Topic: Available bullets 8.15x46 in Germany

The situation is like follows: in the cold light of a day we have have only one manufacturer for the bullets. This is Haendler & Natermann in northern part of Germany. They fabricate the lead-bullets in the sizes .318/.321/.323 and all the three sizes in weight of 148grain and 170grain. You can get them in pure lead (greased with the rings) or with a very fine coat of copper (metalized) called "high speed". Normally you can buy them in each re-loader-shop...

...normally...

...but two years ago, the manufacturer gets a new owner and he wants to make the big deals with other bullet-products. The community of traditional shooters is too small, so they fabricate now for the US-market large shipment for special airgun-balls and other things for greater communities. 

If you need now some bullets for your .318-rifle, you have to order 10.000 bullets, then they will produce it special for you. So we organized in February a "omnibus order" via our feuerbixler-website. So we got a lot of orders from the folks to buy the required quantity centralized. That was the only way...

There is another, very small manufacturer in Germany, who produces also 8.15-bullets. He is called "Rifle bullet caster" and wants to get more market share. But some guys told me, that the quality is sometimes poor and the bullets are too different one below the other. So you have a lot of waste and non-precise ammo.

I've to make some pics next week, because the weekend I am out for shooting in Innsbruck/Austria...

Biggi

I've my camera always with me...


...and I think, at the moment my standing in the forum is not sooo bad!


Biggi  

Topic "breech-seater"

Today I was in Austria for shooting with old German fire rifle ("Feuerstutzen"). There at the range I asked some long-established riflemen about your "breech-seater" whether they know this. And they told me, that about 15 years ago, somebody brought such a tool to the range (it seems he got it from US). And they decided to test it.

But they realized that it takes too long time for reloading and the barrel will be really soon full of lead near the mouth (in direction to the cartridge chamber). And it seemed to be less precise than with ready loaded cartridges. So they stopped the tests an went back to their usual ammo.

Nobody knows a German name or expression for it. So I think, that perhaps this is no old German loading tool.

Greetings from
Biggi

Hi Bob,  So it is true? That old saying? Nothing new under the sun? 

You really need to write a book Bob.  I'm serious. 


          Joe.

So much style Biggi !!  

The rules sound strict. Much more so than ours.

What system Martini is your rifle?  Is the Martini system most popular or one of the others. There are so many.  

My Martini is a Stahl

               Joe.  

Another question on rules Biggi. 

Is the barrel sight allowed to be used with the front sight and rear diopter?

Using all three sights helps me see the fine bead sight that my rifles have. Most of our shooting is done outside in strong light.

      Joe.  

Hello Joe.

Sorry, I was out for shooting the last days...

In our rules, we allow only two sights on a feuer-rifle or a zimmer-rifle. The diopter/peep sight with a "Sperber-Röhrl" or a "Seibert-Diopter" (makes a increase in 1.5-times ...don't know the correct expression). And at the front sight a "Korn". This might be a pinhead, a ring/circle or a Balken/beam.

The allowed sights you can find illustrated in our rules:

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A telescopic barrel sight is not allowed. We do not use it, because it is "not traditional" for our shooting ranges.

Biggi 

Which shells a shooter can or should use depends on the type of action.  My very old Martini requires RWS shells or shells with an equivalent rim diameter.  I have some old DWM shells and about 200 old Berdan primers that work also.  If I make shells for the Martini out of 30-30 shells, it requires some work on a lathe to reduce the rim diameter.  One American company, Quality Cartridge Company, makes shells to the same size as the RWS shells, but they are just as expensive as RWS.  An American shooter might just as well buy the RWS shells, because we know they will be made correctly.

But for my Original Aydt, 8.15 x 46R shells made from American or Canadian 30-30 cases work even better than RWS cases.  That is because of the gap between the face of the breechblock and the end of the barrel.  The rims of the American cases are slightly thicker and are greater in diameter than the RWS 8.15 cases, and so they fill the gap better.  Making the cases from 30-30 is quite easy.  You can also trim the American cases a bit to fit the length of your chamber exactly, if that is necessary.

Personally, I would like to try some of the .318 diameter & 170 grain greased lead bullets, but I do not know any of the problems with importing them.

And the more you practice, the luckier you become.

waterman