.309JDJ question

[SAS98M]

Getting the itch again AAAAHHHHH !!!!!    Thinking bout more from the JDJ line-up.... Would like some practical info on the .309JDJ--- Who's shooting one-whadya think   What's the recoil like ?  Is this one considered one of the "hand cannon" line like the .375 etc... I don't like excessive recoil in any gun for that matter as it takes the "fun" out of the shooting experience .
 What's the availabilty of dies,brass,bullets etc...? What's recommended as a starting load vs. a hunting load ?   Sorry for the "question bomb" but they all came to me in a bunch too.....     Any and all input would be greatly appreciated. SAS98M

[shot1]

If you don't like recoil and don't want to do a bunch of stuff to neck brass down and have to pay the big price for the special dies I would suggest a barrel in 30-30 Ackley Improved. I have a 14" SS Shilen made my Match Grade Machines (MGM) for my Contender and it is mild on the recoil and it is very accurate. With 33 grs IMR 4198 and a 125 Nosler ballistic tip in a fire formed case with a Wolf LR primer I average 2670 fps and it will keep 5 shots inside 1" at 100 yards when I do my part. It will hammer deer. I killed two deer last week with it. One at 98 yards and one at 55 yards. You can shoot 30-30 Win ammo in the barrel to fire form the cases. The 30-30 Win ammo is very accurate also. Lee makes a good set of dies for the 30-30AI that cost a fraction of what the dies would for a 309JDJ.

[SAS98M]

As you can see by my sig.at the bottom of the post-I already have a 7x30 Waters a .30 Herret and a 6.5JDJ . The 7x30 being the closest to .30-.30 and the .30-.30AI  That's the reason for the next step up-I guess to fill the niche......and for curiousities sake(Well the JDJ line impresses the crap outa me) .

Anybody else on the recoil,the components,range reports etc....??

[Shortgun]

I have had a 309JDJ for 30 years. It is a very accurate easily formed case and it does kick a bit in the 14 in tube. I also have it in a 20 in carbine barrel. With 150 gr bullets the 14 in will get around 2450 fps when pushed by 50+ gr of powder. It is only about 50 fps faster than a 30-30AI in the same length barrel...but the 30-30AI will do it with 18 grains less powder and less recoil. The 30-30AI is actually faster with lighter weight bullets as the 309 is not intended for light weights. However when you step up in bullet weight the 309 with the larger case capacity will really out run the 30-30 case. My 309 will actually run a 165 gr nearly as fast as the 150 and  the 165 is a hammer on critters. In the 309 , if I had to choose only one bullet it would be the Nosler BT in 165 weight. In the 30-30AI if I had to choose only one bullet it would be the Nosler 125 BT. When comparing the 7x30 Waters to the 30-30AI the 30 cal is about 200+ fps faster. My 7x30 14 in will run a 120 NBT at 2480 fps and my 14 in 30-30AI will do 2650 with a 125 NBT. The DEER won't know the difference between those two rounds but the 309 with 165 gr slugs will carry the energy better at the longer ranges and shoot pretty flat. If recoil is an issue with you I would stick with the smaller case. If not the 309 is a great cartridge. All that being said...I find myself carrying the 30-30AI more often nowdays..guess I am getting soft in my old age.

shortgun

[SAS98M]

I have yet more .309 questions.... I recall seeing it somewhere-maybe here/maybe web search ??  
  I've read that some shoot rechambered barrels--What gives ?  what barrels can be used for this conversion ? what's the recommended length ? What's recommended as far as strength ?   
I've got a Super 14  .30 Herret  could this be a "donor" barrel ?  Looks like a rechamber would be a pile more economical if one would already have a rarely used barrel( I have a .30 Herret that I thought I'd like shooting more than I do)               Again,all opinions are valued. SAS98M

[Shortgun]

If your 30 Herrett is a 14 inch barrel you could rechamber to 309JDJ. I would not recommend a 10 in for such a conversion. My first 309 was a rechamber of a factory 30-30 barrel. super accurate but a bit on the slow side. JD's barrels are Shilen barrels and often a bit faster. Most all of the smaller cased 30 cals can be rechambered to 309JDJ. The 309 is a 444 Marlin case necked to 30 cal with an improved style shoulder and requires fireforming to get the final case shape. Just run a 444 case in a 308 win die and after fire forming use 309 dies for the reloading process.

