Well, this is interesting, and really shows the different viewpoints of reloaders vs. hunters who don't reload.
The custom load for the Savage will smoke the Krag by 100 fps at the muzzle. I know that for reloaders, this is viewed as statistically important, a really big difference.
To someone that doesn't reload, however, I view it as inconsequential. At 200 yards, I wonder how many extra foot pounds of energy that 100 fps at the muzzle adds? How much flatter trajectory does 100 fps at the muzzle add? I would say nothing that matters much in shooting big game.
At normal hunting distances, wouldn't the speed and direction of the wind at the moment a person shoots have a greater effect on the energy and trajectory of the bullet when it arrives on target than 100 fps extra at the muzzle?
I think that reloading is a wonderful hobby, and I know lots of people who really enjoy doing it. But for me, alot of the benefits seem of limited importance.
Best, Mannyrock
Well, The loads I put together in the two cartridges above are not custom loads, they are a test, an experiment to show the performance difference that an identical load of a 165 grain BTHP bullet backed with 36.5 grains of 3031 powder will show, due to the different case volumes of the two cartridges. The Savage is loaded close to its real maximum. While the Krag is only close to it's maximum for the Krag action. That is to say, only about 3/4 of where it could be loaded if it were being fired in a stronger action. The 30-40 cannot be loaded to its full potential in the Krag action without mishap, that was my point.
With that said, I appreciate the hunter's viewpoint as much as anyone, having wandered the Rockies with both of these rifles in pursuit of the Muley Buck and the antlered Wapiti in my younger years. The reason I began reloading was a result of a fluke that set me seeking for load consistency... not only in velocity and accuracy, but for safety as well.
It all started years ago when I picked up a few boxes of Remington Core-Lokt ammo, 150 grain-ers for the .300 Savage and 180 grains for my pristine 30-40 Krag NRA Carbine.
(which I sold 14 years ago and I kick myself daily for letting it go...) Anyway, it was sight 'em in for that year's "Fall Trek" time. I also plopped down the major bucks to buy one of the new portable chronographs, just to see what the bullets from these rifles were actually doing.
I began with the Savage at 100 yards. It was already sighted in for 150 yards so if nothing had been bumped the bullet should hit about 1" above wherever I put the cross-hairs at that range... which it did and just slightly to the left. The new chrony read the velocity at 2535fps which is 95fps below the advertised 2630fps printed on the cartridge box.
The next shot, again carefully aimed from the bench, was perceptively hotter as the chrony confirmed at 2635fps. It hit a half inch above and 3/4" to the right of the first. I fired a total of 6 rounds averaging 2580fps, the high was 2650 the low was 2505 and they grouped at 2 3/4"... at best that equates to 8" or 9" at 300 yards. I had to ask myself would it shoot tighter without the 145fps factory velocity spread.
Then it was time to test a few through the Krag. It too was sighted in previously at 150 yards with it's factory open sights. The velocity on the box of the 180 grain offerings stated a speed 2400fps. Round one went in at 2 o'clock 1 1/2" from the bull... the chrony said 2340fps... the velocity was lower than advertised and proved to be the low for the string. The next 2 rounds hit within an inch or so above and right of the first with 3/4" between them. These were closer to advertised velocity but still low. Shot #4 screamed through the chrony at 2490fps,
(210fps below the factory .30-'06 with the same bullet) it hit an inch higher than the last 2, and kicked a bit sharper as well.
It was a little hard to crack the case loose when I pulled up on the bolt handle after the last shot... and it was the last shot, and last factory ammo I put through this Krag. It wasn't a problem with the rifle though... the case had a blow-out split 5/16" long down the length below the shoulder, caused by a heavy load coupled with a poorly annealed case that cut loose as the shoulder expanded forward and outward to meet the chamber.
I broke down 6 of the remaining cartridges for each rifle. There was a different powder weight in each case with a high/low spread between 2 to 2 1/2 grains within each caliber. I've long since proved with hand loads, weighed charges, and Remington Core-Lokt bullets that both rifles will shoot 1 1/2" to 2" groups at 100 yards all day long without mishap, while holding a 1% or less variation in velocity. Under ideal conditions this is game getting at 300 yards.
With that said, for the hunter reloading puts control of your load's quality and safety into your hands which translates into consistent velocity, pressure, accuracy, and the difference between a dud, a wounded animal, a miss... or... a clean kill out to 300 yards. And it virtually eliminates over-loaded poorly prepared factory rounds which in a low pressure rifle may explode in your face when you squeeze the trigger on 'em.
Reloading started for me because of a high dollar chronograph, and a ruptured case... who'd-a-thunk it...
JTCoyoté
