Help identifying this drilling chambering (with pics & chamber cast)

[mike ford]

Axel,
Starline sells 38-55 (2,125") cases for 69 cents each in bags of 250. Their website shows Frankonia Jagd, Helmut Hofmann, and Reimer Johannsen GMBH as dealers in their cases. They also have other interesting cases such as 45-90, 45-70, and 40-65, from which you can make 11.15x60 R and the cases for the shorter MB cartridges. If you check their website, the 12.7x42 is not the old rimmed case. You may have to special order them, and I'm guessing they will cost a little more. If I hadn't brought a lot of metric cases back, I would have to special order them too, so I understand your point very well.

[andy]

I am glad to hear each of your experiences with the cartridge. It is interesting how one thing that can be very difficult/scarce/expensive in one country is very easy to find in another. I think I am going to go with the 9.3x72r brass as a pack or two should last me a long time with how I plan to use this, so the cost is not too severe for me in that regard. Do you guys have any thoughts on the quality of Sellier and Bellot brass vs norma vs RWS in this chambering? I can get them all at about the same price.

[mike ford]

Andy,
Any one of the three would be perfectly fine. My personal preference is RWS but that is because I have used their ammo and cases for many years. I used to have a good source of once fired cases and they mostly had RWS. Norma catered to the needs of handloaders for many years, even to the point of using "Re" in their headstamps, for "Reloadable". Most of the S&B brass I have is Berdan primed, but it is all boxer primed now so there is no detriment to using it either.
Mike

[sharps4590]

I've used all the cases mentioned. My "new" first choice would be RWS, then either Norma or S&B. I think the Norma might be a little softer and take annealing better but that's just my observation, no "mathematical proof". As with yourself, andy, a couple boxes of 20 will last me quite well. Certainly as long as I'm likely to last. Back a few years ago I sprung for some ridiculously expensive 9.3 X 82R Bertram brass when 9.3 X 72R would have worked except for being just a little short....something that never bothered me before but, it did that time....go figger.

[andy]

Update: I did get in some RWS 9.3x72r brass today and ended up needing to thin the rims about .008-.010 on the lathe in order to get the action to close all the way. This lines up with the available data on the rim dimension difference. "Neck sized" with a carbide .357 magnum die and although I haven't seated a bullet yet that seemed to work fine to allow me to use a 35 rem lee piloted trimmer to bring it down to approximate length.

I'll post more info on here once I actually do a few more cases and reload some, thanks for all the help so far guys.

[mike ford]

Andy,
That is great news. Too bad about needing to thin the rim, not all rifles require thinning of 9.3x72R. I'm a little surprised you have to trim so much though. Did you thin them from the front or from the rear? If you thinned them from the front, I suggest you look into the rim recess of the rifle, where you should likely see a radius at the bottom. The factory 9.3x72R cases have a radius on the front of the rim that more or less matches the one in the rim recess. If you thin the rims from the front, the radius on the rim is cut away, leaving a square corner which may not clear the radius in the rifle. Assuming that is what happened, if you radius the front of the rim, you might not have to thin by as much as the first ones. If not, what you are doing works. Maybe you can fireform cases this afternoon. Good show.
Mike