps (for the .450/400), up to 2,400 fps for the .416s, with the .404 coming in somewhere in the middle, depending on how you load it.

The classic recipe of the 400-grain bullets at 2,400 fps from the .416s will yield just about 5,000 ft.-lbs. of kinetic energy at the muzzle, yet is surprisingly easy on the shoulder, especially in comparison to the .458s pushing a 500-grain slug at 2,150 fps or so.

The .450/400 3-Inch Nitro Express

The .450/400 NE works well at the much lower velocity, being a perfect choice for the recoil-sensitive shooter to use against the heavyweights. The penetrative qualities of the .410-inch diameter bullet are legendary; flipping through John ‘Pondoro’ Taylor’s classic African Rifles and Cartridges will yield the following comments:

“It’s one of the grandest weapons imaginable for all big game hunting…  …I have used it extensively on all kinds of African game from elephant down with the greatest possible satisfaction.”

That is what I would call a ringing endorsement from a man with decades of field experience. The bullets of today are much better than those of Pondoro’s era, and the recent revival of this case is due to Ruger chambering their No. 1 single-shot rifle in this cartridge, and Hornady’s factory ammo available with the potent combination of DGX and DGS bullets.

Dave deMoulpied’s .416 Rigby with 325-grain Cutting Edge Safari Raptors.
Dave deMoulpied’s .416 Rigby with 325-grain Cutting Edge Safari Raptors.

My buddy Doug Giles, international hunter and author of Rise, Kill and Eat, is a huge proponent of the .450/400, and has both the No.1 and a sweet double in this cartridge. He asked me to handload some ammo for his upcoming safaris, which will include buffalo and big cats. I immediately recommended the North Fork trio of bullets: the semi-spitzer bonded core, the Percussion Point (similar to the semi-spitzer, but skived at the nose for greater expansion on cats), and the fantastic monometal Flat Point solid, all in 400-grain configuration. His double regulates well with the existing Hornady ammo, but Doug was after a custom ammunition experience.

I got my hands on some Hornady cases and a set of RCBS dies, and taking a long look at several reloading manuals, I settled on a load of 83.0 grains of Alliant’s Reloder-19 and a Federal GM215M primer, which gave a muzzle velocity of 2,075 fps, in close proximity to the Hornady load, and (thankfully!) it shot just perfectly from Doug’s rifles. He is now well equipped for any game animal on earth, including the dangerous stuff of Africa and North America.

Author with Blue Wildebeest.
Author with Blue Wildebeest.

The .416s

Undoubtedly, we owe the popularity of the .416-inch diameter cartridges to the writings of Robert Ruark, as he made both PH Harry Selby and the .416 Rigby famous in his classic safari book Horn of the Hunter. I, for one, am very happy he did that, because prior to that 1950s literary gem, the .416 was a proprietary cartridge that was little used.

During the 1960s and 70s, as Kynoch faded away as an ammunition producer and supplies dwindled for the classic British rifles, an American PH named George Hoffman necked the .375 H&H case up to hold .416-inch bullets, resulting in the .416 Hoffman.

Bob Chatfield-Taylor did a similar thing, but based his case on the shorter (2.500-inch) .458 Winchester Magnum case, giving birth to the .416 Taylor. Remington saw the value of the Hoffman design, and modified their 8mm Remington Magnum case to create the .416 Remington Magnum, released in the year I graduated high school, 1988. The Hornady/Ruger team had great success with the .375 Ruger cartridge, and modified the beltless design to yield the .416 Ruger, fitting in a standard-length rifle action.

All these cartridges, generally speaking, deliver the wonderful 400-grain .416-caliber bullet at or near 2,400 fps, and this is a magic combination. For the handloader, there are many premium 400-grain bullets available that aren’t commercially loaded.

Remington did, at one time, load the 400-grain Swift A-Frame for the .416 Rem, but I don’t find that in their catalogs any longer. I’ve said this before, but it warrants repeating: I feel that the Swift A-Frame, in a heavy-for-caliber weight, is the best Cape buffalo bullet on the market. It gives good expansion at a wide range of velocities, fantastic (90%+) weight retention, but most importantly it is strong enough to penetrate the biggest buffalo at any angle. I’ve used it extensively in my .416 Remington, not just on buffalo, but on a wide variety of plains game, from bushbuck and puku, to warthog and hartebeest, all with good results.

Author’s .404 Jeffery ammo.
Author’s .404 Jeffery ammo.

Dave deMoulpied’s AHR in .416 Rigby loves the 400-grain A-Frame, but at a reduced velocity of 2,250 fps, because that’s where we found the accuracy. Ninety grains of Reloder-19 prints three of them into sub-MOA groups at 100 yards.

Pair these A-Frames with a good solid and you’ve got the quintessential buffalo battery. While the Barnes Banded Solids, Trophy Bonded Sledgehammers and Hornady DGS are fantastic choices, for buffalo especially, I like a pair of ‘new-wave’ designs that have come along.

The idea is this (although it is changing quickly): The first shot on buffalo should most definitely be a premium soft point, many of the older Professional Hunters demand a solid (read non-expanding) bullet for the follow up shots, to ensure penetration from any angle. The solids give exactly that; but offer no expansion at all to destroy vital tissue. Here’s where the new-wave designs enter the mix.

The Woodleigh Hydrostatically Stabilized Solid, and the North Fork Cup solid, both have a small “dish” shaped meplat, enough to either create a shockwave of damage, or to give the slightest bit of expansion at the meplat for more tissue damage than traditional solids give. For buffalo, I like them both very much. Both shoot very accurately, and most importantly, to the same point of impact as most of the premium softpoints.

That idea of getting your solids to hit the same place as your softpoints, can be a bit of work for the handloader. The .375 is one of the most forgiving calibers in that respect, and I can say that my .416 Remington is as well.

The .450/400 makes a great low-recoil choice for Africa.
The .450/400 makes a great low-recoil choice for Africa.

My Model 70 .416 Remington likes just about any 400-grain bullet over a charge of 78.0 grains of IMR-4064 with the Federal GM215M primer. I use Remington nickel cases for the solids, and Norma brass cases for the softpoints, so I can easily distinguish one load from the other. If your rifle won’t regulate softs and solids to the same point of impact, you’ll have to tinker with the loads until you can find the best combination of individual accuracy for each load, and a common point of impact.

Generally speaking, I’ve found that backing off the load  a grain or two for the solids can help bring them into line; in my experiences they tend to hit high.

Now, more about that versatility thing I mentioned early on. The .416s certainly shine when using the 400-grain slugs, and that weight makes a great all-around load. It’s been my go-to choice for my .416 Rem. on two safaris, and it works well.

But maybe there are situations where you’d like to use a .416 with a lighter load, for a flatter trajectory. That very thing happened to me on my last safari. It was actually two safaris in one, as Dave deMoulpied and I were hunting for three days in the Waterberg District of South Africa for plains game, and then heading up to Zimbabwe for elephant near the Hwange National Park. I had the aforementioned Heym in .404 Jeffery, but I asked Dave to bring his .416 Rigby, in case some misfortune should befall the Heym.

For plains game, we discussed some lighter bullets that would give suitable performance and a flatter trajectory, should a longer shot present itself.

Enter Cutting Edge Bullets, with their 325-grain Safari Raptor. These bullets are constructed of brass, with a deep hollowpoint. The walls of the hollowpoint are skived, so that when the bullet strikes flesh, the walls of the hollowpoint break into small blades, creating all sorts of impact trauma. The rest of the bullet remains at caliber dimension, to penetrate very deep into the vital organs, often penetrating the entire animal. Really cool concept, and I was eager to put them through field tests.

.416 Ruger Hornady cases, Barnes TSX 400-grain bullets and Hodgdon’s VARGET powder.
.416 Ruger Hornady cases, Barnes TSX 400-grain bullets and Hodgdon’s VARGET powder.

We pretty much nailed it on the first try. A mix of Hornady .416 Rigby cases, an even 100.0 grains of Reloder-22, Federal 215 primer and the CEB 325-grain Raptor printed groups of just under an inch at 100 yards. Dave made a few clicks of adjustment on his scope, and he was set. The Oehler chrony showed 2,550 fps, so longer shots wouldn’t pose a problem.

The big cow wildebeest dropped to a frontal shot from 80 yards as if she were pole-axed; and Dave’s impala didn’t even have time to react. Both were one-shot kills, and while there may have been a bit of bloodshot meat, these bullets certainly did their job. It was Dave’s zebra that impressed me most.

The striped horses of Africa have a reputation for being very tough, especially if hit improperly. Dave put that 325-grain Raptor right in the boiler room, a perfectly placed shot, from just under 200 yards away. The beautiful mare simply fell out of the scope. These lighter bullets do quite a bit for the versatility of the .416s, especially when hunting plains game. Other that the blades, there was nothing for the skinners to recover.

On the other end of the spectrum, there are some heavyweights available for the .416 rifles as well. Woodleigh’s Weldcore and Solid bullets both come in 450 grains, and we can drive them to 2,150 fps. Those heavy 450s have a sectional density of 0.371, and should be fantastic for buffalo, elephant, hippo and other plus-size game animals. Another way to look at it is that you’re only 50 grains lighter than the .458s, and while you’ll be giving up a bit in frontal diameter, you gain in the SD figures.

The .416 Ruger case is, like the Rigby, a beltless case, but shortened to fit in a standard .30-’06 length action. My good buddy Tim Wegner absolutely loves this cartridge, and asked me to handload him some of the fantastic 400-grain Barnes TSX bullets.

Dave deMoulpied with an impala.
Dave deMoulpied with an impala.

While the factory stuff claims to reach the mystical 2,400 fps, even in the shorter Ruger African barrels (I haven’t had an opportunity to test the factory stuff), according to the manuals the handloads should run somewhere between 2,250 and 2,300 fps.

I had the best blend of velocity and accuracy using 75.5 grains of Hodgdon’s VARGET, in Hornady cases, fueled by a Federal GM215M primer. This gave 2,270 fps at the muzzle, and just over MOA accuracy – plenty enough for big bears, buffalo, or any other nasty worthy of a premium softpoint.

Among the .416s, I’ve found that the Rigby case gives the most severe recoil, due to the fact that the voluminous case (designed around the temperature sensitive Cordite) requires 90-100 grains of powder, depending on burn rate, while the Remington and Ruger cases run at 75-80 grains for most loads, albeit at a higher pressure.

While I like the Rigby, and appreciate its place is African cartridge history, I feel that the Remington case especially has been one of the most useful modern updates of a proven classic, offering all the same ballistics in a cartridge case and rifle that is smaller and handier in the field. The Rigby case will work best with powders on the slower end of the spectrum, like IMR4350, Reloder-19 and 22 and H4831, while the Remington and Ruger cases like a medium burning powder, like Reloder-15, IMR4064 and Hodgdon’s VARGET.

The .404 Jeffery

I feel like I’ve found a new old toy in the attic; the .404 Jeffery was always a cartridge that interested me, but until recently I didn’t have an opportunity to experiment with it. My buddy Chris Sells, of Double Gun Imports, acts as the importer for Heym rifles of Germany. While Heym has a fantastic reputation in the double rifle community, their Express bolt-action rifle is a little-known gem.

Stocked to feel like a fine British rifle of classic vintage, and using Heym’s proprietary action, which they make differently for each individual caliber, this rifle is poetry in steel and walnut, balancing like a fine shotgun. When Chris offered the use of a .404 Jeffery for my plains game/elephant safari, I jumped at the opportunity.

The .404 Jeff has long been an African classic, being chosen as the standard issue rifle cartridge for most of Eastern and Southern Africa’s game rangers, and its moderate recoil and striking power offer a fantastic balance of shootability and performance.

Ruark’s writing propelled the .416s to the forefront, but the .404 was truly the workhorse of Africa. Designed in 1909, the Jeffery case was intended to be the rimless equivalent of the .450/400; however the bullet diameter changed from .410 to .423, for reasons I can’t explain.

40s-13c
Author with Impala ram.

At any rate, the muzzle velocity of 2,150 fps with a 400-grain bullet generated just over 4,000 ft.-lbs. of energy, more than enough for the largest game, but the sedate muzzle velocity is directly proportional to the moderate recoil. I will say that the felt recoil of a .404, with the classic loading, is less than that of the .375 H&H, especially in recoil speed. The older load’s velocity is easy to attain as a handloader, and still works as well as it did in 1909.

The modern load is the 400-grain bullet, driven to 2,350 fps, putting it in the same league as the .416s. My own load for my safari was somewhere in the middle, and it worked out just perfect. I was using the 400-grain Woodleigh Hydrostatically Stabilized solids, over 80.0 grains of Reloder 15, sparked by the Federal GM215M primer, in Norma cases.

This combination yields 2,280 fps at the muzzle, for around 4,650 ft.-lbs. of energy, and will print MOA three-shot groups if I do my part. As I told you early on, this Woodleigh bullet gives fantastic penetration, and they worked well on both wildebeest and impala in addition to the huge-bodied bull elephant.

For a good all-around load, the Woodleigh Hydro solid is a fine choice. The other bullets I tried, like the 400-grain Hornady DGS and the North Fork semi-spitzer, liked the same load. While other powders will certainly work, I like Reloder 15 as a good medium burn rate choice.

Being a curious creature, I wanted to see if that Cutting Edge Safari Raptor that worked so well in Dave’s .416 Rigby would perform in the Jeffery. At 325 grains, it gave up a bit of the sectional density that the 400 grainers will give, but can be loaded to a higher velocity. The Heym liked them very much, putting them into MOA accuracy, and actually printing them to the same point of impact as the 400-grain Woodleighs. 85.0 grains of Reloder 15 gave a velocity of 2,560 fps, bringing the .404 into the realm of the .375 H&H, as far as decent trajectory goes.

