Any advice on loading for one of these? I need to lay in some components.




Dave

You getting bored out there?

I always liked the lunch box mag but the sporterized stuff has become too pricey.

So I gots a regular coming my way.



Dave

Not a particularly strong action, so reload conservatively.

I have a custom 1898 Krag that was reworked by Wilbur Hauck and load the 165 grain Hornady SpirePoint over 40 grains of H4895 at about 2,400 fps.

45-46grs of IMR4350 with 180's and 43-44 with 200's.


I'm shooting these in a 113 year old 1895

I know I have some lighter weight round nose bullets, I can look and see if I have any heavies.

I'm hoping to load some 220gr. RN stuff around 1,900fps.

Does anybody know of a commercial caster that makes something that would work with these?




Dave

Thank me later.

http://www.shootersproshop.com/nosl...20-grain-ballistic-tip-rn-blem-50ct.html

http://www.hunters-supply.com/cast-lead-bullet-c-24.html

I've been loading the Lyman 311299 bullet over Reloader 7 lately. I don't remember the powder charge but it was just shy of the middle. I buy from a local caster but similar bullets from Red Rock Bullets also shot decently. My 1896 shoots them as well as I can hold but the 1894 doesn't like them. I suspect it is the original barrel that is the problem.

I finally found some old Remington 220 gr bullets, I hope to work up a load for the 1894 that shoots OK. I hope to get around 1800 fps to lessen stress on the rifle. Other than the sights and filled ramrod channel it appears to be all original.

I've got an old box of Hornady 170 gr. Pointed Flat Nose. Sorry, no heavies.

I have been pleased with stuff from these folks.

http://westernbullet.com/30caliber.html

https://www.montanabulletworks.com/product-category/rifle/?filter_caliber=308

These guys top out at 210gr, but they're hand ladle-cast and they list the mold they use.

Not my thing, but 5744 is the powder of choice, I believe. If you know Duke Venturino, he's the guy you want to talk to.

I've got one.. an 1898 Cavalry Carbine... sporterized in the 50s....

My load is 30 grains of 4198... with a 180 grain RN, or occasionally a 170 grain FN....

I treat the case like a big brother to the 30/30....

off season, I shoot 168 grain MatchKings in it, with the 30 grains of 4198 load...

Mine's pretty darn accurate consider the age of the rifle... and barrel...

I love the Nostalgic feeling I get when I shoot or hunt with it...

I have a cut-down that looks like a NRA carbine. Best load is a 180 gr Hornady spire point (flat base or boat tail) over 46 gr of either 4350. Velocity matches WW 180 gr factory ammo.

Oh wow. Never even heard of them. Thanks.




Dave

Those could work!




Dave

Are those prices including lube and gas checks or is that something you have to do yourself?



Dave

[quote=deflave][quote=10at6]Thank me later.

http://www.shootersproshop.com/nosl...20-grain-ballistic-tip-rn-blem-50ct.html[Look t /quote]

Oh wow. Never even heard of them. Thanks.




Dave[/quoteLook at the bearing surface on those suckers

I wouldn't be quick to jump there.

Sized and lubed.

http://westernbullet.com/rc3gr1.html

Your box is full again, did you ever get a Shockwave? Thoughts?

I loaded the two I had with the Hornady 220 gr. RNSP and 40.0 grains of IMR 4350. Seemed to duplicate the military load and shot to POA with the original sights. If you just bought the rifle, it's a good idea to carefully inspect the locking lug on the bolt for cracks before using it.

Negative. Will be looking this weekend. On the road.




Clark

Thanks.

It has already been gone over by somebody that knows more about them than I.




Dave

Thanks, Ed.




Dave

I've used your particular load for a few years myself. It worked pretty well on a few white tails over the years.

