I am thinking of casting for my 223

[ddeaton]

I am just getting started in pistol casting, but already have a couple 30 caliber molds for my 308. I have read that 22 caliber casting is a little bit of a pain in the butt. Is this true? My wife shoots 223 and I would like to try this in the future. Who makes a good mold?

[beagle]

My favorites are either the Lyman 225415 or the RCBS 22-55-SP with preference running toward the RCBS./beagle

[medicstimpy]

Lyman's little 225646 is a great little boolit. Pretty accurate with Red Carnuba lube. :)

[garandsrus]

I didn't have any trouble casting for a .223.... You will definitely want to pre-heat the mold though.

John

[ddeaton]

I didn't have any trouble casting for a .223.... You will definitely want to pre-heat the mold though.

John

And that means cast iron instead of alum I am thinking, hold the heat better

[Trapshooter]

I started casting for 223 earlier this fall. I got a 225415 mold in a bunch of molds I bought from my estate sale vulture buddy two or three years ago. Lead was cheaper then, and there were lots of other new-to-me molds to play with, so I let that one set for a while. With the crazy lead prices over the last year or two, I've gravitated toward lighter and smaller caliber boolits to conserve lead.

I shoot an older Remington 700VS (1 in 12" twist) and a Bushmaster AR-15 (1 in 9" twist). I got pretty good results with the Remington fairly quickly using the info from Beagle on Cast Pics.

I used wheel weight alloy with a spoon full of magnum shot per pot for arsenic, and sometimes a little solder, oven heat treated 1 1/2 hour for consistent hardness. I use a magnifying glass and lots of light for inspection and weighed every boolit for a while. I found that ruthless visual inspection got rid of most of the weight variation, so I quit weighing them for now. I've used Microlube and Felix Lube, with slightly better results with the Microlube. I tried several powders from Green Dot to 4895. The Remington liked 2400 best so far, but it looks like the right charge with any of them could give decent groups if velocity isn't a consideration.

I had some problems with casting. Some batches of castings were almost all rejects with slight rounding on part of the front band, so I went back to the board for more lessons. I found some posts from Bullshop about working with small cavities in relatively large blocks. His secret was to keep the blocks HOT! Keep the pot hot, and cast as fast as you can, or faster. That bit of information made a huge improvement in consistent yield. Thanks Dan!

When I started with the AR, I went back to the board for loads. I tried several. My best results with the AR so far are with Larry Gibson's 18 grains of 4895. It cycles consistently, and groups best to date.

This has been quite a science project (obsession :-D) for me. I'm into the second box of gas checks. Almost as much fun and as interesting as when I began casting for the '95 Hungarian! When the weather is fit, I'm working on shooting technique with the AR to get it to group like the Remington. The next projects I plan to work on are seating depth changes, try different sizers, try Linotype boolits, and try drilled hollow points. Depending on results, I may go back to weighing each boolit at least for the Remington, and I'm looking at other 22 molds.

The 223 has been great fun. It conserves lead, and with all the info on the board, the early part of the learning curve is not bad at all!

Merry Christmas, and a prosperous New Year!

Trapshooter

[Bullshop Junior]

I you read back on some of my post there are quite a few about loading cast in the 223. My old remington 788 did very well with cast.
BIC/Daniel/BS Jr.

[Larry Gibson]

Bullshop Junior

Yes the old M788s in .222 and .223 always were excellent performers with cast bullets. Both had 14" twists BTW. Both shot consistently better than my M700V with 12" twist with the same cast bullets. That's saying a lot because that M700V is no slouch either.

Agree with "keep the mould hot and cast fast and hot". I also am a fan of the Lyman 225646 for the best cast bullet accuracy in the 22 CFs.

