Shooting cast in the 1917 Enfield

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  • Pappy
    • Oct 2009
    • 861

    Shooting cast in the 1917 Enfield

    Would anyone care to share their favorite cast pill or cast load for the 1917 Enfield?
  • Oldvetteman
    • Dec 2010
    • 984

    #2
    Originally posted by Pappy View Post
    Would anyone care to share their favorite cast pill or cast load for the 1917 Enfield?
    Need more info. What ranges and velocities do you want to shoot? Reduced recoil?
    Everything I own needs fixin'

    Comment

    • Pappy
      • Oct 2009
      • 861

      #3
      200yd vintage matches.

      I've been shooting 150-178 Hornady's The 178's kind of thump as I get older but they shoot darn nice. The barrel is pitted pretty bad, but still groups nice. Thought I'd try some cast in it

      Comment

      • ceresco
        • Oct 2009
        • 8754

        #4
        Pitted barrels generally lead up badly. Try a good 110-125gr jacketed bullet at 2900 fps with 3031 or 4895. Good Shooting. ...

        Comment

        • Pappy
          • Oct 2009
          • 861

          #5
          Thanks Ceresco I was wondering about leading. I had some 110 vmax's but it tears the thin jacket off them, pretty cool at 30 yards with a puff of white smoke. I have some 125 TNT's I'll play with. I've been using the Swede the last few years because of recoil.

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          • mac1911
            • Oct 2009
            • 3005

            #6
            I have really come to like my 165 grain flat nose tumble lube design gas checked bullet (ranch dog mold for 30/30) and 16 grains of 2400
            snagged several medals at local cmp matches with that load in several rifles. The lyman 314399 style does well also.

            Comment

            • Rich/WIS
              • Nov 2009
              • 719

              #7
              Try it first, had a Krag that was pitted from chamber to muzzle and it still shot well with cast GC bullets. Pitting was in the grooves and the lands were clean and did not have a leading problem.

              Comment

              • mac1911
                • Oct 2009
                • 3005

                #8
                Originally posted by Rich/WIS View Post
                Try it first, had a Krag that was pitted from chamber to muzzle and it still shot well with cast GC bullets. Pitting was in the grooves and the lands were clean and did not have a leading problem.
                my mauser bore is ugly but after many 100s of cast loads it looks much better and the pitting is filled with fouling

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                • bruce
                  • Nov 2009
                  • 1571

                  #9
                  Google "The Load" by C.E. Harris. Amazing what can be done w/ 13 gr. of Red Dot and standard weight bullets in common military rifles.

                  In .30-06 rifles have had extremely good results using a basic 165 gr. flat nosed bevel based hard cast lead bullet from Hunters Supply over 8.5 or 9.0 gr. of Unique for 100 yd. club matches. Shoots like a .22 match load. Extremely easy to shoot well in 03 and 03-A3 rifles. No reason it would not give similar excellent results in the 1917 Enfield. Big key issue is the muzzle. If it is good, sharp and clean, on target results can be remarkable. HTH. Sincerely. bruce.
                  <><

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                  • mikld
                    • Apr 2013
                    • 512

                    #10
                    Would it matter if the barrel had 2 groove or 5 groove rifling?

                    Comment

                    • M2Phil
                      • Mar 2010
                      • 701

                      #11
                      Originally posted by mikld View Post
                      Would it matter if the barrel had 2 groove or 5 groove rifling?
                      With broad lands and shallow grooves, those JA barrels shoot cast VERY well with a minimum of fuss.

                      Comment

                      • JohnnieDavis
                        • Dec 2009
                        • 170

                        #12
                        Try a Lyman 311299 cast with #2 alloy. I haven't loaded cast in years but my go to load was that bullet in any 30 cal military rifle. For powder, 4759, 4895, 4198, varget or unique will suit you well.

                        JD

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                        • Pappy
                          • Oct 2009
                          • 861

                          #13
                          I was looking at the 311299 to play around with

                          Comment

                          • navyrifleman
                            • Oct 2009
                            • 1734

                            #14
                            You should "slug" your 1917's bore to see what its actual diameter is, and then buy a mould which is slightly oversize, and a bullet sizer to get exactly what you want. Lee makes some very inexpensive moulds and sizers.

                            The US model 1917 was a follow on to the British model 1914, which was being produced in the US in .303 caliber. The 1917, of course, was made in .30-06. Some of those model 1917's could have a slightly larger bore than other US rifles chambered for .30-06, because the country needed a lot of rifles quickly, and barrels made with .303 bores were simply chambered for 30-06.

                            I have loaded some 160 grain Lee lead bullets which are cast at .312 and which I size to .309 for use in .30-06 target loads. My rifle is an 03A3. Your 1917 might need a larger bullet, but slug the bore to see.

                            Liquid Allox (by Lee) works great as a bullet lubricant and really does reduce leading of the bore. You have to apply it both before AND after sizing.

                            Comment

                            • sigman2
                              • Oct 2009
                              • 6910

                              #15
                              I shoot cast bullets in my M1903s, 03A3s, M1917s and Krags. I'm very particular when purchasing a rifle and won't consider one with a pitted or shot out bore. Many of my rifles were hand picked by me. All have sharp, shiny bores with muzzle wear 2 or less. I may be lucky but all my .30 Cal. milsurps slug at .308-.3085". The last photo is what I look for when selecting a rifle. You don't find many CMP Krags with bores like this. The muzzle gauges slightly over a 1.

                              Given that, I cast Lyman 31141s and 311291s, #2 alloy using a .309 sizer that come out at .3095" with Hornady gas checks. My go-to load has always been one that everyone, even Accurate techs, claims shouldn't work but has preformed well in all my rifles. I usually raise the bore when loading to position the powder.

                              Case - any
                              Primer - WLR or CCI 200
                              Powder - AA 1680
                              Charge - 24.0 Grs.
                              Bullet - Lyman 31141 or 311291
                              Seat to crimp groove with light roll crimp.
                              Average velocity - 1725 fps
                              Extreme spread - 47 fps

                              I tried dropping down to 23.0 but the primers were starting to back out. I haven't tried heavier charges.

                              A number of my shooting buddies use this load for steel chickens at 100-200 yards.
                              Unfortunately, with my disability I don't get to shoot anywhere near as often as I used to.

                              23.0 Grs. seems to work ok in .303.
                              Here's an example using 23.0 Grs. in a Long Branch No. 4 .303. First 3 rounds were with estimated elevation which was too high. Probably not a match winning combination but good enough for steel chickens.





                              Last edited by sigman2; 06-09-2018, 01:14 AM.
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