Have loaded the Krag for twenty years. Most have about as long a throat as a WBY freebore. Best loads were usually with 150 grain BTs or Spire points.Varget. Mild accurate and 2700 fps.Then...the last batch of loads were with 190 grain LR Accubonds. H4831 no chrono data but five into a forty caliber hole at 100 yards (from a 22 inch Contender re chambered from a 30/30). Nosler says LRs expand down to 1300 FPS at a mild 2000 FPS MV... should be great. Just about the neatest cartridge case to work with. No surprises, just mild accurate results. In spite of a long throat try seating a 150 Hornady to the crimp groove, they just do not seem to care if they jump an inch into the rifling. So many bullets work in the cartridge, just try what you have on hand. Sierra customer service gave me the Varget data. Pulled 147 fmjs over Unique for 1300 fps are one holers at 50 yards for small game.

If you're loading for a Krag, I wouldn't go over 40gr. 4350/220 grain jacketed bullet. That load will give you original gov't load performance. (2000fps out of a 30" rifle barrel, probably 1850fps or so out of a 22" barrel. Doesn't sound like much but remember, that load was considered big medicine for any and all 4-legged animals in North America 100 years ago.)

When the Army cried for more oomph, Frankford Arsenal upped performance from 2000fps/220 bullet to 2200fps/220 bullet. Immediately they started getting complaints from the field that locking lugs were cracking. (Remember there's only one.) They went back to the original load and recalled all of the "new improved" ammo and all was good again. Going higher than 40 grains 4350 will put you into the same scenario. This from the Krag addicts/gurus on the Krag Collectors forum, and I believe them. It's really advisable to limit pressures in a Krag to 40K psi or less. I can't speak to M95 Winchesters and other .30-40 rifles.

In mine I load 6gr. Bullseye/155 grain plain base cast bullet for plinking. 18 grains SR-4759/180 cast for general target shooting. 40 grains 4350/210 grain cast bullet for hunting, which was my hunting load back in the 80's and it poleaxed eastern whitetails. It'll be my hunting load again this year with my recently built Krag sporter. The lead bullets don't have to be hard as sin at 2000 fps, especially if you will hunt with them. Hard cast bullets behave almost like FMJ's. Hardness of 11-13 bhn is A-ok for accuracy with no leading + reliable expansion at Krag and .30-30 velocity levels.

Sizing cast bullets for a Krag can be tricky too. Chamber, throat, and bore dimensions are all over the map in original barrels. It's advised to measure the throat and size bullets to fit it regardless of groove diameter. It's not uncommon (in fact just the opposite) to find Krags with throats as big as .314 and grooves running to .312. A good compromise is to size to .310-.311 which ought to cover most examples, if you can't measure the throat. I wouldn't even bother trying .308-.309 cast bullets- I'm so jaded about Krag bullet requirements, based on first hand experience with more Krags in my life than enough.

Excellent fun to shoot cartridge, Krags only have one locking lug so be careful.

Thanks to everybody for your help. Components are on order. I'm going to try the Nosler BT's and Hornady RN. Both 220 type.

Gun is in hand. Can't wait to give it a go. Will definitely use this on deer this year. It's just too cool.

I've not shot my Krag in years. The pics make me want to drag mine out of the back of the safe and run a few through it.

Looking through my notes, I've tried 220 Sierra RN's with 43.5grn IMR-4831. I can't find where I wrote down any numbers off the chronograph for that load, so work up. I am fairly positive it was right at 2000fps and around an inch for 3 at 50 yards (that was the furthest range I had that day, and between the issue sights, staring into the sun, and the sewer pipe bore on my rifle, I was happy).

I've also ran 165 Speer Hot Cors with with 40.0 grn. of IMR-3031. Same deal accuracy wise at 2330 fps (I did write down my chrony numbers on that one).

I've wanted to cast for mine, but the above mentioned sewer pipe bore has always kept me from making the investment. I THINK it was a Lyman 311284 that was designed for the Krag. LOTS of good cast bullet and load stuff over Cast Boolits.com.

I need to try to kill something this fall with that rifle.......