I brought that load over with me, with the intention of taking a bush pig with it.  My PH, Cornus du Plooy made a great blind and set up, and while we put our time in, the bush pigs decided not to take part in our particular hunting adventure.

Norma has introduced a new load for the .404 Jeff, in their African PH line of ammunition. PH Kevin ‘Doctari’ Robertson has helped to shape the ballistics, and it is well thought out in addition to being very useful. Their factory ammo pushes a heavy-for-caliber 450-grain Woodleigh softpoint and solid at 2,150 fps, for 2,650 ft.-lbs.

This makes good sense, especially for buffalo and elephant. The lower muzzle velocity has worked with the 400-grain bullets for over a century, but with an additional 50 grains of bullet, the sectional density figures increase considerably, which will make a cartridge that has a reputation for incredible penetration even better.

Author’s combination of 325-grain Cutting Edge Bullets and 400-grain Woodleigh Hydro Solids.
Author’s combination of 325-grain Cutting Edge Bullets and 400-grain Woodleigh Hydro Solids.

We can reproduce this formula at the bench. These Woodleigh bullets are available in component form for us handloaders, and if the heavyweights are on your list, there is no reason not to take advantage of them.

I think that the 450-grain Woodleigh Weldcore would make a terrific bullet for big grizzly bears, interior or coastal. You’ll definitely want a large rifle magnum primer, and I’d stick to powders on the faster end of the spectrum, as the longer bullets will start to eat up some of your case capacity.

With an effective bullet range of 325 grain up to 450 grains, and good cases produced by Norma and Hornady, the old Jeffery case should be seeing a revival in the next decade. Get a good set of dies from RCBS or Redding, and find a rifle that fits you well. After my safari, I called Chris Sells of Heym and asked him to hold on to the return shipping label for that Heym Express, and send an invoice in its place. I’ll be hunting with this rifle for years to come.

Conclusion

I’ve had people tell me that my sanity is questionable because I hunt dangerous game with handloaded ammunition. While I totally agree with the fact that factory ammunition is better than it’s ever been, I feel that the diligence that I put into assembling the ammunition cannot be matched by the machines.

I weigh the bullets, resize all the brand new cases, weigh every powder charge, and make sure that each and every round I intend to hunt with has been run through the rifle’s chamber, to ensure that there will be no feeding issues. After five safaris, I can honestly say that with the exception of .22 LR ammunition, I’ve never pulled the trigger on factory ammunition in the game fields, and I’m totally OK with that!

Editor’s Note: This excerpt is from Handloader’s Digest, 19th Edition available now at GunDigestStore.com

DISCLAIMER: Any and all loading data found in this article or book, including past or future editions, is to be taken as reference material only. The publishers, editors, authors, contributors, and their entities bear no responsibility for the use by others of the data included herein. 

Reloading: Accuracy’s Unsung Hero — Powder

There are a ton of great powders out there for reloaders — and not all of them are new.

Getting the most out of your powder:

The means of propelling a projectile is an often-overlooked link in the ballistic chain. Whether you credit the Chinese — who had developed the substance earliest — or the works of Friar Roger Bacon, the use of gunpowder to launch a bullet changed the world forever. Black powder, that mixture of sulfur, saltpeter and charcoal, remained relatively unchanged until the mid-19th century, when nitric acid was put upon cellulose to produce nitrocellulose.

Three of the original IMR powders, released in the 1930s. They gave good accuracy then, as they do now, but the modern developments offer some advantages.
Three of the original IMR powders, released in the 1930s. They gave good accuracy then, as they do now, but the modern developments offer some advantages.

This substance was known as guncotton, and it was capable of producing pressures and velocities much greater than its black powder counterpart, and it took a bit to develop metallurgy that could withstand the pressures generated. Later, in 1887, Mr. Alfred Nobel invented Ballistite, which consisted of a mixture of nitroglycerine and nitrocellulose and created a plasticized substance that was a stabile compound. This substance was something of a precursor to cordite, a British version introduced two years later.

Cordite was the chosen propellant for many of our classic cartridges. One of cordite’s little peculiarities was the fact that it was extremely sensitive to temperature fluctuation, and those cartridges that were developed in England and Continental Europe often saw dramatic pressure increases when brought to Africa and India. The heat of the tropics quickly brought out the flaws of cordite, from extraction troubles to cracked receivers, and this is why some of the huge cases like the .416 Rigby and the .470 Nitro Express came about. They simply needed that case volume to keep the pressures at an acceptable level.

Our modern era of smokeless powders has seen incredible advances in the science of propellants; these new developments have made the older cartridge designs even more effective, and they’re an important part of the excellent accuracy we are all enjoying today. It’s relatively simple: Accuracy is — taking the shooter’s effects out of the equation — a product of consistency, in cartridge, projectile and barrel.

The Silent Partner

We’re all pretty familiar with the quality of modern barrels, and most definitely with the fantastic bullets of the 21st century, but the powders have an equally important role. If you’re not a handloader, you might not have an opportunity to examine or experiment with the variations in powder performance, at least not in a method that is controllable.

IMR4350 has been faulted for its velocity variations as temperatures change, but it sure has served the author well in many different climates, in many different cartridges. Old is not dead, and IMR4350 will remain a staple.
IMR4350 has been faulted for its velocity variations as temperatures change, but it sure has served the author well in many different climates, in many different cartridges. Old is not dead, and IMR4350 will remain a staple.

If you handload your ammunition, you’ve more than likely seen how big a part that powder choice plays in the results of your handloaded ammunition. In either case, a deeper investigation is warranted in order to best understand how our ammunition works and how to arrive at the best results for your particular shooting situation.

There are three types of grain structure we need to be concerned with: flake, ball and stick. Flake powders are usually employed in handgun cartridges and shotshells, as they tend to have a fast burn rate that is optimal for both of those applications. Ball powders are good choices for rifle cartridges with a lesser case capacity, especially when using the longer-for-caliber bullets. Stick powder is extruded into thin, spaghetti-like sticks and then cut to a specific length. It’s stick powder that dominates the rifle cartridge market.

We owe much to the DuPont company, founded in America just after the turn of the 19th century, for the development of powders we’ve relied on for the past 80 years. Under the IMR, or Improved Military Rifle, brand, DuPont gave us the classic IMR 3031, IMR 4064 and IMR 4350 — all during the 1930s. These powders gave handloaders and wildcatters a means of expounding on the magnum cartridge idea, developing higher pressures and correlative velocities.

Alliant Reloder 16 gave great results in the author’s .318 Westley Richards, keeping the Standard Deviation on Velocity to single digits.
Alliant Reloder 16 gave great results in the author’s .318 Westley Richards, keeping the Standard Deviation on Velocity to single digits.

After the Second World War, Bruce Hodgdon — who learned that the U.S. government had burned huge amounts of surplus powder at the end of WWI — decided that he’d market surplus powder. The Hodgdon Powder Company sold kegs of 4895 — designed for the .30-06 but useful in many cartridges — and began a journey that continues to this day. While those early powder developments are still used by many today, there are many new offerings that have changed the game.

As a handloader, I use many different brands of powder, including Hodgdon, IMR, Winchester, Alliant, Norma and Vihtavuori. Some of the first accurate loads I ever developed are still in use and will more than likely remain so, based on the “if-it-ain’t-broke-don’t-fix-it” theory, but I also enjoy experimenting with new powders in a constant effort to improve performance.

In the effort to enhance accuracy — something every shooter chases — powder engineers have made every effort to reduce the velocity variations produced by temperature fluctuation. It has been an accepted premise that ammunition would lose 1-2 fps for every Fahrenheit degree of change from the mean temperature of 68 degrees, which might not seem like much, but it’s a definite factor when hunting in extreme temperatures. It also might not dramatically affect trajectory at sane hunting ranges, but it can be a nagging problem for the long-range target shooters.

New-But-Proven Champions

Three of the four IMR Enduron powders, engineered for temperature insensitivity, as well as reducing copper fouling.
Three of the four IMR Enduron powders, engineered for
temperature insensitivity, as well as reducing copper fouling.

Hodgdon has been at the forefront of powder development, in both their Extreme line — which includes VARGET, H4831SC, and H322 — and in the IMR Enduron line (IMR is currently owned by Hodgdon), and both series of powders are designed to virtually negate the effects of temperature fluctuation. I’ve done a bit of work over the years with both of these lines of powders, and they’ve been true to the advertised claims.

When I handload my ammunition for African hunting, I do my best to test the ammo in the hottest conditions I can muster. I leave the cartridges and rifle in the summer sun to get them as warm as possible, and then test for pressure signs. If the area of Africa I’m hunting is cooler, then there are no pressure concerns, perhaps at worst a change of point of impact.

When I was heading to South Africa to hunt the first week of November, I knew things would be warm, but not as warm as I found out it would be. I had loaded a bunch of .300 Winchester Magnum with IMR 4451 — one of the quartet of Enduron powders — and found the accuracy pretty close to maximum. Temperatures during load development peaked at about 80 degrees, but our first full hunting day in South Africa rose to 112 degrees, and that’s hot enough to test the mettle of any powder. I’m happy to report that the Enduron powder functioned perfectly, giggling at the effects of the African blast furnace.

H335, one of Hodgdon’s spherical powders designed to run perfectly in the .223 Remington, saved the day for me when my Dad and I headed to Tanzania. Ol’ Grumpy Pants was bringing a Winchester Model 70 in .458 Winchester Magnum for Cape buffalo and wanted 500-grain bullets at 2,150 fps. I had some of the old A-Square Dead Tough softpoints and Monolithic Solids and went nuts trying to find a powder that would give me velocities anything close to what I wanted. Enter H335, a powder that took up the least amount of room yet delivered the goods in both the accuracy and velocity department. Three-shot groups measured an average of 1.5 MOA, and muzzle velocities ran at 2,120 fps. Mission accomplished.

Ramshot’s TAC saved the day with an older, finicky .300 Savage, bringing it quickly out of retirement.
Ramshot’s TAC saved the day with an older, finicky .300 Savage, bringing it quickly out of retirement.

A key part of accurate ammunition is a consistent muzzle velocity. The serious long-range shooters strive for a standard deviation on velocity in the single digits to ensure the most consistent performance. Hunting ammunition doesn’t necessarily need that same level of consistency, but it sure doesn’t hurt.

Sometimes, experimenting with new or different powders will yield some unexpected results in a rifle that will appear unsatisfactory. My buddy has a family heirloom: a Savage Model 99 in .300 Savage. That rifle, while equally handsome and sentimentally valuable, didn’t like any factory offerings; some groups were as large as 4 inches. Mike had given up on the rifle until I suggested we handload for it. The first attempts were fruitless. I grabbed a canister of Ramshot TAC powder, which has a burn rate perfect for the .300 Savage cartridge, and set to work. The first set of loads gave us 1.5-MOA groups, and after some tweaking, we got that rifle to print sub-MOA.

When my wife was preparing for her first safari, she knew she wanted to use her Legendary Arms Works Big Five rifle in .375 H&H Magnum. She trained with all sorts of ammunition, but we settled on a 235-grain Cutting Edge Raptor for the plains game species she was after. Experimenting with a few powders that I’d used in the three-seven-five before, I wasn’t getting what I wanted for Mama.

Once again, I tried some Norma 200 powder on a whim and was more than pleased with the results. Group size was 0.8 inch at 100 yards, and muzzle velocity was just shy of 2,800 fps. Had I stayed with the powders that work so well with the 300-grain bullets, I might have given up on the bullet and missed out on a great combination.

Pistol cartridges are equally benefitting from powder advancements. The Barnes XPB bullet is a good choice for those who hunt with a handgun, but it will definitely pose some different reloading challenges. They are long for caliber and take up a good amount of room in the case. Classic powders like Unique and Bullseye are still valid, but other choices such as AA No. 9 from Accurate Arms can make a huge difference in performance, especially with the monometals. Likewise, powders like Titegroup, CFE Pistol, IMR Unequal and Alliant’s Sport Pistol all deserve a worthy audition in your favorite handgun cartridges, where applicable.

Time-Proven Propellants

Now, with all these new developments, does that mean the old standbys are sent into obscurity? I don’t believe that’s the case at all.

Norma’s 200 powder gave some unlooked-for accuracy in the .375 H&H Magnum, using lighter bullets.
Norma’s 200 powder gave some unlooked-for accuracy in the .375 H&H Magnum, using lighter bullets.

Good old Reloder 19 — a powder oft cursed for its mood swings correlative to the thermometer — has given me some very accurate results. The same can be said for IMR 4350. Alliant’s Reloder 15 is a neat little secret for so many of the big-bore cartridges I love, giving good velocities with what feels like an appreciable reduction in recoil. IMR 4064 has been with us for over 80 years, yet it still fuels a .308 Winchester, .22-250 Remington and .375 H&H perfectly. That said, if I know for certain that I’m headed into an extreme environment, be it hot or cold, I might take full advantage of one of the less volatile powders and develop an entirely new load.

Battling Variances

What about the variances in powder, from one lot to the next? Does it play a part in the accuracy equation?
Absolutely.

I was invited to tour the Norma Precision ammunition plant in Sweden and got to see how the manufacturer’s African PH line of ammunition is put together. This ammunition line has a great reputation — my own Heym .404 will put three 450-grain Woodleigh softpoints from the Norma stuff into ¾-MOA — and I wanted to see what made it tick.

It turns out that the Norma African PH line is handloaded by a very talented man named Victor, and it’s part of that process to check the lot-to-lot variation in powder pressures and velocities. For example, the .470 Nitro Express ammunition needs to be at an even 2,150 fps in order to regulate properly in a double rifle. Each lot of powder is tested in a machine to verify that the tolerances are acceptable, and if not, an adjustment is made to rectify the variance.

