Heavy for caliber .308 Bullets
I have a Rem 742, chambered in 30-06, with the factory barrel and would like to work up some heavy-for-caliber loads for it.
I thought I MIGHT save a little time by asking;
Has anybody had good luck with loading a SPECIFIC bullet in the 200+ Gr range for their Remmy 742 30-06 with factory-twist barrel?
Thanks in advance for your replies [:D]
I thought I MIGHT save a little time by asking;
Has anybody had good luck with loading a SPECIFIC bullet in the 200+ Gr range for their Remmy 742 30-06 with factory-twist barrel?
Thanks in advance for your replies [:D]
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Some years back I loaded some heavier bullets for 30-06 & 300Wby. One of the '06s was a Rem 740. I used Barnes Original .032" copper jacketed 225 & 250 gr bullets. They are both the same length so the variation was only velocity for workable twist rates. The 250 gr in the '06 was stable but trajectory was about like a 30-30. The 225gr was better for the '06 since with velocities in the 2400fps range it wasn't quite such a rainbow and the 1-10" twist kept it stable. I haven't seen the bullets advertised by Barnes, but they do make larger caliber bullets, so they may still be in production. I no longer load them, primarily because if I need the heavier bullet I prefer the 338. 0 -
I agree with Ray, when you want more go up one step in caliber. When I started reloading I thought , wow , can load 06 from 100 gr to 240 . Sure but came to find that each caliber has a sweet specific performance level. Certain rifling has a narrow area of stability based on weight and velocity, it is all a trade off. 30-06 IMHO 165 to 168 gr.and that's my 06 maybe not yours . 0 -
I never tried bullets that heavy in a gas-operated gun. There is an admonition against using bullets over 180 in a Garand, because it is apparently hard on the system through excessive impulse to the op rod. I made an adjustable Garand lock nut that would bleed off gas pressure but still maintain operability, but I never used it, firing heavy-bullet loads only in bolt guns. I don't know if a Remington auto would suffer battering from heavy-bullet loads, or not. 0 -
With any gas-operated gun, you've got to stay within SAMMI specs on pressure, length, etc. or you get malfunctions (best case) to real damage to the gun (worst case). I bet the max OAL for the 742 chambering the .30-'06 with big .308 bullets pushes the bullet well back into the case, which'll limit capacity and affect peak velocities. (Obviously a long-action bolt gun gives you a bit more OAL leeway, a Ruger #1 a lot of potential OAL leeway over a semi-auto or pump gun.)
The "Sporting ammo" warning with the Garand is one, using hunting ammo that has higher pressures than the standard that the Garand was designed for has bent op rods on at least one M-1 that I have personally seen. Like like you're doing, I'd search the sites to see if others have loaded these big bullets for that type of rifle. If no one has, be cautious in your experimentation.0 -
It says .308, but if you want good loads for the 30-06 in a 742 carbine;
49gr. IMR4350/ REM 91/2 primer/Nosler 220gr. Partition/ 3.240 coal
47gr. H414/Win LRM primer/ Nosler 220gr. Partition/ 3.230 coal
These 2 loads gave excellent results on an Elk hunt in '01, with the first load going into a 1220-pound Cow broadside, complete expansion, recovered under skin on far side-over .500 dia.
The second load got a 970-pound Bull just behind the head, almost severed the neck, not recovered.
Neither animal was breathing 60 seconds later.0 -
Thanks for the replies guys; there is some stuff here that I already considered/knew AND some which I had NOT. I knew I could count on y'all to help, and ya' did! Maybe "we" can re-visit this subject again later.
Have a good week y'all! [8D]0
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