Yeah, the Hudson-designed 311284 was intended specifically for the Krag. Works in about any .30 too. (An old acquaintance used it and a caseful of surplus 4831 in his .30-30 as his black bear whacker.)

That is a dandy Model 1896, Travis. They simply don't come much nicer.

Thanks Gnoah.

I'm happy with it.




Travis

Yup, pretty nice. Didn't think you swung that way. You're gonna have to buy a wider truck.

What's next, Mausers?

I could use a 98 actually...

Started when I bought my dad a Garand. Something about those old military rifles I just like.




Dave

Very nice Rifle!!!! Very nice!!!!

Well done!

Thanks K-dub!

Can't wait to shoot it.




Travis

Travis that's about the slickest action you'll ever run. You should really enjoy that side gate and the feel of the Krag in your hands. I like em myself. Best of luck.

This thing is percolating...

220gr. RN are doing OK.

Pics by Monday.



Travis

Those new Nosler 220 grain "Ballistic Tips" Round nose bullets designed for the
300 Blackout, ought to be something to give a try in a 30/40 Krag....

If you don't get around to it Trav, I'll have to dust off my Krag and give them a whirl.

Then designed for opening up at low speed, ought to work in a Krag real well.

Yeah. They look pretty slick. Hopefully they have the same POI as the Hornady's.

Trav,

curiosity... why are you picking the 220 RN over the 180 RN?

I know where there's a dandy matched-number Swede at a good price. Better take a nap and try to forget about it.

I'm hoping it makes my dick bigger.




Dave

Nice gun, where'd you find it?

Shrapnel's house.

If he asks about me, tell him I'm dead. Again.



Thanks,
Travis

That's kinda what I was thinking, but I didn't want to just Assume...

Just FYI, in case you need it...if the 220s don't work...

I've got a box or two of the old Barnes Original in 30 caliber... 250 Grain RN...

Years and Years ago, I had a couple of boxes of them...

Gave two of them to a guy named John Holmes...

he was some guy in some sort of B Movies or something like that..

or so he said...

Hasn't worked for me yet, but I'm old. Still trying tho! Love da 220's! Mebbe someday

Shrap called me about that Krag! Glad you got it!!

K-Dub,

How do you adjust for windage on the 1896 type site?

Hammer?




Dave

I didn't think that rear sight was windage adjustable. The similar sight that Winchester put on their 1895 SRC's were windage adjustable by moving the rear sight grove the desired direction by loosening the two screws and adjusting by hand in rear sight ladder. I don't think the 1896 Krag sight had this option.

No windage adjustment on a '96. They were generally so well made that everything lined up pretty well right out of the chute. The couple I had over the years shot pretty dammed close to center, such that I didn't worry about it. I do know of guys who substituted M1898, 1899,1901 sights (all of which are adjustable for windage) onto their '96's- same screw hole patterns- and kept the original '96 sights for posterity should they wanted to put the guns back to originality. The possible bugabear in doing that may mean different handguards too, as they changed as the sights changed.

An alternative approach, which I did on two of my cut-down sporters, is to remove the barrel rear sight and substitute either a Pacific or Redfield No-Drill receiver sight, both of which work slickly (I did one of each). The Rice peep sight which mounted on the bolt sleeve was another no-drill option. All of those sights are things of the past but still turn up on ebay with frequency and aren't in the stratosphere price-wise, yet. I went with the Cadillac of Krag receiver sights, the Lyman 48K, on my current sporter- but that's not necessarily an option for an original military Krag as it requires two holes to be drilled and tapped in the receiver.

You're only about the 2 millionth person to contemplate Krag sighting issues over the last 120 years. An honorable club to belong to!

I have a Redfield no drill receiver sight (#70 I believe) on one of my Krag Sporters. The magazine cut-off will have to be modified in order to fit sight and have rounds feed properly. Many folks simply removed the mag cut-off when fitting the sight. The cut-off needs to remain in the rifle else the nose of most soft point cartridges will hang on chamber ramp step while trying to feed. The cut-off tip gives The cartridge the little lift it needs to clear over the step.