Trust But Verify

I know — first hand — that all of the powder companies take every possible step to ensure that their products are the most consistent and repeatable that they produce, yet we handloaders need to be aware of the possible pitfalls, and the same theories explain why some factory ammunition will show variances from case to case. It’s better than it ever was, but still part of the bigger picture.

Powders-fourth

Should you change your favorite powder/bullet/cartridge combination? Well, that’s a personal decision, but I’m the type of hunter and handloader who likes to hedge his bets, always having a backup plan should we face the drought of 2013-2014. At the very least, you’ll enjoy the time spent with your handgun, shotgun or rifle while experimenting for a minimal investment.

Having good loads already developed for most of my rifles and handguns, I enjoy the sheer experimentation involved with new powders, adding to my library of loads. Either way, I feel that modern powder developments are as important as modern bullets or modern optics — they’ve made our lives as hunters and shooters much easier.

Editor's Note: This article originally appeared in the December 2017 issue of Gun Digest the Magazine.

Classic Cartridges: Is The .30-06 Springfield All You Need?

More than 100 years after its introduction, the venerable .30-06 Springfield remains one of the best all-around hunting cartridges. Period.

Why is the .30-06 still king of the hill?

  • It's been in use since 1906, has fought in two World Wars and hunted every continent.
  • The .308-inch bullet diameter is versatile; bullets of 100 to 240 grains are options.
  • This makes it flexible enough to take a wide variety of game animals.
  • It will push a 180-grain bullet around 2,700 to 2,800 fps, so long-range shots are possible.
  • Its recoil is manageable for a majority of shooters.

When it comes to playing with different cartridges, I’m like a little kid on Christmas Eve; I love the subtle nuances of each different development, and to be honest, there are only a few that make me wrinkle my nose. I’ve been privileged enough to spend a considerable amount of time with more than a few of them, either through handloading ammunition for them or taking them afield, sometimes to the more remote destinations on earth. But, just as with your favorite foods or music, you’ll often come back to that which has become an old standby, the one you know will work in any situation.

Because of its popularity, you can find .30-06 loads just about anywhere. And its performance and flexibility mean the .30-06 is likely to be king of the hill for some time to come.
Because of its popularity, you can find .30-06 loads just about anywhere. And its performance and flexibility mean the .30-06 is likely to be king of the hill for some time to come.

The .30-06 Springfield is just that.

It’s been with us since 1906 and has seen two World Wars and numerous bloody conflicts just as terrible without the label. It has hunted every continent huntable and has lived through market trends that have bordered on ridiculous. Yet, in spite of a dozen or more would-be contenders to the throne, in spite of modern powders and bullets, and in spite of more than a few gun writers proclaiming its lack of modern validity, the .30-06 Springfield still wears the championship belt proudly.

Why, pray tell? Why would we still be embracing a century-plus-old cartridge design and holding its performance level as the benchmark for .30-caliber cartridges? Because it works so well that it has rendered many other would-be replacements null and void.

Let’s look at the specifications before we delve into the history.

Unparalleled Statistics

We Americans have embraced the .308-inch bullet diameter — partly due to the performance of the Springfield — with good reason. It represents what might be the most versatile caliber choice, giving the shooter a lineup of bullets weighing between 100 and 240 grains, and offering enough killing potential to take every game animal on the North American continent, as well as the greater portion of African species.

The .30-06 Springfield is highly versatile, capable of launching bullets with weights ranging from about 100 to 240 grains.
The .30-06 Springfield is highly versatile, capable of launching bullets with weights ranging from about 100 to 240 grains.

How we drive those bullets has been a source of contention and even argument for a century. Some insist they need to be moving as fast as possible, some feel that a moderate velocity is the best choice, and some others enjoy a wide variety of velocities.

Yes, I’ll agree that the 7mm bore diameter is almost as versatile, but the .30 caliber remains the darling child of American hunters. The 150- to 220-grain bullets remain the most popular for hunting applications, but modern bullet developments have produced some good choices on both ends of those limits.

One of the talking points of the .30-06 Springfield is the fact that the case capacity allows the cartridge to take advantage of the full spectrum of the .30-caliber bullets. This fact, in addition to the muzzle velocity generated, makes for a very well-balanced marriage of flat trajectory, acceptable recoil and striking power.

The .30-06 will drive a 180-grain bullet — an excellent all-around choice for the big-game hunter — to a muzzle velocity of somewhere between 2,700 and 2,800 fps. This is a very respectable speed that will shoot flat enough to make distant shots feasible by a good rifleman, and it will generate somewhere around 3,000 ft.-lbs. of muzzle energy.

To touch on the recoil factor, the .30-06 can represent the top end of acceptable recoil for some big-game hunters, and that’s OK. We all have our limits, and I’d feel more comfortable with a hunter using a .30-06 to good effect than developing a flinch with a .300 Magnum. While there are good reasons to embrace the additional velocity (and correlative energy) of the larger-cased magnums, if the recoil is too severe for you to place your shots properly, the idea is defeated.

The .30-06 Springfield has probably taken just about every big-game species on the planet. It can handle North America’s largest bears, and it truly shines on game such as deer, elk and moose.
The .30-06 Springfield has probably taken just about every big-game species on the planet. It can handle North America’s largest bears, and it truly shines on game such as deer, elk and moose.

In the hunting world, the .30-06 Springfield is one of those cartridges that has probably been used to kill every species of huntable game on the planet — with varying degrees of success on the truly large and dangerous stuff. That said, even the great bears of the North can be taken with a .30-06, though there might be better choices. For deer, pronghorn, elk, moose and most other common North American species, the cartridge simply shines.

The lighter bullets — such as a good 150-grain spitzer — will leave the muzzle at more than 2,900 fps, making for an excellent deer/antelope/sheep load, and the middle-of-the-road 165-grain slugs are cruising along at just over 2,800 fps. The 150-, 165- and 180-grain bullets are the most popular and will handle the lion’s share of your hunting duties; however, if you prefer a bit more bullet weight for the larger animals, the 200- and 220-grain slugs are a sound choice. With fantastic sectional density (SD), those heavy bullets can have quite a dramatic effect and will guarantee deep penetration.

Should you wish to do a bit of varmint/predator hunting with your ’06, the 110- to 130-grain bullets will certainly do the job. However, I feel comfortable saying that using a .30-06 on a hot prairie dog town will start to get a little uncomfortable to even the most recoil insensitive.

The Amazing History

The Spanish-American War saw two important developments in American history: the rise of Theodore Roosevelt, and the unified conclusion that the 7×57 Mauser was vastly superior to our .30-40 Krag. The U.S. Army’s Ordinance Department began work on the replacement for the .30-40, and I’ve read several accounts that the .277-inch bullet diameter was considered. However, it seems that the fact that we were geared up to produce .30-caliber bullets influenced the decision to stick with that bullet diameter.

The ’06 has been a standby ever since its introduction more than 100 years ago. Shown here is a .30-06 load topped with the venerable Nosler Partition bullet.
The ’06 has been a standby ever since its introduction more than 100 years ago. Shown here is a .30-06 load topped with the venerable Nosler Partition bullet.

The rim diameter of the Mauser was adopted — at 0.473 inch — but the case was designed at 2.54 inches, or 65mm, which was considerably longer than the Mauser design. The 220-grain, round nosed bullet of the .30-40 Krag was retained, traveling at 2,300 fps, and the world was introduced to the .30-03 in the Model 1903 rifle. It was an improvement over the Krag, but the Army wasn’t quite satisfied.

Three years later, in 1906, the case was shortened to 2.494 inches, and the projectile was revised to a flat-base spitzer of 150 grains. At a muzzle velocity of 2,700 fps, this was rather revolutionary; the downrange performance was better than anything our soldiers had ever experienced. The “Cartridge, Ball, Caliber .30, Model of 1906” was on its way to glory both on the battlefield and in the hunting fields.

It was embraced by Roosevelt, Hemingway, Ruark and other writers who would influence a considerable amount of rifle purchases, and it would end up being loaded in just about every conceivable rifle action — from pump and single-shot to bolt and autoloader — ever produced. Again, it just plain works.

Fast Forward

The ’06 was replaced after the Korean War by its little brother, the .308 Winchester/7.62mm NATO, in soldiers’ hands, and it has also had some stiff competition from other .30-caliber cartridges in the hunting world. The .308 Winchester vs. .30-06 Springfield argument still rages on, but I really feel it’s a moot point; in the hunting field, their performance is so close that I really don’t feel any game animal would ever demonstrate a noticeable difference.

3006-fifth

Yes, folks rail about the shorter action being more rigid and a bit lighter, and the opposition cites the better performance of the Springfield with the heaviest bullets, but I’ve used both, and I would be equally comfortable using either. I’ve long been a fan of the .300 Win. Mag., as the rifle I have is extremely accurate and I do appreciate the additional horsepower in certain situations, but I can honestly say that any shot I’ve made with my .300 could have been made with a .30-06. The velocity and trajectory differences aren’t really all that radical.

There have been other .30-caliber cartridges that have come and gone, or are hanging on for dear life — the .30 TC, the .300 RCM, the .300 Savage and there are others — that have had a brief moment or possibly even a good run, but none have equaled the legacy of the Springfield. Even the larger magnums such as the .300 Weatherby, .300 Remington Ultra Magnum and the like have a definite following, but not like the .30-06. You can find ammunition nearly anywhere, but that is the effect of the popularity, not the cause.

The bottom line is this: In spite of its age, the Springfield design represents the penultimate balance of powder and bullet weight, in a case that can be housed in a rifle of reasonable length. I’ve never had an issue with the action length of a rifle; even the .375 H&H-length actions can be made to run very fast in the hands of an experienced rifleman. I feel, personally, that too much time is spent squabbling over a half-inch of case length, or a pound of rifle weight. That time would be much better spent learning how to properly shoot whichever cartridge/rifle combination you’ve chosen from actual field positions.

If you’ve chosen an oddball, so be it, and may it serve you well. Just please realize that among the popular medium-caliber hunting cartridges, the .30-06 is, was and shall be that against which all others are judged.

That’s saying something.

Editor's Note: This article originally appeared in the October 2017 issue of Gun Digest the Magazine.

How To: Crimping Handgun Cases

Handloading ammo for your favorite handgun shouldn’t be difficult, but you should never skimp on the crimping process.

What to know about crimping:

  • At the most basic there are two types of crimps: roll crimp and taper crimp.
  • A roll crimp is when the mouth of the case is rolled into the bullet's cannelure.
  • A taper crimp is where the sidewalls are squeezed against the bullet to secure things.
  • Roll crimping is used on most magnum revolver loads — those bullets with a cannelure.
  • Taper crimping is preferred for most autoloading pistol cartridges.
  • A third method, the “combo crimp” is another option.

Handgun cases generally aren’t a difficult prospect to load for, but the crimping process might require some additional attention in order to keep things as consistent as possible.

There are, generally, two types of crimps:

  • 1. Roll crimp: Where the mouth of the case is physically rolled into the bullet’s cannelure
  • 2. Taper crimp: Where the case mouth is left alone and the sidewalls are squeezed against the bullet to keep things in place

Crimping Pistol Cases-7Roll With It
Revolver loads using a bullet with a cannelure utilize the roll crimp. The true hard-kicking magnum cases, such as the .44 Rem. Mag., the .454 Casull and the .500 S&W, will easily cause a bullet to slip forward out of the case mouth. This bullet slip — also referred to as pulling crimp — can and will cause your cylinder to lock up tighter than a drum, and the fix is not easy. So, I make sure to put a nice, heavy roll crimp on all my revolver cartridges.

The process is rather simple and uses the seater die to apply the crimp. What I do, while setting up my dies, is to make several dummy cartridges to get the crimp and seating depth perfect before I start loading cartridges. Inside the seating die, at the very top of the die, is a small shelf that rolls the case mouth toward the center point of the case. It takes some experimentation — and several ruined cases — to find the proper amount of crimp by adjusting the seating die body up and down until you get it right.

Crimping Pistol Cases-6Once you do find it, and lock the die body down in the press, you’ll be all set — that is, until you switch bullets. A different bullet will most likely have a slightly different seating depth, and you’ll have to adjust the seater itself until you get the cannelure centered perfectly on the case mouth.

Roll crimping works best if you keep all your brass trimmed to the same uniform length. If your brass isn’t uniform, the short cases won’t have enough crimp, and the long cases will have too much crimp, bulging the case and making for feeding problems in the cylinder. I like to trim all my cases to the SAAMI-specified length, or just slightly shorter (I’ve had a few runs of brass that actually came short from the factory), so as to keep it all neat, tidy and uniform.

Crimping Pistol Cases-1Taming The Taper
Taper crimping is the preferred crimping method for the autoloading pistol cartridges and for revolver cases using bullets with no cannelure. A separate crimping die is employed, which will squeeze the case walls tightly against the shank of the bullet.

Because almost all of our popular rimless pistol cases — think 9mm Luger, .40 S&W and .45 ACP — use a good, square case mouth for headspacing, a roll crimp wouldn’t be a good idea, and the taper crimp is more than adequate to keep the bullets where you seat them during the violent cycling of the action.

Crimping Pistol Cases-4Applying any roll crimping to a cartridge that headspaces off the case mouth will definitely affect the case length, and it will create possible headspace issues, including errant velocities. The taper crimp method also works for the wheelguns, either in lieu of a roll crimp — again, for bullets with no cannelure — or in conjunction with a roll crimp, to further keep things in order and in place.

I’m a huge fan of the Redding Micro-Adjustable Taper Crimp dies because they’re furnished with a micrometer adjustment at the top of the die to allow the loader to precisely adjust the amount of crimp applied to the cartridges. It’s especially handy if you use a progressive press because you can quickly and accurately adjust the crimp should you switch brands of brass and find you require more or less. These dies allow for more precise adjustment, using the micrometer in lieu of adjustment via the die body, which relies on the pitch of the threads and that can introduce a bit of unnecessary slop into the mix.

