newbie to handloading

[generaldoeboy]

ok well in an earlier thread i said i done handload that is no longer the truth. my grandpa gave me his reloading equipment and i had some questions that maybe you guys could help me with.....

1. is a 30.06 round the same as a .308 i thought it was but not for sure
2. I have this reloading book from 1977 is this current enough or shoul di get a new book
3. I have unused primers from 1981 are these ok for use i also have 100 gr short jacket and 150 gr btsp rounds form the same year are these ok for use??


thanks for all your help

 

[Stormrider]

ok well in an earlier thread i said i done handload that is no longer the truth. my grandpa gave me his reloading equipment and i had some questions that maybe you guys could help me with.....

1. is a 30.06 round the same as a .308 i thought it was but not for sure

The bullet is the same diameter but the cartridge case is not the same, they are not interchangeable.

2. I have this reloading book from 1977 is this current enough or should I get a new book

Get a new book.

3. I have unused primers from 1981 are these ok for use i also have 100 gr short jacket and 150 gr btsp rounds form the same year are these ok for use??

The short jacket rounds are not designed for the 308/30-06 case. They were designed for the 30 Carbine and much lower velocities, so I wouldn't use them. The 150 btsp's should be fine. The primers may or may not still be good. It depends on how they were stored. If they were stored indoors they should work just fine.

thanks for all your help

 

[britz]

welcome to the wonderful world of reloading. You should probably get at least 1 new reloading book just to read the steps of reloading. The first 90 pages should give a detailed explanation of the basic steps in reloading. So, before you do anything, you should be able to descibe to a person what is in that book!

Safety first, read and reread your new manual until you have it memorized about the steps of loading. Nosler and Speer are the two books that I have and both are good. You should also just brouse through the cartidge descriptions and histories too. A good general knowledge of the way cartidges are designed and the way they work can't hurt you.

I personally wouldn't use those old primers because there is a good chance that some may not give consistant ignition and will cause inaccuracy or a misfire. Bullets should be good as long as they are not visibly damaged or caroded with some oxidization. My old Speer #11 (1987) manual gives load listings for the 100 gr plinker in the 30-06.

Don't discard your old manual!!! They can be valuable tools when working up loads in some of the older cartidges like the 30-06, however, there have been many improvements in powders since 1977 so your old manual may not have the best powders availabe listed.


good luck and have fun.

 

[MontanaRifleman]

Be very careful. You are dealing with explosive materials, primers and powder. Read and re-read all the safety material in your loading manuals. Start with "starting" loads and work up to max. You will know when you get to max, your bolt will get a litle sticky or stiff as well as some other signs. A lot of guns have been destroyed with bad or over max loads. Once while shooting I had a factory case fail on me once that caused a big flash in my face. Good thing I was wearing safety glasses.

Throw away your old primers. I would bury them. They might be good but you never know. Why waste time, effort and money in the event they are degraded. Get new ones, they are very cheap.

Also, If you can find anyone to show you how to reload, that would be great. Better than just reading about it.

 

[cva54]

Ok lets bring this old post back alive. 30.06 But I got new books laymans 49th hornday abridged edition 1991 & one of them one caliber one book 3,886 tested loads. Primers WLR powder IMR4350 bullets Hornady #3037 150GR FMJ/BT. Recipe used hornady 2600 FPS 52.3 gr. Reloaded my first 6 rounds every thing went fine I thought. With the factory WIN. 150 gr it is a sub MOA rifle. After shootiong mine its a 3" spread WOW this is great LOL. I went to my reload shop OOPS I bumped my head space back. Trying to set up die to just neck size I took black marker pulled bullet out of live round get were I am going. Yes I got 1 case stuck in there didnt run it all the way home no biggy. here is my question how far do I go down the neck do I go? HELP

 

[boomtube]

"Throw away your old primers. I would bury them. They might be good but you never know. Why waste time, effort and money in the event they are degraded. Get new ones, they are very cheap.
"

Goodness. I still have a few hundred WWII surplus primers, they still work as well as any new ones. Primers can last a LONG time if stored anywhere near properly - and that has a lot of latitude.

If your old manual includes the powders you wish to use it's as dependable as any newer ones. The common idea that cannister powders have changed over time are incorrect. The front part of the book usually has newby instructions and that hasn't changed a bit since '77.

Don't forget going to grandpa himself for help, he likely knew what the he77 he was doing and a lot of people on the web don't.