The forum looks a little slow so maybe you'll bear with me while I waste a little cyberspace. I was looking in my mold cabinet and wondering why I have so many and which one would I keep if I was cleaning house. Right off I figured I'd have to have more than one but what if I couldn't? Just humor me, this is one of those hypothetical situations. I promise I won't ask what gun would you pick for TEOTWAWKI. I came down to a .30 cal. and narrowed that down to either American .30s or the other ones, the foreign type .31s. I decided American .30 made more sense since I am in America. That narrowed it down to something probably no bigger than .310. Versatility is a big factor, have to work in a 30-30 and a 30-06 too. To make a long story short, the one mold I'd keep if I could only have one is the Saeco #315. It's a good target bullet, could be used for hunting or plinking, and works well in a variety of cartridges and guns. I tried to think of one that would also feed my .32 H&R mag Ruger but drew a blank. If this all sounds nuts blame Paco Kelly. I read an old article of his today in The Fouling Shot about the importance of versatility when you live out in the boonies. But he went with the .35s. Anybody got a favorite bullet of all time?
favorite bullet of all time
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- Last Post 23 December 2012
Lyman #452423:
45 Auto (seated to top of shoulder will feed in GI 1911's)
45 Auto Rim
45 Colt (revolver and carbine)
455 Webley
Ric
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NEI #72 155 “Harris” bullet.
Works well in any military 30 i shoot it in (GC or plainbase).Plus its a 6 cavity that casts like a dream.
George
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Having a favorite mold is about like someone ask me what my favorite crappie jig color is? Well it's the one that is catching the most fish right now! And that might change in 15 minutes.
But I'll have to agree tturner53 the Saeco 315 does work in a lot of 30's even shoots fair in my Finn 39. There is probably a better mold for each individual rifle but it does shoot good enough in a bunch of them.
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NEI #72 155 “Harris” bullet.
Works well in any military 30 i shoot it in (GC or plainbase).Plus its a 6 cavity that casts like a dream.
George
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The Lee is the same basic bullet,but has a bit pointier nose.Both shoot as well.
George
here it is
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308-180 NEI for me, if I had to have one mould for both target shooting and hunting. For just hunting, I'll never part with the 190gr. FN SAECO Custom I got from Sid Musselman waaaay back.
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NEI 358-282 GC it is a round nose, flat point beauty resembling the Lyman 3589 (358009). Comes out around 295 grains cast of wheelweights and is fat enough to fit my .359 barrel.
In my .35 Whelen it kills whatever game it hits and is easy to hit with. With proper charges it could be used for anything in North America and a lot of Africa. Finished bullets have just the right proportions for seating to the base of the case neck while still covering the lube grooves and fitting in the magazine. It feeds very smoothly thru a VZ-24 action (Czech variant of Mauser 98). Suitable accuracy and penetration are its stock in trade. Once decapitated a pesky squirrel robbing a feeder at about 50 yds. (The fox squirrels in Texas are about the size of red squirrels in the rest of the country, but are REAL feisty.)
That is a hard choice I am glad I do not have to make in actual fact!
Good shooting, y'all! RT
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I am rather fond of the Lyman 311008.
Cheers from New Zealand
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311291 for me has worked pretty good for 30-30, 7.62x39 . 30-06, 308 ,303 , Argie and 30-40 Krag .
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Interesting concept. I could narrow it down to one mold per cartridge or maybe one mold per caliber but one mold PERIOD? That would be tough. For me it would have to be either a 45 or 50 caliber, I shoot both 45-70 and 50-70. If I were to stay with the 45, I would most likely keep my 457122, the Gould hollow point. It shoots well in all my 45s. I guess I could size it down for the revolvers but I don't use a bullet that heavy in any of mine. For the 50 it would be the 515141.
For revolvers, I will have to ponder that for a while and since it is snowing, I have the time.
