Does anyone know if there was a 300HH AI? If so, what are the dimensions, angle of the shoulder and the case capacity? Anyone know where you can get a reamer in 300HH AI? Thanks. Ku-dude

Ku-dude,

I think it would be a safe bet to say there was a 300 H&H Ackley Improved along with many other 300 H&H Improveds. If someone has aAckley's books hand they will be able to rattle them off. I think some bloke called Weatherby might have had one as well

I guess if you were doing one today the 30/8mm Rem or the 300 Jarret might be the best/easiest way to go. The 300 Jarret I think is about .505 at the shoulder like the 358 STA, so a little bigger than the 30/8mm Rem.

Mike

The 300 Ackley has a large following in the 1000 yard benchrest club. I believe reamerrentals.com has the 300 Ackley 40�.

I have a 300 H&H AI in a Pre 64 Model 70 that I bought from a friend of mine. It was never remarked when it was rechambered and my friend had never fired it, so I loaded up some rounds in 300 H&H with Nosler 180 PT's and took it to the range. My son was planning on using it for an elk hunting trip, so he was firing it and handing me the brass after each shot. I finally noticed that the brass looked a bit different, so I checked it out.
Even while fireforming brass, this rifle will shoot .5 MOA and with full house AI loads it retains this accuracy or a bit better. Needless to say, I can't pry that rifle away from my son even though I've thought about a half dozen rifles I could build with a magnum length Pre 64 action.
I use 300 Weatherby loading information and it works just fine. - Sheister

Wouldn't ALL of these (.300/8mmRem., 300 H&H AI, etc.), be pretty much equivalent to a .300 Weatherby?

eldeguello

Yes, these and the 300 Wby are all about the same. However there is one difference and that is the freebore on a standard reamer.

If you buy a reamer for these wildcats it will have conventional freebore whereas the 300 Wby reamer needs to be made to order to have freebore removed. Also some gunsmiths don't like to chamber for 300 Wby with conventional freebore becaue pressures might be a bit over the top if Wby factory ammo was fired in such a chamber.

Mike

The .300 Ackley magnum Improved is on page 440 of Vol 1. It is also in The Handloaders Manual of Cartridge Conversion on page 331. I do not believe their calculations of case capacity as it shows it to be less than the parent cartridge and the dimensions show the improved to be greater sized case. This book has done that in some other instances as in the .35 Whelen improved.

[ 09-17-2002, 05:21: Message edited by: Customstox ]

Thanks for your information. My old rifle needs a new/old stock, and before playing with that I am thinking about having the action trued and the barrel rechambered to the AI or someother combination.

I want to retain the slick chambering of the original H&H round, but decrease case stretching. My thought was to retain the case taper but increase the shoulder angle. Anyone have a comment?

Ku-dude,
I look through my book and there was not a round that retained the case taper unless the length was shortened to fit in a standard magazine box. You can do what you wanted but the cost would be excessive. You will have to design a chamber, have one of the reamer manufacturers build a reamer for it. Then after chambering you will have to fire form some rounds and have RCBS make dies to fit. You will not want to see the extra cost of that relative to what you get out of it. If you want to go that route, the AI is the way to go. Reamers are available and dies will cost you $30 more or so. Good luck.

Chic

Ku-dude, I just took a better look at the .300 Ackley Magnum Improved and the case length is also 2.600 inches, 0.250 inches shorter than the parent case, hence the smaller capacity. Forget that one.

[ 09-17-2002, 05:38: Message edited by: Customstox ]

I finished an experiment with my .300 H&H in a 1962 vintage M-70. The rifle is quite accurate but after a half dozen reloads the web thins from the headspace being at the wrong place.

I got up to about nine reloads by making cases from Remington .375 H&H cases. That way the first shot will have the headspace on the shoulder sort of. I say sort of as the angle is only 8 degrees and it only helps to hold it back. The Remington cases have a much thicker web than WW cases and thus will last longer.

How does it shoot now? What are your loads like?

Chic, Thanks. Another wonderful idea up in smoke.

Don, I am looking at a 375HH case and 300HH case as I type. The only way I could get the 375 to chamber would be to squeeze it in at the top of the case by resizing it. How does this differ from using a 300HH case and shooting a relatively light charge on the first firing and then being careful not to set the shoulder back?

That idea raises the option of using a Lee collet necksizing die, but would it chamber easily when hunting things that might bite or claw ya?

That's the idea of using the .375 H&H case as the shoulder is further forward. Just FL size the .375 case in a .300 H&H FL die. That's all there is to it.

Use full power loads right off also. No need to "fireform" or anything.

Now "just FL size" does not mean to screw the die down hard on the shell holder and run off 500 on your Dillon! It means to gradually size the case more and more until you can feel the bolt close easy but still have contact with the case. Then lock up the FL die and check it again.

And the safety should be half way back if it's a M-70, Mauser or Springfield. What you need to do is to relieve the force of the firing pin spring as you test the case so that you can feel it.

What kind of action do you have? What case life are you getting and what are your loads?

Ku-dude & Customstox I believe the 300 apex mag retains the 300 H&H body taper and has a sharp shoulder to reduce stretching

Snowman,
The apex also has a shorter case also, 2.615 and the taper is blown out, .489 at the shoulder versus .457 and it has less capacity also.

Customstox Apex actually has its name on 2 300 mags. If you refer to page 433 in PO Ackley # 1 handbook you will find the 300 Apex Mag which is a shortened H&H case.The dimensions you have listed above. On page 439 there is also the 300 Apex super Mag which is the full length 300H&H case with no changes except for the sharp shoulder.

KU-DUDE,
Back in the 50s, when I lived in Alaska, a popular rechambering of the .300H&H was to the .300 Weatherby. It is a simple rechambering for a good gunsmith, and you still have the advantage of factory ammo. I'm not sure, but I think the .300 Weatherby is one of the cartridges now being offered by Remington. Good luck.

best bet is the 300 weatherby.. but, you arent really loosing anything with the HH, if you load with newer powders.

you can start with webby bottom loads in an ackley.
jeffe