Crimping Pistol Cases-5The ‘Combo’ Crimp
There’s a third method, a combination of the two types, designed for use with those cartridges that don’t headspace off the case mouth. The Redding Profile Crimp Dies combine the roll crimp and taper crimp for the ultimate in uniform crimping. These dies require the bullet to be seated first — and they must be seated to very tight tolerances in order to achieve the best consistent results — and the crimping is done in a secondary phase.

The cases then have both a roll crimp and taper crimp applied, giving extremely uniform results. I’ve used this method for making ammunition for the .44 Rem. Mag., .38 Special and .357 Mag., and I’ve noticed a marked improvement in accuracy and uniform velocities throughout.

Don’t get too crazy with the amount of crimp you apply; a light profile crimp will hold things nice and tight while not overworking your cases. The Profile Crimp dies might take a bit of getting used to, but once you’ve got things adjusted properly, you might find yourself wondering how you ever lived without them. These dies can help wring the most accuracy out of an already solid target pistol.

Crimping Pistol Cases-3They are also available with a micrometer adjustment, as the Micro-Adjustable Profile Crimp die, giving the same precise adjustment that the Micro-Adjustable Taper Crimp dies do. As a side note, Redding produces these crimp dies for many of the popular straight-walled rifle cases, such as the .45-70 Govt. and .458 Win. Mag., and many of the older black-powder-era cartridges like the .38-40 Win. and .32-20 Win.

Your crimp is a key part of the handgun ammo equation and can easily even out your velocities and tighten up your group sizes. After all, that’s a huge part of the reason we handload in the first place. A little bit of extra attention to the crimp will go a long way toward producing the best ammunition available.

Editor's Note: This “Reloading Bench” column is an excerpt from the September 2017 issue of Gun Digest the Magazine.

.300 Win. Mag.: The Answer To Most Hunting Questions

The .300 Win. Mag. is well-suited for hunting 95 percent of the world’s game. Phil Massaro explains why.

  • The .300 Win. Mag is based on the .375 H&H case, as are the .458, .338 and .264.
  • The cartridge is designed to fit a long action and is ballistically close to the .300 H&H.
  • Eminently versatile, the .300 Winchester Magnum is a true long-range cartridge that hits hard, yet is still manageable in the recoil department.
Norma’s .300 Win. Mag. 180-grain Oryx load.
Norma’s .300 Win. Mag. 180-grain Oryx load.

Brought to us in 1963, the .300 Win. Mag. was the fourth cartridge in a series of belted magnums designed to fit in a standard long (.30-’06 length) action. The .458, .338 and .264 were based on the same case — the .375 H&H Mag. — and shared the same shortened case length — 2.500 inch — to maintain a cartridge overall length of 3.340 inch. When Winchester announced the .300 Win. Mag., almost everyone expected the cartridge to be the .338 necked down to hold .308-inch bullets; essentially the .30-338 or very close to the .308 Norma Mag.

The author’s Winchester Model 70 Classic Stainless sports a 26-inch barrel and a Leupold VX-6 2-12x44 with the 30mm tube. There is something inherently accurate about the design of the round. The .300 Winnie just shoots.
The author’s Winchester Model 70 Classic Stainless sports a 26-inch barrel and a Leupold VX-6 2-12×44 with the 30mm tube. There is something inherently accurate about the design of the round. The .300 Winnie just shoots.

What they saw was a different design. The COL of 3.340 inch was held, but the case was elongated to 2.620 inch, and the neck length shortened to 0.264 inch. The result was a belted cartridge that fits in a long-action rifle and is the ballistic equivalent of the venerable .300 H&H, which requires the longer, magnum-length receiver.

It was less, in length and velocity, than the .300 Weatherby Mag., yet it was enough. The initial loading bettered the velocities of the cornerstone American cartridge, the .30-’06 Springfield, by 250 fps or so, giving a decided advantage in kinetic energy values as well.

The many fantastic choices among the already existing and field-proven .30-caliber bullets made for a versatile cartridge. Winchester used the same 25-degree shoulder for the .300 Win. that it used for the .338 and .264, but the added case capacity gave the Winchester cartridge an advantage over the Norma and the .30/338 wildcat. The resulting case holds 81 to 85 grains of water, depending on brand, when filled to the base of the neck.

Detractors immediately criticized the short neck, as it’s generally preferable to have a bottleneck cartridge use a neck dimension of at least one caliber in length. It had no negative effect. I have found there’s plenty of neck tension to keep things in place, even with the longest bullets, and among the myriad rifle cartridges I’ve loaded, the .300 Win. Mag., is among the most accurate.

Not unlike the .222 Rem. and .308 Win., there is something inherently accurate about the design of the .300 Win. — something lovers of ballistics cannot explain scientifically. To use the vernacular, the .300 Winnie just shoots.

Unlike the .308 Win., which will perform just fine in a rifle sporting a 20-inch barrel, the .300 Win. works best with a barrel of at least 24 inches to fully use the powder capacity of the case. I have two .300s. My Legendary Arms Works Professional has a 24-inch barrel, and my Winchester Model 70 Classic Stainless sports a 26-inch pipe. Neither rifle has ever been a handicap to me while hunting, regardless of how close the shots were or how thick the flora.

.300 Win. Mag

As they’re hunting rifles I use across the world, I’ve tried to set them up with riflescopes that can handle a variety of situations, from the prairie of Wyoming, to the tioga of Quebec to black bear in the inky hemlock and spruce thickets of the Catskill and Adirondack mountains of New York.

The Model 70 wears a Leupold VX-6 2-12×44 with a 30mm tube, which can focus up close to shoot a bear trying to dine on your lower extremities to caribou or elk at the edge of my self-imposed hunting limits. The Professional wears a Bushnell Elite 4500 2.5-10×40, a trim, bright piece of glass that’s lighter than most and matches the rifle well. Both of these riflescopes are reminiscent of the .300 Win.; capable of getting the job done no matter the range.

Much like the iconic .30-’06 Springfield, the .300 Win. is well-suited for hunting 95 percent of the world’s game. This is, in fact, partly because of the fabulous selection of .30-caliber bullets we have today. Although the recoil is rather severe to make it a good choice for varmint work, I’ve loaded some 125-grain Nosler Ballistic Tips that have printed rather impressive groups, cruising along at a muzzle velocity of 3,400 fps. Let’s just say the varmints didn’t stand a chance.

As a big-game round, however, the .300 Win. shines. From deer and hogs, to distant pronghorn antelope, to moose and elk, and the ungulates of Africa, I really like the .300 Win. as an all-around choice. The bullet choices for big game, with a handful of exceptions, run from 150 to 220 grains, and man, there are some wonderful choices.

.300 Win. Mag

I have used many of them in various applications. For most of my hunting with a .300 Winnie, I have found the 180-grain slugs give the best balance of trajectory, energy and accuracy. The lighter bullet choices will work, if of stout construction and if velocities are allowed to slow down a bit.

Whitetails hit with a standard cup-and-core 150-grain bullet at less than 100 yards from full-house .300 Win. ammunition have an exorbitant amount of blood-shot meat, and penetration can be poor because of violent expansion, brought on by impact velocities greater than 3,200 fps.

The standard 165-grain bullets are a bit better and are a perfect choice if you use a premium bullet. Heavyweight projectiles — 200- and 220-grain bullets — are good choices for the largest deer and antelope you would hunt with a .30-caliber, as well as for the bears and other game that can even the score in a hurry.

Most ammunition companies offer a few hunting loads in .300 Win. Mag., and many are very well constructed. The Federal Premium load featuring the 180-grain Trophy Copper Tipped bullet has provided more than satisfactory results from my rifles, and the solid copper construction ensures that premature bullet break-up is no issue.

The .300 Winchester Magnum is a joy for reloaders: There are tons of components available.
The .300 Winchester Magnum is a joy for reloaders: There are tons of components available.

ABM ammo makes a great long-range .300 Win. load built around the Berger 185-grain, which leaves the barrel at 3,080 fps and still delivers 2,365 foot-pounds of energy at 400 yards. The .300 Win. has attained the status most rifle calibers dream of: You can find ammunition, of one variety or another, in most back-country gun shops and almost all the box stores that sell ammunition and hunting supplies. It has become that universal.

But, in my opinion, handloading lets you see the true genius of the .300 Win. Mag. design as a hunting cartridge. I’ve received many comments and questions to this effect: “Why would I choose to use the magnum cartridge when there are so many fantastic rifles available in .308 Win. and .30-’06? What is the advantage, when so many of hunting shots are inside 200 yards?” My answer is: First, I shoot my .300 Wins. very well.

They are good rifles; accurate and well-fitted, and that’s very important. Second, I can, via handloading, create ammunition for my .300 Win. that will mimic the performance of the .308 Win. and/or .30-’06, but I can’t get my .308s and ‘06s to give me .300 Win. performance. When I’m on a hunt in unfamiliar territory, where I have the possibility of multiple species and/or distant shots, I’m much happier carrying a .300 and taking a close shot rather than one of the slower cartridges.

Through the years, I’ve developed a collection of pet loads that have given me reliable field performance on two continents and in many hunting situations. The .300 Win. Mag. is best served by a large rifle magnum primer. For most of my loads, I prefer Federal’s Gold Medal Match GM215M. The hotter spark gives a more uniform result, and the deviation of velocities tends to be very low.

The 300 Win. Mag., left, was the fourth cartridge in a series of belted magnums designed to fit in a standard long action. The other Winchester magnums are, from left to right, the .264, .338 and .458, all based on the .375 H&H Mag. case.
The 300 Win. Mag., left, was the fourth cartridge in a series of belted magnums designed to fit in a standard long action. The other Winchester magnums are, from left to right, the .264, .338 and .458, all based on the .375 H&H Mag. case.

The .300 Win. can be fueled by powders that range from the medium burning IMR4064 and Hodgdon’s VARGET to the slowest burning powders, such as IMR7828 and 7977 to Alliant’s Reloder 25. I like Norma brass and Federal GM215M primers to spark the large powder charges. For an all-around big-game load, I like two bullets: the 180-grain Sierra Game King for a standard bullet and the 180-grain Swift Scirocco II for a bonded-core choice. Both are boat-tail spitzer bullets, the Sierra being a standard cup-and-core, and the Swift a thick jacket, bonded-core polymer-tip design.

The Sierra accounted for my first caribou, taken across a frozen lake in Quebec at minus 15, and the Scirocco accounted for my best pronghorn, taken in Wyoming at the end of September, when the country there is as pretty as any place I’ve seen. Both loads have accompanied me on many local deer hunts in my native New York, and they have worked just fine.

These bullets like the same powder charges. I go back and forth between 68.5 grains of IMR453 and 73.0 grains of Alliant’s Reloder-19, as both have given me three-shot groups of less than ½ MOA, and both produce a velocity of about 2,960 fps, depending on the rifle and temperature. Although these bullets are rather long, there’s no problem seating them in the .300 Win. case and maintaining the SAAMI specified COL.

For my first African safari, I packed a .300 Win. as my light rifle, nicely complementing my .375 H&H Mag. Because kudu and eland were on the shopping list, I wanted a bullet that would not only deliver a decent trajectory but be strong enough to deliver the bone-smashing power that an antelope weighing almost a ton can demand.

I chose the 200-grain Swift A-Frame for this hunt, fueled by 75.0 grains of the slow-burning Reloder-25, for a muzzle velocity of 2,710 fps. This load, which printed 1-inch groups at 100 yards, accounted for my first head of African game: a heavy-horned gemsbok bull that holds a place of honor among my hunting trophies.

That combination, with that strong A-Frame bullet, which retains more than 90 percent of its weight, would easily handle interior grizzly bear and just about any creature shy of cape buffalo and elephant.

New York has a healthy population of black bears, which, although not particularly tough in comparison to grizzlies, can attain weights of 600 pounds or more. When an animal has claws and teeth that can rearrange your anatomy, I prefer to carry a rifle that ends an argument quickly.

I was reading some classic hunting literature in which the author waxed poetically about the virtues of the .30-’06 Springfield and the classic 220-grain round-nose load at 2,400 fps. I figured I could get the .300, with a bit of creative handloading, to perform the same.

Here are the .300 Win. Mag, right, and the .30-338, the latter being a .338 Win. Mag case necked down to hold .308-inch bullets, something very close to the .308 Norma Mag.
Here are the .300 Win. Mag, right, and the .30-338, the latter being a .338 Win. Mag case necked down to hold .308-inch bullets, something very close to the .308 Norma Mag.

It didn’t take long to obtain a box of good Hornady Interlocks and some old data from an aged reloading manual. I used 53.0 grains of IMR 4064 to achieve a muzzle velocity of 2,425 fps; perfect for whitetail and black bears. That load prints at 1 MOA, and has accounted for a New York black bear and my best local whitetail: an 11-point buck that proudly resides on the wall of my dining room.

The kudu bull I mentioned earlier was taken with a special load, built around the 150-grain Cutting Edge Bullets Copper Raptor bullet. The Raptor is a monometal hollow-point with a polymer tip. Upon impact, the skived walls of the hollow-point section break off into small blades for serious impact trauma, and the rear portion of the bullet remains at caliber dimension for deep penetration.

I know, a 150-grain seems awfully light for an animal the size of a kudu, which are often comparable to elk, but my previous experiences with these bullets engendered a bunch of confidence, and my theory that they would handle kudu and the like was proven correct. That bull dropped in his tracks.

That load also accounted for a big waterbuck bull at 215 yards a couple of days later. I used the new Enduron line of powder — IMR 4451 — to arrive at ¾ MOA accuracy and a muzzle velocity of 3,340 fps. According to Chris Hodgdon, president of the Hodgdon Powder Co., which now produces the IMR line, that marked the first use of IMR4451 in Africa. The only bullet base I recovered was from the kudu bull. All the other shots passed through, at ranges from 70 to 215 yards. All in all, it proved to be a thoroughly dependable load with very little recoil.

