Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters JB and everyone...Favorite 30-40 Krag Loads??

I have a new to me sporterized Krag that I will be reloading for, with new remington brass on the way. I am looking for powder recommendations using 180 gr round nose bullets. I have a bunch of WLR primers that I would like to use. Not looking for anything hot as I dont want to push the limits of this action. Besides it has a peep sight so it will be a short range rifle. Any thoughts or tips are appreciated!

Tom

I've owned four .30-40's, two of them original Krags, and they've all shot well with 180's with a powder charge of 46.0 grains H4350. This usually gets around 2400 fps, depending on barrel length.

The Krag always seemed to me to need the 220 grain. They just go together. With that said I always shot 180's out of mine.

I load Hornady 220 grain bullets with 42 grains of 4350 for about 2100-2150. I never tried the 180 grain in mine.

Mart

I've always used Speer or Hornady 180 RN's in all of mine... I worked up to about 47.0 grs of IMR-4350 and consider that Absolute Maximum. I've had three Army Krags, (All sporterized to some extent) and my favorite is a Ruger #3 with #1 wood on it. That load is a tack driver in the Ruger...

GH

Grasshopper,

I did use 48 grains of H4350 with 180's in one of my .30-40's, a reproduction High Wall, and it got about 2550 fps from the 26" barrel, but always drop down to 46 for Krags.

I've always wanted a No. 3 .30-40 myself, and just bought one off the Classifieds here. Right now I have a .30-40 double rifle that an unknown gunsmith built on a 20-gauge Ruger Red Label frame. It's pretty cool!

I used 40.0 gr of IMR 4350 with the Hornady 220 gr RNSP in several original Krags with good results.

John,

If your #3 shoots as good as mine, you are gonna like it! (ALOT) I always thougt the good ol' .30-40 would do anything the .308 would do.

It's funny how each of us comes by our favorites... But the Krag was always my Dad's favorite for deer. (He never hunted anything else...) He always thought the '06 was over powered. Thus, I've always liked the Krag, and never cared much for the '06, altho' I have several... (A certified Rifle Looney needs no justification... )

That double sounds like a cool gun... If I saw something like that, I'd certainly be tempted. But I have an Antonio Zoli Express Rifle in 9.3x74R and it's unbelievable accurate...

GH

The .30-40 double was actually a gift from a friend. He'd been trying to sell it for several years (along with the 20-gauge barrels) with no luck. I was in his gun room one day and said, "Gee, you still haven't been able to move that?"

He said, "Nope. Why don't you just take it, and I won't have to try anymore!" So I did, quite gratefully.

I have a side-by-side 9.3x74R made in Germany by a now-defunct company before WWII. It's also very accurate, and a LOT easier to pack around than any double chambered for a bigger round.

i still have a takeoff 30-40 barrel from a ruger #3 that i planned to make into a serviceable shooter but never found a #3 that i would work on. guys that have them think they're a friggin retirement plan all their own and ask ridiculous money for them. i cant see paying more for a dinged up #3 than a perfectly serviceable #1.

Yeah, I've noticed that--when the No. 3 was conceived by Ruger as a "more affordable" alternative to the No. 1.

True, but aren't they handy! This thread is very timely as I just acquired a No.3 in about 95% condition that was born in 1972. I'm waiting for some dies and reloading material so I can test drive her.

What would have been really cool is if he had rebarrelled one side only to make a Cape gun.

180 gr Hornadys and 46 gr of either 4350. Currently using H4350.

At one time I had a No. 3 Ruger in .375 Winchester. It was unbelievably accurate with 220 grain bullets. The downside was the recoil due to the curved butt plate and the light weight of the gun. After playing with it for awhile it went down the road for something I felt I needed/wanted more at the time. I often wondered what it would have been like in a .243.

Jim

Thanks for the responses. Looks like H4350 will be it.

I looked at a #3 in 22 Hornet the other day, I had not realized that they had such a heavy barrel contour. It balanced very nicely but the shop wanted $795 for it, so they kept it. Very neat rifle, I like the front sight band as well.

JB, I hope you'll do a 30-40 krag article featuring your #3 and load development!

Tom

I'd say in an original Krag, either 4350, or Reloader 19. Nosler 180gr Ballistic tips shot well in mine, which had some pitting in the barrel. It did not like 150's. They expanded well on a doe I shot with it.



I've since given the Krag to an uncle, but I'd like to work with another. They are interesting, well made actions, though not as strong as modern guns.

I'm running Big Game in my Ruger #1, which allows a bit more room in the case. It does shoot well with 150's, and I'm still working up with it. Those loads are of course are only for strong modern actions.

I have a sporterized 1898 Carbine Krag, with an original factory 24 inch barrel.. guess it was sporterized back in the 50s.. it has some Redfield front site put on it, aftermarket...

and then a Lyman peep site on the back of it..

I run a charge of 25 grains of SR 4759.. look at it as a big version of the 30/30 in a bolt action...

either that, or 30 grains of 4198 or RL 7...

mine is a very accurate on, so I tend to mainly use it for shooting at the range when I get nostalgic moods...I shoot mainly Nosler factory seconds of 168 grain Match bullets thru mine...

doesn't recoil much with those lighter powder charges, but for open sites and my eyesight, it sure shoots small groups at 200 yds, for a barrel that is 114 yrs old..

IMR4350 with a 180 Sierra PH & Sierra 220 RN. 2230fps and 2050fps repectively. The bottom one of course. Got it reblued recently. It's my favorite.

For pure fun, try a 180 grain cast bullet with 18 grains SR-4759, or a 220 grain cast bullet with 16 grains SR-4759. Mild recoil, very accurate. I even killed a deer with the 220 grain load years ago. For even more fun, try a 150 grain cast bullet with 8 grains of Bullseye or 11 grains of Unique. Be sure to load a sack full of them because you won't be able to stop shooting them once you start.

When I first endeavored to reload for the Krag 40+ years ago (which coincided with my entry into the world of cast bullets), I cast a pile of Lyman #311241 150gr. plain base bullets. In my ignorance and haste to try them out I loaded them naked (no lube) into 20 cases charged with 16 grains 2400 as I recall. At 50 yards, the first couple went into a tight cluster. After that the bullets started to fly willy-nilly. Determined as I was, I shot all 20 of them before heading home filled with disgust with those 'stupid' cast bullets. When looking through the bore later, I saw that it was leaded so badly as to completely fill the grooves. Three evenings and three bore brushes later it was ok again. The local gunsmith, after he caught his breath from laughing too hard, sold me some bullet lube and taught me how to apply it, and told me that 6-8 grains of my Red Dot shotshell powder would be plenty to drive that bullet. Life was good after that. Oh, the hubris of youth...