256 Winchester Magnum

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Fyrstyk

Fyrstyk

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Anyone here load for this round? I have a T/C Contender carbine (18") barrel in this caliber. I am looking for some good loads for coyotes out to 100 yards.
 
I have a TC 10" Contender barrel, a Marlin 62, and a rebarreled '92 Winchester in .256. It has been a while since I have shot any of them. But, I checked my old reloads and used mostly 75g SPFN bullets ahead of an average of 13g of 4227. Zippy little cartridge.
 
Yes, it's a shame it didn't survive. Luckily, I bought a set of RCBS reforming dies back in the day. I believe the factory loads were 60g, but I think I remember using up to 86g. My old reloads are all 75g.
 
MI2600 said:
Yes, it's a shame it didn't survive. Luckily, I bought a set of RCBS reforming dies back in the day. I believe the factory loads were 60g, but I think I remember using up to 86g. My old reloads are all 75g.
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Did you ever chrono your loads out of the rifles, and if so what kind of velocity were your getting? What was the accuracy like?
 
Sorry, I've never used a chrono on my loads. My loading manuals have velocities 2400 FPS and up. I am a rather careful "middle of the pack" loader since most of my collection is 100+ years old. I have found my .256 loads very accurate in the Marlin. I haven't really fired the Winchester on a range because it had some loading issues when I bought it. I've never fired the TC barrel. With your long TC barrel I think you will be pleased.
If you would like, I can pull the loading cards and advise what I have on hand.
 
Not to hijack the thread, but I’d be interested in if anyone has converted a 25-20 Winchester 1892 to .256 win mag. I’ve been thinking about chambering the round, and how easy or hard it is to make brass. PM me!
 
I bought mine already converted. Whoever did the work did an excellent job. I believe mine began life as a 38 or 44 WCF because an "inner" cartridge tube was added to probably decrease the dimensions of the original tube for the smaller cartridge. The rim sizes of the 25-20 and the .357 appear almost identical.
I did experience some difficulty with cartridges chambering easily, but again I don't know what interior parts were changed or left original. I figured how to overcome my problem, but it was a case of dumb luck winning out over skill and cunning.
As to the cartridge conversion from .357, I have the RCBS reforming dies. I've never tried converting using the .256 dies. That's a large decrease in neck size. I just googled reforming .357 to .256 and several items popped up. I usually look on the Cast Boolits site which has a section devoted to such conversions.
 
I would be interested in what powders you have used to obtain good accuracy. I'm getting around 2550 FPS using WW 296 with 1" groups at 100 yards. I don't think I can do much better, but i like to tinker with different loads and bullets looking for that magic combo.
 
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