Among the hunting rounds, there are more powerful .30s on the market. The .300 Weatherby Mag., .300 Rem. Ultra Mag. and the behemoth .30-378 Weatherby will produce higher muzzle velocities and flatter trajectories than the .300 Win., yet that comes at the price of a considerable increase in recoil and barrel wear.

As an example, my dad’s favorite .30-caliber magnum is the .300 RUM, which will drive a 180-grain slug at faster than 3,350 fps but requires just shy of 100 grains of slow-burning powder to do so. My .300 Win. will push the same bullet at 3,050 fps but with fewer than 80 grains of powder, with much more comfortable and manageable recoil. Let’s also compare the trajectory of the two.

Using a 200-yard zero and the same 180-grain projectile, the .300 Win. will be 6 inches low at 300 yards and 18 inches low at 400 yards. The .300 RUM will be just less than 4 inches low at 300 yards and 12 inches low at 400. Although the RUM has an appreciable difference in long-range trajectory, the added case length, longer receiver and significant increase in recoil of the .300 RUM give the edge to the .300 Win., in my opinion.

This puts the 300 Win. Mag. in perspective with some other well-known cartridges. Left to right are the 308 Win., 30-’06 Springfield, 300 Win. Mag., 300 WSM and 300 RUM.
This puts the 300 Win. Mag. in perspective with some other well-known cartridges. Left to right are the 308 Win., 30-’06 Springfield, 300 Win. Mag., 300 WSM and 300 RUM.

Based on my shooting experiences, off the bench doing load development and in real-world hunting situations, I feel comfortable saying the .300 Win. has a power level the average shooter can accurately shoot without beginning to think about a muzzle brake. Everyone has a different level of recoil tolerance, but I know many shooters who insist on using a .300 Weatherby or bigger caliber and develop a nasty flinch, resulting in poor targets and wounded game.

No matter how big the case is, a .30-caliber bullet placed improperly will not kill game. I believe that among the choices for magnum cartridges, the .300 Win. Mag. (and its ballistic twin, the .300 H&H Mag.) makes the most logical and practical choice for sportsmen.

The .300 Win. is not only a hunting cartridge, though. It’s comfortable on the bench-rest circuit and has been adopted by the U.S. Marine Corps in sniper rifles. Paper-punchers can find many wonderful match-grade bullets that will print tiny cloverleaf groups.

With a 1:10-inch twist rate, the .300 Win. has the horsepower to push the heaviest target bullets, such as the 230-grain Berger Match Hybrid Target, at muzzle velocity of faster than 2,800 fps. With a G1 ballistic coefficient of 0.717, this combination offers the long-range target shooter all sorts of wind resistance — perfect for the 1,000-yard range.

The 168 and 180-grain Sierra Match Kings will also make fantastic choices for accurate target work. Although the recoil of a .300 Win. can be a bit much for extended shooting sessions, in a rifle with sufficient weight, it can be more than tolerable.

When it comes to the actual construction of the case, the belt is unnecessary. Unlike the .375 H&H, .300 H&H and .458 Win., the .300 headspaces off that well-pronounced shoulder. Those other cartridges can exhibit long-term case stretching just in front of the belt, but this effect seems to be minimized in the .300 Win.

The case feeds just fine, unlike some of the feeding issues associated with the Winchester Short Magnum series, and because it shares the same action length as the .30-’06, it’s quite easy to convert a rifle of .30-’06 length action to the .300 Win. Mag. Among the .30-caliber magnums, the .300 H&H owns the nostalgia category, and the .300 RUM wears the horsepower crown among commonly produced rifles, but you can take my word for it: The .300 Win. will hold its title of King Versatile for generations.

Author Phil Massaro used a .300 Win. Mag. to take this big kudu bull. The .300 Win. Mag. splits the difference between the .30-’06 Springfield and .300 Weatherby Mag. It works best in a rifle with a barrel at least 24 inches long. The author used a handloaded 150-grain Cutting Edge Bullets Copper Raptor bullet, a monumental hollow-point with a polymer tip. The new Enduron line of powder, IMR 4451, pushed the Raptor to a muzzle velocity of 3,340 fps.
Author Phil Massaro used a .300 Win. Mag. to take this big kudu bull. The .300 Win. Mag. splits the difference between the .30-’06 Springfield and .300 Weatherby Mag. It works best in a rifle with a barrel at least 24 inches long. The author used a handloaded 150-grain Cutting Edge Bullets Copper Raptor bullet, a monumental hollow-point with a polymer tip. The new Enduron line of powder, IMR 4451, pushed the Raptor to a muzzle velocity of 3,340 fps.

How does a .300 Win. compare to other calibers with a similar case capacity? Is it anemic when compared to the .338 Win. Mag.? Does the 7mm Rem. Mag. make a mockery of the .300 in the trajectory department? The answer to both questions is an emphatic no. The difference between the 7mm Rem. Mag. and the .300 is so slight that I believe the larger frontal diameter of the .300 — as well as the better selection of bullet weights — gives a definite edge to the .300 Win.

Although the .338 has an even larger diameter, the recoil begins to ramp up significantly. Even though the .338 can use bullets weighing 165 to 250 grains, the .300 can use bullets from 100 to 250 grains. Yes, that’s right; a 250-grain .30-caliber bullet. The 250-grain Barnes Original, which looks about as long as a golf pencil, will attain velocities of 2,500 fps — only 150 fps behind the .338 with the same bullet weight — and group rather accurately. Grab some Cutting Edge Bullets 100-grain Raptors for your .300 Win., and you’ve got as fine a coyote-killing machine as was ever invented.

There have been several cartridges that tried to usurp the .30-caliber magnum crown — such as the .300 Win. Short Mag. — but the .300 Win. still reigns supreme. The blend of flat trajectory, striking power and manageable recoil will ensure its position at the top of the heap.

Will it ever replace the king of all cartridges, the .30-’06 Springfield? Probably not. But although I’ve had some great hunting and shooting experiences with the ought-six, to me the .300 Win. represents a cartridge that delivers just a bit more, and although some folks reading this might deem that velocity advantage unnecessary, for me it engenders confidence in the rifle. I firmly believe that confidence is a huge part of good marksmanship.

Editor’s Note: This excerpt is from Cartridges of the World, 15th Edition.

The .45 Colt: A Wheelgun Classic

Everyone loves the classic .45 Colt cartridge, and it’s still relevant after almost 150 years.

  • The .45 Colt can be loaded down to soft-shooting cowboy loads, or pushed to the limit for heavy hunting applications.
  • There are a wide range of bullet styles and weights available for the cartridge, it’s a delight for any reloader.
  • An accurate cartridge, the .45 Colt loaded with good 250-grain bullets is no slouch on big game.
Left is the Falcon 230-grain FalCoated hardcast bullet next to a 255-grain cast-lead load. Though the .45 Colt has been criticized for having a thin case wall, the author has never had a problem working with the .45 Colt. He tries not to excessively flare the case mouth.
Left is the Falcon 230-grain FalCoated hardcast bullet next to a 255-grain cast-lead load. Though the .45 Colt has been criticized for having a thin case wall, the author has never had a problem working with the .45 Colt. He tries not to excessively flare the case mouth.

Still Valid After All These Years

The .45 Colt has hung on for years for several reasons. The cartridge has a sound design: a semi-rimmed configuration — that small rim has been criticized through the decades but has never posed a problem in my gun — that has enough case capacity to drive the .452-inch-diameter bullets to respectable velocities in older Single Action Army revolvers and even higher velocities in modern SAA clones, such as the Ruger Blackhawk I love so much.

The .45 Colt can be an excellent cartridge for sending paper banditos to Boot Hill (in cowboy action shooting) and neatly dispatching big game at sensible ranges. In a modern handgun, the .45 Colt can also be very accurate.

My pistol, a Ruger New Model Blackhawk, has adjustable sights that give me an accuracy edge compared to the fixed sights of the SAA clones. I can keep a full cylinder of shots within a 3-inch group at 45 yards, which is more than acceptable to me with my mid-40s eyes.

Left to right are three stout wheelgun cartridges: The .460 S&W, .454 Casull and venerable .45 Colt. The .45 Colt is sometimes called the .45 Long Colt, indicating the difference between it and the shorter Smith & Wesson Schofield case. The addition of the word Long irritates some shooters, but ammo companies use both names interchangeably. The .45 Colt is the basis for the .454 Casull, the latter being an elongated version of the Colt cartridge loaded to a much higher pressure. The .460 S&W takes the same rim and body diameter yet uses an even longer case — 1.800 inch for the .460 versus 1.285 for the Colt.
Left to right are three stout wheelgun cartridges: The .460 S&W, .454 Casull and venerable .45 Colt. The .45 Colt is sometimes called the .45 Long Colt, indicating the difference between it and the shorter Smith & Wesson Schofield case. The addition of the word Long irritates some shooters, but ammo companies use both names interchangeably. The .45 Colt is the basis for the .454 Casull, the latter being an elongated version of the Colt cartridge loaded to a much higher pressure. The .460 S&W takes the same rim and body diameter yet uses an even longer case — 1.800 inch for the .460 versus 1.285 for the Colt.

The Blackhawk has a 7½-inch barrel, generating a bit more velocity, but more important to me, giving me a longer sighting radius. My gun performs better with heavier bullets, and I’m fine with that. Anything heavier than 250 grains provides at least acceptable accuracy, with a few heavy slugs being exceptional.

The variation of bullet weights is another desirable feature of the .45 Colt. It can be loaded to purr like a kitten, and those mild loads are excellent for training a new shooter or for fun plinking days. Yet in my Blackhawk, it can launch slugs weighing up to 360 grains for serious big-game work.

Most ammunition manufacturers still offer the original load of a round-nose or flat-point lead bullet of 250 to 255 grains, with a muzzle velocity of about 800 fps, and that formula works as well as it did in 1873.

Yet folks who hunt big game with the old cartridge can find plenty of factory ammunition options, provided you have a pistol or rifle designed to handle the higher pressures. CorBon offers a 335-grain hardcast lead flat-point in the +P designation, which leaves the muzzle at 1,025 fps and produces 820 foot-pounds of energy.

If that’s not heavy enough for you, DoubleTap ammunition produces a 360-grain hard-cast wide flat-point, which produces 1,200 fps from the muzzle for 1,150 foot-pounds.

In a 16-inch-barreled rifle, that will leave the muzzle at just slower than 1,500 fps for more than 1,700 foot-pounds. That load, in a carbine, is approaching the performance of some lighter .45-70 Gov. loads and would handle about all North American game at close ranges.

There have been many modern upgrades to ammunition for the older wheelguns and lever-action rifles in the past decade, and the .45 Colt is no exception. The most popular is the Hornady LEVERevolution line, which includes the company’s proprietary FTX, or Flex Tip eXpanding, bullet, which uses a flexible polymer tip to allow the use of spitzer bullets in a tubular magazine of a lever-action rifle.

At 225 grains, the Hornady LEVERevolution load will leave the rifle’s muzzle at 900 fps, and provides a much flatter trajectory than the round-nose and flat-point bullets. That configuration adds quite a bit of versatility to traditional lever guns and makes a perfect choice for folks who hunt deer and bear in the thickly forested Northeast, as I do.

The .45 Colt, center, can use bullets made for the .45 ACP, left. As with any straight-wall cartridge for a revolver, it requires a good roll crimp on the finished cartridge to keep the bullet in place. The same goes for the .454 Casull, right.
The .45 Colt, center, can use bullets made for the .45 ACP, left. As with any straight-wall cartridge for a revolver, it requires a good roll crimp on the finished cartridge to keep the bullet in place. The same goes for the .454 Casull, right.

On the Defensive

The .45 Colt is not just a hunting tool, though. Although the rifles and pistols are not the traditional choice of a defensive weapon — especially with today’s plethora of Model 1911 and AR-15 style firearms — they will save your bacon just as well now as they did in 1873.

Many newer handgun bullets designed for autoloaders will function well in the .45 Colt revolvers. My gun loves the Hornady XTP in 250 and 300 grains, as well as the Speer Gold Dot 300-grain slug. Both of those have an impeccable reputation as a defensive bullet (they also make fantastic big-game bullets, but that’s not the point), and they shoot very well from most .45 Colts I’ve shot.

On the other end of the spectrum, Cutting Edge Bullets makes a 150-grain Handgun Raptor bullet that can achieve very high velocities (upward of 1,600 fps) in the .45 Colt case. These modern projectiles have mono-metal construction and use a deep hollow-point for rapid expansion. The wall of the hollow-point breaks into small blades for initial impact trauma, and the base of the copper bullet remains at caliber dimension for deep penetration. The bullets make a good choice for home defense — at least for me.

There was a reason I chose that Ruger New Model Blackhawk as my first handgun: Although the pistol was always securely stored, the transfer-bar design of the Ruger revolver seemed to present the most accident-resistant package I could find. In the hands of an educated shooter, the pistol would operate fine, but if the hammer was cocked and the pistol accidentally dropped, the transfer bar would prevent accidental discharge.

The same goes for trigger pull: The trigger must remain depressed throughout the firing sequence for the gun to fire. Any light touch on the trigger would result in a click rather than a fired cartridge. I also appreciated the nostalgia of the .45 Colt over more modern cartridges — namely the .44 Rem. Mag. — so that combination of traditional appearance and modern safety features made for a package I couldn’t resist.

My good buddy Donnie Thorne, better known as Col. Le Frogg, has a brace of Ruger Vaqueros in .45 Colt, with the classic 5½-inch barrels, that are nickel plated and have the actions slicked up. They are possibly the most accurate .45s I’ve shot, and those pistols have a special affinity for my 255-grain lead-bullet handloads, sitting over a mild charge of Alliant’s Unique powder.

