Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters Mule Deer's 9.3x62 data

Thanks for the reply. Does the Hornady factory load with their 286 grain bullet expand well on deer? The reason I ask is that they chronographed only about 2250 fps from my 23.6 inch Steyr Prohunter. I would use them at no more than about 200 yards. Tried them on my 260 yard steel deer target and they drop about a foot with a zero about two inches high at 100 yards. They don't shoot much flatter than my 35 Remington.

But there are plenty of places for me to hunt where I can't see over 200 yards and if they'll expand they ought to let the air out of deer and hogs pretty quick as well as leave a blood trail if anything gets out of sight.

Yeah, they should expand well even at that velocity. They're designed for the standard factory velocity for the 9.3x62, which is only 2360 fps.

The resurgence of this thread makes me want to load some ammo for mine, which I have never used. The barrel is for a Blaser R-93, with sights, scope is an all steel El Paso Weaver 3X from 1973 that has about an box of 30-30s under it's belt. Components on hand are a good choice of primers, 270 Hot Core, and Privi brass. I have not seen Varget or BG lately, but I do have 4350, 4895, and BLC-2 that might work.

My experience with mediums has mostly been with 338W and 338-06. The latter was my favorite, but I foolishly shipped them. I ran across this 9.3x62 barrel while looking for a replacement 338-06.

Thanks for the insight,

Jack

Since purchasing my CZ 9.3x62 a dozen or so years ago, my .338 Winchester and .375 H&H have been mostly gathering dust.

It has also impressed a few other people. Five years ago I went to Africa, and my partner made the popular choice of a .300 Winchester Magnum. After the hunt he bought his own 9.3x62.

Hey MD, do you believe the 320 gr Woodleigh PP soft at 2400 fps coupled with the 280 gr BBW#13 solid at the same speed and poi at 100 yards would be an effective set up.

I certainly do from limited experience, the solid may not even be legal in some locales, but had to develop it with the soft if not only to be complementary cool.

I believe it to be a lot of bang for the buck on the '06 sized case head.

Oh, yeah, that would work great at woods or thornbush ranges.

I worked up a similar load in my CZ, and the Woodleigh 320 shoots right to point of aim at 100 yards when 250/286's are two inches high. Unfortunately I haven't "field tested" it yet, but have seen enough Woodleighs in action to be impressed, especially the heavier bullets at moderate velocities.

Thanks MD, that's plenty good enough of a description for me to use them with confidence.
I shall go forth soon and test this old Heym mauser.

Thinking about trying them on another African jaunt?

Maybe so, I think it'd be excellent for Eland, bush pig and warthog inside 300 yards.

It certainly wouldn't extend their lifespans!

I'll gladly have to give em a go when the time comes, have never had a Woodleigh soft fail, and the info Ive read on the BBW #13 solids is outstanding across the caliber spectrum.

A "just for what it's worth" info bit:

Recently (April 27) I did my first test of the 320gr Woodleighs. I fired one of each starting at 61 to 66 grs RL-17. Up front, I'll say that all calculations had been previously done including QL. Here are the results:

1 - 61grs RL-17 = 2276 fps
2 - 62grs RL-17 = 2308 fps
3 - 63grs RL-17 = 2351 fps
4 - 64grs RL-17 = 2388 fps
5 - 65grs RL-17 = 2426 fps
6 - 66grs RL-17 = 2464 fps

*Add 10 fps for correction to muzzle.

Ambient temp was +5*C
Rifle: Tikka T3 Lite (22.4" barrel)
Primer: WLRM
Case:Hornady
COL = 3.37"

All cases were new and similar in appearance and extraction. Primer pockets were as new after cases were resized.

On May 18 three of those cartridges that had been reloaded for the second time contained 66grs RL-17 behind the 320gr Woodleigh PP. They were fired at our range and recorded: 2433, 2434 and 2428 fps. Add 10 for correction to muzzle. About 30 fps less than the first firing of a single load in new brass, on a day of slightly different ambient conditions in once fired brass is normal. But the point is that they were very consistent in MV, extraction and appearance. I then fired one containing 67grs RL-17 from new brass, all else equal. That one recorded 2475 fps (add 10). Again, all was "normal". I think any of those loads could be useful in hunting depending on range and the game. Probably the 66gr load will be my choice if I ever need or want to use it on anything.

