.375 Norma

[Swamplord]

Great idea. If you neck some down to shoot in your 30-338 Norma, let us know how they hold up to multiple firings. This might be a great brass deal waiting for people to figure out! Thanks... I wonder how they'd hold up to just a 338 Norma, pretty cheap way to shoot a lot of that caliber if they are like typical Lapua quality.

When my 500 pcs showed up from Grafs I immediately cut one in half and a 338 Norma Mag case made by Norma to see how they compare..... after seeing the difference I grabbed my phone and ordered 500 more...............

the case head is made true to Lapua fame and the top of body dimension is already pretty close to my PRO series of wildcats, making for a lot less case taper to blow out..... forming the 375 Pro was a breeze and also allowed me to neck turn the case neck to fit my chamber better... the 423 Dakota Lapua made brass also stretched longer filling the neck out to the exact length of my wildcat... the 338 Norma case actually shrinks.. or pulls the case length back to fill the top of body dimensions resulting in a shorter and thinner neck at .006" slop in chamber....

As expected the beefier case head reduced a bit of case capacity by about 1.5 gr h20.... but the brass held up to some astounding velocities, easily surpassing the 375 RUM with the 300 gr Accubond bullet with less powder..... there was never any indication or signs of pressure on the case head, web area, body or case neck..... ( I stopped at the first indication of bolt lift tightness)
to me this represents that this Lapua made 423 Dakota brass is THE REAL DEAL folks..... and at $9.99 per 20 pcs ( .4995 cents a pc ) is a phenomenal deal....

If anyone owns or has any inclination towards a future build based on the 338 Norma Mag cartridge would be wise to stock up on some of this stuff before it is gone for good.... This is what they call "distressed merchandise" the 423 Dakota is purportedly discontinued and now obsolete, Lapua dumped the brass on the market to "move" it... get it while ya can,

I am going to work up loads with the Norma brass to max and use that load data in the 423 Dakota brass and it should last a VERY LONG time.........

I really like the sound of 2800 fps with the 320 gr Cutting Edge MTH with a bc of .830 !

Take a look at the data I compiled the other day with 3 powders I had on hand.... the 375 PRO matched then exceeded anything the 375 RUM is capable of with less powder ..

These velocities were taken with a Magnetospeed Chronograph and my rifle has a 27" 12 twist Brux barrel, ( barrel was set back 1" and rechambered from before due to a bad headspace gauge) fluted with 4 port muzzle brake that tamed the recoil to about a 300 win mag with 180 gr factory loads

We are close to kicking the door down on the 378 WBY............


.........

 

[etisll40]

Awesome work Mr. Swamplord. Your 375 PRO case looks really good. It should hold up to some firings too. I', going to order some today. The 423 Dakota case looks like a steal to me too.

Thanks

 

[IdahoCTD]

That's too bad....when I bought my 423 Dakota brass it was 6.99/20. They must raise it when there is some interest in it. It's good to know the quality is there.

Swamplord,

Are you going to let people use your 375 Pro reamer?

 

[Swamplord]

Once I have established loading data with suitable powders and bullets the reamer will be available for rent ONLY to LRH members, shipped directly to your smith when you are ready for chambering, ( pm me for details )
Neil Jones can make you a set of dies like mine FULL LENGTH SIZING DIES

or if you prefer you can have Whidden make you a set , they made my case forming and reloading dies for my 500 Jeffery based wildcats, Whidden Gunworks

another option is to get a standard set of 338 Norma Mag dies,
like Forster dies and have them altered by Jim Carstensen Bushing Dies and Die Conversions within AccurateShooter.com

If you do decide to use my reamer, contact me by pm to acquire a fired case to speed manufacture of your dies, all 3 of the die makers will request a fired case ...

I also will have the 375 PRO modified case available for the Hornady Lock-N-Load O.A.L. Gauge

 

[Swamplord]

............

http://www.grafs.com/retail/catalog/product/productId/20836


http://www.lohmanarms.com/product_p/du4hh4230.htm



.......