Larry Gibson

[DLCTEX]

I cast 22 boolits with a Lyman mold 46 gr. Loverin? type, and a Lee 22 Bator mold from Midsouth. I haven't had any problem casting, but I preheat the mold (dip it in the melt) and cast fast and hot. I WD WW, size .225 and lube with 50/50 with some carnuba wax added. I have loaded them in 22 Hornet, 222, 223, and 22-250 with pretty good results if the velocity is kept down, 1600 fps or less (less is better). They are small and are fun to gas check, but not too bad. All my guns are bolt or single shot (except for a revolver for Hornet), so I don't know how they would work in an automatic. DALE

[Jim]

The common denominator in this thread is keeping the blocks hot. I finally started putting my mold on a hot plate. I eventually bought a second mold and rotate. Pour one, break it out, lay it on the hot plate and then pour the other. By swapping back and forth, the hot plate keeps the blocks hot enough that I don't have to depend on the lead to do that for me. Might be a weird way of doing it, but it works for me.

[Johnch]

I cast for my 223
Few things I have found

Make sure you start the bullet into the sizing die straight
As I found with my fat fingers , it is easy to start the bullet at a slight angle

Also I had accurcy problems till I figured out I was loosing GC's every once in a while
The GC would come loose before the bullet hit the target

The 22 Gator checks cured that problem 100%

John

[Chunky Monkey]

I just picked up a Colt HBAR 5.56/223 AR the other week. It's got a 20" 1/9 barrel. I also would like to start casting for it. After reading I leaning towards either the Lyman 225415 or the RCBS 22-55-SP.

The only thing I'm not seeing is what your sizing these to. What are you guys sizing these to? Should I size to 224? Thanks

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

[Trapshooter]

I'm using the standard Lyman .225 sizer.

Trapshooter

[Johnch]

I'm using the standard Lyman .225 sizer.

Trapshooter

I started out with a .225 and opened it up to .226
As I had a .2245 bore

In my rifle at least it shoots much better

If I was to buy a new sizer , I would just buy the .225 and use it

John

[Chunky Monkey]

Thanks Guys!!

I'll get a Lyman 225 and try er out!! :drinks:

Guess I'll place an order with Midway tonight.

RCBS 22-055-SP
RCBS Mold Handles
Lyman 225 sizer die
Hornady 22 cal gas checks

Is there a big difference in the gas checks? The Hornadys are $20.49 per 1,000 while the Lymans are $33.99 for 1,000. If not I'll pick up a couple of thousand of the Hornadys.

[IcerUSA]

GC's for Lyman are now made by Hornady so It's up to you what ya spend . Also keep an eye open for any future Gator Check group buys as the Gators check are far better quality than the store bought ones in my opinion .

Keith

[Chunky Monkey]

GC's for Lyman are now made by Hornady so It's up to you what ya spend . Also keep an eye open for any future Gator Check group buys as the Gators check are far better quality than the store bought ones in my opinion .

Keith

Yeah, I just saw some info about past group buys when I was looking for info on gas checks. I'll have to keep my eye out.

[ddeaton]

I am going for the 22-55-SP and I am needing some Gator checks. I think I am going to order some now, dont want to wait for the next group buy, although when it comes around I will get in on it



I just picked up a Colt HBAR 5.56/223 AR the other week. It's got a 20" 1/9 barrel. I also would like to start casting for it. After reading I leaning towards either the Lyman 225415 or the RCBS 22-55-SP.

The only thing I'm not seeing is what your sizing these to. What are you guys sizing these to? Should I size to 224? Thanks

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

[DanM]

I had no trouble getting good boolits with my Lee/Bator 55grFP mold from MidSouth. I have just started experimenting with them in my 14" .223 Contender. First try was with 10grs. of 2400 which gave me just 2010fps. I put five in one ragged hole, but that was at 50yds. I am using a .224" push through sizer and a couple of coats of LLA for lube. Looks promising....

[medicstimpy]

I just picked up a Colt HBAR 5.56/223 AR the other week. It's got a 20" 1/9 barrel. I also would like to start casting for it. After reading I leaning towards either the Lyman 225415 or the RCBS 22-55-SP.

The only thing I'm not seeing is what your sizing these to. What are you guys sizing these to? Should I size to 224? Thanks

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

I've been sizing them to .224 with no problems out of a bolt and the AR. Despite what all the experts say, I still have to see any lead fouling of the AR's gas system.:-D

I don't know about those two boolit you mention above, but my Lyman 225646 is really accurate in the AR. :twisted: