The firearm thread

[Mr Merde]

I am sure you can get .30 calibre bullet moulds with plain bases. I'll have a look online tomorrow.

100-200 metres, that is ok for most hunting in the bush here in NZ

300 metres target would be fun

Necking down and expanding the mouth. Used to do this when forming the 7 mm TCU from .223 brass. Fireformed the result. Shot about 20 times before needing replacement.

[jono035]

I am sure you can get .30 calibre bullet moulds with plain bases. I'll have a look online tomorrow.

100-200 metres, that is ok for most hunting in the bush here in NZ

300 metres target would be fun

Necking down and expanding the mouth. Used to do this when forming the 7 mm TCU from .223 brass. Fireformed the result. Shot about 20 times before needing replacement.

If you could then that'd definitely save the hassle of the gas check.

Do you think that this brass would possibly last longer given that it is being used at closer to pistol pressures? If made from .223 then the thicker neck should help preventing neck splits when resizing...

Also there are enough people cautioning that using cast bullets with a suppressor will result in lead build up inside to make me wonder if it's worth adding the requirement that the suppressor has to be able to be dismantled for cleaning. I wonder how far you could get trying to melt the lead out? Need to try that on my .22 pistol baffles next time I've got the pot running.

Melted down 10kg of clip on and 20kg of stick on wheel weights a couple of days ago, starting to get a respectable little pile of muffin-tray ingots now... About 30 from stick ons (soft) and 8 from clip-ons. Also found an old roll of 60/40 solder sitting in the shed that can be used to beef up the tin as a test. Most of a 500g roll so should be able to add 2% tin to about 15kg of lead alloy.

[Mr Merde]

Brass should last indefinitely. Once it has its basic shape, been fireformed and then fired in earnest it should only need neck resizing most of the time. The neck will have to be annealed occasionally and a full length size every 20 or so uses.

Looking around the sites. Most 30 calibre moulds seem to throw a GC bullet. What is the dia of the .30 whisper? is it .309, .308 ?

Still looking for a plain base mould.

Shouldnt have too much lead build up in the suppressor. .22 versions I have just need the occasional wipe down. If yours is shaving then something is wrong with the alignment of bore to suppressor or ther diameter of the hole through the suppressor is too tight.

Nice bit of casting.

[jono035]

It's definitely not shaving, the lead that is on the baffles was originally mistaken for powder buildup until I tried to chip it out. I've put probably 2k/3k rounds through that pistol easily an I've never been able to get the baffles out previously, so it has probably been building up for quite some time. I think you've seen one of the baffles?

It seems to be .309 used for cast bullets, the Lee mould is listed as .309 and the other moulds people are using are .311 with a few people mentioning they size to .309. All of this still seems to be with GCs though so using .310/.311 might pay dividends for a plain base or checkless bullet given that the pressures in the round are going to be pretty low.

[Mr Merde]

Custom moulds

http://www.hochmoulds.com/rifle.htm

.221 Brass

http://magnumimports.co.nz/cubecart/...prod_1403.html

Dies

http://www.midwayusa.com/viewproduct...tnumber=244465

[jono035]

A PB version of that 220 grain .310 bullet would be a hell of a thumper although the 205 one next to it is ready to go as a PB. The subsonic is an interesting situation because it is quite possible that a heavier bullet will have a flatter trajectory than a light one assuming the same ballistic coefficient. Weird.

At $1.60 for the brass it's not exactly a cheap piece to be playing with and trying to expand the mouth on... Any idea what dies/things would be required to do the expansion? Could always get something custom made with a replaceable mandrel to expand the brass in steps with possible annealing in between which would mean that it was less prone to splitting on thin brass?

Those dies aren't exactly cheap either, In theory it should be possible to use a .308 neck sizing die and seating/crimp die though... Probably not worth the hassle but could be worth trying if you already had .308 dies.

[Mr Merde]

.300 Whisper Brass for sale

http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/Vie...Item=153422785

No international sales but I have a cousin living in Seattle that will act as a relay for these if asked.

Have them sent to him and he posts them to us

[jono035]

Interesting. Looks like it could be prone to the same usual issues in getting them out of the states.