Interesting.

I have no desire to change anything on this rifle. I just wanted to be sure I wasn't retarded, and that it was in fact not adjustable for windage. Grin...

Groups very well but definitely left.




Dave

So the rifle is a democRAT! Being a leftist...

Bad JuJu...

But you can work on Kentucky ( or is that Montucky) windage skills.

Methinks jugs of water and deer will die.



Dave

I wanted to thank everybody for their help with this. Especially 10at6 for the BT recommendation and shrap for selling it to me.

I ended up crawling through the snow and getting within 150-175yds of this small buck. He was bedded and I put the first one right through his heart. Worked the bolt and had another one chambered when I saw him getting real sick but still on his feet. I held and let another fly and that was it. Double lunged him and he piled up.



Those 220's make one helluva WHOMP when they hit home. Holy cow.



Not much left of the BT on the offside shoulder. Broke holy hell out of everything in its path though. Other one exited.



These were going right around 1,900fps. 34gr's of IMR 4064.

Thanks again,
Travis

Well Done, Skip!!! Good shootin'

Hey hey Holy Cow
must be time for the 7th inning stretch!
Ah 1 ah2 ah...
Take me out to da deer hunt
If i don't get a deer its a shame
for its 1 two BT's you're out at the old
deer hunt...
'grats on the gun and the deer

Thanks fellas!

Back out for some more death today. That thing is a joy to carry in the field.




Travis

220's ROCK!!!!

The rifle is longer than you...........

Cool

Very cool, Travis!

But don't you know that it's impossible to kill a deer that far away without a 6.5 Creedmoor equipped with a turret scope that's been dropped at least three times to make sure it shoots to the left?

Nice job with that old rifle Travis. Love a Krag.

Krags have always impressed me with their accuracy, and the smoothness of their actions. They (mine at least) is surprisingly accurate with all bullet's I've tried, but it really shines with various 220s.

My old sportorized krag (was great gramp's) has killed a few things somewhat recently...I really should get it out more often. It lives behind the seat of my pickup. This particular buck fell to a 180 Sierra of some sort. I hadn't planned on shooting a deer that day, and was just going up the mountain to plink and waste some of the random bullets I had laying around. I saw this guy and decided to put a stalk on him...once I got to 50-60 yards, I just couldn't NOT take him, especially with the easy downhill drag to a road.

Good show!

I got a Winchester 95 30 Army. It is pretty close to collector grade so I ain't shot it much.

I am chuffed you went the heavy slow route for your loads.

It is what was meant IMO.

Well done Travis.

Travis, great shot with that old .30-40.. Really cool rifles.. Very common when I was a kid.. Long time ago.. I could have bought a truck load for $15... My best friend’s grand father sold his in the early 80’s for $10 to a junk collector.. We were sick.. He figured he had a good deal .. He bought the rifle 60 years before for $10 and 1000 rds. of ammo..

T, very sharp Krag.. You have some cool stuff stashed away there.. The Hi power and the m 70 .270.. Nice stuff.

Yes sir...I have several random older rifles in my safe, both family heirlooms and others I have bought over the years. I try to take one out each year and shoot something relatively big with it...

T was the Hi power a buy or relative!! You had some awesome relatives!!

Bought it at the Missoula gun show 8 or so years ago...

I barely know/knew any of my relatives (both gramps and great gramps-who owned the pre-war Model 70 and the Krag died before I was born) but I am about the only one who hunts so the old guns came out of random closets and into my hands...

Kind of sad none hunt, BUT your good luck.. Enjoy and keep the photos coming..

If I posted a pic of one of those shrap wouldn't draw me any more maps!




Travis

I learned a new word. Thanks, angus.




Travis

Had to do an Eenie-Meenie between the Krag and your 29-2 each morning.... grin.




