jr_roosa
Member
I can't find a good thread on this using "search" so I'll ask...
First off, the .30-30 actually headspaces on the rim, and my Win94 is well within spec. We don't need to beat that dead horse.
Has anybody ever measured the "headspace" on their .30-30, meaning the length from the base to the 0.375" datum on the shoulder? What sorts of numbers do you get?
I got a stoney point gauge to measure cartridge headspace to reload for my Garand. Everything I measured in .30-06 (fired brass, new brass, factory loads) was within about .010" or so.
I got curious. My reloads for my .30-30 don't seem to seal the chamber and are fairly sooty unless the loads are near max. Also, I've been very unimpressed with my accuracy at 100yds (4-6" groups). I threw the stoney point gauge on them, and here's what I found:
Remington factory loads: 1.473"
Winchester new brass: 1.479"
Fired brass: 1.512" (bolt closes fine over cases this length)
Resized brass...RCBS die "cammed over" 1.500"
I'm shocked that the range is 0.040" and now I see why I'm getting soot back into the chamber. Also, my brass is cracking after a few reloads right where the shoulder meets the neck. Must be a lot of work hardening.
Anyway, I was going to start resizing to bump the shoulder back about 0.003" shorter than chamber size (estimated from fired brass). Basically I'm going to start treating .30-30 as a bottle-neck rimless cartridge and see what sort of accuracy improvement I can get.
Anybody else go down this route? Any suggestions? Am I setting myself up for pressure issues?
The worst case I can see is difficulty extracting cases if they get a little too snug in the chamber. I only have one .30-30, so I'm not worried about function in any other rifles.
First off, the .30-30 actually headspaces on the rim, and my Win94 is well within spec. We don't need to beat that dead horse.
Has anybody ever measured the "headspace" on their .30-30, meaning the length from the base to the 0.375" datum on the shoulder? What sorts of numbers do you get?
I got a stoney point gauge to measure cartridge headspace to reload for my Garand. Everything I measured in .30-06 (fired brass, new brass, factory loads) was within about .010" or so.
I got curious. My reloads for my .30-30 don't seem to seal the chamber and are fairly sooty unless the loads are near max. Also, I've been very unimpressed with my accuracy at 100yds (4-6" groups). I threw the stoney point gauge on them, and here's what I found:
Remington factory loads: 1.473"
Winchester new brass: 1.479"
Fired brass: 1.512" (bolt closes fine over cases this length)
Resized brass...RCBS die "cammed over" 1.500"
I'm shocked that the range is 0.040" and now I see why I'm getting soot back into the chamber. Also, my brass is cracking after a few reloads right where the shoulder meets the neck. Must be a lot of work hardening.
Anyway, I was going to start resizing to bump the shoulder back about 0.003" shorter than chamber size (estimated from fired brass). Basically I'm going to start treating .30-30 as a bottle-neck rimless cartridge and see what sort of accuracy improvement I can get.
Anybody else go down this route? Any suggestions? Am I setting myself up for pressure issues?
The worst case I can see is difficulty extracting cases if they get a little too snug in the chamber. I only have one .30-30, so I'm not worried about function in any other rifles.