 

[new shooter]

Swamplord I have a 338 Norma so this brass will work for it ? What dies would i have to get to make 338 Norma. Thanks Joe

 

[IdahoCTD]

When my 500 pcs showed up from Grafs I immediately cut one in half and a 338 Norma Mag case made by Norma to see how they compare..... after seeing the difference I grabbed my phone and ordered 500 more...............

the case head is made true to Lapua fame and the top of body dimension is already pretty close to my PRO series of wildcats, making for a lot less case taper to blow out..... forming the 375 Pro was a breeze and also allowed me to neck turn the case neck to fit my chamber better... the 423 Dakota Lapua made brass also stretched longer filling the neck out to the exact length of my wildcat... the 338 Norma case actually shrinks.. or pulls the case length back to fill the top of body dimensions resulting in a shorter and thinner neck at .006" slop in chamber....

As expected the beefier case head reduced a bit of case capacity by about 1.5 gr h20.... but the brass held up to some astounding velocities, easily surpassing the 375 RUM with the 300 gr Accubond bullet with less powder..... there was never any indication or signs of pressure on the case head, web area, body or case neck..... ( I stopped at the first indication of bolt lift tightness)
to me this represents that this Lapua made 423 Dakota brass is THE REAL DEAL folks..... and at $9.99 per 20 pcs ( .4995 cents a pc ) is a phenomenal deal....

If anyone owns or has any inclination towards a future build based on the 338 Norma Mag cartridge would be wise to stock up on some of this stuff before it is gone for good.... This is what they call "distressed merchandise" the 423 Dakota is purportedly discontinued and now obsolete, Lapua dumped the brass on the market to "move" it... get it while ya can,

I am going to work up loads with the Norma brass to max and use that load data in the 423 Dakota brass and it should last a VERY LONG time.........

I really like the sound of 2800 fps with the 320 gr Cutting Edge MTH with a bc of .830 !

Take a look at the data I compiled the other day with 3 powders I had on hand.... the 375 PRO matched then exceeded anything the 375 RUM is capable of with less powder ..

These velocities were taken with a Magnetospeed Chronograph and my rifle has a 27" 12 twist Brux barrel, ( barrel was set back 1" and rechambered from before due to a bad headspace gauge) fluted with 4 port muzzle brake that tamed the recoil to about a 300 win mag with 180 gr factory loads

We are close to kicking the door down on the 378 WBY............


.........

It seems like a slightly slower powder would yield even better velocity. That was the case with my .375 RUM anyway. A stepped throat in this might be quite interesting and yield some velocity gain without the worry of barrel life. You might see 2900+fps with the 320's and over 3000fps with the 300's.

I may just order a reamer based on my 30-338 Norma Imp instead as my shoulder dimension is larger and get a stepped throater to try. I have a Lawton 32" barrel that I bet would yield another 100fps over what your seeing. It would probably put me dang near 375-338 Lapua Imp. velocity.

 

[etisll40]

I'm definitely into renting the reamer, would like to hear how you are doing with loads and a little on accuracy first though. Looks like a real winner here. Something creative and I love the 338 Norma design. It's here to stay in my opinion. The 423 Dakota case deal can be used for a 338 Norma build too. I see the 375 bullet class as one that will probably see some additions in the future, nice to see a good case behind it.

Thanks for sharing.

Awesome.