Travis

WCH,

I actually wanted a plain jane sporterized Krag. I just wanted one so I could have one of the actions because I always thought they were cool. When I asked shrapnel to keep an eye out he mentioned this one in the picture and the rest is history.

Lot of fun.



Travis

That's a neat rifle. Good shootin'.




Travis

You guys ever load up some really light plinking loads? Say 110 grainers? Or the heavies with some Trail Boss or similar?





Dave

I had one from 1899 that stupidly I let go. Best loads I had for it were with 150 gr Sierra's. I played with the 110's with it just for the giggle factor. Never took a deer with it though. I picked up one at a local gun show for $150 that has a severely buggered stock. Waiting on a carbine-length sporter stock to come to me that I got on flea-bay. All I have are some factory Remington loads to make empties out of. Still need to get dies etc to load them up. Might have to give the heavies a try in the old war-horse.

Say 10 to 15 grains of Unique, 110 grain RN or SP....

or 15 to 20 grains of SR 4759....

or 20 to 25 grains of 4198, or RL 7....

i have a few of these rifles, couple of the long originals, a real carbine, and what i think is a bannerman cutdown carbine. Those bannerman's are kind of collectible too.
I found it in a pawn shop in northern nevada, was primarily interested in it at the time for 175bucks, because it had a period sling on it, the muzzle cover, and in the buttstock was the cleaning kit.
I figured i got the rifle for free.
I had to have one as my dad had one when i was a kid, he loaned it to a family member who pawned it. He considered it one of the better deer rifles ever made.
I have never pushed them leaving the 220's at 2000fps or most often less.
Lyman i think makes about a 210grain mould that someday i might be able to steal one.
mostly it's cast loads on a 170grain roundnose that i have used in a lot of the .30weapons.
A buddy of mine who is big into these rifles has told me they were never .308, always were bigger diameter. Which means slug the barrel
if you want to zone it in.
i think seafire mentioned it, but unique pushing a slug to around 1500fps works pretty good on a light load.

35 grains of Unique ought to get that 110 grain to perform like a 6.5 Creed...

i have to laugh a little bit, i should send pictures of those deer to a former friend of mine. Former because i couldn't stand his know all attitude any longer.
few years ago we were riding around for deer, and i had a remington 760 carbine in 30.06 with me, loaded with those jacketed 220gr round nose bullets, and loaded to 2000fps. He said i was much undergunned, and it would not be good over 100yards. Now i had shot that same load on a bench and was getting around 1 inch groups. They have a lot of smack down and are accurate.
some fools just can't stop being fools.
He also told me i couldn't fire a cast bullet faster than 1000fps without leading, that was the one where I said, have a nice life.

I have never met shrapnel, but from his posts in the past i think we have very similar tastes in firearms.
Kaywoody is another one.
I think i would have to have shrapnel adopt me if i looked in his safe.

somebody would know better than I, but i seem to remember a world record grizz or brown bear at one time was taken by a 30.40.

The 30-40 is an almost gun. The 25-35 is the real deal, Hell on Grizzlies...

Krag porn for Travis!!!

I was thinking that was record elk.

How long a barrel is the carbine?

Snag some 150 grain cast bullets and drive them with 6 grains Red Dot/Bulleye/Clays. I've shot a bazillion of them in Krags- excellent backyard beer can plinking ammo. A sackful of said cartridges + a warm summer evening = more fun than watching two drunk monkeys. (And cost just pennies per shot, if you make your own bullets.)

Thanks guys.

Std military carbine barrel was 22".

Seriously makes me wanna drag my Krag out. I whacked my best ever deer last weekend on muzzleloader, so, unfortunately, I'll probably be pretty undisciplined the rest of the season. Though I can kill does in Unit A with a rifle whenever I wanna............hmmmm..........

I did pick up a Lee 200 grain mold a few weeks back and casted a few for it. Mine calipered at .309, which I thought was a bit narrow for a Krag, due to that, and it's gravel road bore, I paper patched (a labor of love that can be rewarding, but not recommended for anyone who places a very high value on their time:)) them. I sized down to .308, two wraps of tracing paper, then ran them through a .311 sizer. Now I need to find something to use as a neck belling die so I don't tear my patches off while seating. For those wondering, they do cast at right on 200 grains with wheel weight alloy.

