I purchased a CZ 550 American with a beautiful piece of wood that I am in the process of modifying for my own tastes (refinishing and shaping stock, grip cap, adding open sights etc.) I the mean time, I just finished up prepping 100 Lapua cases. This is my first time with Lapua and I must say this brass rocks! I have only used domestic stuff (Win and Rem) and the Lapua is incredible although expensive.

I basically have two questions. I hope to take this rifle to Africa someday as well as to bag an elk or other big critter when I travel outside of Ohio. I have decided upon the 286 grain Nosler Partion. I also got a box of the 270g Speers for practice. I hope to have good luck with RL15 powder. 1) The partion has a crimping grove, have any of you found it necessary to crimp these bullets at near max loads in the 9.3X62? 2) I have not found any RL15 loads for use with the 270g Speers in any of my data. Do you have any recommendations for a startling load? I was planning on starting with 55.5-56g of RL15. This is 1-1.5 grains over the starting load for the heavier 286g Partion. Thanks in advance.

djb,

I have a cz 550 lux in 9.3x62 as well and like it, it came with dual cros bolts and I had it bedded for extra insurance, I like the speer 270 gr for smaller game such as deer, pigs etc. If I shoot bigger stuff I will load a woodleigh bullet. Can't really help you with powder charges as we don't have the same stuff as you. Post a pic when your done !!

Got to say I love that lapua brass as well !!

djb,

See this thread: 9.3x62 RL-15 285gr

Also, a table for your reference:


*** NOTE: R-P brass indicates Remington .30-06 and /or .35 Whelen brass was used by the author of the article. ***
Muzzle Velocities are those given/stated by the author in their article.
Also, for those that may not know, you can right click on the image and save it to your local hard drive for future reference if you'd like.


I haven't found it necessary to use a crimp with the 286 Nosler Partition bullets. I also seat them to a COL of 3.34 inches for my CZ. Plenty of room in the CZ magazine and the throat can handle it without a problem. At that COL the cannelure is forward of the case mouth.

-Bob F.

Re: the crimping groove. I've never found it necessary to crimp anything except rounds to be fed to a Tubular magazine, or a Revolver with heavy loads. I can see why one needs to crimp double rifle rounds as well.....but Bolt Action rounds need to be seated the way you like them and crimping is not necessary.
I don't always crimp my .375 H&H ammo and have never had a problem with them.

That said, I'd wonder just why one don't crimp them.....It reaslly can't hurt anything!!!!

On crimping............if there is a groove there I would use it, just me however.

djb,

Go for IT!

9.3x62 is one of my favorite calibers, bottom line is that it kills animals = large animals - really dead!

My experience is:

Can't obtain RL powders in Europe but VV N-140 is our Eruopean favorite = VV N-140/55.6 grains w/either 250 grain Ballistic Tip or Speer 270 gr. = works great - kills a shitload of Wild Boar & Red Stags.

With the 250 gr. Nosler BT's I crimp right in the middle of the crimping grove - the rest seems to sort itself out.

The Speer's are measured with Stoney Point to the best hunting advantage = 0.003 off the lands/grooves.

We will use a 9.3x62 in Africa this year and report on the results, although my take-away is that - don't bother to use "extreme" loadings - everything else works well enough.

BF,

You & I have to have a beer together, we just think too much a-like.

When are you going through Frankfurt?

Gerry,

Yes, it's strange how great minds think alike!!

I have really come to like the 9.3x62 cartridge. (I also own a .338 Win Mag and a .375 H&H.) It's fast becoming one of my favorite cartridges. I'm taking mine (CZ 550 rifle) to South Africa this coming August for a plains game hunt. I'll be using the 286gr Woodleigh round nose bullets loaded to about 2390 fps. (58.0 grains of RL-15 with a COL of 3.29 inches) This load is shooting 1 inch groups at 100 yards and right at 2 inch groups at 200 yards. Good enough for me!

