Obsolete/little used cartridges

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HowieG

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Anybody else out there like to piddle around loading and shooting cartridges that are little used and/or actually obsolete? I currently load 32-20, 300 Savage, and 405 Winchester. I maybe could count the 260 Remington in that you don't see it around much and I make brass for it. At least, I am the only one I personally know that loads for one. I like stuff that makes me scramble around a bit looking tools and for ways to procure or fabricate brass.

I recently bid on a Remington model 8 in 30 Remington, but I didn't win. I am currently considering picking up something in 250-3000 (not a 99 though), a 6mm Remington, or a 257 Bob.
 
I think I have more 32-20 than any other caliber, pistols and rifles. I think eight. Also load 25-20 which is hard to find brass, I have read that 32-20 brass can be made into 25-20. Tried it with no success, guess I'll keep trying. Also load 30 Mauser to shoot in a Mauser Broomhandle. That is probably the most difficult to load that I have tried.
 
Here are my thoughts. If I owned a gun with family history that was chambered in one of the odd ball cartridges I'd do what I needed to do to keep shooting it.

But I wouldn't seek out something like that. I got enough problems to worry about without adding more.
 
I am loading 38/200 Mk I and 455 Webley Mk II for my two Webley revolvers.

I load a very hot 38 Short Colt for USPSA competition, but shoot that in a modern 357 Magnum revolver.

I will be loading 30 Remington AR when I run out of factory ammunition since I expect the Vista owned Remington ammunition might not continue to support that cartridge any more.
 
GunnyUSMC said:
I have a small hand made rifle chamber in 32 Rimfire. I was able to scrounge up about 30 rounds for it. Once the ammo is gone it will become a wall hanging.
Click to expand...

Yeah, no way to save those old rimfire guns unless you can crank up your own rimfire ammo factory. Pity that. Some of those guns are really neat.
 
Fyrstyk said:
I load and shoot a .256 Winchester Magnum and a .338-06. I also shoot the wildcat .375 Winchester Hybrid and a 445 super mag.
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Certainly no problem making brass for the 256. I would have one, but finding the guns is tough. And expensive.
 
.38 Special said:
I enjoy keeping oddball guns shooting. My most recent project, which involved learning some new handloading techniques, was .38 Colt with heeled bullets.
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Oh yeah, heeled bullets. Never tried them. 41 Long Colt is kind of neat, but a gun for it is an expensive proposition.
 
Yup.
Many expensive from factory ammunition types.
I love being... er hem... frugal. Yeah thats it, frugal!


(All below are homemade or reloaded due to cost)
577 snider.
577-450 Martini-Henry
6.5 Dutch Mannlicher
455 Webly
30-40 Krag
303 British
45 AR
6mm Lee
38 long colt (old colt I spent way too much money getting running)
11mm mauser
 
Charlie98 said:
I regularly shoot a .348WCF. Brass and bullet availability comes and goes, let alone actual factory ammos. Thankfully, I have a pretty good stash of brass, and I get my bullets from Montana Bullet Works.
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I don't imagine you wear that brass out much.
 
jag22 said:
I think I have more 32-20 than any other caliber, pistols and rifles. I think eight. Also load 25-20 which is hard to find brass, I have read that 32-20 brass can be made into 25-20. Tried it with no success, guess I'll keep trying. Also load 30 Mauser to shoot in a Mauser Broomhandle. That is probably the most difficult to load that I have tried.
Click to expand...

I really like 32-20 and load it a lot. Haven't tried to get brass since the pandemic started, but I am in pretty good shape.

Do you have a 25-20 forming die? I read somewhere that Redding made one. Maybe they still do?

Can you find new brass for 30 Mauser?
 
jmr40 said:
Here are my thoughts. If I owned a gun with family history that was chambered in one of the odd ball cartridges I'd do what I needed to do to keep shooting it.

But I wouldn't seek out something like that. I got enough problems to worry about without adding more.
Click to expand...

Well, I haven't bought one that would require me to purchase a lathe to make brass for it.......yet.:)
 
mcb said:
I am loading 38/200 Mk I and 455 Webley Mk II for my two Webley revolvers.

I load a very hot 38 Short Colt for USPSA competition, but shoot that in a modern 357 Magnum revolver.

I will be loading 30 Remington AR when I run out of factory ammunition since I expect the Vista owned Remington ammunition might not continue to support that cartridge any more.
Click to expand...

I kind of wonder how many 30 Rem AR guns were sold. You have any idea? I haven't seen one personally. Nor that 25-45 Sharps.
 
792mauser said:
Yup.
Many expensive from factory ammunition types.
I love being... er hem... frugal. Yeah thats it, frugal!


(All below are homemade or reloaded due to cost)
577 snider.
577-450 Martini-Henry
6.5 Dutch Mannlicher
455 Webly
30-40 Krag
303 British
45 AR
6mm Lee
38 long colt (old colt I spent way too much money getting running)
11mm mauser
Click to expand...

With that list, you don't sound frugal to me!!
 
HowieG said:
I kind of wonder how many 30 Rem AR guns were sold. You have any idea? I haven't seen one personally. Nor that 25-45 Sharps.
Click to expand...
Can't be more than a few thousand Remington R-30's. Remington only made the rifles for roughly three plus years. Designed the cartridge and rifle in 2008 and production of rifles had stopped by 2011. They still made annual batches of ammo up till the bankruptcy and sale to Vista. Vista stills lists at least one 30 RAR load on the new Remington ammo website but we'll see if they actually load it. I have dies and several hundred rounds of ammo so I should be able to keep it going awhile.
 
FROGO207 said:
Lets see.............
33 Winchester
25-20 Single Shot
8MM Lebel
32 Short
32 WIN SPL
44 AMP
38-55
45-120
Some others that I do so infrequently I forget too.
The big mystery is how I ended up with a third set of Lee 500 S&W dies??
Click to expand...

Sounds like you planned to wear out dies loading thousands of 500 Mags. :rofl:
 
I do, but more because of the guns made in the calibers than any special affinity for lost puppies. I guess the exception to this would be the .280 Rem. I dearly love the cartridge, and difficulties in obtaining brass be dammed. In that case, it was cartridge first, and the rifle I found for it had to be in that chambering.

Some oddballs in my inventory chosen for rifle/handgun, not cartridge:
6.5x50Japanese
7mmTCU (a bit of both actually. Needed a mild silhouette round in a TC and found this one first)
.300 Savage
7,5x55 Swiss
7.7x58 Japanese
7.62x54R
7,62x25 Tokareva

I load and shoot all of the above rounds, but most with limited round count so my brass should be nearly a lifetime supply.
 
The only odd ball I currently load for 9.3x57 mauser. I'm sure there will be others eventually. I've been thinking about 375 whelen.
 
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