Cast Bullet in a Marlin 336

[Siskiyou]

This morning Gun Runner (GR) and I went to the range for a shoot.  I had loaded ten rounds of his 150-grain cast bullets with 23.5 grains of AA2015 and CCI primers.  The other ten rounds I increased the powder charge to 24.5 grains of AA2015.

I had removed my Burris 2-7X scope from my Marlin 336 in 30-30 Winchester because it is sighted in
with jacketed bullets at a high velocity.  I had replaced it with a 4X Bushnell Banner that I bought about 40-years ago.  Before leaving home I place a pie tin out back and used the LaserLyte to bore sight the rifle.
The primary objective was to have usable range loads that could translate to field loads if needed.  I started with the 23.5 grain loads and was pleased when the first round was in the black and low.  The second round was next to the first one.  I adjusted the elevation and continued testing.  All loads function without a problem.  The 23.5 load is just above a starting load.  When I switched to the 24.5 load the change was noticeable with a higher point of impact. 

I am rather excited about the results of the range test.  I see no need to increase the charge for my range needs.  It appears to be a very good practice load and of course I will move out to 100 yards and maybe to 200-yards.  It has a lot to do with getting range time.  As GR says cast bullets make powder go a long ways.  When I moved to 100-yards I will adjust the windage a little.  A check with a nearby weather station shows we were getting a 6-8 wind.

I choose AA2015BR because I have some cast bullet data for it and it performs good in other applications I have used it.  The barrel cleaned up good and I do not think fouling was an issue.  Marlins take a hit because of the Micro-Groove rifling.  But I do not see an issue with twenty rounds.  The .309 diameter of the Lee bullet might be a positive factor when it comes to cast bullets in the 336. 

I have no claim to expertise in the world of cast bullets but I do enjoy shooting them.  When it comes to deer hunting I will fall back on jacketed bullets.  But it is good to know that I have options.
 
This is a six round group.

[Lonegun1894]

Mine gave me fits when I tried cast sized to .309", and the bore looked like a sewer pipe after 20 rds.  However, when I sized them to .311", I am now getting a chronographed 2270fps with 170gr cast and  2430fps with 150gr cast.  Both loads are accurate giving 2-2.5" at 100 with the 170s and 2.5-3" at 100 with the 150s.  Now the powder doesn't go any further with these loads than when loading jacketed, but the bullet costs me nothing but a little time to cast them.  I have some light loads I use with light powder charges, but those don't even need a gascheck.  As to the micro groove rifling, it works fine, but has a few quirks as far as sizing goes and I think people tend to give up too quickly and talk trash saying it won't work instead of trying a few things and making it work.

[bilmac]

I shoot Lyman 31141 bullet. It weighs about 173 gr as I cast it. I load it with 30 gr of 3031.  So that's 30gr 3031 with bullet 31141 for the 30-30. Easy to remember. Shoots straight too.

 I shot a doe with it a hardcast hardcast bullet. The bullet broke up into chunks about like #4 buckshot. If the bullet performed better I would use it for hunting, but since it doesn't I use jacketed.

[Gun Runner]

The bullets I gave to Siskiyou are a fairly hard cast bullet with gas checks and a hard lube I buy from a guy on E=bay. I shoot the same bullet in my 1899 savage(made in 1924) and have no probs with them.

Gun Runner

[Lonegun1894]

Just so you know, or anyone else reading this on down the road, a bullet that is cast too hard for the impact velocity can shatter as you described.  But if you soften it up some, it will perform like a proper hunting bullet and expand.  Now having said that, if you go too soft, it won't be strong enough to survive the trip down the bore with the rifling causing it to twist, and you will get some leading, so you have to find a happy medium.  I use range scrap with a handful of wheel weights thrown in to harden it up in mine.   The bullet is hard enough to not lead my bore, yet soft enough to deform very slightly if I accidentally roll one of these off the counter ( about 3.5-4 ft) amd they land on the tile in my kitchen.  So they're fairly soft, but I don't have a hardness tester to give an actual measurement of hardness.  And like I said, mine leaded up badly no matter how hard the bullets were til I started sizing to .311" and since then, I can shoot them as soft as I want and not worry about it.

