I had the great pleasure of knowing Roy Weatherby. Back then people took pen and paper in hand and wrote letters, and I have saved all received from Roy on various subjects. Several were on an old wildcat he had formed by necking down the .378 Weatherby Magnum case for .308-inch bullets. His reason for doing so was as interesting as the cartridge.
During the late 1950s, Uncle Sam contracted Weatherby to deliver a rifle capable of producing uncommonly high velocities. It would be used for testing the penetration resistance of various types of experimental materials when impacted by high-speed projectiles. So Roy necked down his .378 Magnum case to .30 caliber and seated a saboted .224, 30-grain solid copper bullet made by Vernon Speer, atop a hefty charge of military surplus powder sent to him by Bruce Hodgdon.
Not quite satisfied with a velocity of 5,000 fps, he then tried an experimental powder from Hodgdon and peaked at 6,000 fps. If not for its eventual popularity among members of The Original Pennsylvania 1000-Yard Benchrest Club, the .30-378 Magnum story would likely have ended there.
Like all Weatherby cartridges, it has a double-radius shoulder. Roy once told me he went with that shape for one simple reason – to make it difficult for gunsmiths across the country to grind chamber reamers. I could never talk him into offering his Mark V rifle in .30-378 Magnum, but not long after his son Ed became president of the company, the idea became somewhat easier to sell. Possibly to get me off his back, in 1990 Ed sent a Mark V action along with a note requesting that a custom rifle be built around it. I immediately forwarded the action on to Kenny Jarrett and later informed Ed of the accuracy and velocity we were getting.
Denne historien er fra April - May 2020-utgaven av Handloader.
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Denne historien er fra April - May 2020-utgaven av Handloader.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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OEHLER's New System 89 Chronograph
Measuring Bullet Performance Downrange
The Problem with Low Pressure Loads
Bullets & Brass
Measurements for Rifle Handloading
Handy Techniques for Accurate Ammunition
THE BRASS RING
In Range
Semi-custom Bullet Moulds
Mike's Shoot in' Shack
REVISITING THE 6.5 -06 A-SQUARE
Loading New Bullets and Powders
Cimarron Stainless Frontier .45 Colt
From the Hip
9x18mm Makarov
Cartridge Board
Alliant 20/28
Propellant Profiles
.224 Clark
Wildcat Cartridges