Given the prices of .308 and .30-06 ammunition, I finally bit the bullet and decided to invest in some RCBS reloading/handloading apparatus. I seem to be getting the hang of things, as I have properly decapped, cleaned, sized, and trimmed some .308 brass I had lying around. I have also gotten the hang of priming cases.
Unfortunately, I was foolish enough to follow the advice of some guy that claimed he knew about reloading (maybe for civilian bolt-action guns, but not for self-loading service rifles) at a sporting goods store. Do not get me wrong, as my RCBS reloading apparatus and Lyman tumbler work well, but in spite of specifically telling him that I had the M1 Garand and M1A/M14 in mind when it came to reloading and handloading, he talked me into buying some Federal Match 210M large rifle primers and some Hodgdon H4350 powder to use for my tasks at hand.
I was busy with some work related studying, so around a month elapsed before I finally got this stuff set up. I did some research, and some claim that the Federal 210M primers have a risk for slamfires, while others say they do not have problems with them. Since I am new to reloading/handloading, I decided to play it safe and use CCI #34 primers to start out with for the M1 and M1A. I then did some research regarding the H4350 powder, as I did not see it in my Speer or Nosler reloading books for the types of loads I had in mind, and people seem to say that this powder burns too slowly for use in an M1 or an M14.
In spite of the mistakes I have made here, I believe I can still make use of the Federal 210M primers and the Hodgdon H4350 powder, as I recently picked up a Chilean Mauser (Model 1912) chambered in 7X57mm Mauser, and it seems that the H4350 would work well in such a bolt-action rifle, so perhaps I can use this powder and the Federal 210M primers for bolt-action rifles (I need to pick up some 7X57mm dies, a shell holder, some brass, and some bullets as well).
I have read that the M1 Garand can be damaged by certain commercial loads, so what kind of .30-06 load can I make that is safe to use in the M1 Garand (I am going to play it safe and assume that a good deal of the load data in my books would be too hot for an M1 Garand)? Is there a specific powder that any of you recommend that I could use for both an M1 Garand and a Springfield Armory M1A?
Unfortunately, I was foolish enough to follow the advice of some guy that claimed he knew about reloading (maybe for civilian bolt-action guns, but not for self-loading service rifles) at a sporting goods store. Do not get me wrong, as my RCBS reloading apparatus and Lyman tumbler work well, but in spite of specifically telling him that I had the M1 Garand and M1A/M14 in mind when it came to reloading and handloading, he talked me into buying some Federal Match 210M large rifle primers and some Hodgdon H4350 powder to use for my tasks at hand.
I was busy with some work related studying, so around a month elapsed before I finally got this stuff set up. I did some research, and some claim that the Federal 210M primers have a risk for slamfires, while others say they do not have problems with them. Since I am new to reloading/handloading, I decided to play it safe and use CCI #34 primers to start out with for the M1 and M1A. I then did some research regarding the H4350 powder, as I did not see it in my Speer or Nosler reloading books for the types of loads I had in mind, and people seem to say that this powder burns too slowly for use in an M1 or an M14.
In spite of the mistakes I have made here, I believe I can still make use of the Federal 210M primers and the Hodgdon H4350 powder, as I recently picked up a Chilean Mauser (Model 1912) chambered in 7X57mm Mauser, and it seems that the H4350 would work well in such a bolt-action rifle, so perhaps I can use this powder and the Federal 210M primers for bolt-action rifles (I need to pick up some 7X57mm dies, a shell holder, some brass, and some bullets as well).
I have read that the M1 Garand can be damaged by certain commercial loads, so what kind of .30-06 load can I make that is safe to use in the M1 Garand (I am going to play it safe and assume that a good deal of the load data in my books would be too hot for an M1 Garand)? Is there a specific powder that any of you recommend that I could use for both an M1 Garand and a Springfield Armory M1A?