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Messages - JWDynamics

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1
Around the Campfire (General Discussion) / Re: Not much from SHOT Show…
« on: January 29, 2025, 02:46:59 PM »
I like the idea of making the plastic look like wood but wouldn't it still have a plastic feel when handling? If I saw it across the room, I would think awesome... a wood stocked rifle but then immediately grimace when I felt that cheap synthetic feel.

That said, maybe a "better" synthetic stock would feel closer to wood. I didn't mean to make it sound like all plastic stocks are the same. I know there's a noticeable gap between a factory Savage Axis stock and an aftermarket Hogue or something like that.

I only have 1 rifle left in my safe with a plastic stock and it's my Vanguard 6.5-300 Wby. I do plan on changing it out one day...

2
J W, in some rifles and for certain game I do use light for caliber bullets if I get good accuracy with them. My favorite load in my .300 Wby uses a 150 Barnes TTSX right a 3500 FPS. I have used it on elk as close as 75 or so yds and out to just over 325 yds. Always complete pass through and no bullets recovered. I use an 80 gr Barnes TTSX in my 99 Savage 250 AI at 3300 fps. Great for deer and antelope. My 6.5 X 284 AI uses the Barnes 127 gr LRX at just over 3200 fps. All loads will print 3 shot groups of 3/4 in or less at 100 yds. Velocity is nice as long as accuracy is there. . My 257 Wby doesn't like Barnes bullets so I load 120 Partitions at 3300 fps.

Living in the west as I do, shots can tend to be long, and having old tired eyes knowing that being able to hold hair to 400 yds simplifies things for me. BTW, 400 is my self imposed range limit.

I understand your thinking and the velocity range you mention. My 35 Whelen loves a 225 Sierra at close to 2700 and it is a great round.

I shot my biggest whitetail in 2023 with a 225 gr Sierra load in my 1903 Springfield 35 Whelen custom rifle. :)

In the end, everyone's situation is unique to some degree. My personal experience has been better with heavier bullets than lighter but that's only my experience. One of the things I really enjoy on this forum is reading about the different geographic locations and how that factors in to the rifle and ammo strategy.

3
I guess I don't understand the logic... In my 30+ years of hunting big game, I think the sweet spot in terms of velocity is around 2700-2900 fps. Factor in a bullet with desirable sectional density and ballistic coefficient and you've got a winner winner chicken dinner. I think that applies to a majority of game animals; however, are there exceptions? Of course... there's no one-size fits all approach and some specialized application call for alternative approaches.

When I was in my 20s and 30s, my approach was light for caliber bullets with lots of powder behind them for speed and nothing else. What I didn't realize was while I could achieve really fast velocities with these lighter bullets, it was the heavier bullets with more weight retention and less aggressive expansion that performed much better on most big game animals. I think that's where traditional Weatherby cartridges really shine. You can put a heavy for caliber bullet in a rather large case and get them right there in that sweet spot without compressed loads, ultra high pressures, or doing anything dangerous on the realoading bench.

Now if you're target shooting or doing some king of long range tactical business... I will defer to other comments because that's not my thing. I'm a firearms collector but also a hunter at heart.

4
Around the Campfire (General Discussion) / Re: Federal 7BC cartridge
« on: January 08, 2025, 11:25:36 PM »
80k PSI in a alloy case (not brass) and touted with the heavy for caliber bullets long-range tactical applications... meh. I bet reloading for this will not be cheap. The Q&A on their website says to stayed tuned for future details on reloading tooling, data and instructions.

I think I'll stick with my trusty 7mm lineup of:
7x57, 280 Rem, 7mm Rem Mag, 7mm Wby Mag, & 28 Nosler

I think you have .284 covered

LOL you may be right!

Sadly, I forgot to add my 7x57 Ackley Improved to that list. Shot a feral hog with it a couple of months ago. It's probably my favorite all-time Ackley cartridge.

I like 7mm stuff in general, but gonna pass on this new space age stuff.

5
Around the Campfire (General Discussion) / Re: Federal 7BC cartridge
« on: January 07, 2025, 04:16:21 PM »
80k PSI in a alloy case (not brass) and touted with the heavy for caliber bullets long-range tactical applications... meh. I bet reloading for this will not be cheap. The Q&A on their website says to stayed tuned for future details on reloading tooling, data and instructions.

I think I'll stick with my trusty 7mm lineup of:
7x57, 280 Rem, 7mm Rem Mag, 7mm Wby Mag, & 28 Nosler

6
Around the Campfire (General Discussion) / Re: Drinks Tonight
« on: January 04, 2025, 07:45:35 PM »
I've been enjoying some Buffalo Trace recently since our local Specs has had a bunch in stock. Makers Mark is my usual go-to but the Buffalo is good stuff too!

When I'm not in the mood for bourbon, I usually shift to Bushmills or a single malt scotch. Too bad everything is so $$$ these days.

7
Around the Campfire (General Discussion) / Re: Weather
« on: January 03, 2025, 07:25:45 AM »
Currently 35°. It’s suppose to be in the 60’s for the next few days. A cold front is going to come thru Sunday afternoon I believe. Temps next week are looking like lows in the 20’s with highs in the 40’s.

Sounds like you close to my neck of the woods, as that's our forecast as well.

8
What has everyone found from their experience building loads for weatherby cartridges? Tip/suggestions? How do you go about building your loads? Just seems my weatherby chambering are much more picky on load work ups than what I’ve read about others.

For me, it depends on the cartridge. For instance, my 6.5-300 Weatherby Mag is very picky... so much so that I had to basically duplicate factory load data and pick the more accurate of the 2 or 3. Most of my other Weatherby cartridges are less picky. I don't have any experience with the RPM series of cartridges.

Most Weatherby factory rifles have freebore so you can seat the bullets out to just inside the mag well length, which is normally my approach. Be cautious when testing reduced loads because you can get pressure spikes and undesired behavior. If you stick to the main reloading manuals, you'll be fine.

Other than the freebore, I don't find much difference in my approach for most of my Weatherby cartridges compared to other similar sized magnum cartridges.

9
Around the Campfire (General Discussion) / Re: 2025
« on: December 31, 2024, 05:04:56 PM »
Happy New Years to all of you fine folks! May God bless you and yours in 2025!

10
Around the Campfire (General Discussion) / Re: Traditions
« on: December 29, 2024, 05:38:27 PM »
Here in Texas for us, it's black-eyed peas in a small bowl with some apple-cider vinegar... don't knock it till you've tried it! :)

Also, make sure you don't do laundry on New Years Day. They say it's bad luck for the year!

11
Around the Campfire (General Discussion) / Re: 9mm on sale
« on: December 29, 2024, 05:36:58 PM »
That is a good deal these days!

12
Around the Campfire (General Discussion) / Re: Big-5 South African Money
« on: December 29, 2024, 05:36:10 PM »
That is really cool! Thanks for sharing!

13
Around the Campfire (General Discussion) / Re: Merry Christmas, gents
« on: December 24, 2024, 08:05:26 PM »
Merry Christmas! Jesus the King of Kings is born! Praise God!

14
Around the Campfire (General Discussion) / Re: Christmas cards
« on: December 17, 2024, 07:54:31 PM »
We send out snail mail personalized x-mas cards to close friends and family, but I have young kids so that's the main motivating component for now. There will probably be a day when we dial it back to a minimum and maybe eventually nothing.

15
Around the Campfire (General Discussion) / Re: Dec 7
« on: December 07, 2024, 10:13:28 AM »
Pearl Harbor day! "A day that will live in Infamy"

Yes sir! I was lucky enough to visit there in 2011. I will never forget that experience. Very moving...

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