RepackboxTitan ReloadingWidenersReloading Everything
Inline FabricationMidSouth Shooters SupplyLoad DataRotoMetals2
Lee Precision
Page 2 of 2 FirstFirst 12
Results 21 to 36 of 36

Thread: Aluminum vs. copper gascheck

  1. #21
    Boolit Master 1874Sharps's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2008
    Location
    Corpus Christi, TX
    Posts
    764
    I bought a 30 caliber FREECHEX tool about eighteen months back and have not looked back since. With my 30-06 Garand and Al checks on a special PP boolit I am getting good accuracy at 2800 fps. By purchasing a roll of 0.014" Al roof flashing from Home Depot for a pretty low price I have cut and formed over a thousand checks and still have a couple of yards of Al left. I am talking well less than a cent per check. That is economy! Gas check shanks vary a little from boolit to boolit and mold to mold and I found that sometimes the GC would come off in flight. This was indicated by a little poof in the dirt about halfway to the target and poor accuracy. A little super glue on the boolit shank just prior to seating the GC fixed this problem and I have not looked back!

  2. #22
    Boolit Master Whistler's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2009
    Location
    Sweden
    Posts
    524
    So it seems that .014" is the required thickness for aluminum with .35 revolvers.
    It is a shame that the recommended thickness for the tools is .009".

    I seem to have a roll of .009" roof flashing that has been nicely cut to strips all in vain.

  3. #23
    Boolit Buddy
    .30/30 Guy's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2009
    Location
    North East Utah
    Posts
    315
    Whistler:

    Do not give up on the .009" material until you have tried it.

    My NEI mold casts a gas check shank of .342"

    .342 + 2(.009) = .360" --- If you are sizing less than .360" you should be fine. I like to have some swaging effect (check to GC shank) when the boolit is sized so the check stays on the boolit.

  4. #24
    Boolit Master Whistler's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2009
    Location
    Sweden
    Posts
    524
    As I wrote, I have tried it extensively in ranges from target .38 Special loads to very hot .357 Magnum. The groupings are all over the place at 25 yards and though swaged to the boolit in the sizing process the checks come off in flight. I size to .358" in a Lyman 4500 with RCBS sizer die.

  5. #25
    Boolit Master 1874Sharps's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2008
    Location
    Corpus Christi, TX
    Posts
    764
    Whistler,

    You might try placing a dab of super glue on the bullet shank just before seating the GC on it. That trick worked for me on the 30 caliber GCs, as I was having them come off in flight before doing that.

  6. #26
    Boolit Master Whistler's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2009
    Location
    Sweden
    Posts
    524
    I had an extensive Skype call yesterday with Charles Darnall who makes the Freechex tools . He helped me with what to look for and it was pretty soon discovered to be a case of extrusion from too soft material. When the check extrudes, the walls become uneven and higher than the CIP spec of .100". This makes the check wall touch the rear driving band, which in turn causes a gap of air between the boolit base and the check.

    The solution would be to use .008" material or a harder .009-.010" material like brass or litho plate aluminum. He will send me some samples so that I can test it.

    Super glueing the checks is a big no no for me. I shoot way too many boolits each year (25-30k) so it would simply not be worth it.
    Last edited by Whistler; 07-19-2011 at 05:49 AM.

  7. #27
    Boolit Master Von Gruff's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2009
    Location
    South Otago, New Zealand
    Posts
    1,242
    If you need the thicker GC then is is a simple matter to lap out the form die to stop the extruding. I have done it and now have tight GC that stay on.

    Von Gruff.
    Von Gruff.

    Exodus 20:1-17

    Acts 4:10-12

  8. #28
    Boolit Master Whistler's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2009
    Location
    Sweden
    Posts
    524
    It looks perfectly fine when punching it out. It becomes extruded when run through the bullet luber/sizer.
    If the check was thicker it would extrude even more during sizing...
    Last edited by Whistler; 07-20-2011 at 02:35 AM.