[Siskiyou]

Months back I told Gun Runner that his heavy weight cast did not shoot in my Marlin 30-30.  I was wrong and offer this up as proof that I was wrong.  I had originally tried the 181-grain gas check in my Marlin with a scope sighted in using jacketed bullets running 2300 fps+.  I could not find the cast bullets on my target.

But when GR gave me some 150-grain gas check I decided to use to difference scopes.  I use a Burris 2-7X35MM for hunting and a fixed 4-power Bushnell Banner for cast bullets. 

Best guess is the 181-grain bullet pushed with 22.0 grains of AA2015 is going down range around 1700 fps.  And that is a guess, not across a Chronograph.  Having had a positive experience with the 150-grain bullet I did not make any changes to the Bushnell.  With the naked eye I could not see where the first round went.  I grabbed the spotting scope and could have cheered.  The bullet hole was a hair off from center.  Out of five rounds two struck the orange dot.  No doubt this is a mild starting load.
Today I had wind blowing from my nine o’clock 10-14 MPH.  I move to 100-yards wind drift was just short of 2” and drop was about 2” from the earlier grouping.  A spotting scope estimate the group opened up between two and two half inches. 
I did try one round of jacketed ammunition.  It was a 150-grain Sierra FP at approximately 2300 fps.  Elevation wise it struck close to a foot high.  Having forgot to bring the Burris I stopped firing jacked.  I will test those loads on another day.

A new shooter had arrived and I offered him my target frame.  Saved me the time to pickup my gear and get ready for a move to the pistol range.

Gun Runner thank-you; sorry you could not make it today. 

[Lloyd Smale]

siskiyou it would be great of  you to post with full sized letters so old farts like me could actually read your posts

[Siskiyou]

I normally write my post in a Word Document in a Font Size of 12.  Then I hightlight and copy to past my post.  For some reason the Font Size reduces.  I try and review what I post before moving it.  Yep I still have errors but not as many.
 
When I type something into the Post box I time out and lose what I was working.  A number of times I just closed out and forgot about it.
My new glass are helping on this end.   

[Siskiyou]

 As a continuing segment of switching scopes on the Marlin 336 in 30-30 Winchester another trip to the range was made this morning.  It sure felt cold with the temperature at 57˚ and wind gusting to 17 MPH switching from the SE to the SW.  It’s May and I wore a knit watch cap to keep the head warm.
I had taken off the Burris 2-7X35MM scope and switched it out for a 4X Bushnell Banner for shooting cast bullets.  I enjoy shooting cast bullets but do not want to give up jacket bullets for hunting.
Of course I might have to change course and try out Barnes, or Hornady 30-30 Mono FlexTip bullet.  The ruling Democratic coalition has voted to outlaw lead bullets for hunting.
Over the years there has been a lot of discussing regarding removing a scope and returning it to the rifle while retaining the original sighting.  The mounts used are Weaver.  The base came on the rifle with a different scope in 1971.  The rings are Weaver purchase 3 or 4 years ago.
Gun Runner (bullet caster) and I setup on the Pistol Range what has target bases at 10yd, 25yd, and 50yd.  We did that so that we could fire pistols and rifles without making a move.  With the weather the range was not crowded so we did not put pistol shooters out.The Burris scope was installed without adjustments and all rounds with the 30-30 were fired at 50 yards.  The first target was fired with 36.0 grains of BLC-(2) and the 150-grain Sierra FP.  The first two shoots struck the Orange Center dot.  The remaining bullets struck in the same area that is consistent with my 150-grain Hornady RN test loads fired on earlier dates.  When test firing the Hornady 150-grain RN with 35.0 grains of BLC-(2) across the Chrony at approximately 12 feet I average 2290 fps.
Next I test fired the 150-grain Sierra FP with 36.5 grains of BLC-(2).  The scope was adjusted to 7X.  Of course I have an excuse for the high left flyer.  I shoot on a control range and the rangemaster had announced two rounds earlier that a ceasefire would be in two minutes so I rushed the shot.  A shooter’s error not an ammunition issue.
Conclusion:  I am very satisfied with the testing.  I will switch back to shooting the cast bullets using the 4X Bushnell Banner for the summer.  The change in point of impact has been an issue with me.  Switching scopes has given me a good option.