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Hey Guys
Gotta go with a 38 cal bullet since I am mostly into handgun hunting and shooting. The Lyman 160 gr truncated cone works in a 35 Rem chambered Marlin as well as it does in several different 357 handguns. It kills Florida deer with great efficient economy. Bobcat are tough and generally take more than one good hit but most all other pests are easily dispatched with a single good shot. My particular loads in all would be considered “mild” at best.
Getting my moulds would be as difficult as getting my firearms. Roy
Shoot often, Shoot well
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38/357 mag 158gr RNFP, SW M10 (38spl), ruger security 6 (357mag) 30-06 190gr spire point, M1917 eddystone
i could do very well if limited to these two only.
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The Lee is the same basic bullet,but has a bit pointier nose.Both shoot as well.
George
here it is
DAMRON G
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ok my 2 cents worth. the lyman 311284 if you can get it seated into the case it seems to shoot well in any 30 caliber rifle i have tried it in. joe gifford
if you think you have it figured out then you just dont understand
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ok my 2 cents worth. the lyman 311284 if you can get it seated into the case it seems to shoot well in any 30 caliber rifle i have tried it in. joe gifford
Without going to my Lyman manual, is the 311284 the same or close the same as the Lee boolit previously mentioned?
And what do you mean by, “if you can get it seated into the case"?
Thanks...BCB
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Another vote for the Saeco 315 although the RCBS 165 sil has been good to me also.
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I've had very good results with the 31141 in a bunch of different .30 caliber rifles. So far I've used it in .300 Whisper, 30-30, 30-40 Krag, .308, 30-06, 30 Herret, 7.5x55 Swiss, and 7.62x54 (in a Finn-Mosin ). It would be my first choice for all around use.
Jack
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BCB, yep, that's a bore rider. Every mold maker makes them, lots of varieties. The idea is the forepart rides on top of the lands, the rear fatter part is groove diameter or a bit bigger, generally speaking.
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Sorry, just can't resist..... PJ50002, I can melt 10 of them down and get somewhere between 14 and 120 bullets from any of my other moulds.
I must agree with everyone else's opinion, all are excellent choices for all the mentioned reasons.
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RCBS 44-250SWC - 44 mag/special RCBS 38-150KT - 38/357 Lyman 452374 - 45ACP RCBS 308-165SIL - 30/06
Also have a Lyman 4 cav for the 358495 that I used to use for WC loads in the 38; a RCBS 44-225SWC GC that I tried but don't use anymore and a LEE 308-170F that I retired in favor of the RCBS because it shoots better in my rifle.
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I'm with JeffinNZ, the old 3118 covers pistols and rifles, chucks, skunks, fox, holes in paper, and other things not to be mentioned. John
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Tough choice.
For me it would probably boil down between NEI #82, which resembles Ideal #3118, or the NEI #161A.
73 de KE4SKY In Home Mix We Trust From the Home of Ed's Red in "Almost Heaven" West Virginia
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My favorite all time 30 cal. mould is an Old West 311-190. It has shot well in CBA matches and has also killed several deer.
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Tough choice.
For me it would probably boil down between NEI #82, which resembles Ideal #3118, or the NEI #161A. There you go. I was trying to think of one that would work well in my .30 cal. long guns and a .32 H&R Mag. pistol too. I'm guessing your choices were based on versatility. I do have an LBT 358-200 WFN that shoots well in my Marlin 1894c and also a couple revolvers. I noticed from some of the posts that the notion of being limited to one mold is troublesome.If it were a reality maybe we could cheat and have a 4 cavity made with each hole a different bullet, like Lee's combo BP molds. Technically that would count as only one mold. I still have my first mold, a Lee 150 .30 cal. Not much use. I also bought a Lyman sizer die to go with it, a .308 It doesn't see any use at all, but I didn't know what I was doing at all. Lucky I didn't poke my eye out.
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This is really a tough choice for me, not sure if I have one favorite, generally have bulets matched up to my rifles and pistols.
Jerry
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Tough choice. For me it would probably boil down between NEI #82, which resembles Ideal #3118, or the NEI #161A.
