More of you guys posting your cast shooting DE-tales, I'll run my session of today by you.

First off, I picked up an 06 722 used barrel last spring- the man sent it on approval & indeed he got a check instead of a return. My measurements were correct-- I knew the thing wouldn't turn on my action, but it'd been fired very little-- AND it passed by slugging test with flying colors. That being a slug of lead passed thru that bore showed a remarkable even tension. Course that's how they should be.

And she shoots- seven different loadings today shot at 100 with a 2 power scope of ancient vintage. Course it's age doesn't stop it from working like a clock. I digress- per usual.

Anyways the bullet is the LBT 170 SP 1R heat treated hard- Gray 32 for the lube, the bullet seated so the front driver just contacts the forcing cone. No matter this bore is flat 3090-- cast bullets solve that.

All over 210's-- OAL 3.13. Brass RP- ancient too.

1. 18 gr of Blue Dot 1.7" for the five

2. 19.5 grs of Blue Dot 1.25"- 5 rds.

3. 22 grs or so 2400 1 7/8" for 5- three in the space of a dime. Wind is from 9 to 7 o'clock to 12 mph+. Affected this group-- flys biting and I didn't bother reading the wind.

4. 27.5 grs of Alliant 7 in 2" for 5.

5. 25ish grs of EXtreme 4198 in 1 5/8"-- three in the dime again.

6. Around 25 ish of regular H4198-- 1 5/8s for 5

7. Old IMR 4198- stuff is mildly dedeoriated, 5 in 3.5", three in an inch.

"ish"?? I write my loads in settings of my Pacific measure-- the grs is from memory.

The only load not worth pursuing is the old lot of IMR 4198. The rest look to have potential. With still air and more glasspower- who knows? I think the 2 power will stay there for awhile though.

[ 08-17-2002, 07:07: Message edited by: aladin ]

Aladin, I note one powder I've always thought highly of seems to be missing from your account.
4759 - Have you played with it?

The only cast bullet triumph I can crow about for this year was with that damn Ruger .44 Magnum that I said, "just wouldn't shoot lead."

I can thank you for goading me into working with it long enough to solve the mystery. Bullet diameter. Boy did I feel dumb! I've used oversided cast bullets all my life with great results. Now all of a sudden I get stupid and size them .429 and wonder why they don't shoot?
Duh...........

Ok, maybe I really am as dumb as I look.

NOW <thanks to Aladin pestering me> and some .431 diameter bullets, the .44 Mag rifle shoots like it is supposed to.

There should be a checklist somewhere of things which must be tried before a gun is discarded with the notation: "Won't Shoot."

Pecos most of the 4759 I burn gets used in the 45/70. Why I dunno-- it's good stuff, burns clean but meters a little grudingly. I weigh nothing- so metering is a factor for me. Hard to beat '59 in the 45 though, unless your using the real stuff.

Blue Dot is a sleeper powder as far as I'm concerned. Enough speed for the pressure level- usually around 1900+ and more accurate than Unique by a neck. I don't shoot slower than Unique for powder speed-- not the ES's for longer range shooting and too position sensitive.

Hmmm. Blue Dot. Never tried that in the '06.

Don't recall if I have used Blue Dot with cast bullets in rifles or not...but you're right about it being a sleeper. I've used it in all sorts of pistols with excellent results in all.

Not many shooters seem to use it, oddly enough.