The '98's are windage adjustable, unfortunately, mine is missing the springs and push pin that make the elevation adjustable. As parts are stupid expensive (the guy I called was around $100.00 a long time ago), I think I'm gonna dig around for a peep. BTW, mine is in a sporter stock that is REALLY comfortable for me. The buttplate says "Bishop". I know they used to make stocks, but I don't know if they made this stock, or just the buttplate. Any info would be appreciated.

As an fyi. See these folks for your Krag parts needs. Sometimes they have em, sometimes they don't. But they do generally have an impressive collection of Krag parts!

http://www.ssfirearms.com

Thanks for the heads up Kaywoodie!!!!
I've not ordered anything from them yet, but I have killed about 2 hours looking at their site!

I DID figure out from their site, that while my receiver is marked 1898, it has a 1901 model sight. Weird but true.......

You're Welcome Potsy! You may find this interesting too! Lots of knowledgable folks here!

http://kragcollectorsassociation.org

Thanks KayDub.

I have been shooting some more of those 220gr. Nosler's over 25gr's of H4895. That load is wicked accurate and hits POA at 60yds. Trying to smoke a dog with it but nothing has fallen into place just yet.




Travis

For hunters with Krags or 1895 Winchesters, try Hawk Bullets 165-180 to 200-225 gr bullets. They are now in NJ and
have a website. I have used their bullets in my 1895 and they really work well. They respond like bonded core bullets, but are reasonably priced.

In 2007, I used a 270 gr version in a Winchester Model 71-chambered in 348 Ackley Improved: not many miles from homestead land, killed
a nice moose with one shot. Wien Lake, AK. Worked for bears on the gut pile a few days later.
Of course, the 1886 and Model 71s were REAL lever action rifles that did not have the the repair and return-to-the factory record of the 1895s.
That being said, I killed my best bull elk in Colorado with a 405-1895 original rifle. That was when the front range was populated by decent folks
and possession of marijuana was a crime. No comment on elected officials.

It's as easy as falling off a bar stool to duplicate the original gov't load of 220 grain bullet/2000fps using 210-220 grain cast bullets, with a bullet soft enough to expand beautifully and not lead the bore.

Note: don't try to exceed that 220gr./ 2000fps level in a Krag. The Army tried it by increasing to 2200 fps and started getting a bunch of cracked locking lugs, whereupon they dropped back to 2000fps. It was plenty good against Spaniards and Moros, and earned a reputation for being big medicine in the game fields too.

Midway has Hornady 30-40 krag brass in stock if you need it.
Ronnie

Tag

Bullet nose shape will likely have an impact on how well any individual Krag will feed its cartridges out of the magazine. Only one way to find out in a given rifle.

For those with access to cast bullets, I always get best accuracy with RN bullets in the 180 grain range, and 18 grains SR-4759 (or really any medium-slow burning pistol powder). 1600fps is a reliable sweet spot- not exactly a deer load, but I have done so with them. Case life is infinite, powder and bullet costs laughably low, and recoil/muzzle blast is such that a day at the range won't leave you with the jitters for the drive home. Save the full snot stuff for Opening Day.

I have a 30-40 krag, quit shooting it about three years ago, has a major head space issue, splits cases near the head, even factory unfired ammo, finally going to get it fixed, maybe before end of summer.

I had a box of 220 grain Hornady RN bullets that I was trying for accuracy. I have concerns regarding "a bullet soft enough to expand beautifully". I've Dyna Bore coated almost every one of my rifles, got a couple lever and slide action yet to do. But the Krag has the coating. The barrel is fairly new and looks good to my aging eyes.

I have several molds in 30 caliber and I'm hoping my new 1898 Krag will be a cast bullet shooter. My goal is ~~ 1,800 fps with 180 to 220 grain bullets.

