Finally got to shoot my "fake" Martini yesterday...

Finally got to shoot my "fake" Martini yesterday... my retired builder buddy ( who did the rifle work for me ) wanted to come over & shoot a couple of rifles he built from scratch over the winter, yesterday, & since we had 2 sunny days in a row, & we could drive across the short stretch of field to my range, I was glad for the break...I have what we thought was a Martini carbine, when I bought it, which turned out to be a really nicely counterfeited Enfield, once we opened it up, that became glaringly apparent... ( barrel threads were custom hand made, & the guts were ( let's be nice, ) & just say crude... I didn't pay much for the carbine ( which was chambered in 303 when I bought it ) because it had obvious issues in the action... the gun had most of the pits polished out & was re-blued, & the wood was very nice, before I bought it & it may have even been actual Enfield wood... ( BTW... this was a gun show buy, where the seller told me it had been authenticated at "the North Dakota State Gun Auction... so always be wary when you are buying these old "milsurps" )

my buddy likes working on old Enfields, & has a lot of parts on hand... so when we discovered that it was "fake" we had to 1st decide what to do with it... we decided to rebarrel / rechamber in 30-30 to get the pressures down, after the barrel was on, a minimum of work was done, so we could re-proof the action, once that was successfully proofed, & no stretching or damage was noted, we stamped "not Brit" prominently on the receiver, as well as the metric designation for the 30-30 cartridge ( we had decided before that, that I could probably get a long life out of the carbine, with light to medium pressure 30-30 loads, so we stamped this stuff on the gun, to keep it from getting a life of hot 30-30 loads after I'm gone, as a "real" Enfield could likely handle )... anyway, my buddy went & refit as much "real" Enfield parts as possible ( including the rear sight ) but had to leave & re-fit / repair some of the internals, because the pin holes were not exactly true ( larger custom tool steel pins were fabbed & fit to the gun )

anyway, I really love the old Enfield Martini's & this would have been my 3rd ( if it had not turned out to be a "fake" ) but it really has a nice look in the carbine form... shooting it for the 1st time yesterday was quite impressive, how he was able to get the trigger & action that smooth ??? it actually has a better trigger than my other 2 custom Martini's... 1st 3 shots were 11" low & about 5" to the left... I brought the rear sight up to the 1st little step, & the next 3 were level with the bulls eye & that same 5" to the left... the front sight is custom, & was designed from the beginning to be filed to suite so I'll take about 1/16" off & bring the rear sight back down, as well as drift it over a little in the dovetail next time I have it out, I should be able to bring it in nicely... the barrel was a 300 Win Mag take off barrel, that looked new, we were able to trim off the chamber, & still end up with a contour that fit the barrel bands & match the barrel length that was on the carbine when I bought it...

I was not shooting well yesterday, as I had jumped off the tractor, out in the pasture, & landed with my foot 1/2 in a hole, I heard a loud crack, & went down like a sack of potatoes... this was most evident with my 257 Single "8" I also shot yesterday... groups were so bad, I put it away, as I was just wasting ammo ( something I don't like to do, when I'm developing loads ) ... so, I was not unhappy with both 1.5" groups yesterday out of the carbine at 50 yards... even though I think I just ended up with a sprain, I really enjoyed shooting my new forgery & honestly, can't wait to take it out again...

This is what the carbine looked like when I bought it... nice on the outside... not so nice on the inside...

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CMP M1 Range Report... finally

CMP M1 Range Report... finally hello all,
I've had a springfield M1 garand service grade since February but I've been waiting on M2 ball to actually take it out. the ammo arrived a couple weeks back but so far all I've done is put a single clip through it as a function test.

well today for reasons still unknown to me I decided I'd load it up and go to the local CMP shoot. as we have a smaller group than most all US service rifles compete side by side which had me nervous since there were more 1903A3s than M1s. in retrospect I probably should have zeroed it long before I attempted to compete with it... 5 sighters just wasn't enough. I spent most of the first battery trying to get it on point. however by the end of the match I was holding my own with many of the more seasoned competitors. there was less than a dozen shooters but I still managed to take home the bronze...