Currently, the 250 AB is my goto load at about 2715 fps. It shoots 0.44 MOA. That's from 70grs RL-17 and is not max. Max is 71 grs at 2760 fps and MOA. On the other hand, the 286 NP is no slouch either at 2622 and MOA from RL-17.

Very good bears have been taken with each -- a single shot in Sept '13 from the 286 NP at 68 yards and one from the 250 last Oct.1st took a very nice bear at 85 yds.

The 9.3 X 62 has become my favorite medium-bore.

Bob

www.bigbores.ca

Bob,

you still have some rl17?

find out interesting those speed on the light tikka .....

I'm chewing on a 9.3 as well.

What vels are you guys getting with 286 gr Partitions with 24" barrels? Loads? What is recoil like compared to full house 250 gr (2500 ft/sec), 35 wh loads in an 8lb rifle?

Thanks.

Bob,

What pressures do you think you are at with those loads? They are fairly smoking those bullets out the end of the barrel.

How is case life after a couple of reloads?

Regards

66 Gr RS BG, 2517 FPS, 2539 FPS,2521 FPS, 286 GR Nosler Partition, 3 @.69" at 100 yards.

Lapua Cases CCI Std primer 22" Pac-Nor barrel 9.3 X 62 minimal case stretch and primers stay tight.

With RL 15 about 2400 FPS was max. RL 15 works better with 250 GR in my rifle.

For what it's worth, I started working with the 9.3x62 over a dozen years ago. The pressure limit for both CIP and SAAMI is very low, due to many old rifles in the cartridge, but I did some calculating with several formulas, comparing the powder room of the 9.3x62 with both the .35 Whelen and .375 H&H.

One difference, however, between the 9.3 and those two is a very long throat, common among cartridges of that era. Many early smokeless rounds (and the 9.3x62 was designed before the .375 and .35 Whelen) used heavy-for-caliber round-nosed bullets, hence the long throat, which tends to reduce peak pressures, especially with shorter, lighter spitzers.

Anyway, I calculated what sort of velocities the 9.3x62 would be capable of compared to the .35 Whelen and .375, taking into account powder room (it has somewhat more than the .35 Whelen) and bore diameter. Then I fooled with various newer powders until getting the calculated velocities. There were NO signs of excessive pressure, whether with 250 loaded to 2650 or so with RL-15 and Varget, or 286's at around 2500 with Big Game. (RL-17 wasn't around then, or I would have it tried it too.)

But to check my results, I also had Charlie Sisk test the loads with his Pressure Trace, using Norma factory ammo to adjust the results. (The PSI pressures from strain gauges are normally lower than with piezo equipment, the reason so many home-experimenters get such high velocities when "pressure testing." Many professionals use strain gauges, especially bullet companies, but they offset the results with piezo-tested "reference ammunition" from SAAMI.)

The results indicated the 9.3x62 handloads were in the 60,000 PSI range, which happens to be the SAAMI maximum average pressure for the .30-06.

Those are some very good numbers Bob, I don't have my load book handy but my loads with the 320's clock a little over 2400 fps, thinking I load mine at 65 grs of RL-17, it truly is a fun round to shoot and is off the charts efficient for the amount of power/performance that can be had on the '06 sized case.

According to QuickLoad about 64,000 psi. Also, from experience with several .338 Win Mags and a .340 Wby, I see no distinctions in effects on brass than in those two cartridges. Not all loads are pushed to max, however. I have a very good load for the 232 Oryx using RL-15 at about 2500 fps that shoots 1/2 MOA.

My top loads for the 250 AB and 286 NP are, again, based on psi for the .338 Win Mag at 64,000 psi which is produced by Tikka in the exact same rifle as my 9.3 X 62. Top load for the 250 AB is 2760 fps but I load to 2715 because accuracy is about 1/2 MOA vs MOA. The 286 NP shoots MOA regardless, whether at 2550 or 2620. As mentioned, I've shot two very good bears with those loads. One shot each and done.

As mentioned by JB, the 286 Hornady is a very good medium game bullet at around 2400. And easily sub-moa using RL-15.

Bob

www.bigbores.ca

I've used on game up to cow nilgai, which are about the size of cow elk, and considered maybe even a little tougher to kill. Shot one quartering toward me almost directly a couple years ago, at somewhere around 150 yards, if I recall correctly. Put the bullet inside the left shoulder and it exited the right rear ribs. The cow made a couple of crow-hops sideways and fell over dead, maybe 10 feet from where it was standing when the bullet hit. Not much meat damage, either--pretty typical of any sort of 286 in the 9.3x62.