Just another mould..or two.

[Distant Thunder]

J.B. - One thing I like about shooting a scope is that I know exactly where I broke each shot, but the thing I don't like about the scope is I then know who is responsible for those shots! When I'm shooting from the bench I use an aiming point that I can tell exactly where the break is and the targets are just blank sheets of paper that are arranged below the aiming point. That way I can put up 3 to 6 "targets" (sheets of paper) and just dial over to a different one for each load I'm testing. It saves on actual targets and a lot of running from the bench to the target and back again. The frustrating part is that I just can't hold as steady as I'd like or as others seem to be able to and I wander around a bit even from the bench.

And don't worry, I have plenty of shots when I break the shot just as I have a spasm or total break down in my hold. I've had then at match and I just pray it comes up on paper as the target goes down. Even with my bench setup and special aiming point I can easily break a shot a couple inches out without even trying!

[Distant Thunder]

Kurt - That Sage mold of yours is the one you loaned me and I cast up a bunch of them. I shot my best midrange score with my .44-77 using that bullet even through I was having a lot of issues with the then newly rebuilt rifle. The trigger was giving me fits, I didn't yet have my pistol grip on the rifle and there were a number of other things that needed work, but that bullet flat out shoots in my rifle. It's a good one.

Then there is my Lodi bullet I use in my Hepburn. I first made that mold somewhere before the 2010 shooting season for my .45-90 Shiloh. It was cut at 1.460" long and about .443" diameter. That is the bullet I won my first two matches with at Lodi shooting paper patch bullets and many more after that.

When I made the switch to my .45-70 Hepburn the bullet was too small in diameter for that barrel, so I opened it up some and then some more. I also had to shorten it to 1.440" long. In my .45-90 with 105 grains of powder and over 1400 fps it shot very, very well. In my .45-70 with only 83 grains at a little under 1300 fps second it just didn't seem to hold up as well. That little difference in the length made it work well in any kind of wind and the increase in diameter made it fit my barrel better and I have won many more matches with it in that rifle. The thing that bothers me is that all the remachining has left a mold that isn't exactly pretty and doesn't cast real pretty bullets. Shortening it left the nose way to long for the OAL. So i have searched for a mold to replace it. None I have tried will shoot as well out to 1000 yards as that old bullet does. There are so many reason it should not shoot that well, but it doesn't seem to know it and it just shoots. I guess when a bullet works it works and you just have to learn to live with it!

[JKR]

Jim,

Did you ever use your #6 bullet in your Hepburn? Being new to this, I came to think it was a somewhat magical bullet. My Brooks clone of that bullet is looking good but it hasn’t been tested at long range yet. I shot it at 600 yards, but in a gong match. Gong matches are fun but the feedback you need for long range matches just isn’t there, in my opinion.

Now that I have nearly a year of paper patching under my belt, I understand the need for “Just another mould...or two”. I have a groove size 45 mould on order, and Arnie is working on a 38 design for Matt and I.

I listen to the things posted here by you guys who have acquired so much knowledge about long range bullets and shooting. I’m keeping an open mind about long range bullets just in case #6 isn’t really magical!

JKR

[Distant Thunder]

Jim,

I cut that mold at 1.460" just as I did all of my molds back then because I didn't understand ROT and bullet length and how important they are for long range stability. If you'll remember, I shortened the mold to 1.440" before loaning it to you to get you hook...., ah, started on paper patching.

So back when I first made #6 and I was shooting that bullet in my Hepburn it was just a bit too long for optimum stability at .45-70 velocities. As such it shot very well out to 600 yards and I shot my best ever mid range score with it. I tried it for Creedmoor and it was not anything to write home about, so I set it aside and went back to my Lodi bullet (my #4 mold).

When you came along I saw a chance to unload...., er, help you out, but I knew by then that the mold was too long for your .45-70 so before I sent it to you I shortened it and that certainly didn't hurt it's long range performance any. You did very well with it.

I don't know if you noticed or not, but I some how I bored that cavity off center in the blocks and when I put the sprue plate on the hole was off center to the cavity. Even that didn't seem to matter, it still shot great. Once I am able to I plan to make a new plate so the hole is centered on the cavity and also it could use a smaller hole, that one is for some reason way big.

I didn't correct those error early because I rather quickly move back to my #4 bullet and never use the #6 again. It just sat there until you showed up.

I think it was last May at Lodi when you were shooting at 800 yards on your last relay of the match. The wind was strong and switching quickly every few minutes. That was just one of those times when everything comes together. You were shooting very well, I was lucky to pick just the right wind to have you shoot in and I had my eye on a solid condition indicator. You laid one after the other in the 10 ring and that relay was a big part of your 2nd place finish in that match. That was your first BPTR match too, wasn't it?

Yes, #6 has a bit of magic to it!

[Don McDowell]

Any chance we can see a picture of the mythical #6 bullet?

[JKR]

I saw that off center sprue and thought, Man that Kluskens is a genius! He’s figured out how to perfectly balance the rotational spin of this bullet! I think you may have discovered something. I may ask you to make a new off center sprue plate for my new Brooks since Steve didn’t duplicate the bullets that I sent him exactly. The sprue is centered and quite small. ?

Yes, that spring match was my first. The wind was the worst I’d ever shot in. The results were a real tribute to a great spotter!

JKR

[Kurt]

JKR,

Looking at that Lodi score it was more than a magical bullet ending that match like you did.

[Don McDowell]

JKR, one thing you'll probably find with that Brooks mould, the sprue plate needs to be pretty sloppy loose to get a good bullet, and it's not uncommon for the plate to slip just a touch when you put the ladle to it. So the sprue will be off center quite often, but it really doesn't seem to bother anything on the target.

[JKR]

Kurt,

I spent 20 plus years as a high power competitor. All bolt guns and a lot of long range. That experience didn’t go too far in preparing me for the BPTR experience. I’m still a bit mystified by the winds affect on these big bullets.

Without Jim K on the scope that day, the results would’ve been totally different!

JKR

[Gussy]

I bought a Brooks mould a few years back and couldn't get a good bullet fill. After an hour of fighting it, I took the sprue plate off and opened up the hole. Problem solved! Made perfect bullets after that.