jmart stream of consciousness (Lubes, Krag, .38 Spec, .357 Mag)

[jmart]

Intro Post with Tons of Questions, thanx in advance for everyone's patience and dealing with my stream of consciousness:

After lurking here I've come to learn there's a lot to learn. I've got an old 30-40 Krag that I'm considering casting for, along with a Ruger .457 BP OAA, a Ruger Speed Six (.357, .38 spec) and a S&W K-38 that will probably not see anything other than WC or a TL SWC shot through it. So now I'm trying to get up to speed on casting and lubing nuances w/o breaking the financial bank. I'm trying to avoid investing in high end lubrisizers or the such.

I live in CO, 5,500 elevation and I would expect to shoot in 25-90 temps. I'd lean toward using Lee's two-cavity mold designs, especially after reading they are redesigning them to incorportae more of their gang-bang mold features. High end production isn't high on my list at the momemt, I'm more concerned with quality and consistency.

I relize I'd need some smelting capability to manufacture pucks/tins, which I would laterremelt and alloy to derive my boolit alloy I'm casting for. (And maybe a thermometer or a PID)

I was perusing Recluse's thread on using the JPW/ALOX/MS thread, but I suspect it works for handgun velocities up to and including TL through Lee's kits. But even for a dummie like me, I think I get the gist of his method(s).

Also came across Felix's lube, which I believe would be more appropriate for mid-teen velocities of the Krag. Do I have this right?

Must one use a Lubrisizer to use the Felix lube or do other application options exist? I was hoping it could be applied in two phases, in a stand-alone bucket, like the JPW/ALOX/MS conconcoction and resized though Lee's resizer.....

I was also thinking the .309 diameter would be a good starting point for the Krag. Should I size larger (.311) or smaller (.308)? Further assummed I'd be using the .309 bullet thrown from Lyman #2 -- is there a better alloy to use for a 1800 fps load? And is 1800 fps to slow, just about right, or too quick? Probably start with IMR 4350 powder since that's what I have on hand, it's pressure compliant, but maybe other powder suggestions abound for which I would not be deaf too so anything you can recommend, I'm all ears.

I feeel I have a decent handle on the pistol boolits, it's just I have a bunch of questions when delving out into Krag land. The thought of running 180-200 grain FMJ/RNFP through this barrel just doesn't sit quite rightly with me and I'm looking to keep it period/true to form as I can. WHAT BETTER WAY THAN CAST BOOLITS........

Thanx in advance for help with all the newbie questions.....

jmart

[fcvan]

Jmart, your at a lot lower elevation than the springs so I'm left to guess where you hang your hat. There are lots of great threads here to learn from the collective wisdom of this fine group of folks. Sometimes, some hands on comes in handy when it comes to casting. I might have to pay you a visit.

You have a dandy list of toys and the Krag is the most intriguing. I've been casting and loading for handguns since the '70s but have only recently started loading cast in rifles. I've been working up loads for a Springfield 03-A3 with a pristine bore and .309 isn't getting it done. My next loads will be .310 pr .311 to see if I can get better grouping. I'm using a Lee .309-150 RF which is casting about .3115 and weighing 160 grains. I may try some loads as cast with Lee liquid alox and/or pan luring with Lars BAC. I also have some harder lube to try but BAC should work in the 1600 to 1700 fps range I'm going for.

I know I need to slug the bore and so I'm going to use either a soft lead sinker or cast some soft Leeds boolits with a gas check in one of the driving bands of the mold to make a shorter slug. I've used the gas check trick to make 25 and 45 grain wad cutters before so I'm sure that will work fine. The main thing is getting a proper boolit fit. Once I find the correct maize i will get the right sizing die for my Lyman sizer or get a Lee push through die. Anyway, welcome aboard and have fun. Frank

[x101airborne]

Welcome. There are several levels of casting consiousness.
1. Ignorant bliss
2. meager learning
3. intense confusion
4. frustration
5. Enlightenment
6. Inner peace.

You almost cannot get to one stage without passing through the others.

You sound like you have a good handle on the handgun loading thing. When it comes to rifles, they are slightly different and yet share several similarities. Lube is going to matter more in rifle loading than in pistol loading. Also, If your boolit doesn't fit the throat, it is hard to get good accuracy from a rifle. For military rifles, you almost cannot load without doing a pound-cast first. That is the only way that I know of to find out what shape and weight that could possibly work for you. Need anything, just holler.

[runfiverun]

the recluse lube works in rifles just fine.
i haven't taken it beyond 2-k but it works.
i fortify it with some b-wax @20% by mark one eyeball...
meaning i use a piece of wax about 1/5th the size of the amount of melted 45/45.