Question, "Will straight wheel weight bullets fill the "a bullet soft enough to expand beautifully" requirement at those speeds?

Straight wheel weight will probably work fine if you have perfect bullet fit and the right powder. Always seat the bullet where it will very slightly engrave. I'll bet it will expand if distance is not so far that velocity has fallen off too much. This will, of course, take some experimentation. I use the Lyman #314299 (and a hollow-pointed version of the same), but only load to about 1,600 fps. I no longer have a Krag, but have had many. I now use a Ruger #3 and a Winchester 1895 reproduction carbine. I size bullets at .311" but .310" may be better for some rifles.

I never got the accuracy with the popular Lyman #311284 that I've seen with the 200 grain #314299.

The editor of FOULING SHOT magazine (published by the Cast Bullet Ass'n.) remarked years ago in an article that the softest bullet fired at the highest velocity that does not lead the bore will likely be the most accurate for that gun. I haven't verified that, but I'll bet it's true.

I'd try powders like H4895, Reloder7, 5744, one of the 4198s, and SR4759 (discontinued). Good luck-

Thanks for that info.
I finally got back to the 30 Army.

First the sight height was too short. I found a beat up sight that I did some file work on. It isn’t a craft grade sight, but it seemed to be right.
I didn’t have an extensive appropriate jacketed bullets on hand. My sizing die for my cast bullets is .309. I guess I could have tried them or I could have shot unsized. But I thought I’d try j-bullets.
First I had 220 grain rn Hornady that I was pretty sure wasn’t going to be used for anything else. I went to Ken Waters Pet loads and looked at an older Lyman Manual. Ken’s load was the starting load in the manual. So, I thought that would be a place to start. Group size was unacceptable. I have a few boxes of Hornady 180 IL’s. I tried them. Wasn’t happy. I have a few hundred 170 gr Remington CL’s - probably for 30-30.
I looked in some manuals and found a load labeled “likely most accurate” load. The group was narrow but was stringing up and down. The sun was in a poor position for iron sights I reasoned and it did seem that I had a little difficulty with glare off the front sight, even though I had filed it, I thought appropriately. Then I decided to go to 50 yards where there is a nice shade tree. I held best I could, 3 shots only, did I say it was in the high 90’s and humid?
I walked up to the target. 5/8” group, 50 yards, 3 shots.

I’m ok with that.

I needed to correct windage 6 MOA to the right. Took it to the shop and adjusted the sights about .04”.

When it’s cooler. I will work on it some more. BTW: all loads utilized IMR4350 and all loads are not hot or even warm.

Absolutely, as long as they are the old style clip-on wheelweights, and not modern zinc ones or soft lead stick-on weights. Add a pinch of tin to aid mold fill out. Nose shape has a bearing too, obviously. A hollow point expands better than a flat nose, a flat nose better than a round nose, and a round nose better than a spitzer.

It's always a good idea to make a chamber cast with any Krag you pick up. Throat diameters varied all over the map, and since it's throat diameter that drives bullet fit (not groove or bore diameter) it pays to know what yours is and size the bullets accordingly. Realistically expect anything from .309 up to .313", and I have a friend who swears his is .314"

Thanks, I do have some 50/50 solder and I add some at times.

I have a 180 gr mold, RN (I shoot paper) out of an ‘03. I may have lost my 170 gr HP mold, I have not seen it for quite a while. I think I may have lent it to someone. However, that 170 gr bullet mold may have been my brother’s, it’s been around for awhile. My two older brothers shot and killed deer easily with them in the 50’s and early 60’s when deer were not as tough as they are today. NOE has a sale on molds that ends I think today. I may have to order new one, I like their molds, a lot.

