doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion Classic & Custom Single Barreled Sporting Rifles @ doublegunshop.com cartridge choices for Martini

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.