[Longfin]

Got up early this morning to load up some 150 grain 30-30s as I have a couple of rifles that I need to sight in. Got to thinking about a bulk box of 500 Remington 150 grains PSPs that I purchased years ago to feed several 30-06 rifles that I no longer have. That was back when I thought I needed a 30-06 to kill a deer. I figured I would use these PSPs to single load the Marlins to do the initial sight in to get on paper, then change over to loads using the Speer 150 grain flat points for final tune-in of my hunting load. I loaded up five rounds of the PSPs using the same charge of IMR 3031 that I use for the Speer FPs. However, after three cups of coffee, I got to wondering if this was a safe practice as I had to seat the PSPs deeper to get them to chamber and eject from the 336. The PSPs mic'ed at 1.016 length whereas the FPs mic'ed at .913. I know some of you have wrote about using pointy bullets to single load a levergun, but how do you adjust for the bullet sitting deeper in the case, which, I figure, would result in higher pressure. Any thoughts on this? Would be no problem to disassemble those five rounds and adjust the charge or forget the whole thing. I would like to use up some of the PSPs for sight-in and plinking instead of the FPs if it makes safe sense to do.

 

[Brian in FL]

Seating bullets deeper will increase pressure levels. What I suggest is that you reduce your charges to at least the start charge level and work back up to a load that is not going to push charges to a higher level without exceeding safe load levels. Back off if your loads show any high pressure signs at all.

I wouldn't think that you could use the pointy bullets for sighting in as they would probably produce ballistics that are very unlike your blunt pointed bullets. Plinking and practice, however, would be a good uses for them unless you want to work up a hunting load for them. The lack of a cannelure would make it difficult to load more than one cartridge in your magazine unless you used a Lee Factory Crimp die to crimp the case mouths into the bullets.

A lot of folks will tell you that it is not safe to load more than one pointy soft point bullet in a tubular magazine, but that is a myth that has been spread by too many individuals and companies who are just trying to cover their own butts. Having read an article in the Gun Digest of 2002 which showed that is is pretty much impossible to get a pointy soft point bullet tip to set off any cartridges that are ahead of it in the magazine, and, even if it were possible, there would be no damage to the rifle or its magazine tube, I tried it in my Winchester model 94 in complete safety. I had not yet, at that point, gotten any Marlin lever guns. You can do a search here under the subject of pointy soft point bullets to find posts that I have made at this site that go into more detail than I have written here.

 

[Bob A]

You can snip the point off the 150 SPs to shorten them. I can get a pretty clean cut using nail clippers.
I've done it with 110 SPs that I use for varmint bullets in my 30-30 and it works very good. Doesn't seem to change the accuracy at all.
The 110 Sps are very soft and expand well at 30-30 velocity with or without the lead point. The 150's probably won't open with the point intact at 30-30 speeds but they should serve you well for sighting and punching holes in paper.

Bob A

 

[Longfin]

Thanks for the replies. I'm going to pull those bullets and re-powder with the minimal IMR 3031 load suggested for a 150 grain bullet. Might try some Unique loads to see what that would do.

 

[dpe.ahoy]

I have also read an artical on using pointed bullets in tube magazines where the only way they could get primers to go off was by using very heavy bullets and heavy loads, causing heavy recoil. All that would happen on the primers being detonated was the end of the magazine tube being blown off and some of the bullets being pushed back into the case. No exploded magazine tube, the end cap was located and reused by drilling another hole in the tube if I remember correctly. I think the artical I read was in either Handloader or Rifle Magazine. I am NOT recommending this be done. DP

 

[Longfin]

I don't want to use the PSPs for anything other than paper punching in the 30-30. On advise from the replies to this post, I pulled the bullets, clipped off the exposed lead, and reloaded with 26.5 gr. of 3031. I'm using these to sight in a Williams 5D teamed with a Skinner front sight on my newly acquired 336SC Waffle Top. The reloads chambered and shot well and I'm in the process of fileing down the too high front sight and adjusting the 5D.

 

[308/338]

I use the bullets that I bought and now don't use them in my main load. just won't wast my time ,powder,primer, case life on them. But I do load them for the same purpose/reason you have. Since you are going to load by hand straight into the chamber a crimp is not needed and you don't have to seat the bullet in order to work through the tube mag. or box mag. just seat the bullet deep enough so the bullet doesn't touch the rifling in the barrel and the action closes smoothly.

I have a Speer manual #13 in this book there is data for 30/30 hand gun load (single shot T/C Contender) using 150gr. bullets 30/30 bullet and 4 other bullets not designed for the 30/30. with a C.O.L. from 2.550" to 2.700"

powder charge data is.

start max start max.
748] [33.0] - [37.0] rifle same
Re7] [25.0] - [29.0] rifle same
h322] [27.0] - [31.0] rifle same
Re12] [29.0] - [33.0] rifle same
N140] [30.0] - [34.0] rifle same
AA2520] [31.0] - [35.0]---rifle changes [28.0] [32.0]
h335] [28.0] - [32.0] rifle same
IMR4895] [27.0] - [31.0] rifle same
IMR4198] [24.0] - [26.0] rifle not listed for rifle

30/30 bolt action and single shot rifles use pointy bullet all the time. Personally I would only use 30/30 bullets to hunt with in a 30/30 rifle.

T ;D NY

 

[Brian in FL]

The only fly in the ointment with using pointy bullets in the .30-30 might be to find one that will expand at the lower velocities of .30-30 rounds. They were generally designed for higher velocities than the .30-30 can be loaded to. In his book on the .30-30, Sam Fadala does tell of using Speer Mag Tips successfully in his for longer range hunting. I never did take a head of game using pointy bullets in my Winchester, so I can't personally testify as to what would happen with using them for hunting.

I have some early production Nosler 150 grain Ballistic Tips that, if I remember correctly, were said to expand too quickly when shot at the higher velocity of cartridges like the .30-06. I loaded up a batch of them for my first .30-06 some years ago, but I never seemed to see any deer when I was carrying that rifle with the Ballistic Tip loads. I might just give some of my remaining Ballistic Tip bullets a try when I use one of my .30-30's for a hunt some time. I think it would be an interesting experiment.

 

[swany]

I would consider offering them up to members here that have guns that can use them.

Maybe trade them for cast or other such usable bullets for tube magazine.

I've used 150gn spire points, in lever guns before and while they work well, unless you can get them a lot cheaper than round or flat point I would pass.