The Wasp Stings **Again**

[tred1956]

Shot the other half to fire form with the new Leupold VX 6 3-18x50mm. NOW the Old man can see. ***Picture at the bottom*** 11 Shots in one & 5 shots in the other.

Shot the Wasp today.
Pistol: Contender Easy Open Frame (10 Ounce Trigger BY Me)
Grips Georgia Jim Yellow Laminate
Barrel 16 Inch OTT Full Bull Matte Finish Chambered in 219 Donaldson (Long Version)
BullBerry Scope Base With Burris Signature Rings
Burris Predator Quest 4.5-14x42 1 Inch Scope

Ammo: New Winchester Brass Just Formed
IMR 3031 Powder (Old Thin Red Can) 24.2 Grains
CCI 200 Primers
Hornady 55 Grain V-Max

It was about 57 degrees wind calm. Distance about 60 yards. Sitting on Fuzz Rest. Solid even for an old man like me. This was a joy to shoot. Sad to say I have had it for three or four years and just got around to forming brass and shooting. Can't wait til I get some load development. The second box of new brass is loaded with IMR 4320. Can NOT WAIT See Pictures Below.

Thanks for reading and if you have any pet loads please let me know
Doug

 

[Outrider27]

Nice shooting. Years ago I had the privilege of being acquainted with the late Homer Culver. He would sometimes show up at bench rest matches with a .219 Donaldson Wasp he built just because he liked the cartridge. I was glad I shot in Hunter class, lol, as that thing would shoot lights out.

 

[17VLD]

Glad to see an appreciation for the older cartridges and the men that shot them,a lot can be learned from them.We sure have come a long way from the early days of shooting thanks to their experiments and fiddling with stuff and pushing the envelope.I bet ole Harvey would really be amazed at what is happening these days in shooting,and I’m sure he would get a thrill riding in a new corvette too
Matt

 

[nmkid]

Nice shooting. I like your set up. Never have shot one of them Contenders, have always wondered though.

 

[rr2030]

Beautiful !

 

[Zero333]

That Yellow Laminate is very fitting for a Wasp !

 

[1911nut]

The 52g Sierra over 28.5g IMR4320 is the best 219 Wasp load I found.

I got tighter groups with cases formed from small primer 30 American brass than cases formed from Zipper or Winchester 30-30 brass.

 

[pacificman]

I have thought many times of getting a Wasp and wondered about the accuracy of the round.
Might have to look for one now...Great accuracy and nice shooting there man!!!

 

[Hammer47]

I would like to talk to OTT have you a phone number?

 

[tred1956]

I do not have a number for Mike. He was/is a member on Specialty Pistols. Don't know if you could get his number there or not. All the OTT barrels I own were bought used. When I first joined SP back in 2008 he was actively taking orders. He had so many that the wait got VERY LONG (years). This is not Mikes primary source of income. He cut the chambers with an (NOT SURE THIS IS CORRECT) EDM?? process. Metal tooling never touched the barrel, He would also cut you a set of loading dies for an exact match. If I remember the average chamber took 8 hours to cut. He did all the work himself. His barrels are legendary for accuracy. Never owned one that wasn't a shooter. Have only traded one a 20 VarTarg for the 219 Wasp. If there is misinformation in this post it is from a faulty memory not to mislead. Memory not as sharp as it once was. If you have anymore question feel free to ask. I will do my best to remember correctly LOL
Safe shooting
Doug

 

[Kracken McGraw]

That Yellow Laminate is very fitting for a Wasp !

Yes, very cool in so many ways! That caliber has always got my attention with that catchy name.

 

[1911nut]

Harvey Donaldson was interested in developing a cartridge that had extreme accuracy for benchrest and woodchucks. He wrote about the efficiency of the Wasp, that is, higher velocity with less powder than the hot Varmint cartridges of the 1930’s including the 220 Swift. Before chronographs were commonly available, Harvey was shooting through thicker steel plates with the Wasp than the Swift.


I’ve had the pleasure to shoot about 600 rounds through a 1963 Taylor and Robbins unlimited bag gun in 219 Donaldson Wasp. The gun has a 1 1/4” diameter, 31” long barrel and weighs 23 lbs. Its built on a Mauser action, the rimmed cases are turned to .473” to fit a standard bolt face.

Not surprisingly, the 224 Valkyrie, the latest-greatest 1000 yd AR cartridge is essentially a rimless 219 Wasp. It even has the 30* shoulder Harvey found beneficial.

Doug’s Contender Wasp is very cool platform for the 80 year old cartridge.

 

[Tommie]

And old rimmed cartridge that shoots? Say it aint so!

Been infatuated with the Wasp for years. The case just looks “right”. Building a 20 Wasp for PD’s right now.

 

[Tim s]

Got two kissing cousins of that, a highwall in a straight Zipper and a set trigger high wall by C.C. Johnson in a .225. Was shooting that out to 300yds. Last week.

 

[snert]

Glad to see an appreciation for the older cartridges and the men that shot them,a lot can be learned from them.We sure have come a long way from the early days of shooting thanks to their experiments and fiddling with stuff and pushing the envelope.I bet ole Harvey would really be amazed at what is happening these days in shooting,and I’m sure he would get a thrill riding in a new corvette too
Matt

Only Harvey would have claimed to have invented the Corvette, Fiberglass, and the Creedmore!

 

[snert]

View attachment 1074601

Harvey Donaldson was interested in developing a cartridge that had extreme accuracy for benchrest and woodchucks. He wrote about the efficiency of the Wasp, that is, higher velocity with less powder than the hot Varmint cartridges of the 1930’s including the 220 Swift. Before chronographs were commonly available, Harvey was shooting through thicker steel plates with the Wasp than the Swift.


I’ve had the pleasure to shoot about 600 rounds through a 1963 Taylor and Robbins unlimited bag gun in 219 Donaldson Wasp. The gun has a 1 1/4” diameter, 31” long barrel and weighs 23 lbs. Its built on a Mauser action, the rimmed cases are turned to .473” to fit a standard bolt face.

Not surprisingly, the 224 Valkyrie, the latest-greatest 1000 yd AR cartridge is essentially a rimless 219 Wasp. It even has the 30* shoulder Harvey found beneficial.

Doug’s Contender Wasp is very cool platform for the 80 year old cartridge.

Now that is simply COOL!

 

[tred1956]

I think I have a winner