weight tolerance

[311-200]

Hi guys,
recently after my last casting session I was confused from the big weight tolerance of the cast boolets - from 209 - 212 gr.I remelt the whole quantity (120 pieces) and do it again.The result was the same - 209-212 gr.What is the acceptable tolerance?
I'll be happy to hear your opinion.
Thank you

[BABore]

Is this from a multicavity mold? First you need to qualify the mold. Is the weight variance because the cavities are dimentionally different? Once you can rule that out, it is quite possible to pour 400+ grain boolits at +/- 0.1 grains variation. Higher weigh variation is entirely due to casting technique, cadence variation, and poor temperature management. Weighing boolits is useful to identify and correct these casting problems. It takes some time and practice.

[311-200]

This is a double cavity, one normal and one with hollow point Lyman 311284 mold

[BABore]

I'm assuming your segregating the solids and HP's then weighing each lot.

[sqlbullet]

Let us assume you are segregating the HP from the solids.

I accept a .5% variation in my bullets, if I care. Let me 'splain.

For handgun bullets, I generally don't care. I will most likely shoot them at a close range (<50 yards) and any variation I can't see won't matter.

For rifle bullets I might care. Again, I am not generally looking for sub-moa performance, which is good because my 68 year old M1 Garands would not deliver it. If the bullets aren't visibly deformed, they get loaded.

I do have some 200 grain bullets I cast for my 300 win mag Remington 700. This gun is sub MOA capable, and I want the best from it. The mold is a Lee 309-200 two cavity. 95% of the bullets I cast from this mold will weigh 197-198 grains. Those are keepers. The rest I reject.

So, when I care, I care to the tune of 1 grain out of 200, or .5%.

[311-200]

It is my fold that I did not explained that I'm casting and weighting only the hollow point boolits

[BABore]

Look in the HP cavity and see if there's a little pin hole at the bottom. I've had problems with air pockets right off the HP pin end. Too deep of a cavity as well as the shape and smoothness of the pin end can cause it. A nice polished radius usually correct things.

[jsizemore]

Other then weight variation how did they look?

Did you try loading any and how did they shoot?

[Trifocals]

It has been my experience that I can get bullets with less weight variation using a dipper. Granted the dipper method is slower but the end result quality is better. If you have never cast with a dipper, there is a learning curve. LOL

[311-200]

Thank you guys for the reply!Every time I learn more and more from this forum!

[Walter Laich]

If my math is right that's about a 2% difference. I'm OK with that. I figure a variance in the powder measure plus different brands of brass all add up.

Not saying holding these things is bad, rather it is good to keep as much as possible consistant but for my .45 Colt rifle and pistol rounds this is a non-issue for me.

[dverna]

When I load cast I use the same criteria as sqlbullet.

Commercial cast pistol bullets I "qualify" will come in at +/- 1 gr for a 200 gr bullet (.5%). Dardas and MasterCast will do this.

Anything more than 1% variation means you are doing something that can and should be addressed. Bear in mind that with lighter bullets a 1 grain variation has a greater affect.

Don Verna

[pdawg_shooter]

I allow 1% for all my cast bullets. That is what works for me. I cant shoot any better than that anyway.

[white eagle]

cast em up and separate them by weight

[caseyboy]

I do exactly as whiteeagle said. I cast at a steady pace until I have a good bunch of boolits (+/- 500). I then visually inspect all. Once all have been inspected, I weigh them on a digital scale. Approx. 80% fall within the (0.5%) range. The rest are seperated into two different piles; light and heavy. These are used for plinking loads at approx 1300fps. The other 80% are used for offhand target practice out to 200yds. No sense in practicing with ammo that doesn't group consistently. This is all for my three Lee-Enfield 303s using the Lyman 314299. On warm days, I cycle between two different rifles. One cools while the other is being shot.

[lwknight]

I just shoot em.
I guess that I would worry about weight consistency if I were in a competition but thats about it.

[noylj]

209-212gn weight range for cast bullets and you are worried?
What are you worried about?
Are you shooting competition and need sub-MOA at 200 yards?
I would load up some representing rounds of mixed both high and low, some of just the mid-range, and some where all are either at the high end or the low end and shoot off the bench to see if it makes any difference.
Part of reloading should be safe experimentation and finding what works for you.
I consider a 3gn variation, even for 120gn bullets, to be fine--but I am only shooting out to 50 yards with my 9x19s. I have tried all the combinations and all averaged almost exactly the same on target.
What would be nice is to learn the results of others experiments so we can all learn.