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zeke
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25-20 loads with 2400 and Unique?
Apr 30th, 2014 at 7:29am
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     Hello:

     I am ready to load my 25-20 WCF and I seem to have a suppl of 2400 and Unique and 500 80 grain lead bullets.

     The bullets are plain base with a semi wad cutter profile flat nose.

     Thus far, I have seen loads that are 6 grains of Unique and 12 grains of 2400 for this bullet. 

     Anybody have loads for these two powders that will produce accurate results?

                                                          Tia,

                                                          Zeke

  
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rgchristensen
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Re: 25-20 loads with 2400 and Unique?
Reply #1 - Apr 30th, 2014 at 9:23am
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ZEKE:
   Got into the old notebooks and find that I used 5 gr HERCO and 7 gr 5744 with good results with 85 gr bullet.  This was with the 25-20 SS not 25-20 WCF.    I think that HERCO would be a more suitable powder than Unique.   I found that it was definitely better in the 32-20 than Unique.

CHRIS
RGChristensen
  
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marlinguy
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Re: 25-20 loads with 2400 and Unique?
Reply #2 - Apr 30th, 2014 at 11:04am
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Most people who use Unique powder in the .25-20 WCF are loading a 75 gr. bullet with around 3.0-3.5 grs. of Unique. 
2400 loads with the same 75 gr. bullet are usually around 8.0-9.0 grs. 
Most reloading manuals have data for these two powders in the .25-20 section.
  

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argie1891
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Re: 25-20 loads with 2400 and Unique?
Reply #3 - Apr 30th, 2014 at 2:24pm
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I have been using 3.5 gr. of unique and the lyman 257420 without gas check in my stevens model 44. as it was a 25 rimfire it will not stabilize the heaver bullets. I know that is not the question you asked but it might give you a place to start. I tested it with and without gas checks with this bullet and couldn't see any difference in accuracy. needless to say I don't spend the money on checks anymore. I have a 3 power leather wood malcomb scope on it and at 50 yards it will hold 1.5 inches at 50 yards with the above load. all I need is enough power to go through both sides of a sheet of paper but this load did send a sage rat to his maker. argie1891
  

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frnkeore
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Re: 25-20 loads with 2400 and Unique?
Reply #4 - Apr 30th, 2014 at 2:44pm
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I used to have a little Uberti "baby" RB with a 21"/ 14 twist barrel, years ago.

My best loads with it where:

4.0 gr Unique, 1381 fps, 1" five shot group

4.5 gr B'Dot, 1379 fps, .98 five shot group, 4 in .38

100 yards, all BSed, with the 257420, cast 20/1, 73 gr, GC installed

5.5 gr Unique with a 86 gr jacketed was to much for my little RB, it streghted the case heads.

Frank
« Last Edit: May 3rd, 2014 at 5:46pm by frnkeore »  

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zeke
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Re: 25-20 loads with 2400 and Unique?
Reply #5 - Apr 30th, 2014 at 4:46pm
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     Hi All:

      Thanks for the replies.

       I used 6 grains of Unique and 12 grains of 2400 today to load some cases.  This is a bit more powder than you suggested but I got the loads from a circa 1955 Lyman Handbook for cast bullets. I have no idea as to what the pressures are in these loads but they were less than the maximum.  Tjhe bullets were 85 grain plain based lead.

     I guess that the only way to determine if these loads are any good in my rifle, is to try them.

                                         Stay well my friends,

                                         Zeke
  
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Re: 25-20 loads with 2400 and Unique?
Reply #6 - Apr 30th, 2014 at 8:51pm
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I checked a couple of other Lyman manuals and the max for an 86 grain GC bullet was 9.2 grains of 2400 giving a velocity of 1765 fps. There is no way I would shoot 12 grains of 2400 even with an 80 grain bullet not to mention that a plain base bullet driven this fast is inviting some serious leading.
  
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JLouis
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Re: 25-20 loads with 2400 and Unique?
Reply #7 - Apr 30th, 2014 at 8:56pm
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Leading might or might not be an issue, plainbase bullets have been pushed beyond without any leading issues.
  

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frnkeore
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Re: 25-20 loads with 2400 and Unique?
Reply #8 - Apr 30th, 2014 at 9:36pm
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I just took (yesterday) a 57 gr, 20/1 PB, 25 cal bullet up to 1891 (hi vel 1922) fps. I was using 7.5 gr WC820, BSed in a 25/20SS w/o leading, using a BW/Lithium lube.

Accuracy sucked (10" @ 200)!!

Frank
  

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marlinguy
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Re: 25-20 loads with 2400 and Unique?
Reply #9 - May 1st, 2014 at 10:10am
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Be careful using the data in those old manuals!!! Some of it has been found to be dangerously high and later manuals from the same company had readjusted loads that were significantly different! 
I never use one manual (especially old Lyman or Ideal) without double checking at least one reference to see how they compare!
  

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Re: 25-20 loads with 2400 and Unique?
Reply #10 - May 1st, 2014 at 5:37pm
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Amen to that.  I split a cylinder on a perfectally good 1878 Colt and bent the bolt on a '73 Winchester 44-40 back in '59 with a mild "73 win and Colt" load with unique useing a 1955 Ideal manual.  Cured me of sucking eggs and useing unique powder.  Finally got the bolt out of the '73 the following spring and killed a deer with it later with another bolt and load.
James
  
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zeke
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Re: 25-20 loads with 2400 and Unique?
Reply #11 - May 2nd, 2014 at 7:43am
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     Wow : 

     You guys scared the mess out me! My loads may be too hot for my 92.  Should I pull the bullets and reload with reduced loads? I think that it would be prudent to do this rather than causing damage to my rifle.  Do you think that my loads of 6 grains of Unique and 12 grains of 2400 with an 85 graain lead bullet would be so hot as to harm the rifle?

     Why would the 1955 Lyman Cast Bullet reloading book list loads that are too hot by today's standards?  What has changed?

                                           Stay well my friends,

                                           Zeke
  
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Re: 25-20 loads with 2400 and Unique?
Reply #12 - May 2nd, 2014 at 11:12am
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A 92 winchester is a tough action compared to a 73, but I have heard a rumor that unique was reformulated some time ago - rumor only.  I have used a lot of 2400 over the years, works good with small cases and 24 grains behind 405 grains lead with kapok or malt-o-meal, a nice mild load for a 45-70.  No bruised shoulders there.

James
  
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Re: 25-20 loads with 2400 and Unique?
Reply #13 - May 2nd, 2014 at 12:37pm
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I think but cannot prove some if the Lyman data was incorrect, Typos, no fault of the powder changing. It's true new Unique is different than old but not a lot of difference

Better to pull and be safe

Boat
  
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marlinguy
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Re: 25-20 loads with 2400 and Unique?
Reply #14 - May 3rd, 2014 at 12:45pm
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I have proof of a few loadings in my old Ideal and Lyman load catalogs being dangerously wrong! Years ago I bought many of these old references and used some of the data to reload. Fortunately by the time I ran across incorrect data I had reloaded enough that the listing jumped out as highly dangerous, and I double checked later manuals and saw it changed later.
I'll have to go look through them, and see which calibers/loads I marked. Back then I wasn't considering those manuals as collectible, so often made notes and underlined mistakes I found.
  

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