3rd place aint bad for the first time actually shooting.

the groups were not great... not sure if that was a reflection on me or the rifle but either way... I'm satisfied with it's reliability and it's accurate enough for deer though I doubt I'd ever take it hunting.

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Finally got some ready to load!

Well a while back I had Mountain Molds make this mold for me and it has been a long time in the making. This is a 450 gr shilouette style boolit for the 416 Rigby. Any bets if they hit paper at 50 yds?

That depends...

Are you gonna have the paper flat, or try to hit the standing edge???

Brandon

"When you can't make them see the light, make them feel the heat." - Ronald Reagan

Boy that is a nice hunk of lead there! Lets see some loaded up, and ready to go.

Have an oddball one in that bunch there Josh? I see a "copper" GC on that first one!!!

Have an oddball one in that bunch there Josh? I see a "copper" GC on that first one!!!Good eye! That was an experiment to see of the check maker would run copper.

A loaded round.

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Abbreviations used in Reloading
Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt"

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Finally I joined the club, the model 15 club

I met a guy at my gun club the other day, shooting pistol. We got to talking and S&Ws get brought up. He states he was selling a model 15 to a guy, but the guy didn't show up and didn't call him. He pulls out this beautiful 15-4, with target hammer and he said it had a trigger job. It felt awesome, like you all say. He said that his brother actually won competitions using it (I buy the guns, not the stories). He tells me he wants $350 for it, which was a fair deal I thought, given the nice condition, target hammer, pinned barrel, etc. I tell him "pretty nice, I will have to call you back about it." I said that because I needed to do a quick check of finances because I have bought quite a few recently and also because model 15s are somewhat plentiful. He then says "if you want it, you can have it for $300" and at that point, I said "I will take it!." We met yesterday at the local gun shop (pistol transfers are mandated in PA even between private people).

They are as great as I've heard from you all. This one is a 15-4, SN 96K13XX, making it probably a 1982 gun, possible one of the last to have a pinned barrel. It feels great with this barrel length, and that style of grips in my hand. I look forward to shooting it.

It took me a while to get a model 15, and it took me a while to get a Colt 1903 32 acp, and a S&W 357 magnum and I have never owned a S&W 36. This is because when a gun is common, I either want one that is like new, or one that is a great deal, or both because I always take the odds, and think there is another one just around the corner. This model 15 fit my bill pretty well.

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6 cavity WC - Finally a bad experience with Lee

I have had great luck with lee products, and really haven't had anything bad to say about them, I have many molds of many makes with quite a few Lee molds in the mix, BUT...

I recently got a new 358-148-wc 6 cavity mold, new production (the alignment pins are different, they are using the slightly smaller ones that come on the new 2 cav molds) and when sizing the boolits from it I noticed that the crimp groove was nearly disappearing. I measured a few unsized boolits and they measure .364!! I am using straight COWW, with no tin added, --- ridiculous.

Try dropping your melt temp somewhat and see if that'll help. What are you sizing them to? The .358?

Assuming you did everything right, then Lee Precision will "FIX" it by replacing the mold. Have not seen complaints of that mold casting so much over spec.

"Had his shooting been as good as his running, he might have given a better account of himself."
James. C. Henderson

Try dropping your melt temp somewhat and see if that'll help. What are you sizing them to? The .358?Don't you mean raise the melt temp? Or have I been doing it backward?

I thought that a hotter alloy would experience more shrinkage upon hitting the mold, due to greater heat loss.

Please correct me if I am wrong

PS try sizing them to 360 if you can. My lee 148 wc drops at 360 and they shoot great as-cast

I size them to .359. I haven't found a revolver yet in which .358 shoots better than .359, and only my older S&Ws like .360. I have an older Lee 2 cavity that drops at .360, but this new mold is ridiculous, and I've tried varying the temp, lowering it only brought them down to .363, high temps took them up to .365. Like I hinted at in the OP, I think it may be a symptom of how new it is, I don't know if quality has gone down as they rush to meet demand, but my old 2 cavity drops nice .360 boolits, so this one is going back.