[bspeckchaser]

I have had a 309 for about 6 years and luv it!  It was originally a 30 Herrett and SKS did a re-chamber job on it (I bought it as a used barrel).  It also has a brake which makes it pretty noisy, but it is a joy to shoot with Nosler 165's and IMR 4350!  I have a Burris 3x12 on top of it and it is comfortably a sub 1" gun at 100 and fun to shoot eggs with at 200.  It does take a little prep time to get things ready to reload, but if you are comfortable with reloading, then I would not hesitate to tell you to try it.

I love it and deer hate it

Bill in TX

[Ken ONeill]

I'm a big fan of the .309 JDJ. I run a 165 Ballistic Tip @ 2400 fps in my 14" SSK barrel. It's essentially the equivalent of a .308 Win. in performance, but can be utilized in the Contender, and the .308 cannot. I've used mine to my complete satisfaction for about 15 years or more. Of course, I've never been anything but completely satisfied with any SSK product.
Dies are only available from SSK. Loading is easy after necking the .444 case down once in a .308 Win. die. I've used RE15 for years, but JD has always recommended the 4350's in this cartridge.
I once had a T/C 12" .30-30 Hunter (i.e. ported) barrel rechambered to .309 JDJ, but sold it after a short while. Neither the velocity nor the accuracy were satisfactory to me in that particular barrel.
It's a shame the .30 Merrill (.30 / .225 Win.) is not available in the Contender (to my knowledge, but MGM might be talked into it). I believe it would be as superb in a Contender as it is in a 14" Merrill or XL, and the brass would be stronger than .30-30 AI.
Failing that, the .30-30 AI is a good choice, and a lower recoil, slightly less powerful alternative to the .309 JDJ.

[Jay HHI6818]

I bought my 309JDJ twelve years ago and its still my favorite SSK barrel. As Ken stated the brass is easy to form and its a very accurate cartridge. Several years ago I had 18 rounds left at the end of hunting season so I shot them up so I could reload all my brass at the same time. It was cold out and towards the end I was just blasting away. Here is the group I shot at 100 yds.


 
Last year I took this buck at 240yds (range finder) with my 309JDJ

[buckeye509]

Nice buck. Nice shot. 309JDJ seems to work rather well for you.

[Jay HHI6818]

It sure has. I've shot probably 18 deer with it using the Nosler 165gr BT. Some of the closer shots left baseball size exit holes. Took this 8 point in 2003 at 130 yds. Every year I tell myself to use another SSK caliber but I always take the 309JDJ and if I get a deer then I use another SSK caliber.

[Jay HHI6818]

I don't like excessive recoil in any gun for that matter as it takes the "fun" out of the shooting experience .

Take a look at the 6.5 JDJ or the 257JDJ. Both are based on the 225 Winchester and recoil is a lot less than the 309JDJ.

Check out this fire form load for the 257JDJ.

[Gswag]

Jay,
What is the barrel length on that gun?  I thought it was a 14" but it looks like it could be a 12".  Just curious.  Been wondering what a 12" in the 309 would do versus the 14".  Didn't figure you'd lose too much velocity, maybe 50fps, not enough to know it in the end more than likely.  Glad to see the 309 is working so well for ya! 

[Jay HHI6818]

My 309 is a 14 inch barrel the load I'm shooting with the Nosler 165 BT is running 2325 FPS

[HHI-7420]

Gswag, my rechamber .309jdj(it was a 30-30) has a 12-3/4" bbl.(sawed the choke off a 14"hunter) and can group 3 in 7/16" at 100yds. with 165 bal. tip and 50grs. H-4350 at(if I remember correctly) about 2,150fps. Of course a JDJ bbl. will do better.  Pat

[Gswag]

Thanks guys.  I'm loading some 165s up today at some point with RL15.  Hope to get a chance to shoot at the beginning of the week.  Hope mine shoots as well as yours.  This is a 14" SSK barrel so I have high hopes it will do well   Take care.  GS