Thread: subs 308 in a bolt action

looking for general info from those who have been there please.
30 cal subsonics , but especially cast heavy pills, did you drill the nose hollow? use gas checks? why? drill primer pockets out bigger? didnt need to?

keen to give it a go some day

Im fiddling with this at the mo but keep getting held up with having to fix the rifle(rossi thread)

Playing with 90gr pistol pills that are so post to expand with muzzle velocity's 1200-700fps.
Hopefully in a couple of weeks I can report how they go on game.

Also waiting for spanners(who is waiting on formers or something) to get his 30cal expanding sub projectile production up and running.

180g lee round nose mold, gas checked, lee alox lubed, trailboss powder.
start at 11 grains and work downwards till you get subsonic, i went as low as 6.5 grains and still had consistant ignition spat them out of a remington sps varmint 26 inch barrel at 680fps, but that is not recomended due to potental risk of detionation.
i think i hit subsonic at 8.5 grains and it was plesently accurate. around the 1.5 inches.
i didnt bother with: magnum primers, enlarged flash holes, collet neck dies, oversized expander, turned necks or any other hocus pocus.
but i suppose you could go to the effort if you need better than 1.5 inch groups.
one thing i did tho is i slightly belled the neck to allow easy seating, then ever so gently crimped it back to flush when seated, so as not to damage the lead.
you gotta go gentle with the projectile as the lead is so easy to damage.
greg

Originally Posted by veitnamcam

Im fiddling with this at the mo but keep getting held up with having to fix the rifle(rossi thread)

Playing with 90gr pistol pills that are so post to expand with muzzle velocity's 1200-700fps.
Hopefully in a couple of weeks I can report how they go on game.

tell me more, that sounds interesting!
i will be keen to see these expanding sub pills as well.
greg

Thanks guys appreciate the info.

5.5-6 gr trail boss subsonic with jacketed 90gr. 18" from back of chamber to muzzle.
I had one just hop over the sound barrier at 6gr

nothing other than the usual brass prep

Has anyone drilled holes for expansion? Shot game with them or non drilled ? Results?

yea, what brand are the projies?
did you add some fill for the case with that charge? i never went too low as i was worried about detination.
greg

sorry antman, yes shot a number of animals, no drilling i just went for heavy bone or CNS shots and had no problems with penitration or expantion.
if a .440 dia 127 grain round ball, shot out of a muzzle loader at 1600 fps worked on deer for the last 200 years, why wont a 180g 30 cal pill at 1000? answer, it will
just remember that you dont have that shock factor like with a high velocity .308 round, so go for CNS shots or get good at tracking a blood trail.
greg

Originally Posted by greghud

yea, what brand are the projies?
did you add some fill for the case with that charge? i never went too low as i was worried about detination.
greg

Hornady xtp

6gr is still about 40% density, deliberately fired some straight down so powder is as far from the flash as possible and all fired immediately with no hang or miss fire.

Im still at the pissing about stage but hopefully will get to do some meaningful testing soon, if they wont expand Il drill the already huge hollow point.

those xtp bullets flatten pigs out of the 44 mag, i wonder what they would do at full stink 308 load, i can see an exploding hare load coming up.
cheers
greg

Might need some faster powder but If can get 3150-3180(out of MY 22 inch barrel) with 130s 90grs should be right up there!
Considering they are only designed for low power pistols( there is another letter in the ones for magnum pistol rounds?) I wonder if they would blow up before getting there?

Originally Posted by ANTSMAN

Has anyone drilled holes for expansion? Shot game with them or non drilled ? Results?

I've played around with subs for a few years now (300whisper, a .38/357 and now a 30Apache). To cut to the chase, when hunting with subs you have to change your mind set to be more like a bowhunter i.e sneak in close and really pick your shot. You will get ''bang-flops'' with head and neck shots most of the time, and you'll sometimes get ''bang-flops'' with heart/lungs...but most of the time you have to take your shot and then give the animal a bit of time to bleed out and go into shock and die.

I've experimented with allsorts, like drilling out 158gr flat nose .358 projectiles (for a .38spl) with a dia 6mm x 6mm deep hole.


Circled bullet was recovered from a deer (opposite shoulder) and is one of my modified .38 subsonic bullets. The others are mostly .223cals recovered from some deer as well.

I did extensive testing shooting mainly goats (couple hundred++++) and to be honest I was pretty disappointed with most of the shoulder shots taken with subs, so about 90% of my shots ended up being head shots to avoid any animal suffering or running too far. The only reason I persevered so long with the subsonic concept was because I loved my little 16'' rossi .38/.357 lever action rifle for all its great features that suited my needs for hunting in shit bush (based in the Coromandel).

My latest is a 30Apache (or 30-223, a necked up .223 case to take a 240grain SMK 308 projectile) see video.

Pic of necked up case beside a .223 case

The 30Apache is basically the same as the 300whisper & I'm having fun with it and love the concept, but for serious hunting in the roar etc..I'll never use a subsonic.


kj