250gr. swift bullets in 9.3x57

[ratherbefishin]

I have recently acquired a nice Husky chambered in 9.3x57-and am assembling reloading components-the most recent is a couple of boxes of 250gr Swift bullets in addition to the 270 gr Sierra's I picked up earlier[got half a box of Norma in 232 at the same gunshow-but haven't fired the rifle yet.]I also picked up some brass and a couple of pounds of 3031-what experiance or advice has anybody got?The intended use for this rifle is for moose/black bear-my 65x55 swede is my ''deer rifle''-and I liked the swedes so much I bought one in 9.3x57

[JimP.]

I have the very same rifle and cartridge also, in order to use the issue sights, you will need to use the 285 gr bullet and adjust your load faster or slower to regulate your sights...the 250 gr bullet shoots 9 inches high at 50 yds, the 270 gr bullet shoots 5 inches high at 50 yds, the 285 gr bullet will shoot 3 inches high at 50 yds. To lower that point of impact you will need to slow the bullet down or switch to a 300 gr or heavier cast bullet and increase the velocity till you get it to shoot to the point of impact you prefer. I use the Speer 270 gr bullet and have mounted a Bushnell red dot scope on the rifle using only the front scope mount base, and have it sighted in 3 inches high at 100 yds, my velocity is 2189 fps. This load shoots very well and the scope has not shot loose or loosened up any since I mounted it, I have it mounted this way so I can load the rifle using stripper clips which lets me carry the ammo loaded and ready for use  in my belt pouch...JimP.

[ratherbefishin]

I have a 2-7 x Leopold scope on mine[its the Husky sporter version],so sighting shouldn;t be an issue-my concern is developing a load that will allow good performance out of the swift and sierra bullets for moose /bear hunting with anticipated ranges under 150 yards[where at least 90% of my shots have been taken anyway-and sometimes 1/3 of that-50 yards]I chose this bullet weight,caliber and rifle ,hoping to achieve  smack down effect  on moose but also including the possability of an encounter with unwelcome grizzly but still without excessive recoil 

[Brithunter]

Hi All,

     I have not used mine against game, have a Husqvarna Model 46 in 9.3x57, but have done a little load development. Mine is also scoped and has a old Bushnell Scope Chief 3x on it. What surprised me was how flat it seems to shoot, yes I sadi flat, one day whilsat working on loads I turned up at our club day to find that the others had decided to shoot at 200 and 300 yards. not what I wanted to test loads but I was stuck with it as we were on a Military range at Ash in Surrey.

    The test loads had several bullet weights from some hand swaged RN FMJ 180 grn, 193 grn S&B flat point, 235 Grn Norma semi spitzer, 246 grn RWS Comne Point, 270 Grn Speer and the S&B 286 grn RN. After shootign a few of them all at 200 yards on the same target a Fig 11 charging man the groups ad it was one group was around 6" in diameter whcih pleasantly surprised me. however it was at 300 yards that i got teh real surprise. out of all the loads only the heavy 286 dropped out of the main group and was about 3" lower than the rest but all the other weights made oen group fo about 8" the group was more oval than round but I could hav used any of those loads save the 286 grn ones on deer at 300 yards with the expectation of a good hit in the chest and all this on a 100 yard zero.

    I last worked more with the 235 grn Normas I had as I picked up a bulk lot from a dealer with just over 300 of them so it made sense to work with them. This si a phot taken that day, the rifle had a Meopta 3x scope fitted then:-

[ratherbefishin]

When I bought my Husky 9.3x57-I realised I would have to reload,so have been assembling components-a bunch of 8x57 brass I can resize,some cast bullets,half a box of factory loaded  Norma 232, a box of Sierra 270 gr,and now a couple of boxes of  Swift 250 gr.The only powder I've got so far is 3031-so would appreciate any load data for that-or similar powders.I'm not after the hottest load-just a good accurate load that will result in good bullet expansion on moose/bear.I'm not sure-some people said I should have gone for a  9.3x62 as  factory ammuntion is a bit more available,and the cartridge is capable of a couple of hundred feet  more in velocity.Don't know-but I'm thinking a 250 or 270 gr bullet moving around 2000-2100  fps is going to hit with a fair amount of smack at ranges under 200 yards.I'd be happy with a 6''group at 200 yards-plenty good for a moose sized target

My Husky came with bases already installed-and after some judicious work with a grinder and file, the bolt was able to clear my Leopold 2-7 compact mounted with  medium height rings.It won't clear scopes with a bigger eyepiece-but I like this 2-7 leopold compact anyway-its served me well at the ranges I hunt at

[Brithunter]

Hi There,

   Yep I had to grind the top of the bolt handle in scallop to clear the eye-bell of the Bushnell it now wears. Carefully done and re-blued it looks like it was meant to be  here it is:-



   And how it looks now with the Bushnell:-



    Now the powders I have worked with mainly are H4895 and Reloader 15, starting with loads from the artricle in Big Bore rifles by Wolfe publishing I had to increase the powder charges to get case obturarion in my rifle as I had smoked necks and protruding primers. Now I have never chronographed any of my loads as I don't have a chrongraph. Looking at my records I see that i ahve not loaded any since March 2003  I moved to where I live now in June 2005 and since I had lived here the Police have been obstructive adn a lot of my rifles are listed for collection only and cannot be shot the 9.3x57 is one of these  .

    The closest bullet I had to what your asking about I suppose is the RWS 247 Grain Cone Point, in MY rifle I used a load of 50.0 Grains of Rel 15 with a Rem 9 1/2 primer in a Norma case (9.3x57) loaded to a COL of 3.126". The is safe in my rifle but you will need to reduce it and work up in yours.This target was shot using 49.0 grains of Reloader 15 at 50 yards:-


sorry but I don't have ant photos of how the 50.0 grain load shot  but for comparison here is a target shot the same day with some Norma factory ammunition using the 286 grn Alaska bullet:-



    As for the 9.3x62 well yes it's better, due mainly to be more available I doubt any beast shot with either would know the difference, given the chance I would take mine after Elk (Wapiti) or Moose, I can dream after all  Oh I didn't point out that my particular rifle has and "oversize" barrel as the grooves in mine measure 0.370" it might make a difference in the loads and accuracy.

[ratherbefishin]

how close a powder is RL 15 to 3031?

[Brithunter]

Sorry but I have no real idea and the "lists" out there are only someone idea so you would have to work it up. Hmmm have you considered a "Powley Computer" they work with IMR powders otherwise it something like "Quick Load"

[ratherbefishin]

it sounds like you have been able to get a little more velocity from RL15 than the other powders