I’d run a couple of them through the die, trim and shoot to fire form one or two , then check the overall length to make sure they don’t shrink too much when forming. If they do shrink too much, then use the cream of wheat to fire form and then trim. I don’t have a 219 dw but make 22HP, 25-35 and 32-35 from 30-30 cases, you can make your 219 dw from 30-30 if you do it in steps and anneal at the end
Gumpy

waterman wrote on Jan 29^th, 2023 at 9:29pm:


These are recently made cases.  I bought them for $15 by mail from a place on the other side of the country that often carries old stuff.   

I'd actually prefer that the rifle was chambered in the .219 Zipper.  I was reading Campbell's second book again tonight and although the Zipper came along after the last 1885 was produced, it sounds like Winchester would sell you a barrel for your 1885 chambered for the zipper which is kind of neat. 

Chris.

I have a Borchardt chambered in something a little shorter than the .219 Zipper and a little longer than a .219 Donaldson.  Maybe one of those intermediate Pfeifer wildcats in Landis’ book.  It’s basically the shape and capacity of a rimmed .222 Magnum.

I have a bunch of factory Zipper cases but have never processed them; as mentioned, they’re valuable in their own right and even high grade .30-30 shells, like Norma, are still pretty cheap for the committed scrounger.

The original Zipper and .25-35 shells allegedly used to be ductile enough so loaded ammunition  could simply be fireformed by shooting it in Improved chambers, or shortened and trimmed, and likewise.  I’m surprised at the extent of modern reportage of Hornet cases being split in K-Hornet chambers.  Never had anything like this happen, myself.

Anyway, what I did with the shortened and necked-down .30-30 shells was to load them with a midrange .222 Magnum powder charge of 3031 or whatever was handy, cap with bulk .224” bullets and go tin-can shooting.  Fireforming went well, with no problems I can remember.

After one faux pas, I held off annealing until the shortening and necking down was done.  Too easy to collapse shoulders if the brass is too soft.