Monday, April 30, 2012

Monday Musiings

Al Gore, our past Vice President and current spokesman for weather warming everywhere, only earned a "D" in natural science as a sophomore at Harvard.  I'm aware that folks can learn stuff after college, but getting a D in a crip course like Natural Science doesn't give me a great deal of confidence about AlGore's creds.  What I do have confidence in is his absolute capacity for self-aggrandizement.

I spent a little time at the loading bench this afternoon, reassembling that .30-06 ammo.  It's got a good, sane charge under those 165 grain Gamekings.  Now, I'm looking for a good load with 150 grain bullets and IMR 4895 powder.  I've got a bunch of both and I'd like to combine them to make a good .30-06 load.

Bourbon whiskey tastes good on a Monday afternoon.

It's warm outside and I've got eggs boiling on the stove.  We're going to make a big tuna salad and have cold sammiches for supper.

My sergeant stopped by the school today and we sat under the trees, drank Dr. Pepper, and told lies to one another.  The worst part of working at a school is that I don't get to hang out with cops as much as I'd like.  Sometimes I'll go a month or so without seeing another cop and that just ain't right.

I think it's time for another bourbon.

7 comments:

The Displaced Louisiana Guy said...

You see me every sunday, old man!

... but i get what you mean. :D

Jester said...

I know my favorite pet load that has always shot well is a 150 grain boat tail pill topping 43.5 grains of IMR 4895. Nice and easy on the shoulders too.

Matt G said...

I should correct your shortage of cop talk with a visit, one of these weeks.

In the meantime, lemme check with an older cop (my dad) on the 150g loads. We tend toward the 165g GameKings, ourselves, over either 4350 or 4064. (4350 seems to do us just a tad better.)

Skip said...

Still in love with my Varget.
Bourbon is is good...one more please, barkeep.

Anonymous said...

It gets a bit harder once you retire, Paw Paw. I sure do miss some of those I worked with. Turnover since I left nine years ago has been so great that half of the office never worked with me. Most weren't born when I started in '73.

M.W. Mahar, Deputy Sheriff, Ret.

JPG said...

Here’s some input. You’re an experienced hand loader and know all the cautions: YMMV, FWIW, and free advice is often worth just what you pay for it.

Around 1965 or -66, I decided to try loading rifle cartridges for the first time. At the old Knight’s Gun Shop in Fort Worth, I asked Mr. Hollis Pricer to get me started duplicating a factory deer load for an ought-six. He said, “52 grains of 4895 and anybody‘s one-fifty soft point.” I left with a new set of RCBS dies, a can of IMR 4895 powder, Remington primers, and some Remington Core-Lokt bullets. That load shot well in a Mauser 98 sporter, but I swapped off the rifle soon thereafter. NO, I did zero load development - - just used what Hollis told me. In that era, Winchester printed load velocities on the back of their old yellow boxes. The 150 pointed SP showed to be doing 2970 fps, so that was what I wanted.

A dozen years later, I had a near-new Ruger 77R. I found a box of that old load, and it shot two groups of less than an inch-and-a-quarter. I was working up an all-purpose ‘06 load based on 165 gr bullets, and did no further work with the 150. Believe me, I learned better technique, and realize how fortunate I was in the advice I received.

I must admit that the 52 gr. of 4895 is on the high end of published data nowadays, but it is still in some sources:

Lyman 48th ed. Reloading Handbook Barnes XLC 150 max 52.5 gr 2952 fps
Same source Hornady SP 51.5 gr 2958 fps

data.hodgdon.com/cartridge_load.asp 150 grs Nosler BT IMR 4895 . . . MAX 53 gr. 3009 fps

Please note that none of these loads are specifically for the Sierra brand bullets, and bullet jacket alloy and bearing surface area may make a difference. It could be that the IMR 4895 of 46 years ago was slightly different from newly purchased powder. If I was going back, I’d surely start at about 47 gr and work up from there.

All best - -

Anonymous said...

You are blessed that it was your Sgt.,at least he has walked the walk so he can talk the talk. On the other hand it could of been your Lt...... Don't think he has any "war stories" unless it was about "B" ball.