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I got a Contender in 256 Winchester Magnum not long ago. I just got dies and started shooting it.
Does any one have any good loads for the 60gn Hornagy FN?
How do you form your brass? if you form nickel cases do they crack right away? I cant get more then 3 shots with nickel brass from mine, but om having no problems with brass cases.
Thanks
I'm not surprised you have had problems. Nickel plating forms a harder layer on the outside of the brass that lacks the elasticity of brass. Even in normal use, the necessary crimping of revolver cartridges leads to much shorter case life with nickel plated cases. Their purpose is to have cases that will not corrode when kept in leather belt loops and when exposed to weather. Unfortunately, neither long case life nor suitability for reforming were design criteria. I got a bunch of nickel .223 cases in the brass bucket at our range that I tried to form into .30-223's as an experiment. Out of ten cases, three survived the necking up process without splitting. I do use nickel cases in .30-30, .308, and .30-06 for hunting loads, but that is all that I use them for and a box of fifty gets used up maybe once a decade. I have no idea if they can be annealed and really don't know a lot about the properties of nickel as it is not a metal I normally work with, but Handloader's Manual of Cartridge Conversions says that case necks for the .256Win Mag must be carefully annealed before forming.
It lists a load of 14.2gr of IMR4227 with a 75gr bullet and notes that the data came from Hornady's 3rd ed., pg 124. I would go to their website to look for data, or email them directly and ask for it. I doubt if you will be seeing decent performance on game with rifle bullets as they are not designed to expand at those velocities, but I'm sure you already know that. Fortunately, you know a good source for cast bullets. ;)
I tried annealing the nickel cases and it did not help, and I kind of figured that was the problem.
I tried about 10 powders today, and I can not got it too shoot under about 3" at 35 yards. It seems the faster I shoot them the better it shoots, but before I get good the cases started sticking.
I found 2400 to be the powder for 256, have used it in a Ruger Hawkeye, 10" T/C, and Marlin Model 62. Worked up using data from a Lyman book from the 60's and used small rifle primer for all.
Small rifle??? No wonder I am blowing Remington small pistol! I might try that.
BW - The 357 is a pistol round, so it was designed to use small pistol primers. The small rifle primer is slightly taller then a small pistol, so it may result in a high primer which I do not like.
So what do you do? Did you ream out the primer pockets to take the small rifle primers?? or are you just using them and it is working??
Just wondering...........
I know large primers have different thicknesses between rifle and pistol, but I don't think that's the case with small primers. I have used both SR and SP in my Contender in both .30carb and .38/.357mag without problems.
There is a small difference, and it does make a difference in my dads 32 H&R mag.
I will try the small rifle in a 357 case and if it seems high I have a primer poket reamer and I will ream a few out to try.
I just traded the 256 barrel for a 22 Hornet so You have to think about it any more!
I shot up a whole box of jacketed bullets, plus alot of cast boolits and never got it under 3" so I gave up and traded it off. First load out of the hornet shot about 3/4" at the same range.
The hornet also has the Target sights on it.