Is this normal??

[tom barthel]

I was at my reloading desk a few minutes ago and decided to play with my bullets. I had cast and sized about 20 pounds of LEE C430-310RF bullets last spring. I picked up my calipers and a few bullets and got a surprise. My sized .430 bullets measured from .431 to .436. I'm resizing ALL of them to .432. I checked about two hundred bullets. All seemed to have expanded. Is this a common thing? I think I need to resize ALL of my cast bullets. This makes me nervous.

[shotman]

never heard of that check the calipers I have cheaper one that has a dial on it and it will give wrong readings on very close measurements shotman

[HeavyMetal]

First, double check the calipers! Then pull your sizing set up out and run some fresh cast through it and check that it is indeed sizing to .430!

Back in the day I was loading a lot of 45 auto and one afternoon my bud's and I started having faliures to go into battery! Some quick investagation showed case diameters on the loaded rounds were to large to allow chambering!

When I got home I had some unsized 45's in a container and ran 5 or 6 through the old Lyman 45 and found them sized at 454 instead of the 451 the die was marked!

Casting a lot of ww metal, which has a high ( abrasive) antimony content, allowed me to actually wear out a sizing die! 2 years later I found the second one with the same problem!

So you can wear a sizing die out ( but it will take awhile) I have never had cast boolits "grow" but I will admit they never sit long enough at my place to get the chance!

[Blammer]

are you sure you sized them previously?

are you sure you're not measuring the lube? that may throw it off that much

[Jim]

Another thing to keep in mind; it's not unusual to get one reading on the cheeks and another on the seam. Are you measuring on the same place on every bullet every time?

[DtheD]

I also had some readings like that. The problem turned out to be very small layers of lube built up on the caliper faces. I've been a machinist for 36 years and it took me a while to remember to check the measuring tool. Just a slight senior moment on my part but a simple solution.

[Bass Ackward]

Yep. Sometimes bullets will grow on ya. Especially the water dropped ones.

[runfiverun]

thank god the water dropped ones do, as the mix i use for them pours a smaller boolit.
hence the waiting period for those.

[Tom W.]

I just checked mine with a micrometer. Came out to .430.... I'm happy...