loading the 9.3x74r, 232 gr bullet

[rat shoot]

I'm loading Norma 232gr bullets in my drilling 9.3x74r and have not
been able to find data for the lighter bullet. I've been using IMR 4350,
and started at 60grs. I'm holding at 64.5 at a little over 2,500 fps,
All loads have shot to the same point of aim as the Norma factory
ammunition. Which is a big plus. I decided to check the velocity of
the factory ammo and it hit the chrono at 2717fps. Which is faster
than the published data. Needless to say I was surprised. If anyone
has other data on the 232gr bullets I would of course appreciate the
information. A good source for purchasing would be fine too as
they are hard to find.

Thanks

[Diz]

rat shoot,

I had a double rifle in the caliber but all my data has gone up in smoke so to speak. If you post more info like barrel length, bullet brand and cartridge OAL I could try to run this load and see what computes. I do have some data but it is very limited. As far as bullets go I don't know of many in that weight. It seems to be going out of fashion or something. One option may be to swage a .375" to .366". I used Speer Hot Cores in 235 grain. They are dirt cheap and work very well for this. Otherwise it's pricey Norma, Lapua or ACP but they are all copper and long for weight. Unfortunately, it seems there has been a run on bullets again and many of these odd calibers are very scarce.

Thanks, Diz

[rat shoot]

Good Day,

The barrels are 25" from the muzzle to face of the action. Overall length (with bullet) is 3.630. I set
my seating die up to match the OAL of the Norma factory 232 gr Vulcan bullet which is what I've also
been using in my reloads. It has been accurate an very effective on pigs. I have not experimented
with bullet seating depth since the factory depth has worked fine. I have bought bullets from midway
and a place out on the west coast. But they have both been out of stock. I've been waiting for about
a year since I last purchase some. I decided to use IMR 4350 since I was using it in other calibers and
it was listed in Hodgdon loading manual with a 250gr bullet. So I extrapolated a starting load for the 232gr
and went from there. I considered the swaging idea and decided that I did not want to spend the extra
money for equipment, and just wanted to spend more time shooting and hunting than reloading. The only
load data I found for 232was for Norma powder which is as hard to find as Norma bullets. So, I wanted to
stick with American powder.

Thanks For The Response,
don

[rat shoot]

Good Day,

The barrels are 25" from the muzzle to face of the action. Overall length (with bullet) is 3.630. I set
my seating die up to match the OAL of the Norma factory 232 gr Vulcan bullet which is what I've also
been using in my reloads. It has been accurate an very effective on pigs. I have not experimented
with bullet seating depth since the factory depth has worked fine. I have bought bullets from midway
and a place out on the west coast. But they have both been out of stock. I've been waiting for about
a year since I last purchase some. I decided to use IMR 4350 since I was using it in other calibers and
it was listed in Hodgdon loading manual with a 250gr bullet. So I extrapolated a starting load for the 232gr
and went from there. I considered the swaging idea and decided that I did not want to spend the extra
money for equipment, and just wanted to spend more time shooting and hunting than reloading. The only
load data I found for 232was for Norma powder which is as hard to find as Norma bullets. So, I wanted to
stick with American powder.

Thanks For The Response,
don

[mike ford]

ratshoot,
I suspect my favorite powder, 4895( either H,IMR, or military "pull down") would work fine for you. I use it in 9.3x57 and 72R S&S with 250gr Speer bullets and 9.3x62 and 74R with 286gr Norma bullets. The 4350 may fill the case a little better, but with the lighter 232 gr bullet, my opinion is a little faster powder would be better( I know what they say about opinions). Also any of the medium burning powders like 3031, 4320,4064, Re 15, etc. should work. If you don't want to spend money on equipment, you could save your remaining 232gr bullets for hunting, and buy cast bullets for "shooting"(Buffalo Arms may have some). You may want to use something like 4198 for cast bullets, or even Unique or Red Dot for lower velocity loads.
Mike

[Diz]

ratshoot,

I looked at Lee to see if they made some "push through" dies that would take a .375 down but they don't. They will make custom dies for this and they are cheap for the quality that you receive. Mike has some good suggestions for alternatives but I don't have any "book" loads except a couple for Viht and Vectan powders and both are usually hard to find.

Here are the calculatednumbers for the info you gave me:

64.5 grains IMR 4350

Pmax 37,582 psi
Fill 94.1%
Vel 2,430 fps
Burn 89.2%
Baleff 26.2%

The program gives a CIP Max of 3400 Bar or 49,313 psi

One thing I did see with this cartridge is it is fairly sensitive to bullet seating depth so I would stick with what you are doing in that regards. H-4350 is slightly bulkier in the calculations and shows very slight decreases in pressure and velocity in the same load.

These are CALCULATIONS and not confirmed data use it with discretion.

Thanks, Diz

[mike ford]

ratshoot,
I sometimes talk about making 318" bullets from larger size bullets, like Diz is talking about. I was told by people more learned than I, That I should limit sizing to about .005". This is because the elasticity of the jacket is different than the lead core. A heavily sized jacket would "spring back", but the lead core, not as much; thereby loosening the jacket. The difference between .375 and .366" exceeds the .005", but I don't know if this has a practical effect on the accuracy of the bullet at hunting ranges. Nevertheless, if faced with the desire to make 9.3 bullets from 375 bullets, I think I would do so in two steps. I would size them .005" and let them "rest" for a significant period of time, then size them the other .004". This may not help, but I can't see how it would hurt, and it falls in line with my self imposed limit of also sizing cast bullets in no more than .005" steps.
Mike

[Axel E]

Here are some pressure tested loads for the Norma 232 gr bullet as published in Germany:
Reb: "Wiederladen":
59 gr Norma 201 for 2744 fps
VihtaVuori Reloading Guide, ed.12
minimum: 57.4 gr VV N140 for 2356 fps, maximum: 66.2 gr N140 for 2656 fps
DEVA "Wiederladen":
57.5 gr VV N133 for 2543 fps
62.8 gr Hogdon Varget for 2585 fps
58.3 gr VV N135 for 2526 fps
62 gr Norma 201 for 2625 fps
As you see, Europeans use powders slightly faster than 4350.

[Diz]

ratshoot,

Mike is correct about the jackets sometimes coming loose when swaging and the tools I use take them down in small steps. Most .375 bullets are heavily jacketed and don't squeeze down very easy anyway. Using a bonded core bullet usually takes care of the jacket issue. I feel bumping up is better but the tools are more complicated and I mention swaging because it is easier. However there are some very good 225 and 250 grain bullets available in 358" for bumping.

A quick search shows that Graf & Sons has the full line of Vihtavuori powder in stock so you could use Axel's posted data. I like N-140 for whatever it's worth.

Thanks, Diz

[rat shoot]

Been hunting for a few days. Just got back and wanted to thank everyone
for their assistance. I appreciate it greatly. I have plenty to work with thanks
to all of you.

thanks again,
don

[mike ford]

I hope you were successful.
Mike