150gr. 30-06

[Walsh]

Alright so I have just loaded up my first batch of 50 rounds for the 30-06 cartridge. I am using Hornady 150gr. round nose Interlocks over 51 grains of IMR 4350, CCI #200 primer in fire-formed Winchester and Remington brass. Everything was going great until I read that the minimum length should be 3.2". I am getting ~3.05/10" with these loads. Some factory 150gr. Remington Core-Loks are reading ~3.2".

I am using a Lee Loader using the preset settings, you can see in the pictures the differences. Am I doing something wrong, or is the Hornady bullet just shorter?

Thanks,
Walsh

 

[RHunter]

These should not be a problem in most guns, they just will not be very accurate. Round nose bullets can also give you some chamber feeding grief.

Round nose bullets deliver excellent terminal effects on game but really suck for longer ranges. That bullet you have loaded has a BC (Ballistic Coefficient) of about .19 and its Hornady SST counterpart of the same weight has a BC of .42

That is a HUGE difference in its long range capability. The round nose will drop like a rock.

If you are shooting hogs or deer at a close range you will love these, if you are shooting out to 200-300 yards you will absolutely hate them.

51 grains of 4350 is also a fairly mild load. Around what an M1 Garand would like but a modern bolt action will handle 55-57 grains of 4350 behind a 150 with ease.

 

[rgky1]

Hornady 9th Edition manual tested the 150 RN Interlock bullet #3035 in 30-06 at an overall length of 3.000". By comparison they tested the 150 SP bullet at 3.210". Round nosed bullets are seated to a much shorter overall length than longer tipped bullets. I too believe you've started at the starting load range and you could increase your powder charge if wanted.

 

[Walsh]

Great, I don't have to go pull fifty bullets..... the only reason that I am using such little powder is because thats what the Lee Dipper lets me use, powder scale to come! Plus im using a National Ordinance 1903A3 action, and I have been warned to not use heavier loads, so I will keep these mild.

Yea, I don't have any long range expectations, these are practice fodder, and I didn't want to spend the extra $7-$12 dollars for 155gr. Amax rounds for my first try at it.

Really excited to go and shoot these when I get the time!

 

[RHunter]

With a 1903A3 you are where you need to be load wise.

 

[former naval person]

Shoot them. Much faster with that bullet will limit penetration in a deer size animal. Just my experience.

 

[Walsh]

RHunter, I though the Remington / Smith-Corona recievers could take full power loads? I know my National Ordinace may not.

Finally had an "oops", I was learning how to crimp on some cheaper "NNY" (Russian) brass and screwed four of those up, so still learning that technique.

 

[81Z4ME]

I don't crimp for bolt action or semi auto rifles. Never had an issue from not crimping.

You also do not have to seat them all the way to the cannelure. I've seated 147 grain boat tails to the same over all length as the 150 grain fmj flat based shells for my M1 Garand and they load/shoot just fine.

Seating deeper will increase pressure.

Is the cannelure in the same spot for 150 grain bullets meant for a 30-30 vs. 150 grain bullets meant for .308's, 30.06's, etc?

IMR4350 powder is a good powder for bolt action 30.06's/.308's. I've have very good results with that powder in both cartridges.

If you're going to crimp you need to trim your cases first as having them all the same length will making setting up the crimp die easier and help keep from giving you inconsistent crimps or damaged cases/bullets.

 

[mtrmn]

Walsh, I also started with the wack a mole Lee Loader for 30/06. It came with 1 dipper and I used 4350 powder. I don't recall how much powder it actually measured out, but it was a little bit more than the papers said it would be when I finally got a scale. BUT, whatever the powder charge was, my grandpa's old model of 1917 really liked it and would do about a 7/8" group at 100 yds. That was well over 30 yrs ago and the Lee Loader was enough to hook me for life. Welcome to the addiction.
It's your decision whether or not to crimp, but it's not necessary in 99% of the bolt actions out there. If I recall correctly, every operation, including crimping, is done with a hammer. This is not conducive to consistency and can easily be overdone. Pay particular attention to the shoulder-if overcrimped, the shoulder will "collapse" and you will see a slight bulge just below the shoulder that will prevent the round from chambering properly. IMO it's best to just not crimp with a bolt gun.
Once you get a scale and can vary powder charges with confidence you will open up a whole new world to explore. Just as well grab more components too.

 

[Fuzzball]

First, don't sweat book OAL. When I started loading few books even suggested a length so we set them to feed right and developed our charges.Then we played with seating depth to find what shot best; still works. I doubt your Lee seater has any "preset", it's more likely just where the asseblier screwed the parts together and stopped. Don't bother with crimping for a bolt rifle.

Hunting bullets are for game, not targets. There's no reason your RN ammo wouldn't be as accurate and feed as well as other hunting bullets and the trajectory of RNs is quite sufficent inside maybe 300 yards. But it's likely your low power loads are to light for good powder burn so accuracy isn't going to be great but it sure will shoot!

Any 03A3 is plenty strong enough for any standard pressure .30-06 load. It was the original low number 03s that were brittle.