Most ammunition manufacturers still offer an original load of a round-nose or flat-point lead bullet of 250 to 255 grains, at a muzzle velocity about 800 fps, and that formula works as well as it did in 1873. Today’s single-action revolver hunter might want more oomph behind a modern bullet design, such as these 300-grain Sierra hollowpoints.
Most ammunition manufacturers still offer an original load of a round-nose or flat-point lead bullet of 250 to 255 grains, at a muzzle velocity about 800 fps, and that formula works as well as it did in 1873. Today’s single-action revolver hunter might want more oomph behind a modern bullet design, such as these 300-grain Sierra hollowpoints.

The Vaquero is set up with the same transfer bar as my Blackhawk, so you can carry it confidently with a full cylinder. However, I was trained to always carry a single-action revolver on an empty chamber, and old habits die hard. Le Frogg and I thought long and hard about the cartridge choice for our revolvers, and though we bounced back and forth between classics — .44-40, .44 Mag. and .45 Colt — you know what we ultimately chose.

Compare and Contrast

Let’s address the classic comparison between the .44 Mag. and .45 Colt. On paper, you’d think the .44 Mag. would be the hands-down choice in a hunting revolver. I mean, the .44 Mag. was developed by Elmer Keith (please pause for a moment of silence) and made famous by detective Harry Callahan, so it had the cool factor.

But the .45 Colt has appeared in countless Western movies and was carried across Europe by some dude with a bunch of stars on his uniform named Patton. Famed lawman Bat Masterson ordered a Colt .45 directly from Samuel Colt.

The great controversy around Wyatt Earp’s Buntline Special will continue to rage, but if it existed, it was chambered in .45 Colt (tongue planted firmly in cheek). Needless to say, the .45 Colt’s cool factor rivaled that of the .44 Mag. The fact that Keith (cue angelic music) sang the praises of the .45 Colt, relating tales of mad cows being neatly dispatched and mean broncs having to be put down quickly as they tried to stomp him into the ground, sealed the deal for me.

The .44 Mag. is a fantastic hunting round, fully capable for big game. It can push bullets of similar weight, albeit at a higher pressure and with a bit more recoil. The better sectional density of the .429-inch bullets might penetrate a bit farther, when of the same weight, but a couple of features of the .45 Colt really appealed to me.

First, the .45 Colt can use the many component bullets for the uber-popular .45 ACP, and that’s good. The vast amount of .45-caliber FMJ projectiles manufactured each year make the .45 Colt a wise decision from an economic standpoint as well as availability.

The stout hunting bullets in .452-inch caliber also let the Colt shine as a hunting round. Second, although the .44 Mag. and .45 Colt can produce performance so similar that no animal could tell the difference, the Colt can do so at a much lower pressure.

The .45 Colt is a semi-rimmed configuration that has enough case capacity to drive .452-inch-diameter bullets to safe velocities in older Single Action Army revolvers and to higher velocities in the Ruger Blackhawk. The variation of bullet weights is another desirable feature of the .45 Colt. The .45 Colt runs on a standard large pistol primer, and the primers need to be seated flush with the case head or slightly recessed.
The .45 Colt is a semi-rimmed configuration that has enough case capacity to drive .452-inch-diameter bullets to safe velocities in older Single Action Army revolvers and to higher velocities in the Ruger Blackhawk. The variation of bullet weights is another desirable feature of the .45 Colt. The .45 Colt runs on a standard large pistol primer, and the primers need to be seated flush with the case head or slightly recessed.

That translates into easier case extraction, longer case life and less recoil, all of which are important to me. So, being a handloader who appreciates the points of the cartridge, I couldn’t wait to start the loading process and find those sweet combinations that make a cartridge shine.

At the Reloading Bench

The .45 Colt isn’t a difficult cartridge to load. You’ll need a good set of reloading dies, with the best roll crimp you can get. As with any straight-wall cartridge for a revolver, you’ll need a good roll crimp on your finished cartridge to keep the bullet in place and prevent it from extending out of the case during recoil.

Especially in the hard-kicking cartridges — such as the full-house .45 Colt loads, as well as the .454 Casull and .44 Mag. — this is very important, as the bullet can pull out of the case and prevent the cylinder from rotating, as well as pose a dangerous situation if the bullet isn’t properly aligned to the bore, which could result in catastrophe or death. I like the Redding Profile Crimp die, as it has produced the most uniform roll crimp I’ve experienced.

I also like the Redding Dual Carbide Sizing dies, as they give the exact dimension I want for proper bullet tension yet don’t overwork the body of the case, extending case life. Carbide dies don’t require lubrication during resizing and won’t allow the case to stick in the die, which is a nice feature when you consider the smaller rim of the Colt case.

The .45 Colt runs on a standard large pistol primer, and I prefer the Federal GM150M for its consistency and reliability. Be sure your primers are seated exactly flush with the case head or slightly recessed to prevent malfunctions and to let the cylinder rotate properly.

Although the .45 Colt has been criticized for having a thin case wall, especially in comparison to the younger magnum pistol cartridges such as the .44 Mag. and .454 Casull, I’ve never had a problem working with the .45 Colt. I try not to excessively flare the case mouth, giving just enough to allow the bullet to seat properly yet not overworking the brass.

In respect to load data, the .45 Colt is really three cartridges in one, and if you intend to reload it, you must be aware of the differences. Look at it this way: There is one set of data for the Colt Single Action Army revolver and its clones, held to a lower velocity and pressure limit. Then, there’s the data for the stronger revolvers and single-shot pistols, which allow the pressures to climb much higher while still performing safely.

Last, there’s the data developed for the lever guns — an entirely different animal.

The author’s Blackhawk likes a Hornady 300-grain XTP-Mag bullet seated over 16.5 grains of Accurate Arms No. 9 powder. The recoil is considerably more than what cowboy loads produce, but it’s manageable in the 7½-inch-barreled revolver.
The author’s Blackhawk likes a Hornady 300-grain XTP-Mag bullet seated over 16.5 grains of Accurate Arms No. 9 powder. The recoil is considerably more than what cowboy loads produce, but it’s manageable in the 7½-inch-barreled revolver.

For SAA-class loads, I invariably prefer Alliant’s Unique powder. It burns a bit dirty but has given me fantastic accuracy with many types of cast lead bullets. My favorite combination in this class is the Falcon Bullets Co.’s 230-grain round-nose FalCoated lead bullet over 8.0 grains of Unique. It’s an affordable bullet and plenty accurate for plinking and smaller game.

For my Blackhawk, as a hunting/defense load, I like the Hornady 300-grain XTP-Mag bullet seated over 16.5 grains of Accurate Arms No. 9 powder, at 1,120 fps. This is my favorite load for early-season black bears, because that Hornady bullet will provide consistent expansion and penetration.

The recoil is considerably more than the cowboy loads described earlier, but it’s more than manageable in the 7½-inch-barreled revolver and has proven to be the most accurate of the hunting loads I’ve developed. I limit my distances to 35 to 40 yards, and although Mr. Bruin and I haven’t met when I’ve carried the Blackhawk, I’m confident the venerable cartridge will get the job done.

For lever guns, I like the Hornady FTX bullet. It requires some special treatment from a reloader’s point of view, because the tapered ogive of the FTX bullet demands that the brass case of the .45 Colt be trimmed from 1.285 inch to 1.215 inch so the case mouth aligns with the shank of the projectile rather than sitting upon the ogive. Load that shorter case with 11½ grains of Alliant’s Blue Dot powder, and you’ll have an even 1,100 fps out of your rifle.

Conclusion

The face of cartridge development is ever changing. There’s no denying that. Projectiles continue to be made stronger, cases are modified to produce faster velocities and powders are developed to provide the most uniform results possible.

Many hunters and shooters will flock to embrace the newest technologies, yet others are content with their grandfathers’ cartridges, embracing the nostalgia and romance of yesteryear. I tend to float between the worlds, enjoying the classic combinations that have wonderful reputations but not afraid to put a modern spin on a classic. The .45 Colt epitomizes that idea for me, and I’m happy to have carried one for more than a decade.

Editor’s Note: This excerpt is from Cartridges of the World, 15th Edition.

Bullet Trajectory: Angle Shooting With Precision Rifles

Shooting downhill or on an incline requires an adjustment in trajectory. Here’s what you need to know to connect on those tricky angled shots.

What do you need to know to adjust trajectory on angled shots?

  • The longer the range to target, the more critical incline and decline become.
  • Today’s shooters have many ballistic apps and BDC calculators for angled shooting.
  • Know field calculations you can use on the fly when faced with high- or low-angle shots.
  • Develop a system with your BDC reticle for angled shooting and practice, a lot!

R1638-Shooting-Downhill-1 - trajectory

Shooting Downhill, Shooting Uphill

If you raise or lower the target, the amount of drop necessary will appear to change.

Let’s say I’m using my .300 Winchester to shoot at a target 400 yards away, but at a downhill angle of 20 degrees. The above information will indicate that I need to hold 19.1 inches above the bullseye, in order to allow for the drop in trajectory over that distance.

However, I’d hit the target about 4 inches higher than I aimed. Now, perhaps that would still be a lung hit, or maybe it would not be a vital hit at all. Why?

The Bushnell 1 Mile rangefinder helps establish the shooting angle. Trajectory
The Bushnell 1 Mile rangefinder helps establish the shooting angle.

When measuring the effect of gravity on a bullet’s trajectory, it needs to be done on a level line, perpendicular to the line of gravity. When shooting uphill or down, you need to know the level distance.

It’s not hard to calculate this difference; simply observe the angle of deviation from level (in our instance, 20 degrees), and take the cosine of that angle. Multiply those results by the slope distance (like you’d observe on some laser range finders) and you’ll have the level distance.

In the case above, where my .300 Winchester was 19.1 inches low at 400 yards, I should’ve held for 375 yards — the level distance — where the bullet will strike 15.5 inches low. Here’s the math:

Cos (20 deg.) = 0.939 0.939 x 400 yards = 375.8 yards.

As the shooter, you need to know both the distance (again the range finder is your friend), and angle, either up or down to adjust the trajectory.

Laser Rangefinders And Ballistic Apps

There are a couple of methods I recommend. Many of today’s smartphones provide an app that will act as a level, providing a measurement of the angle up or down from level; I use one that acts as a clinometer (I’m a mild-mannered land surveyor by day) and is rather accurate.

If I have a severe uphill or downhill shot, especially at the distances where the reduction in range becomes significant, I should have time to use my phone to observe the angle and make the necessary adjustment to the trajectory.

A good laser rangefinder is an invaluable tool for shots that require a specific amount of holdover. - trajectory
A good laser rangefinder is an invaluable tool for shots that require a specific amount of holdover.

Many of today’s laser rangefinders, such as the Bushnell Elite 1 Mile, also provide either a level distance to the target, doing the mathematics for you, or will provide the angle from the shooter to the target.

If you don’t like the electronic gizmos, you can spend some time in the field judging some severe slopes where the level distance to the target will be affected most, and develop a good idea of what a 10-degree slope looks like in comparison to a 20- or even 30-degree slope.

When things get to 30 degrees and more, you’ll usually find climbing requires a hands and knees position. It’s very common for most folks to judge a slope as more severe than it truly is, so some practice will come in handy for reducing those distances to level.

Many smartphones offer an app for measuring slope angle. - trajectory
Many smartphones offer an app for measuring slope angle.

While few of us carry a cosine chart around in our heads, here’s a good reference piece to give you the amount of reduction necessary, in percentages.

5-10 degree slope = 98% of slope distance
15-20 degree slope = 95% of slope distance
25-30 degree slope = 90% of slope distance
35-40 degree slope = 80% of slope distance
45 degree slope = 70% of slope distance

For the rifle, where we have the benefit of using sleek, sharp bullets that resist gravity’s effects efficiently, the gravitational drop in the trajectory is a manageable figure, especially within common hunting distances.

For the handgun hunter, where velocities are significantly lower — coupled with using projectiles that traditionally have a much lower BC — knowing the distances even within 150 yards becomes paramount.

For personal defense guns, the distances at which you are likely to shoot are close enough to negate the major effects of gravitational pull. That said, I like to take my carry guns out to distances where I see a definite drop in the trajectory of my group, so I know what’s going on. The same principals we discussed for rifle bullets apply to handgun bullets, except the scale shrinks a bit.

Long-Range Shooting

R1638-Shooting-Downhill-3 - trajectory

As a side note, while all of this mathematical wizardry probably won’t make much of a difference to the hunter whose shots are taken within 200 yards (which I feel represents a great deal of the shots taken at game annually), there is a movement in the hunting world to take shots at game at distances that seem to increase with every television season.

While I realize that shots out past 500 yards can certainly be executed by a shooter who is highly experienced and knows his or her gear inside and out, the portrayal of routine shots taken out past 700 yards, at unwounded game, is not only unethical, but will result in a multitude of wounded game.

As I demonstrated with the drop figures alone — saying nothing of the effects of wind deflection — a misjudgment in distance of as little as 25 yards can result in a wounded and/or lost animal.

I highly suggest you find your own personal limits with respect to distance, based upon your own shooting abilities, and stay true to that figure. It’s one of the instances where you’ll have to police yourself. Should you realize that the distance is too great to make a confident hit, simply say no to the shot and get closer.

Purchasing the best long-range optics, and a cartridge/rifle combination that is theoretically capable of connecting, does not make it a wise decision to take the shot. I don’t want to sound like I’m preaching, but I’m not comfortable with the way some outdoor personalities act blasé about shots past 500 yards at game; there’s an awful lot that can go wrong.

So, with an accurate drop chart available, how can you make those shots that require a certain amount of holdover? Gravity is relentless, and you need to fight that effect, even at 250 or 300 yards.