Unfortunately, I won't be going through Frankfurt this coming August as I will be taking South African Airways direct out of Atlanta, Georgia. Funny thing is, though, I did seriously consider going through Frankfurt. Oh well... It's a pity that we won't get to meet. Maybe in the future, though. I am seriously thinking of hunting in Namibia in a couple of years and I will, more than likely, fly to Frankfurt and then catch Air Namibia. Maybe we can meet up then.

And, who knows, it might be fun to do a little boar hunting in Germany one of thse days!! Using my 9.3x62 on a boar hunt in Germany would be a great experience!!

Until then, good health and good hunting!!



-Bob F.

Thanks to some members of this forum I have found a Great 286gr Partition load for my CZ 550 Am.

286gr Partition
65gr Ramshot BigGame
WLR primers
Lapua Brass
COL 3.28
Avg Vel. 2454
Sub MOA.

djb,
If you will do an advanced search under 9.3 and kudude or ku-dude (I had to change my name because I was competing with myself after the change in the servers), you will find about three "articles" I wrote on this cartridge and on pressures.

In sum, what I had read was that the pressures in 9.3x62 were held down in deference to some older rifles, but with new actions with new steels (post 1920 military or new commercial actions) you can go to the pressures used in 270Win. This will move your velocity up 100 to 150fps for each bullet weight.

I concluded in modern firearms, the weak link is the brass. I tested this and found that the Lapua brass was showing no looseness of pockets and no indication of web thinning after 10 reloads. My initial test of 4895, RL15 and Varget revealed that Varget had the smoothest pressure curve. In fact, it is a straight line to beyond what I would consider safe. Use 210 primers.

Based on these test, one can slowly and deliberately work up loads for the 250BT that will close on 2600fps, 270Speer that will be in the 2500fps range, and 286Partition that will clock nearly 2400fps from a 23" barrel.

What does the extra velocity mean? Six inch point blank range for 250BT of 250yds, 2+@100, and point blank range of three inches out to 200yds for 286gr bullets with bullets dead on at 100yds ALL WITH THE SAME SIGHT SETTING!

If I were limited to one rifle for everything, it would be this rifle, which will regularly put three through one hole at one hundred and has shot a gloverleaf at 300yds. It is bloody terrific, and it is headed to Tanz in Jun! kudude

Thanks everybody!

PC - mine came with the double cross bolts as well. I bedded under the front two recoil lugs as extra insurance as well. It was the first time I bedded a rifle with double lugs. It took a little work (and praying) to separate the action from the stock. I probably should have just bedded one lug and under the front ring. Oh well it came out well and I don't think it will be cracking any time in the future.

BFaucet - thanks for the chart. It was just the confirmation is was looking for. With what my manuels say, those look like near max loads. I always like to cross check several sources before I start charging cases. One cannot be too careful.

DJB,

I had my smith bed mine there is know way I was capable of doing it myself !!

I was suprised that the 9.3x62's come properly set up with dual cross bolts and proper simple barrel lug while the safari magnums have this funky lug contraption set up and the cross bolt in the wrong place

My 9.3x62 has a 26" barrel, a la Ray Atkinson. I am using H4895 61-62 gr.,Lapua brass, and 250 X bullet. My combination shootsninto .5" at 100yds and is less than 2" at 300. My cases are on their 15 t. loading and still going strong. It is a hell of a round.

RL 15, 59 grains goes 2417 in mine, 65 gr Ramshot Big Game goes 2470 in the same rifle. Both shoot 3/4 in., with Noslers or North Fork bullets. I'd probably just load the Speer bullets the same way for practice or smaller game.

I used just under max loads of H4895 with both of the bullets you mention and had no problems. I did not crimp into the groove on the Nosler.

I also found that these bullets hit nearly the same POI with the same charge.


Okie John

quote:

Originally posted by Gerry:

9.3x62 is one of my favorite calibers, bottom line is that it kills animals = large animals - really dead!

Is there a difference between really dead and dead?

Well, there's dead, really dead and, as they say in the country, "more deader"!!!

-Bob F.