I hope that J.H. Barlow would be proud........

[Ben]

The 311291 was one of Dr. Hudson & J.H. Barlow's mould designs going back to 1906. It continues today to be a fine cast bullet for a wide variety of .30 cal. rifles.

I sent this 2 cavity 311291 Lyman mould to Erik to be HP'd about 4 years ago .
I have about 7 or 8 HP pins for this mould.
1 cavity is a HP and other is a plain base. A very versatile mould.

I plan to shoot these in my ( new to me ) T/C Super 14 Contender, 30-30 Win.
The nose is snug in the bore of the T/C.

I checked my twist at 1 - 11.5 ( most likely a 1-12 Twist barrel , probably some slight error in the way I'm trying to pull a tight patch through the bore ). This bullet should be a good marriage to a 1-12 Twist.

Ben


The nose of the 291 ' is a nice snug fit in the end of the barrel of my T/C Super 14, 30-30

Today , I decided to cast with the cup point HP pin.

I cast about 150 of these today.
150 rounds of 30-30 with this bullet should give me some idea of the potential of the 311291 Cup Point in my T/C Contender.

I have not sorted through these bullets yet, looking for rejects.
Looks like there may be about 5 % or so of them that will get re - melted .

 

[JWFilips]

Very Interesting Bullet! I have never heard or saw that before. Looks like it will shoot real well.

150 Single cavity hollow points this early in the day? Either you cast like a dynamo or you started at sunrise ……..Even if I started at sunrise I would still be casting….never mind the photos and the write up!!!

 

[S Mac]

Very nice Ben, look forward to a range report. I have a 308291, thinking it's an Ideal, maybe Lyman, haven't looked at it for a while. I am under the impression it's been around a while, still casts very well.

 

[Ben]

Jim,

This particular mold design is now about 110 yrs. old. Been around a long time. The 311284 and the 311291 were both popular in the 30/40 Krag, back at the turn of the century. Dr. Hudson probably did as much accuracy shooting with the Krag as anyone back in his day.
__________________________________________________

Historically speaking...when the 308284 (now 311284) was introduced in 1905, the recommended loading was 23 grs. of "Lightning". The current equivalent powder in burning rate to "Lightning" is 4198. The legendary Dr. Walter G. Hudson developed that load primarily for 600 yard target shooting, for which he and Barlow (Ideal Tool Co.) designed the 308284.
___________________________________________________

He wanted a plain base bullet in the 1,500 fps range and had trouble with that concept. Hence the gas check design bullet to which he played a major role in the development of .

 

[quicksylver]

Dang....I can not get that bullet to shoot in any of my six '06's

It is NOE' s verzion.

I will keep trying.

 

[quicksylver]

That is the 311291 won't shoot the 311284 is a tack driver.

My last attempt with the 291 was with 17 grains of 2400.

THIS OF COURSE IN THE 30-06.

 

[Ben]

I've had pretty good luck with the 291' in the 1,400 - 1,600 fps zone.

 

[RicinYakima]

Ideal 311291, linotype, 15.7 grains of A2400 at 1425 f/s was very good for me at the 2007 CBA military Nationals. It usually is good in '03's at 0.311" but some 03A3's require 0.313" seated well up into the leade. Its only failing is that it drops into the sub-sonic / trans-sonic area before 200 yards. On the Sunday, 200 yards, the wind was steady from 6:00 at 15 MPH, so there wasn't any cross wind buffeting to deal with.

As ever, the issue is to find a mould that makes the right size bullet with the alloy of choice, that is 0.301/0.312".

 

[Glen]

Nice work Ben! I bet that shoots very nicely for you. I've had very good luck with the 311291 in my various .30-30s and .30-40 Krags.

 

[quicksylver]

Don't get me wrong folks I believe it is a good bullet and I know Ben is going to get it singing.

It's just being a brat with me.....

 

[Glen]

It all comes down to how the bullet fits the throat of that particular gun.....

 

[Brad]

It all comes down to how the bullet fits the throat of that particular gun.....

Yes!
Let the gun decide what a good bullet is.

 

[Ben]

Yes Brad, You won't force anything on a gun, before it is all over and the rifle has " Had it's Say " down range onto the target , the rifle will end up with the last word on the pet load and bullet that you " thought " that the rifle would like .............
Ben

 

[quicksylver]

OK.... I JUST had to post this....Wednesday lunch hour.

I adjusted the sights too high so I lowered it to make sure I could get the group all on the paper.

If you can read it there are nine rounds that make the group, seven that make the hole, two out.
NOE 30 Hunter, Lyman #2 equ. , .311, 3.20 OAL,17.8 grs 2400, CCI LRP, Two groove '03 with Lyman 48 rear , 17 front, 100 yds.
NS only.

The lower "group" is five rounds of NOE 311291 same alloy, 17.3 grs 2400...ugh

 

[Ben]

I think it is safe to say your rifle doesn't like the 291...............

 

[quicksylver]

I agree Ben , but just mine.

BTW ... there are three Contenders (Early Wooden stocked ones '91) and at least 12 barrels here for sale at two LGS that are only about 300yds apart.

They are asking $600. for the guns with one barrel and about $250.00 for each additional barrel.

It is unusual because they had to be in the State prior to '98 in order for them to be legal.

How do the prices compare with what you are seeing?

The coolest one is what appears to be a 16" 357 Max barrel.

 

[Ben]

I find barrels at a gun show from $125 - $275 depends on condition and caliber. Some of the rare calibers can exceed $375 ( that's out of my price range......... )

 

[9.3X62AL]

I have run #311291 through several 30/30 WCFs with 1-12" twist rates for many years. No complaints, at all.

 

[Ricochet]

I always figured the #311291 was intended to be a cast equivalent to factory .30-30 bullets. It seems similar. I have the 6-hole Lee group buy version from a few years back. The nose is fattened to about .302", which works OK in rifles with a long or loose throat. The hollow pointed version looks cool!

 

[Ben]

The hollow pointed version looks cool!

Yes, and with 8 pins to play with in the mould, the combinations are interesting.

Ben