Subsonic 30-30?

[tykempster]

I'd say you have a better shot of stabilizing a 200 or 220 grain RN bullet, the 210 Berger will be iffy.

[gcrank1]

It really is the bullet length issue rather than the weight, but since a longer bullet us usually heavier we tend to talk about this in terms of weight.
According to my Greenhill chart a 1:10 should stabilize a .308 bullet: Max. Length of 1.42"/250gr.
No velocity is specified, I am guessing it is faster than sub-sonic though. It is better to ere on the faster twist side in this, from my experience.

[retrosub]

This site has low velocity cast bullet loads for many powders and calibers:

http://www.gmdr.com/lever/lowveldata.htm

I emailed Barnes bullets and they say the 150 gr FP will expand reliably at about 1400 fps. Probably a lead bullet is better in this application, but if you want to (or have to - California), this is an interesting option.

[MISSEDSHOT]

How about a factory sub-sonic load by Ultramax? I have a box myself, they are listed at 1100fps at the muzzle, however, the noise is like a .22Mag or .22Hornet coming from the muzzle.

[gcrank1]

Which is to say that the muzzle blast is comparable to those, but it is absent the super-sonic 'crack'. That will probably sound more like a standard pistol round with a 'boom'.

[Frank V]

I have had a lot of fun loading the .30-30 with the 100gr Speer & Hornaday plinker & a light charge of 700X. I got the load from an old Lyman cast bullet manual substituting the 100gr Plinker for a 120gr cast bullet. I've chronographed it at just over 1400fps & it'll shoot 3 shots into 1" @ 50 yards using iron sights. It's a fun, accurate load.
Frank

[jason045]

Ok, I got everything in hand to start working with this now.  Went with the 200 gr Lapua subsonic FMJBTs.  Seems they are designed for subsonic velocities and work very well with a 1:10 twist.  Trailboss is my powder.  Using a case with a split mouth(poor mans oal chamber guage ) i found with a COAL of 2.664" would be touching the lands.  I figured backing up .005 would be good so I settled on 2.659" for my COAL.  At this length the end of the boattail is slightly below the start of the shoulder.  I filled a case to this point with trailboss and it weighed exactly 11.0 grains.  Anybody have a suggestion as a starting point to get me in the neighborhood 1050fps?  My barrel length is 16.25".  Multiple trips back and forth to the range could be problematic for me so if I could get close with 5 or 6 rounds loaded in .5 grain increments without sticking one in the barrel that would be great.  One more thing.  Is there any problem when using trailboss with the whole less than half case capacity thing?  So, any suggestions?  Thanks in advance.

[gcrank1]

My understanding (please, someone correct me if I am wrong!) is that a full case of TB to the base of bullet, no compression, will produce a load that is well under max pressure for the cartridge. The '70% rule' is to give good load density for 'reduced load' methodology for Cowboy Action, recoil sensitive shooters, fun/plinking, etc. NO problem with the full load and from my admittedly limited experimentation and research is that you are likely to be right in the objective ballpark right now.
Everthing I have tested with the full case has been what I can characterize as a 'soft' load; and I like the powder and what it is showing me.
As always, you are on your own.......this works for me.

[Jimbo47]

I've played with the subsonic loads for hunting using my old .303 British which is pretty much the same loads and case capacity as the 30-30.

I used 225 grain Lyman GCLFN bullets and trailboss powder, and I don't have a chrono, but the data says it's around 1100 fps.

It shot fairly accurate at 100 yards about 2 1/2" and no more recoil than a .22 rilfe and the sound was low without the supersonic crack, but still maybe about like shooting a 410 shotgun, and you could hear the loud whack as the bullet hit the target.

I read somewhere about trimming the nose of the bullet at a steep angle and that would cause the bullet to tumble on impact which is what makes it feasable for a hunting round.   The slow velocity of the bullet is not effected by the angle cut on the tip of the bullet as it is spinning and a low speed it's a non issue.

I did shoot a hog behind the ear with it and it made a nasty  wound, but of course it didn't exit but enough penetration to do the job.

On larger game I would limit my shots under 50 yards and aim for the neck.   You might take a lung shot but make sure it's a broadside and not angling, and you surely don't want to hit bone and the distance has to be close.

[jason045]

Kinda what I meant was is there a problem with really light loads.  Say 4 or 5 grains.  As in less than 50% load density.  Would it be necessary to put a piece of foam or somethin in there to keep the charge right up against the primer?  The T.B. powder has properties I'm not real familiar with.

[quickdtoo]

No fillers are necessary with Trail Boss following Hodgdon's info.

Tim

http://www.hodgdon.com/PDF/Trail-Boss-data.pdf

[PowPow]

My slow 30-30 load in my handi is 1.0cc of IMR SR-4759 and a 115 gr cast bullet.
(one lb of IMR SR-4759 would make 700 of these, the bullets come in a box of 500 for about $ 35)

Did not clock it, but it dropped more at 100 than a 22, so its reasonable to say its slower.
Shoot it much past 100 and you have to account for Coriolis effect.

[gcrank1]

Please dont use a wad of any sort to sit upon any powder to 'hold it back' against the primer. There is now a wealth of information and documentation on the chamber 'ringing' effect at the base of the bullet.
There are ways to minimize the risk (putting this into an advanced reloader technique) , but why risk it at all.
Then again, it is your gun...........

[Jimbo47]

The reason Trail Boss is such a popular powder is that it takes up space in larger than pistol cartridges, and the need for fillers to hold the powder next to the primer is not needed nor recommended.

It is a low pressure powder that can be loaded without worry of a double charge which is one of the dangers using very few grains of other powders in a large case.

Another factor is with the powder laying flat because of the lack of bulk you will get inconsistent ignition that will effect accuracy from one load to the next.

Going too light on a charge may cause you to stick a bullet in the barrel and you want to make sure the first bullet has cleared before you put another round in the chamber and pull the trigger.

It's best to use load data from loading manuals of the manufacturers of the various powders, and stay within their perameters to be safe, even with the Trailboss powder.

Here is a chart that give the formula for loading the Trailboss powder, and on the chart below it the load for the .308 should be similar to what the 30-30 would require.
http://www.imrpowder.com/PDF/Trail-Boss-data.pdf

[gcrank1]

If you use the start load data for your caliber and jacketed bullet weight from Lymans Cast Bullet Handbook you will get slower velocities than the lead bullets that are specified. If you hear the 'crack' you are still sonic, just back off a bit at a time until you dont hear it. But, as said, be careful you dont stick a bullet in the bore. If you hear something 'funny' and/or dont see results of a hit on target, stop and figure it out.