precision loading

[kenny s]

I was reading a book
Butcher's Crossing by John Williams. written in the 60's and listed as as one of the best ever written.
Good book on Buff hunting, and the descriptions are great.

He loads by pouring lead in the mold, cutting off the sprue with his knife, hand seating the bullet and then
BITING THE CASE TO HOLD THE BULLET.
And then he hits all his buffalo at 400 plus yards.

OK. where is my scale, micrometer, and all the sizing dies I use??????
Are we in fact...NUTZ (my wife just answered!)

HA. Ken

[art ruggiero]

buffalo are a lot bigger than the X ring on most targets just saying art

[bobw]

Kenny, you gotta understand that they bragged about their rifles not about their T-7 press in the wagon box, next to their electronic scale which was sitting by the vibrating drop tube. It was simply a more basic time. Loading good ammo for Sharps 74 back in the day wasn't brain surgery either ,the very basic tools Sharps offered for sale did a good job of loading good accurate ammo. The skill level of the loader was the most important factor though just like today. bobw

[kenny s]

It's interesting reading the recollections of buff hunters from the 1920's telling their stories.
Not as good a memory as we would think. Frank Mayers said he patched with antelope hide.
we know that can't be done, but he was sure. he also said he used a 3 1/2 inch brass case. People thought he
just didn't remember it correctly. turns out that case existed and was used.

140 grain of powder and a 700 grain bullet being held by a 130 pound guy.
must have been a sight to see!

[powderburner]

At 130 there wasnt enough there to absorb recoil

[Tomklinger]

When I lived in Nevada back in the '80s I weighed 135lbs. I shot my 9.5 lb 50x3-1/4 Sharps business rifle with 130gr. 3f goex,10gr smokeless,grease wad, and a 725gr paper patched bullet ALOT. I learned not to fight the recoil, the best thing is to let the rifle do its thing and roll with it. It wasn't too bad. After 7 or 8 shots you would tend to flinch a little if you weren't paying attention. Every once in a while, it would give me a bloody lip, and you couldn't wear a hat while shooting it. The recoil would knock your hat off every time! Im now 62 and I still shoot it sometimes.
Tom Klinger

[gunlaker]

Ken for comparison you should check out Perry's book from the height of the long range target shooting days. You will find no mention of target shooters biting the cases, although there are a couple of whacky ideas in there, most notably the section on eye color . Although they had different tools I think the top target shooters were a pretty meticulous bunch when it came to loading for their rifles.

Chris.

[desert deuce]

When I lived in Nevada back in the '80s I weighed 135lbs. I shot my 9.5 lb 50x3-1/4 Sharps business rifle with 130gr. 3f goex,10gr smokeless,grease wad, and a 725gr paper patched bullet ALOT. I learned not to fight the recoil, the best thing is to let the rifle do its thing and roll with it. It wasn't too bad. After 7 or 8 shots you would tend to flinch a little if you weren't paying attention. Every once in a while, it would give me a bloody lip, and you couldn't wear a hat while shooting it. The recoil would knock your hat off every time! Im now 62 and I still shoot it sometimes.
Tom Klinger

Tom I have to ask: What was the purpose of having that rifle? To what use was it applied? Did you ever calculate the ftlb of recoil that it generated?

[spqr476]

Well, assuming only a 1250fps velocity, it would generate 70 ft/lbs of recoil, almost exactly double that of a 12 lb .45-110, 2-7/8" pushing a 550 at 1350fps, and close to a lower end .50 BMG load in a heavy rifle--but with no muzzle brake like the 50 would have.

[Tomklinger]

desert deuce,
Well.... In 1979 one of my friends and I were on a cross country motor cycle trip, and we stopped for a couple of days in Denver. We ended up in a gunshop where I saw a 50/140 ctg....I had to have the gun that shot such a massive round! Back then, to see a black powder round like that was rare. My hole plan was to shoot the thing across canyons, and try to hit stuff as far away as I could. And just have fun with it.I was Valdez!!! :lol. I have gotten many big mule deer with it. I have never recovered a bulled from any animal killed with that rifle. The bullets always pass through. The load came from an Elmer Kieth article in a magazine.
One time I was hunting outside of Carson City and I saw a medium size mule deer, and he saw me at the same time, he ran and hid behind a big wood power pole thinking I couldn't see him. It was pretty funny, his head and his butt were exposed and the pole covered his middle. I thought about the shot for a second, and said to myself "what the heck". I got slowly into sitting position. Aimed at the middle of the power pole and touched off the shot. When I recovered from the recoil, the deer was about 50yds away on the ground. He didn't make it very far. The bullet went through 18" of telephone pole, through the deer, and about 50 yards down range left a 10" dia.crater in the ground.
The main reason I bought the rifle is because it was the biggest bpcr available. I guess I didn't want to be out there hunting with an under powered gun
Tom Klinger

[beltfed]

"Same reason a friend and I used to "plink" with his 14 1/2# 600 Nitro Express double rifle."
900 grain Barnes copper tube bullet over 90+ gr 3031 for 1900fps.
"Had to be ready for that all expense paid trip to Africa or Alaska"
beltfed/arnie