Trouble reloading 7.62x54R

[KW-Bane]

I reload .454 casull/.45 colt, .45 acp, .357/.38 spcl, .30-30 & 7.62x39 (also 1000 rnds of .223 brass waiting their turn) without any troubles. So I decided to get dies to reload for the Mosin Nagant 7.62x54R. I bought Lee dies like I have done for the other cal.'s. I bought Sellier & Bellot (brass case) ammo for reloading. Here is where the trouble started....

After lubing the cases, in the resize/primer push stage, I noticed the case does not go in the die far enough to even pop out the primer. About 2/3 the way down the case it stops. Being brave as I am, I lubed it again and finally worked it down far enough to pop out the primer. It left a raised ring where the edge of the die was and really shined up the case (burnished) where die & case met. It was like the die was just not big enough for the case (the case does have a natural angle or a gradual "narrow to wide" property to it).

"This is just a pic of the russian bullet not one of mine."
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y235/kwbane/762x54Rbullet.jpg

I first thought of checking for the correct die caliber, & it said 7.62x54R.

Does anyone have a solution to the trouble I'm having? And or any sugestions to gear me in the right direction would be welcomed!

Thanks!!

[Darren007]

Did you try adjusting the pin up or down. I had the exact same problem with a set of Lee dies in 7mm Mauser and that seemed to fix it.

[KW-Bane]

I did think of it, however I never had to do that before and was actually afraid of damaging the die.

Thanks for the help and I will try this!

[KW-Bane]

It worked great! Thanks for the help!

[reloaderNOOB]

From what I have read, M 91/30's were made by MANY different companies. The bore groove diameter can vary in mosin nagants from .308" to a whopping .312"!! Groove diameters and bullet diameters seem to be bigger (around .310" to .312") in European rifles and ammunition, with american-made mosin nagants tending to be smaller (.308" to .309")

I believe my mosin is euro-made, because it has russian stamps and characters, and european ammo (particularly Hot-Shot)

This is a big concern when getting ammunition.... you want your ammo to match your bore groove diameter. I have heard that the way to find out WHAT YOUR RIFLE IS is to "slug the barrel"

I have no idea how to slug a barrel, but if i'm not mistaken, you hammer an oversized lead bullet thru the barrel and then measure the bullet at a certain spot with mic's or dial calipers. DO NOT DO THIS BEFORE READING UP ON IT, I AM BUT A LOWLY NEAPHYTE! I DON'T KNOW THE PRECAUTIONS OR ANYTHING.

hope that helps...

btw, if anyone can help me with slugging the barrel of MY mosin, I would greatly appreciate it--PLEASE DON'T MAKE ME BUG MY GUNSMITH !! :)

[reloaderNOOB]

"and european ammo" works better than american.

[lee n. field]

The bore groove diameter can vary in mosin nagants from .308" to a whopping .312"!

Oh, even higher. Mine measures .314. It's hideously inaccurate.

[reloaderNOOB]

with my mosin

[darkgael]

Slugging is easy. As noted, take a piece of soft lead - I used a piece of buckshot - and carefully hammer it into the muzzle far enough to engrave the rifling. Brass hammer or plastic. Knock it out with a cleaning rod.
Carefully rotate the slug between the jaws of a caliper.
My M-N slugged at 0.311. Still, I load 0.308 bullets (180-190 grains) and it shoots very nicely at 100 yards. I haven't shot it farther than that.
Pete

[deadcoyote]

I just had my mosin slugged and it turned out .315!!! I just special ordered 300 cast lead .316 bullets from "Glenhills Cast Bullets". The guys name is Vern and he's been extremely helpful so far. Check him out, its cheap like my budget!

[margiesex]

Hello: Look under Howinmad's post - about 3 from the bottom of this page of posts. He gives you the link there to my post and an answer to slugging the Nygant! And the advice is good - and cheap!

Talk of issues - if you look at the older Sierra loading manual, they list the bullet dia. at .308! So, dumb me ordered some .308 bullets...needless to say it was a disaster.

Good luck.

God bless.

Margiesex


And remember: Hug your God and your guns - 'cause he's coming for them both, and soon!

[Huntzalittle]

I've been working on this problem since I started working on my Mosin Nagant M 91/30. My Hornady Manual (Third Editon) lists a bunch of loads using differnet wt .308" bullets, all of which hit all over the target. I was getting pretty disgusted with the project, almost ready to write it off. :mad:
Then I slugged the barrel and found out it is .311. I wanted to try a bigger bullet, so I bought one of those 20 rd boxes of ammo for 7.62X39 and pulled the bullets. They were .310", 123 grn FMJ. Loaded up with 45grn of 4320.
Grouping was a great improvement over what I had been getting! That .002" extra seems to have been the key to tighter groups.
Now a little trigger work and this dogs is ready to hunt!
I think ya gotta "Slug the barrel" to find out what you are working with.:)

[Notenoughguns]

you can buy bullets for British 303 for your 7.62x54R loads

[azar92]

I have yet to reload for my Mosin Nagant. I bought my Mosin for $80 as a plinking gun, to shoot all that old military surplus crap. I don't plan to hunt with it and just can't see a reason for me to reload it. At least, this is what I have to tell myself over and over again to keep from buying the dies, bullets, brass... :D

Notenoughguns has it though. There are bullets that will give an even better fit than the ones you pulled, and you don't have to sacrifice any 7.62x39's either. Hornady sells a .310 123 SP (designed for the 7.62x39), a .3105 174g FMJ BT, and .312 150g SP and a 174g RN. Sierra sells .311 bullets in their Pro Hunter line at 125gr, 150gr, and 180gr and a 174g MatchKing. I'm sure other brands carry them as well.

If your bore sizes .311 I'd give the Sierras a try. A 150g would be good deer medicine and the 180g would likely ruin an elks day too.

https://www.hornady.com/shop/?ps_session=6a9bdc585bfd43bd10ccb3740bb3a358&page=shop%2Fbrowse&category_id=b30b914a0297302107cd8c4695880db5
https://www.hornady.com/shop/?ps_session=6a9bdc585bfd43bd10ccb3740bb3a358&page=shop%2Fbrowse&category_id=a5b32082d8ec08618cba16bfca474ee0
https://www.hornady.com/shop/?ps_session=6a9bdc585bfd43bd10ccb3740bb3a358&page=shop%2Fbrowse&category_id=3c5a4d91bca5d2ecb25adad1e4c25279
http://www.sierrabullets.com/index.cfm?section=bullets&page=rifle&caliberID=9

[KW-Bane]

After the initial "learning how to reload for the 7.62X54r" I have used several diff bullets & loads (after slugging the barrel) to see what shoots best in my gun. It does seem the closer the bullet dia is to the barrel dia, the better the groups are, and medium loads with the lighter bullet works very well......still not done fine tuning....will probly use it for hunting this year....we'll see how it goes!

[MuscleGarunt]

1/8th ounce fishing weights are the perfect size. You need to hit them with a hammer a couple of times to help flatten them though. The hole in the middle helps it form a good fit.