There you go. I was trying to think of one that would work well in my .30 cal. long guns and a .32 H&R Mag. pistol too. I'm guessing your choices were based on versatility.
Yes, NEI #82 in .30-30, .303 Brit, 7.62x39, .30-40 Krag, 7.62x54R and .30-'06
Loaded without the GC, use 5 grs. of Bullseye in the .30-30 and 7.62x39 and 6 grs. in everything larger.
With the GC you can load 16 grs. of #2400 across the board in all standard rifles.
In the .32 H&R Magnum 7 grs. of #2400 is a full load. Seat bullet out and crimp in top lube groove. GC recommended for rifle use. In the .32 S&W Long for strong modern revolvers such as S&W Model 31 or Rugers to use more common brass 2 grs. of Bullseye seated out in top lube groove at 1.30” OAL or 6 grs. of #2400. No GC required.
161A in .38 Special and .357 Magnum revolver and rifle. I use 3.5 grs. of Bullseye in the .38 Special, seating bullet in top lube groove at 1.55” OAL and 4.0-4.3 grs. of Bullseye for quiet subsonic loads in the .357, crimped in the normal crimp groove at 1.58” OAL.
For heavy duty .34-44 High Velocity load in .38 Special load 9 grs. of #2400 for use in heavy frames such as Colt OP, S&W N-frames, and Rugers and in .357 guns only. In .357 Magnum brass 11 grs. of #2400 is full load 1080 fps. in 4” revolver and 1400 in 18-1/2” rifle.
73 de KE4SKY In Home Mix We Trust From the Home of Ed's Red in "Almost Heaven" West Virginia
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Yes!!! Tough choice. I have some 25 or 30 molds and I would have to narrow it down to the 30 cal also. I think I have 7, 30 cal. molds. My favorite is the RCBS 180 FN GC. It is with out a doubt the prettist of all the ones I have. It also shoots great in my 94 30-30 and my 1903 Springfield. One thing about this boolit is that it shoots well with pistol powders or rifle powders, and it works great at very slow MV or high MV.
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I'd take my Lyman .378 265gr gas check double mould as it shoots really well in my 375h&h improved. It looks like it shouldn't perform but its really accurate. The 375 is handy for all sorts of situations too.
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So far it would be my hollow pointed Lyman#311291. It had served me quite well in 30-30, 30-06 & 7.62x54r ...
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BCB wrote:
Is the part of that boolit that is in front of the driving band the diameter to fit into the bore and just be a bit oversized? A bore rider”€is that the term I want to say?
MY FAVORITE BULLET TOO!
On the drawing it is tapered from .308” in front of the crimp groove so that forepart measures .303” at a distance .30” ahead of the crimp groove. Fits most throats.
73 de KE4SKY In Home Mix We Trust From the Home of Ed's Red in "Almost Heaven" West Virginia
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Simple for me. The RCBS 35 cal 200gr GCFP it works in all of my 35s. Ed
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My mostist favouritest cast bullet of all time is the Ranch Dog 432-265GC in a 444 Marlin !
My mostest favouritest in a jacketed bullet and bolt action has to be the Nosler 7mm 140 grain Ballistic Tip in a 7mm-08 or 280 REM .
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OK, since this came back to life...
I'm loving a Lyman 311291 single cavity mold a shooting buddy gave to me. It throws the most consistent size and weight bullets ever with Rotometals certified Lyman #2 alloy. Drops a little fat at 173g, and .314". But I size them anyway to my .3105” diameter. About as perfect for me as I could ever hope to find
Since somebody else tainted this with Jacketed bullets.... .> Sierra 110g in spire, round nose, or hollow point. The only difference in them was the depth when the energy started to deliver. 2", 1", or at the hair. Fed us for many years taking deer and antelope beyond 500 yards when necessary. One shot drop.
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For the .38 Special or .357 Mag. I have to say Lyman 358156 GC hands down.
If someone else had of done to me what I did to myself . . . I'd have killed him. Humility is an asset. Heh - heh.
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