I just picked up a BSA Australian Cadet Martini in 32 20. The barrel is in tough shape and I bought it for the action with the thought of making a nice centerfire rifle to pair with the rimfire Martini that I am already working on. I'm looking for recommendations for cartridges that I should consider when I re-barrel this action. My initial thought is to use the 218 Bee.

Forester

My choice would be the .222 Rimmed. Brass is available from Bertram. This rimmed .222 Remington version was developed by the Aussies for use in the small Martini action.

25-20. If you decide on the 218, might as well go Mashburn.

I just rebored mine to .357 mag. It is a fun gun. Not very loud with mags. Like shooting a rimfire with target 38 specials

Mine is a little unconventional. Painted stock and mounted a red dot sight.

It really us a fun plinker
Used JES boring. Fast turn around. Quality work
Jerry

I'm with Craigster. I would reline the original barrel to 25-20. But to each his own!

I have one using a wildcat round based on the .357 Maximum case, made by running in a .223 Ackley reamer to the depth of a .221 Remington Fireball. It ends up essentially as a rimmed .221 Rem Fireball Improved. I used the original good condition rimfire barrel and shoot .223 bullets instead of .224. Had to change the firing pin to center fire and bush the block. Nice cartridge.

I have one rebored to .357 a long time ago(in the 60's I guess).I have to seat the bullets pretty deep for the cartridges to chamber.I think it was chambered with a "revolver"reamer. If you have it rebored(actually a pretty good choice), I suggest you have it chambered with a "rifle"reamer.I have fun with mine, even with the chamber, by using 38 spec cases and seating the bullets where they should be.
Mike

I've had them in .22 Hornet, .218 Bee, .32-20, and .30-30. They were all fun and filled different niches. In the end though, I liked the .22 Hornets the most. I have a Greener small action that should be a Hornet this time next year.

Seems to me that the cartridge choice depends entirely on what you intend to do with the rifle. Plinking, small game, varmint hunting, something to carry on long walks, offhand practice. Or will it just be something for conversation? Plus what is readily available where you live and how much effort you want to put into reloading. Personally, I like the .357/.38 Special suggestion.

If you are looking for a lightweight varmint rifle, any of the small rimmed .22 or .17 cartridges will be a fine choice. If you put a heavier barrel on it, consider installing a rimless extractor and chamber for one of the .22 or .20 caliber rimless cartridges with a .223 case head size. Chamber wall thickness at the barrel threads is the limiting strength factor, not the action itself. For larger game, any of the cartridges in the .30-30 case family work well. Bob Snapp, who specialized in building custom rifles on these actions, had one in 7x30 Waters that he used for years as a deer rifle.

relining to .25-20 is the easiest and cheapest and you get a nice little rifle. .22 Hornet would be the next easiest and ditto.

If those are TOO little for your projected uses, a .357 is a lot of rifle in a little space. Deer/pig killer at woods ranges.

I've had many of these, including a .218 Mashburn Bee. Think I like my .25-35 the best, although it is now mostly a handloading proposition.

(People don't seem to leave .30-30 cases all over the place for .25-35 lovers like they used to....and Martini actions aren't $9.95, either. Time marches on and I seem to have two "straw feet"!)

I'm not a fan of rimless cartridges in the Cadet(any single shot, for that matter). For any of the .223 headsize cartridges,rimmed cases can be made.If too long for the more common cases, any of them can be made from 5.6x50R cases.The 5.6X50R is an excellent cartridge in its own right( I have taken Whitetail with mine, loaded with 60gr Partition bullets).Many years ago, Ross Sefried(sp?)spoke glowingly of an improved version of the 5.6 he had in a cadet.He compared it to factory 22-250, but I don't have any experience with this version.
Mike

I've got to agree with Der Ami here. With so many choices available in rimmed cartridges of appropriate head diameter for this action why complicate things by going rimless unless you are really looking for a challenging winter project to occupy your time.

Thanks to all for the input. I did not realize that the Cadet action could be used for a cartidge in the 30-30 headsize and pressure range. That opens up a lot of options.

Is there any published information on the maximum pressure a Cadet will tolerate? Is backthrust an issue? From what little I know about T/C Contenders from a friend who is an afficianado of them, backthrust seems to be a limiting factor in the Contender.

Forester

As another poster alluded to, it depends on what you want to do with it. Me, being a big 32-20 fan, I'd go back with the original chambering....but it is a limited use cartridge.

The real limiting factor on small Martinis is usually cited as the small diameter of the barrel shank/threads.

Some authorities see the ".30-30 family" of ctgs. as the limit, but I would add that some, like the various .219 wildcats and the 6mm/.30-30s are very likely too much of a good thing when loaded to the pressures that were regularly loaded in High Walls and bolt guns. There have been some real hotrods based on the .30-30 case. I'd avoid the .225 Win for the same reason.

Just my opinion, but I have all my eyes, ears, and fingers after 60+ years of single shots....and never had to rebuild or junk a rifle because of an overload.

Re. Sharps4590 comments about going back to the original caliber,this is actually a good option. As many cadets as have been rebarreled, there should be plenty of good original barrels avaliable.I have a lot of fun with my .310.There is a bullet mold avaliable now for a proper heeled bullet,dies are avaliable, and 32-20 cases can be shortened and used for cases(some rifles require the rims of 32-20 cases to be thinned and/or reduced in dia).The proper heeled bullets(.323") are much better than 32-20 bullets(.311-.312").If a 30-30 case is used and blown out pretty straight(ie 35/30-30), don't grind the top of the breech block, turn the rim to smaller diameter instead.
Mike

hi guys the real limiting factor in the small martini is the poor mechanical advantage the extraction system has which means that extraction becomes almost impossible quite some time before dangeous pressurers are reached

kiwibloke,
I don't know if this is more limiting than thread size, but within the limits on headsize, extraction really is an important consideration. This supports my dislike of rimless cartridges in the cadet.In my experience, thinner cases with the taper blownout( 22hornet improved,218 Mashburn Bee)are some of the worst offenders.
Mike

38Spec/357M,,I'd shoot way more 38's than 357's and I don't hunt anymore,,so for me a 38Spec would be fine.

Of the 30-30 family,I'd convert to 32-40. Not for any other reason than it's a bit different, it's a low pressure load ,,unless you choose to make it otherwise! Plus it was a pretty fair target single shot caliber.

Will a 32-40 clear the curve in a Martini Cadet breech-block? Don't know. Just have never seen one in 32-40 but would make a fine rifle if it would work.
Chuck

32-20 on the left, shortened/fireformed loaded with correct heeled bullet on the right.

results @ 100yds.

The 32-40 has enough taper that it will clear.The problem with converting the .310(without rebarreling)to 32-40 or 32 Win Spec is that the rifling twist is too slow, even though the groove diameter fits better than 32-20.In the 60s, cadets were avaliable converted to 32 Win Spec, but they were not satisfactory with the factory bullet.Of course, a new barrel with correct twist would make a fun rifle, just expensive.
Mike