I was reading in some post concerning old load books info compared to newer ones. I have been using old recipe books like Lyman 44th, 1967 edition. So I checked my newer IMR brochure and the max load for a 30-06 using IMR4895 w/150g. bullets was 49.5g. My old book says 51.5g. for a max load.

My gun is a JC Higgins 51-L, 30-06 (HVA action made in Sweden) Husqvarna by Sears, basiclly. Very nice gun that I inheritted, shoots mighty straight too, w/Leo M8-4X.

For a load development, I loaded five rounds each in one g. increments from 47-51g., then went up the final 1/2g. on the last five rounds to 51.5g. Powder: IMR4895, bullets: 150g. Rem Bronze Points that I bought at a garage sale in the original OLD box for $2. Cases: FA 60 Match.

Since I am using the military brass should I maybe pull some of rounds that are loaded towards the hot-top??? Or should I see what happens first, since I have a reportedly strong action???
Or does the fact that I am using the mil. cases push me over the top??? I have read that I should probably stay 2 grains below book max on the mil. cases due to thicker walls, less capacity, higher pressures, etc.

What do ya think???
Happy shooting, Redrider.

I'd be careful going over the 51.0 grain mark...

Take heed of the warnings regarding military cases.

RSY

I've got two of those actions, one on a JC Higgins and one on a Smith and Wesson, nice aren't they!!! My Higgins has a very plain grain but beautifly checkered schnabled end stock and it is light as all get out. But they are a small ring action and I'd be careful per the folks above, again every gun is an entity unto itself and the chamber and throat on yours may allow it with ease. Working up carefully is the way to go.

regards,
Graycg

I think that you can thank Paul Mauser for designing your J.C. M-98 variant and keeping you alive to this point. 51 grs is entering dangerous territory, doing it with military brass is asking for trouble. Even the old reloading manuals should tell you about these things, if you read them.

"Speer 8" 1970 says 30-06 53 gr IMR4895 150 gr spitzer, 3015 fps.

redrider,

As long as you start low and work your way up you should be ok. Examine each load for pressure signs. There are so many variables in rifles that what may be an excessive load in one rifle maybe safe in another. I would suggest that you work up in half grain increments rather than one grain steps. Time and again I've seen a half grain change make a big difference in both accuracy and pressures.

There are basically two reasons why the old books vary from the new ones. Due to the age of the '06 cartridge there are still some of the older rifles around that may not handle pressures well. As a result, the S.A.A.M.I. pressure specs are held to 50K cup. The .308 Win and .270 Win, both of which came along about the time of improved metallurgy don't have the older rifles still being used and both have 52K cup S.A.A.M.I. limit. There is no reason the '06 cannot be held to the 52K cup in newer rifles. The only trouble is the lawyer effect and the S.A.A.M.I. spec. may open the factories and publishers to law suits. So everything for the '06 is limited to the 50K cup pressure limit.

One thing I've learned, is every rifle is an individual and is going to act like one. As a result I let the rifle tell me what it likes and what the pressures limits are. I hope that this is of some help. Good luck.

The "strength" of your HVA action is fairly irrelavent to what is a safe load in that the brass will fail -- and spew hot gases and metallic particles into the action breech area -- long before the action itself will fail, or even be damaged. The only way to tell whether a load is excessive in your PARTICULAR gun is to work up from below, preferably with a chronograph to verify relative performance, watching carefully for the classic pressure signs.

Yes, military brass usually is thicker than commercial, so it yields higher chamber pressures with the same load. On the flip side, the heavier military brass will also tolerate higher pressure before failing. Nonetheless, don't depend on a strong action, strong brass, or something listed in some manual to keep you out of trouble. If you don't understand how to interpret pressure indications, then stay away from high-performance loads. Even loads with modest pressures will provide more velocity than standard factory loads in a .30-06.

Load the last several increments in 0.5 grain increases, instead of 1.0 grain increments. Stop shooting when you get to the level that gives you the best accuracy, or when it seems to be getting too hot! If it gets too hot, cut back 5%!! I know for sure that some GI M2 ball was loaded with as much as 52 grains of IMR 4895, because I pulled a lot of old GI ammo and weighed the charges! This was both WWII and Korean War vintage ammo. I was very surprised to find how much powder was in some of these cases. But of course, the ammo was loaded to a specific performance level, rather than by charge weight, and some lots of wartime powder may have been on the slow side.