I've had some issues with the alignment pins in my new 2 cavity 452-230-2R... I fixed it.. but I think it was because it was "rushed"... Still how can I complain for the price?

Boolit Man Join DateMar 2012Posts104

Just give up and send it back to Lee for a replacement. They will cast with the one they send you to verify it casts to the correct dimensions. You can try to work with your mold temp, etc and get some variance, but .005 over specs is way too big unless you have a specific need for that .364 boolit. Lee is a good company that sells decent molds. They serve a big need in the casting/loading world (the people who can't afford the top of the line) and they serve that market well. I have tried to get by with an out-of-spec mold and it is just too much work (culling boolits, sizing in two or three steps, etc). Besides when you size a bullet down from .364 to .358 take a look at how much less lube the bullet holds. Than can be a factor when the lube grooves are marginal to begin with. For the price of the mold (as you pointed out) it is hard to expect every one of their molds to be perfect. Especially when they will always replace it for the postage it takes to get it them.

Good Luck

Yeah their QC is probably over-stressed and feeling pressure to churn out the molds that people are trying to buy. I mean, how many molds can Shirley thoroughly inspect in one day?

I guess the alloy temp issue is still sorta out for debate. Maybe aluminum molds are the exception to what i swear the manuals told me: hotter alloy produces smaller boolits. But the alloy content and mold temp have effect, i just found this old thread that makes me wonder

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?104800-Impact-of-alloy-temperate-and-mould-temperate-on-bullet-diameter

Yours still seems way too big though

I mean, how many molds can Shirley thoroughly inspect in one day? Now that right there is funny,I don't care who you are!

NRA Endowment Member

I don't own an assault weapon. I own a counter-assault weapon.

You might be able to sell that mold for as much or even more then you paid for it to the right person that needs a wadcutter mold that casts that large. I'd say list it for sale in the for sale section of this forum clearly indicating that it casts that large.

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Abbreviations used in Reloading
Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt"

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Finally shot my shield

Ummm other than being small and 9mm they are pretty different. DAO vs DA/SA for one. Polymer gun vs steel for another

I like the Shield a lot, you don't. Beauty of choice in this great country eh?

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Finally I'm making .223 Boolits

I have been struggling, bound and determined I'm going to do this. Made my own dies, they aren't as perrdy as BT's and don't make the top shelf boolits his does, but they make useable boolits and with ease. It took some adjustments to my presses but I'm now doing the whole she-bang with my creations. Gosh I'm pleased. And it's thanks to you guys cause you share info on this forum. It's great!!!!

Wellll..... purdy or not, we gotta see some photos! You can't have a successful project like that and just "tell" us about it--we gotta SEE it, too! Show off what you accomplished!

Guns have only two real enemies; Rust and Politicians...

"Praying might get you to heaven, but trespassing will expedite the journey..."
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Great job be we require you to post some pics!

Ok guys, here's a pic. I'm expermenting with core sizes to get the weight I want. I was so excited to have this work I sit and make a few just to see it happen.

I'd like to see some 10 shot groups

Can I ask what you have for equipment and what was the rough cost? I have been looking at maybe taking doing but just don't know where to begin, have to do more research.

These have been coming out heavier than I really want and I need to get a core weight down a bit and more consistant. These are about 70 gr. I have some playing around to do but I'm just so pleased that I, with my little mini-lathe, was able to do this. As far as costs, I don't know. I bought some Grade 5, 7/8x14 bolts that are 3" long. I have not mastered threading on the lathe and using a thread die, have trouble getting straight and good threads. I've had very good luck making D reamers, the polishing and that darned push-out punch were my obsticals. I ordered some 1/16" allen wrenchejection pins and could not get them to work. had to go to a bit heavier pin and I used a cut off allen wrench, for the task. My derimming die is a Lee .224 Boolit sizer with a smaller punch I made to hold the 22lr cases. The core seater I made out of another 7/8" bolt and made a top punch for it. The bottom punch is the one that come with the Boolit sizer. Lots of time, really not much cost. I truelly respect what BT and others have done to make these for sale. My little set-up is far from the product these guys sell. But for me, it's working and I'm pleased.

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Abbreviations used in Reloading
Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt"

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