Ballistic Drop Compensated (BDC) Reticles

R1638-Shooting-Downhill-2 trajectory

In this great technological age you’d be foolish not to take advantage of electronic calculators. However, a ballistic drop compensated (BDC) reticle in a riflescope is another means.

This is a reticle with more than just crosshairs, but a series of smaller horizontal lines on the lower vertical wire at a predetermined interval, providing a specific aiming point out at certain distances.

For example, my 6.5-284 Norma wears a Swarovski Z5 3.5-18x44mm riflescope, with the BRH reticle. This optic features a duplex reticle on three of the four wires (up, left and right) and a ballistic compensated reticle on the lower vertical wire.

In addition to the crosshair point, which I use for a 200-yard zero, there are five additional, smaller crosswires, and four small dots on that lower wire, as well as a point where the thin wire thickens.

In that rifle with 140-grain handloads, it works like this: my traditional crosshair is set to hit at 200 yards (and at any range shorter than that I’ll confidently hit an animal’s vitals), using the next lower crosswire it will hit at 270 yards, and the dot below that will impact at 330 yards. Should an even 300-yard shot present itself, I simply hold between the first crosswire and first dot.

R1638pg112-147_CH8BBB.indd - trajectory

Holding at the next crosswire down causes the rifle to hit at 390 yards (I use this for 400, calling it close enough) while the next dot lower is for 450 yards.

Continuing down the line, the next line is an even 500 yards, and the dot below that will strike at 550 yards. The fourth wire down strikes at 590 yards (so close to 600 it’ll scare you) and the dot below impacts at 640 yards. The lowest crosswire is designed to hit at 680 yards, but we’re already considerably past my hunting ranges.

I much prefer to stay within 400 yards, but certain hunts may require a longer shot. However, it sure is fun to play with steel plates and paper targets at those distances.

Now, I’ve found this reticle works within reason at these distances, and Swarovski has put a considerable amount of research into it.

And while this is only one of their available options, I think it makes a good choice for a hunter whose ranges concur with my own, or don’t plan to take shots much past 600 yards (where things can get tricky due to the winds, but that’s for later).

This article is an excerpt from the Big Book of Ballistics.

Ballistics Basics: What Is Headspace?

What exactly is headspace, and how is it applied to different cases?

  • Headspace is distance from a case's base to the point that prevents its forward movement.
  • Different cartridge types use different points on the cartridge case for headspacing.
  • Rimmed cartridges use the thickness of the cartridge rim for headspacing.
  • Rimless bottleneck cartridges headspace off the shoulder.
  • Rimless straight-walled cartridges (most pistol rounds) headsapce off the case mouth.
  • Some belted cases headspace off the belt, while others headspace off the shoulder.

What is headspacing?

Headspace is the distance from the base of the cartridge case to the point on the cartridge case that prevents the cartridge from moving any farther forward in the chamber.

To put this into real-world, appreciable terms, I’ll give some examples.

Headspace 4
Rimmed .45-70 Government cartridges.

A rimmed cartridge, whether straight-walled, tapered, or bottlenecked, uses the thickness of the cartridge rim for its headspacing. It is a positive method of headspacing, resulting in very uniform results, yet these cartridges don’t often feed well in bolt- or pump-action magazine rifles.

They do very well in lever-action rifles and revolvers, as well as single-shot and double rifles. Examples include the .30-30 Winchester, .45-70 Government, .22 Long Rifle, .38 Special and .357 Magnum.

Headspace 2
Rimless pistol cartridges.

The rimless bottleneck cartridges, like the .223 Remington, .308 Winchester, .30-06 Springfield and .270 Winchester, have an extractor groove cut into the base of the case, just north of the case head. As a result, these cartridges use the shoulder of the bottleneck for headspacing.

The shoulder is typically quite steep, upwards of 15 degrees (though there are exceptions like the .404 Jeffery) to prevent the cartridge from moving any farther forward in the chamber.

The rimless bottleneck design works perfectly in almost all repeating rifles, from lever to bolt to semi-automatic, to the military’s fully-automatic, belt-fed machine guns. So long as the firearm is properly headspaced, this bottlenecked rimless design will work as intended. The groove allows for excellent extraction, too; it’s a design common among many of our most famous cartridges.

Headspace 5 .25 automaticThe rimless, straight-walled cartridges comprise the most common choices for the modern, semi-automatic pistols. This style of cartridge uses the same extractor groove as its bottlenecked cousins, but since there is neither rim nor shoulder, it headspaces off the case mouth.

Note that this feature is especially important to those who handload this style of cartridge, as the projectiles cannot be ‘roll-crimped’ into the case; they must be taper crimped, or held in place by the use of a special die which squeezes the side wall of the cartridge around the shank of the bullet.

In this type of cartridge, the case length is of utmost importance as that distance is the sole dimension responsible for setting the headspacing. If you’ve ever picked up a 9mm Luger or .45 ACP that has a rather ‘sooty’ look around the mouth of the case, it is an example of poor (excessive) headspacing, either from the firearm’s chamber being too long, or the ammunition being too short. The .40 Smith & Wesson, as well as the 9mm Luger and .45 ACP, are all examples of pistol cartridges that headspace off of the case mouth.

How Belted Cases Headspace

The belted cartridges, based on the famous Holland & Holland design of the early 1900s, are a hybrid of the rimmed and rimless design. Because the rimmed design gave such fantastic headspacing, but didn’t feed very well from a box magazine, and the London firm didn’t want to rely on a steep shoulder for headspacing (both the .375 H&H and .300 H&H have gentle, sloping shoulders), they built a small shelf, or belt of brass into the case wall, just above the extractor groove.

So, in essence, the H&H belted cartridges use a “rimmed-rimless” case, which feed perfectly in repeating rifles, yet headspace off of the rim. Thus, the shoulder dimension is irrelevant.

While it is commonly thought that the .375 H&H Rimless Belted Magnum — the .375 H&H we all know and love — was the first cartridge released that featured the now-famous belt, that isn’t true.

Headspace 3
Holland & Holland’s .375 rimless belted magnum.

In 1905, Holland & Holland released the .400/.375 Belted Nitro Express, also known as the .375 Velopex, but its performance was poor in comparison to other Nitro Express cartridges of the era, so it didn’t last long.

Additionally, when the .375 H&H was released in 1912 it wasn’t alone. The .275 Holland & Holland Magnum, with a 2.500-inch case length and the same belt was released simultaneously.

Firing a 7mm projectile at some very familiar velocities, the .275 H&H Magnum is, in theory, the 7mm Remington Magnum. It just took 50 years for the shooting world to realize they wanted it!

Since the belt on any belted cartridge is there for headspacing, and has nothing to do with case strength, it’s rather ironic that there are so few belted cases that actually headspace off of that belt. Certainly the .375 H&H and .300 H&H, and I’d definitely include the .458 Winchester Magnum, .458 Lott, and the .450 Marlin, but the plethora of belted magnums (including the .300 Winchester and 7mm Remington Magnum, as well as the entire Weatherby family of cartridges) all headspace off of the shoulder.

Now, I know what you’re thinking: in the last half of the 20th century, no self-respecting “magnum” cartridge would be caught dead without its belt. It’s a very good point, but I think that the .375 H&H case was used as the basis for the brood of offspring ranging from the .257 Weatherby up to the .458 Lott — not for the ‘strength’ of the belt or for headspacing issues, but for the case capacity of the parent cartridge.

Editor’s Note: This article is an excerpt from the Big Book of Ballistics, available at GunDigestStore.com.

Tips For Reloading The .300 Norma Magnum

Is the relatively new .300 Norma Magnum a true heavyweight contender, and what can handloaders do with it?

  • The .300 Norma Magnum is based on the earlier .338 Norma Magnum.
  • At the range, the .300 Norma Magnum held sub-MOA with several bullets designs.
  • One group shot at 500 meters measured 1.45 inches.
  • Bullet choice for reloaders depends on the intended application — many options exist.
  • With a 230-grain bullet, the .300 Norma Magnum remains supersonic to 1,500 yards.

Amotfors, Sweden was not quite the town I expected. It lies just east of the Norwegian border and is rather quaint with its White Moose Hotel, a surprisingly decent pizza joint and an American sports bar. It has a large railway station, and the waterfront in town will actually bring you out to the North Sea. However, its claim to fame is that it is where Norma Precision AB calls home. I was invited to visit the factory — where the magic happens — and meet the key players involved in the development of Norma’s fantastic ammunition and components; it was certainly an eye opener.

The plant employs over 200 people, including some who have enough shooting medals to sink a battleship. First, as a reloader, let me report that the processes involved with making their brass cartridge cases were correlative to the quality of that brass; I now understand why I like it so much. But among all the wonderful folks I met, and all of the sneak peeks behind the curtain, the thing that intrigued me the most was Norma’s new .300 Magnum.

Now, Norma is no stranger to cartridge development, with its .308 Norma Magnum predating the .300 Winchester Magnum and its 6.5-284 Norma firmly established as a benchrest cartridge, not to mention the .358 Norma Magnum. However, the .300 Norma, and its big brother, the .338 Norma Magnum are two very solid developments, each capable of excellent accuracy as well as high velocity.

300 Norma Magnum -5Introduction To The .300 Norma Magnum

My first date with the pair was at the RWS factory in Nuremburg, Germany, when, at a shooting competition among gun writers, I took second by printing a 1.69-inch three-shot group on the 500-meter range. Yes, that’s right. I was beat by a group measuring 1.45 inches; this cartridge is a shooter.

I got the skinny on the younger brother — the .300 Norma — while having a sit down in the Norma Headquarters and immediately recognized the handloading potential of an already excellent factory cartridge. The pair of cartridges is based on the .338 Lapua — in turn based on the .416 Rigby case — shortened to 2.492 inches, yet maintaining a maximum C.O.L. of 3.600 inches — the same as the .375 H&H Magnum. This allows the longest and sleekest bullets to be seated out plenty far enough to maximize the case capacity.

With a case head diameter of 0.588 inch and a steep 20-degree shoulder, the .300 Norma Magnum has a large powder column, but it resembles the profile of the short magnums more than the long, thin belted magnums of the 1960s. The design was a joint effort between Jimmy Sloan and Norma, and it has proved to be more efficient than the longer Lapua offering.

300 Norma Magnum -3Powder & Primer Considerations

At the range, the .300 Norma Magnum proved to be a very accurate cartridge, holding sub-MOA accuracy with several different bullets. Factory stuff aside, in the handloading realm, I was curious to find out what makes the .300 Norma tick, so we can find an easy starting point for our handloads. What I’ve found makes perfect sense and might cause you to experiment with some different powders that might be foreign to you. Norma Precision — rather obviously — uses Norma powder for its ammunition. Here in the United States, Norma powder is imported and distributed by Western Powder (WesternPowders.com) and is a vastly overlooked source of excellent handloads. I’ve used Norma 200 to fuel several safaris, as it makes a wonderful choice in the .375 H&H Magnum and will deliver serious accuracy with the 235- and 250-grain bullets.

Norma recommends two powders for use in the .300 Norma Magnum: the proven MRP and Norma 217. To translate into terms we all know, the MRP has a burn rate in the vicinity of Alliant Reloder 22 or IMR 7828, while Norma 217 is one of the slowest burning powders, hanging out with Alliant Reloder 25. So, even if you don’t choose to follow in Norma’s powder choice, this should give you an idea where to start; powders with a burn rate equal to or slower than RL-22 should give positive results. I’m certain that the Enduron IMR7977 and Hodgdon’s RETUMBO would also make worthy candidates. The .300 Norma case has a capacity of 103.0 grains of water, so powder charges will approach 90 grains or more, depending on the bullet weight.

Regarding primer choice for the .300 Norma Magnum, you’ll most definitely want a good large rifle magnum primer to ignite that powder column, especially since powder charges can exceed 90 grains. Experimenting with different primer types (please start load development from the bottom of the load data, as pressures can spike quickly in a cartridge this large) might show a significant difference in accuracy results, and once you find that combination of powder/primer/bullet in your rifle, get it tattooed on you forearm, so it’s never lost.

The Right Bullet For The Job

300 Norma Magnum -2
A good set of dies, like Redding's deluxe die set with neck sizer, is paramount.

Bullet choice for the .300 Norma Magnum is going to depend on the application. If you’re into the truly long-range game, the .300 Norma Magnum might be a dream come true, as it was designed around the 230-grain Berger OTM Hybrid bullet. This bullet uses an optimum blend of secant and tangent ogive curves to best engage the rifling and yet maximize downrange performance. I like any bullet of 180-grains on upward, with the best ballistic coefficient (BC) I can obtain.

For the target game, think the Sierra 220-grain MatchKing, the Hornady 225-grain ELD-Match (with a G1 BC of 0.777, woof!), those great Berger offerings and the like. For a hunting scenario — and I feel the .300 Norma Magnum could make a great elk, moose and bear rifle — bullets like the 180-grain Swift Scirocco II, the 220-grain ELD-X and the Nosler AccuBond Long Range at 190 and 210 grains will all provide excellent terminal ballistics, in addition to good wind deflection characteristics.

And the beauty of the .300 Norma Magnum is that all of these long-for-caliber bullets can be seated out far enough to keep the shank of the bullet — before the ogive — at the case mouth. I’ve had issues with the .300 Win. Mag. when trying to use long-ogive bullets and maintain the SAAMI-specified C.O.L. measurement.

What about the velocity? Well, with a case like the .300 Norma, the velocity is certainly there. The 220-grain slugs can be driven to just over 3,000 fps, and the 230-grain bullets just 50 fps slower. A good 180-grain hunting bullet can easily reach 3,250 fps, putting the .300 Norma in between the .300 Weatherby/30 Nosler and .300 Remington Ultra Magnum/.30-378 Weatherby on the velocity scale. In my experience, the recoil of the .300 Norma is manageable, about on par with the .300 Winchester, maybe a bit more, but nothing horrendous.

