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[2wheelDuke]

It's been a couple years since I've done any casting, and it was all with Dad's gear.

I'm working on building up my own setups, but I did still use Dad's pot and dippers last night. Casting after the sun went down helped beat the heat, but I'm looking forward to "winter" and the cold fronts.

It took a while to get the feel of a good pour back. I was using brand new Lee tumble lube molds. I focused on the 200gr swc 45's. I only ran a few thru the 158gr .358 molds to see if it had any problems.

http://i109.photobucket.com/albums/n73/2wheelduke/Guns/IMG00044-20100805-1417.jpg

I did have some issues getting a good fillout, but I think there was a fair amount of operator error involved with that.

I inspected them just a little while ago, and it looks like I got 90 that should do fine for plinking.

My cheap caliper was measuring them at .4520. I'll probably run them thru the lee sizer after a lube, just to see if it makes any difference on them.

[RobS]

Not too bad at all. If you hadn't cast with aluminum molds in the past you may have to increase the alloy temp to keep the mold hot enough for good fill out. Alluminum blocks just about always need to be hotter vs iron in order to get what a person is looking for.

WELCOME BACK to the world of casting and good to have you here on the forum.

[ghh3rd]

Gee, they look a lot like my .40's from that mold :-) Nice job - have fun puttin them downrange.

[2wheelDuke]

I got some JPW and tried the Recluse recipe for tumble lube. The pot cost $2 at a thrift shop. It was in the 90's in South Florida today, so the paste wax was almost liquid already.

http://i109.photobucket.com/albums/n73/2wheelduke/Guns/IMG00046-20100805-1758.jpg

I used a freezer bag to tumble them. Just get as much air in as you can, then roll the top down several turns to keep it from blowing open and "inflate" the bag.

http://i109.photobucket.com/albums/n73/2wheelduke/Guns/IMG00047-20100805-1903.jpg

I did the final drying on a disposable shop rag so the bases are clean.

http://i109.photobucket.com/albums/n73/2wheelduke/Guns/IMG00048-20100805-1910.jpg

I also used the gf's hair dryer to dry them since I was feeling impatient and anxious to try loading them up.

I wish I could load some up in the 1911 and test them right now.

http://i109.photobucket.com/albums/n73/2wheelduke/Guns/IMG00049-20100805-2021.jpg

The sizing was probably not needed. You can see a "dummy" in the first pic. It chambered perfectly in my H&K , but I didn't bother unlocking a 1911 to test it.

[RobS]

One thing to note is if they lead it could be because of the cases swaging down the boolits. This happens many times when a air cooled WW bullet hasn't had enough time to age harden to it's fullest hardness. If in doubt, checking a pulled bullet will tell the truth and they should come from the case at an optimal .001 over the groove diameter of your firearm's barrel.

They do look nice all loaded up :D

[2wheelDuke]

One thing to note is if they lead it could be because of the cases swaging down the boolits. This happens many times when a air cooled WW bullet hasn't had enough time to age harden to it's fullest hardness. If in doubt, checking a pulled bullet will tell the truth and they should come from the case at an optimal .001 over the groove diameter of your firearm's barrel.

They do look nice all loaded up :D

Thanks, I'll keep that in mind. I just realized that I don't have a bullet puller at the moment, so I'll pick one up soon. I'll pull the "dummy" and check the size on it again.

They'll ultimately be fired from a few different guns, and I haven't slugged the bores on any of them.

Then I'll be going thru the same development cycle again for the similar .358 mold I picked up.

[RobS]

Sounds good. A big misconception with cast is that just because a person sizes a boolit to the right diameter to fit their firearms doesn't mean that is how they are coming out of the cases which is the real means to boolit fit IMHO. Cases can swage down a boolit and so can the dies a fellow is using and when it comes down to it I don't like to depend on obturation of a boolit to seal off the bore as it is just another variable.

[Mk42gunner]

...I also used the gf's hair dryer to dry them since I was feeling impatient and anxious to try loading them up. ...



:shock:Be cautious when doing this, it could be very bad news.


Robert

[geargnasher]

If the GF passes the HD test, she's one step closer to becoming a permanent SWMBO!

Gear

[lwknight]

How can anyone be casting in this weather?
It was 105 today in TX and humid to boot.

[Charlie Two Tracks]

Northern Illinois was just in the 80's but before we know it, I'll be standing over the lead pot just trying to stay warm let alone try casting.

[Bret4207]

Just a note- those "disposable" blue shop rags can be washed several times.