 

[Swamplord]

Swamplord I have a 338 Norma so this brass will work for it ? What dies would i have to get to make 338 Norma. Thanks Joe

Yes, the 423 Dakota brass will work for the 338 Norma Mag,

I have a set of Forster 338 Norma Mag dies and will be using them to size the neck down to 338, I also have a 338 PRO reamer and have a barrel that has been fitted and chambered then removed so I could work with the 375 version, my intention is to use those dies to create some fired brass and send both to Jim Carstensen for conversion into bushing dies for my 338 PRO wildcat,

He can do the same for your 338 Norma Mag, he can make the appropriate bushings for the size die to reduce the neck on the 423 Dakota to 338 , it will only require a .375" bushing and the .338" .. of course you will need to neck turn as the neck walls will fatten up from sizing down , I think it's well worth the die conversion expense simply because you will get the excellent Lapua brass for a lot cheaper than Norma brass which runs at $49.49 per 20 pcs at Midway

 

[Swamplord]

It seems like a slightly slower powder would yield even better velocity. That was the case with my .375 RUM anyway. A stepped throat in this might be quite interesting and yield some velocity gain without the worry of barrel life. You might see 2900+fps with the 320's and over 3000fps with the 300's.

I may just order a reamer based on my 30-338 Norma Imp instead as my shoulder dimension is larger and get a stepped throater to try. I have a Lawton 32" barrel that I bet would yield another 100fps over what your seeing. It would probably put me dang near 375-338 Lapua Imp. velocity.

Sounds interesting ! By all means go for it, any improvements you can get has my attention '

I will be trying slower powders in the next few weeks, powders I have are IMR 7828, H 1000, RL 25 and RS Magnum, anything slower than that you will run out of case capacity before you get your peak velocity .... I think this case design will work really good with powders like Norma MRP, VV N560, RL 22 and Magpro, just need to find some !

The purpose of my 375 PRO was to duplicate 375 RUM ballistics in a light handy rifle with detachable magazines, so far it has been a successful venture and with the addition of Lapua made brass and reaching 378 WBY velocities in a 27" barrel I am satisfied where things are at,

If I want more velocity from a 375 cal rifle
my 100% completed 375 Mjolnir has a 33" 10 twist Benchmark barrel that can really sling the 330 gr Cutting Edge bullets,

 

[Swamplord]

Newshooter ..........

My attempt at sizing the .423 Dakota down to 338 was successful !

It was a simple process, I just ran a case through my 375 Pro full length die then through my 338 Norma Mag fl die that I set by gradually adjusting down until the neck was sized down far enough creating a nice headspace shoulder for safe fireforming via cream of wheat ,

as I mentined in the last post, standard 338 Norma Mag dies can be easily converted to bushing dies and all you would need is a .375 bushing and the .338,
then you are ready to size down, fireform and load the 338 Norma Mag AND the 375 Norma Mag with the .423 Dakota brass .

Hopefully Norma is close to unveiling the 375 Norma Mag soon, apparently it is simply the 338 Norma Mag necked up to 375 cal, that may mean more good brass is on the way !


In the pic below is the 423 Dakota, 338-423 Dakota and 338 Norma Mag

 

[etisll40]

Gotta love brass and it's properties.

 

[new shooter]

Yes, the 423 Dakota brass will work for the 338 Norma Mag,

I have a set of Forster 338 Norma Mag dies and will be using them to size the neck down to 338, I also have a 338 PRO reamer and have a barrel that has been fitted and chambered then removed so I could work with the 375 version, my intention is to use those dies to create some fired brass and send both to Jim Carstensen for conversion into bushing dies for my 338 PRO wildcat,

He can do the same for your 338 Norma Mag, he can make the appropriate bushings for the size die to reduce the neck on the 423 Dakota to 338 , it will only require a .375" bushing and the .338" .. of course you will need to neck turn as the neck walls will fatten up from sizing down , I think it's well worth the die conversion expense simply because you will get the excellent Lapua brass for a lot cheaper than Norma brass which runs at $49.49 per 20 pcs at Midway

Do you know anyone that i could send my 423 dakotas that i just order to make it into 338 Norma. I order 400 then i that i could just run them through my 338 Norma dies. I have never did what you are doing turn neck or reducing with bushing. Thanks joe

 

[new shooter]

I ship the brass back. Joe