Looking at the specs on the .308 and the .300 whisper in terms of neck diameter, there is quite a lot of difference there. Apparently .300/221 and .300 whisper chambers have different neck diameters to account for different brass thicknesses. .300 whisper should be made from .221 expanded while .300/221 should be made from .223 necked down.

Apparently, because .300 whisper is an SSK trademarked cartridge most barrels and reamers from other companies are .300/221 dimensions, even if they are marketed as .300 whisper...

Bah, confusing.

Edit: http://www.quarterbore.com/300whisper/brass.html indicates that the set comes with the expanders required to make the brass from .221 which makes it seem like a much better deal. My point above may hold true for the reloading dies as well if the necks get sized by different amounts... The Redding die is listed as .300 Whisper (.300/221) though... who knows... Probably best to get both and have a play around, really.

Edit 2: Also found a forum where the Howa 1500 action was suggested as a possible parent over the Remington 700 due to better extraction of the short case.

[Mr Merde]

I have never had a problem getting brass out of the US.
Its not a prohibited item or subject to any export rules.

The problem is that the firms just dont want the hassle of shipping overseas and also there is a general shortage in the US of all things shooting related. Checks for firearms purchases over trhere have hit an all time high with it going up 1.5% just last month.

The last lot of brass I had sent over was 2000 M1 cases and 1000 .44 spl cases.

Came here with no problems. I have the Weatherby Vanguard in .223, that is the Howa action rebadged. Worth looking at that for rebarreling.

[Drunken Monkey]

Anyone with a clone M-14?
Can you confirm that it has the gas-port shut off between the barrell and the gas tube please? My old one used to, so it could be turned off to create a straight-pull rifle.
Also, the B-square mounts have small grub screws in them and may move around a bit. Spending decent money on the mount would be a wise investment on an M-14.

I have a norinco m305 . what exactly am I looking for? I could take a photo and post it for you if you want.

[jono035]

I have never had a problem getting brass out of the US.
Its not a prohibited item or subject to any export rules.

The problem is that the firms just dont want the hassle of shipping overseas and also there is a general shortage in the US of all things shooting related. Checks for firearms purchases over trhere have hit an all time high with it going up 1.5% just last month.

The last lot of brass I had sent over was 2000 M1 cases and 1000 .44 spl cases.

Came here with no problems. I have the Weatherby Vanguard in .223, that is the Howa action rebadged. Worth looking at that for rebarreling.

More meant that the guy with the pre-made .300 whisper cases wouldn't ship to NZ, so finding somewhere that stocks a rare case and doesn't mind the hassle of shipping to NZ might be a hard one. This isn't a problem anyway given magnum imports has .221 fireball available and the dies include the mouth expander stems.

I'll bear that action in mind. I went and had a look in Sportways while I was waiting for my car to get a warrant just up the road. They had 3x Norinco JW-105s there, scoped for $650 each, all of them look like they're in pretty damn good nick. The next cheapest they had were a couple of Savage .223s (no scope, rings or mounts) for around $1600.

Edit: There is a new Howa 1500 .223 with scope (and a free hat!) on gunriflereload for $1125, gives a good indication of what should be available.

[Swoop]

I have a norinco m305 . what exactly am I looking for? I could take a photo and post it for you if you want.

On the right hand side. Between the gas tube and the barrel there should be a small round "thing" that you can put a screwdriver into and it will rotate 90 degrees only. This interrupts the gasflow from the barrel to the gas tube, making it a single shot rifle until returned to original position. Interesting to know if they are fitted to your rifle.

[Mr Merde]

I have a cousin who lives in Seattle. He was back here a couple of months ago and he told me that if there was anything I needed from the US then have it sent to him and he would forward it on to me.

[ManDownUnder]

I have a cousin who lives in Seattle. He was back here a couple of months ago and he told me that if there was anything I needed from the US then have it sent to him and he would forward it on to me.

umm... like... ummm let's say... purly hypothetically... errr... brass?

[jono035]

I know a guy just outside New York that I have gotten to do the same thing for a couple of electronic gizmos. Considering trying to get him to do the same with a lee bottom pour pot and some 6 cavity molds (assuming that it is legal etc.).

I found a chart for what twist rates were required to approximately stabilise certain projectiles but I can't find it now. Apparently SMLEs use a 1:10 twist rate which from memory was good up to 180gr... That could be a cheap amusement as well.