This rifle has an after market barrel, which leads me to believe it should have a tighter chamber/bore than the military version. I think it has a long throat though since the J-bullet that by far shot the best was the 170 gr CL RN 30-30 bullet. It had the widest/flattest nose, if that’s the correct way to describe it. The 220gr had a fairly narrow nose, I suspect it was designed to fit in a barrel, riding on the rifling with barrels that have a more ‘standard’ throat, and of course the IL bullet was a spire point.

I have quite a few 180 gr bullets cast and sized to .309. I may load some today just as an experiment. I’m pretty sure I have some that have not been sized too. I think I’ll lube them, add a gc and try them too. They were cast years ago, I suspect they were cast with WW’s and maybe some solder added, I don’t know.


Anybody have a favorite jacketed bullet for their Krag?

Grrrr.
Once again 3 shots are not good enough. 5 shots opened it up to about 8" at 50 yards. Two wild flyers. I guess that I'll need to glass bed. I used to like the challenge, now I'm getting lazy.

Back at it again. Three days of rain, so I had some time in the shop. I believe that my bedding job sucked. I re-bed it. I hit an item about the size of an apple off-hand with it at 75 yards two times out of two. But didn't put it on paper. That with 170 grain CL's meant for 30-30 I suppose. But I aim to take it out to fill a doe tag this fall.

Sorry to make this a zombie thread but today i was looking at an old Krag sporter i have and also an Winchester 1895 in you guessed it, 30-40 or 30 US. Yeah that one.

Truth is i havent messed with a 30-40 since i was in my early 20's a couple decades ago. From what i remember it fed and function in the bolt action best with longer and heavier 200-220gr bullets and round nose where smooth operators.

Couple years ago i picked up the winchester 1895 here off this forum. What im wondering is what's a good place to start in bullet weight?

Also, im thinking the 1895 leveraction may be slightly stronger than those old Springfield bolt rifles, so is this more forgiving in driving 220 bullets @2000 fps or is that asking too much? I wouldnt try to turn either one into a 30-06 but im just wondering relative strength and what is the potential. The 1895 is the levergun rifle thats odd to me and i dont have any real time with them compared to the otheres like the Win 1894, 1886, and the Marlins.

FWIW ive got an old book with accounts about hunting grizzly bears in the Canadian Selkirks and in the western US. I believe the author used a Hi Wall 45-100 or something similiar. On one partucular hunt his companion used the then fairly modern 30-40 Krag and in the book it mentioned how impressive the tissue damage was with the 30-40.

Although I have 2 1898's, and had an 1895, I haven't done a lot of component switching. The limitation of iron sights makes me think once I've accomplished 5 shot groups at 2 moa...that's about as good as I'm capable of. The 1895 was a converted back to .30-40 from 7.62x54R Russian contract rifle and never seemed to measure up to the Krags, accuracy wise. I never felt the need to pursue the 220 grain bullets very much after I discovered the large exposed soft lead tips frequently balked on the feed ramp. So, I went with 180 RN's, usually Sierra which fed slick and smooth. I played with a few powders over the years, but it seemed almost anything worked well. Eventually, I pretty much settled on 45 gr of 4350, mostly because I had a lot of it. Both "98's are cut down rifles with 24" barrels, Buffington sights, and I got right at 2200 fps and 2 inch 5 shot groups at a 100 yds. Just for entertainment purposes, let me share some primer substitution info here: Federal Match 2190 fps, 26 Extreme spread. (this load shoots to the carbine sight grads out to 600 yds)...Winch Large Rifle, 2213fps, 35fps ES...CCI LR Mag, 2160 fps(not a typo)38 fps ES. Note lower velocity with Mag primer??? Older Win Super X brass for all tests.
And the punchline is, for the best actual repeatable group size? 36.5 grains of good old 3031, 180 Sierra RN, 2210 fps, 1.7" groups.
Almost all the reloading books I have mention the 1895 as being stronger than the Krag...but don't give separate load recipes. I tried some perkier loads in my '95...but all I got was stretched brass...no joy on the target. I never really tried lighter, faster bullets in the .30-40...that is not where it's reputation for a reliable killer came from. Paul