300 Norma Magnum -6Parting Shots

So, do we need another .30-caliber magnum? I mean, with the plethora of cartridges launching a .30-caliber bullet, couldn’t we make do with what we have already? The .300 Winchester Magnum is a fantastic cartridge, and the .300 Weatherby and .300 Holland & Holland each have their following, not to mention the .300 Remington Ultra Magnum crowd, as well as those who’ve taken to the .300 Winchester Short Magnum.

Well, the U.S. military seems to believe the answer to that first question is a definite affirmative. SOCOM has adopted the .300 Norma Magnum for its Advanced Sniper Rifle, more than likely due to the fact that the .300 Norma will remain supersonic — with the 230-grain bullet — as far as the .338 Lapua will with its 300-grain pill; both go transonic somewhere around 1,500 yards. Based on my experiences with the factory loads for the .300 Norma Magnum, I am eagerly awaiting my test rifle so I can begin tweaking the handloads. Keep your eye on this cartridge; I feel Norma has got something very special here.

Editor's Note: This “Reloading Bench” column is an excerpt from the August 2017 issue of Gun Digest the Magazine.

5 Dangerous Game Bullets To Bet Your Life On

When facing the most dangerous game animals on the face of the Earth, you don't want a bullet that goes to pieces when it matters most.

The Dangerous Game Bullets to Bet Your Life On:

Those of us who enjoy the pursuit of dangerous game spend an extraordinary amount of time focusing on the gear we use; it has to perform flawlessly, as our very lives depend upon it. I’m not the kind of hunter who holds one form of hunting above another, as though dangerous game is somehow superior to other game animals, but I do know if my deer rifle malfunctions, odds are my life won’t be in danger. The same cannot be said for the truly dangerous game animals.

One malfunction — whether from an errant shot, a misfire or a bullet that simply doesn’t reach the vitals — and things can turn nasty in the blink of an eye. Rogue elephants, mauling leopards, grizzlies that just won’t die, or the charge of the Cape buffalo — ”Black Death” as he is affectionately known — all can very easily turn the tide with tusk, tooth, horn and claw.

While there are volumes written about appropriate cartridges and rifles for dangerous game, we must agree that in the end it is the bullet, and only the bullet, that does the job. Let’s look at what makes a good dangerous game bullet tick.

First, you’ll want a bullet heavy enough to penetrate sufficiently to reach and destroy the vitals from any angle. Second, you’ll want a bullet tough enough to resist premature expansion, which prevents sufficient penetration. Different animals require different levels of performance, but here are my choices for good dangerous game bullets, based upon my own experiences.

The Nosler Partition

Dangerous Game Bullets Nosler Partition

The Godfather of Premium Bullets still makes a fine choice for dangerous game, for anything smaller than elephant. Having been developed for penetration, John Nosler ensured his bullet would hold together by leaving a horizontal partition of thick copper between two lead cores; this way the front core expands upon impact, while the rear core stays intact to ensure deep penetration. This design has been with us since 1948, and, in any suitable dangerous game caliber at sane impact velocities, you’ll end the argument. Choose the heaviest weight for your given caliber for the best results.

The Swift A-Frame

Dangerous Game Bullets Swift A-Frame

This is my particular favorite soft-point for everything south of elephant. It is a design similar to the Nosler Partition in that there is two lead cores separated by a thick wall of copper, but in the Swift A-Frame’s case, the jacket is thicker, and the front core is chemically bonded to the core, slowing the expansion and increasing penetration. The A-Frame simply works. It is an accurate bullet that will retain 90 percent of its weight when recovered, and I’ve trusted it to perform all over the world, from North America to Africa, on game as gnarly as Cape buffalo. The classic recovered A-Frame has a slight rivet shape just behind the partition and expands well enough to wreck the vitals of the largest buffalo or grizzly bear, while often penetrating the entire animal. For dangerous game like buffalo, grizzly, lion and hippo, you really can’t go wrong with an A-Frame.

The Hornady InterLock

Dangerous Game Bullets Hornady InterLock

For a cup-and-core bullet to be used on dangerous game, I like the Hornady InterLock, preferably when in the round-nose configuration and with a high sectional density. Hornady makes some great models within this line, like the 300-grain .375-inch and 400-grain .416-inch. Both will cleanly take bear and buffalo and are just about perfect for lion. There is enough exposed lead at the nose to provide good, but not radical, expansion, and at the aforementioned weights the sectional density figure will be well over 0.300, the accepted minimum for good performance on dangerous game. The bullet’s cannelure locks the jacket to the lead core (hence the name), and among the other qualities, I’ve found these bullets to be very accurate. I also like the fact that Hornady makes them in lighter calibers like a 160-grain 6.5mm, or a 220-grain .308-inch, which would be perfect for the African leopard.

The North Fork Semi-Spitzer

Dangerous Game Bullets North Fork Semi-Spitzer

The Oregon firm of North Fork bullets makes a fine bullet for dangerous game. Its semi-spitzer bullets are a chemically bonded marriage of pure copper and pure lead, with the lead core taking up the front half of the bullet. The rear section of the bullet is a pure copper shank and the bearing surface is comprised of small grooves to keep pressures down. This design keeps the weight forward and it gives straight-line penetration, often exiting the offside of even the largest animals. North Fork also offers these bullets in heavier than normal weights, such as 350-grain .375s, 430-grain .416s, and 550-grain .458s. I firmly believe that the heavier bullets are a fine choice for settling an argument when things get up close and personal. The semi-spitzer meplat transfers energy quickly, and those few North Forks that have been recovered from game animals have shown good expansion. North Fork has a winner with this bullet.

The Woodleigh Hydrostatically Stabilized Solid

Dangerous Game Bullets Woodleigh Hydrostatically Stabilized Solid

The solid bullet, which has no exposed lead or is designed not to expand at all, is usually reserved for the toughest jobs like penetrating the skull of an elephant or for back-up shots on Cape buffalo or hippo. They are called upon when penetration is a must and the vitals must be reached from any angle. For decades, these bullets were comprised of a lead core, a thick steel jacket and a thin covering of gilding metal. That has changed with the Woodleigh Hydro solid. It is a monometal bullet with driving bands on the shank to reduce pressure and fouling, but the neat feature of this bullet is the small cup at the meplat. This tiny addition creates a hydrostatic shockwave, destroying tissue in an 8- to 12-inch radius around the entire path of the bullet, while the bullet exits at caliber dimension. This gives us a bullet that can be used on smaller game without the huge exit wounds, yet works perfectly for dangerous game. I used this bullet in Africa in my Heym .404 Jeffery, at 400 grains, and took impala and blue wildebeest very cleanly. I also put the penetrative qualities of this bullet to the test with two body shots on a huge-bodied Zimbabwean bull elephant. The Woodleigh Hydro passed through the entire body with two quartering-toward shots and put the bull down quickly and effectively. I think this design represents the future of dangerous game bullet technology. I know I’ll be using them again.

Editor's Note: This article originally appeared in the April 2016 issue of Gun Digest the Magazine.

How To: Tips For Reloading the .223 Remington

The .223 Remington is a highly versatile cartridge that can be loaded to meet the shooter’s exact needs, but there are certain considerations to keep in mind.

What are some important things to know when reloading the .223 Remington?

  • If you're shooting an AR or a semi-auto rifle, consider using small base resizing dies to shrink fired brass back to specs and reduce the chances of a jam.
  • If you're shooting a bolt gun, neck sizing ammunition can help wring more accuracy from your gun.
  • .223 Rem. and 5.56 NATO cases are not interchangeable. Make sure to keep pressure levels safe. This applies to using heavier bullets in .223 Rem. cases as well.
  • Match your rifle's twist rate to the appropriate bullet weight. Heavier bullets won't stabilize in barrels with slow twist rates. Also, pair your bullet choice to the task at hand, whether it be varmint or big-game hunting, target shooting or long-range shooting.

We are all fully familiar with just what a useful cartridge the .223 Remington is; whether you enjoy varmint and predator hunting, or just have a good time target shooting with an MSR, the .223 fits the bill. For a handloader, the .223 Remington can prove to be extremely versatile, especially if your rifle has one of the faster twist rates, like 1:8-inch or 1:9-inch, so you can take full advantage of the heavier .224-inch caliber bullets.

Depending on your rifle, you might want to take a couple different approaches to your reloading technique. Loading for the ARs — and any autoloader for that matter — might warrant the use of small base resizing dies, to shrink any fired brass back to specs, all the way to the base of the cartridge, for proper feeding. If you don’t get a good resize with a standard sizing die, the resulting jams can be a nightmare.

If you’ve chosen a bolt gun, you might want to take advantage of the neck-sizing die for the best concentricity and accuracy potential. I’ve seen neck-sized ammunition shrink group sizes by half or better in some instances, and if you want to wring every last bit of accuracy potential out of your bolt gun, this technique might work well for you.

Reloading the .223 Remington - 1Keeping Cases In Mind
But, before we get ahead of ourselves, let’s look at the cases themselves. One of the obvious allures of the .223 Remington is the fact that it’s been a military cartridge for nigh on half a century, and with that comes the availability of surplus military ammo and cases.

That military ammunition (5.56 NATO) generally comes with cases that are thicker than the sporting variety, and because the outside dimensions of the case can’t change, the inner dimensions — read as combustion chamber — is smaller. That will increase pressure, sometimes to a dangerous level, so you absolutely need to sort your cases prior to any load development.

Both sporting and military cases can be used, but with different powder charges. What I do, to take advantage of both types of cases, is to use my military brass for a different powder/bullet combination, so it won’t get confused with other loads.

Bullet Options
The .223 has a rather wide selection of bullets to choose from, so depending on your application, there will be a bullet for your needs. Bullet weights run between 30 and 90 grains, so there’s not only a bunch of flexibility here, but also multiple powders to fuel all those different bullets.

Twist rate is also going to play a big part in the equation. If you have a rifle with one of the slower twist rates — the 1:12-inch twist, like the .22-250s use — you’ll be limited to the 55-grain bullets, maybe a 60-grain bullet, but anything heavier than that probably won’t stabilize.

Varmint Hunting
For the varmint crowd — we’ll use prairie dogs and woodchucks for an example — lighter bullets work perfectly, permitting high velocities, and as long as ranges aren’t crazy, they’re manageable in windy conditions. The 40-grain Nosler Ballistic Tip Varmint can reach over 3,500 fps to truly generate the red mist. I like Hodgdon H322, H335 and VARGET for bullets of this weight.

If you prefer a heavier bullet, say 50 grains, the same powders will suffice, but you’ll see a moderate velocity reduction, with speeds right around 3,200-3,300 fps. But, the increase in ballistic coefficient figures will make distant shots much easier on a windy day.

The classic 55-grain pills are a good all-around choice for any hunting — they offer a balance of downrange trajectory and wind deflection values — and will give excellent accuracy. Hands down, I’ve had the best results in both bolt guns and autoloaders when using H335 with 52-, 53- and 55-grain bullets. Add a match-grade primer (I like Federal’s GM205M small rifle primer), and you’re looking at some very serious accuracy. My dad’s Savage rifle, with a healthy bull barrel, will put Sierra’s 52-grain MatchKings into tiny little groups when seated above a proper load of H335.

Reloading the .223 Remington - 2Long-Range Shooting
If you like to play the long-range game, I’d recommend using the longest bullets with the best ballistic coefficient possible. The 68-, 77- and 80-grain match bullets have some impressive figures, as well as performance, just so long as your rate of twist can stabilize the longer projectiles.

With the increased length of these bullets, case capacity can be compromised, so I like to look to the ball powders; and this is another reason I’ve relied on H335. However, Hodgdon’s new CFE223, optimized for the .223 Remington cartridge and including the Copper Fouling Eraser, is another solid choice for heavier bullets. Norma 203B, normally reserved for bigger cases, can also be a wonderful choice for heavier bullets like the Hornady 68-grain Match and its ilk, as can IMR 4895.

Hunting
The longer bullets, designed with terminal performance in mind, can also be used for optimal hunting performance on big game with the .223, though you’ll want the higher sectional density figures as well, to ensure penetration.

The 62-grain and 75-grain Swift Scirocco II, with a good, thick jacket and boat tail, and a polymer tip to initiate expansion, makes a good choice for a hunting bullet. The 70-grain Hornady GMX, a sweet monometal spitzer bullet, will fit the bill perfectly as well, as there is no jacket or core to separate. All of these will take up room in the case, much like the longer match bullets, so keep an eye on load density, so as not to break the grain structure by over-compressing the powder charge.

Reloading the .223 Remington - 4Parting Thoughts
Although it’s important with all cartridges, I firmly believe the .223 Remington is a cartridge with which pressures can quickly rise to unsafe levels. I strongly suggest, and it applies even more to the heavier bullets, that you use the data for the particular bullet, from the bullet manufacturer, as the conformation and construction of the bullet can have a dramatic effect on pressure levels and powder charges.

If you’re loading for one of the autoloaders, look to Redding’s bushing die to keep the proper amount of neck tension on your ammunition; this will avoid the tendency of having bullets pull out of the case slightly during the loading process. I don’t really like a roll crimp for the .223 Remington, as there is enough neck tension to keep things in place for the bolt guns.

The .223 is one heck of a versatile cartridge when equipped with a barrel with the proper twist rate. While I have often said I feel it’s a bit light for a deer rifle, and that there are many better choices, I certainly wouldn’t stay home if it were the only rifle available to me.

It is, most definitely, a top-notch coyote rifle, and, if the small-bore target game is your thing, it can be extremely accurate. Grab a good set of reloading dies, a rifle you believe in and some components for experimentation, and you’ll have countless hours of enjoyment with very little recoil.

Editor's Note: This “Reloading Bench” column is an excerpt from the July 2017 issue of Gun Digest the Magazine.

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