  9. #29
    Boolit Master
    Join Date
    Apr 2007
    Location
    Annapolis,Md
    Posts
    2,664
    I took my initial foray into aluminum gas checks yesterday with a sample pack from Sage's. They are for an 8mm bullet. The specs say that they are intended for a bullet base diameter of .301, which mine are. The material thickness mics at .012. The .325 as-cast diameter bullets are run through a .3245" die I made for my Lyman machine (.323 groove diameter in my rifle). Sorry for the preamble, but the problem is that these checks won't stay on. In fact about half of them stay put on top of the ejector pin when I pluck the bullet out of the die.

    The final diameter of the checks is a heavy thousandth more than the diameter of it's bullet mate. Am I experiencing springback? If so, is springback a common trait of aluminum checks? I wish very much to break free of servitude to Hornady copper crimp-on checks, which work fine, but if this is indicative of what to expect when messing with aluminum checks then I don't know if I want to pursue this.

    I get great satisfaction from experimenting with alloys, bullet designs, velocities, etc. I don't want to add gas check issues to the mix. I've come to look upon Hornady checks as a given commodity that don't need second-guessing.

    I'm sending a query to Sage to see if there's a solution.

  10. #30
    Boolit Master
    Join Date
    Sep 2008
    Location
    NE Ilinois
    Posts
    1,938
    Been using aluminum GCs for a few years now...try this. Use the Hornady & then the Aluminum on your favorite bullet/load & shoot at some paper tagets..see how they compare. I did and I found that the aluminum GC's are comparable if not better. Are you using in pistol or rifle...if in rifle calibers I have a trick I can share with you...

  11. #31
    Boolit Master
    Join Date
    Apr 2007
    Location
    Annapolis,Md
    Posts
    2,664
    Got a reply from Jim Sage. Very nice guy. We're going to try some with different material thicknesses to see if that helps. I'll report back. (These people are swell to deal with.)

  12. #32
    Liar, thief. Scum. Probably voted for Obama.
    Join Date
    May 2011
    Location
    Southern Georgia OR SC, OR NC.. Should be in Jail
    Posts
    66
    whats the rifle trick wally

  13. #33
    Boolit Bub treadhead1952's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2011
    Location
    Las Vegas, NV USA
    Posts
    56
    I ordered up a 250 pack of .303 Aluminum Gas Checks from Jim Sage to try on my Lee 185/.312" boolits. According to the specs they are designed for a .284" base which is what my Lee Cast boolits mike out to on the end so I will be checking them out soon. I have a Lee .311" Sizing die coming to do the chores. I will try out the Lee Alox Tumble Lube first and if that doesn't work out as expected I have some Lyman Orange Magic that I can pan lube with and try out.
    Jay
    treadhead1952
    Las Vegas, NV USA

    USMC RULES!

  14. #34
    Boolit Master HARRYMPOPE's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2011
    Location
    GRANT COUNTY Wa.
    Posts
    2,134
    gnoahhh-

    i have to use .014 with my .30 and 8mm tools or they just wont stay on my .313 and .324 bullets.i believe they need to be a couple 'thou bigger than the diameter you size to grip.I use .014 material checks on .30. bullets sized .309 and have not had a spring-back problem.

    g-

  15. #35
    Boolit Buddy
    Join Date
    Mar 2018
    Posts
    249
    I just ordered 3 Patmarlin check maker, hoping to find a good check on all my cast bullets

  16. #36
    Boolit Master


    Walter Laich's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2005
    Location
    Cypress, Republic of Texas
    Posts
    3,483
    another Pat Marlin fan

    enjoy working with different materials to come up with the 'perfect' metal to use in check making

    while I love the 'free factor' of using aluminum cans I find the coils I buy cut the work load down to what makes me happy.

    I do this for fun and slitting cans into strips isn't that much of it
    NRA Life
    USPSA L1314
    SASS Life 48747
    RVN/Cambodia War Games, 2nd Place

Page 2 of 2 FirstFirst 12

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  
Abbreviations used in Reloading

BP Bronze Point IMR Improved Military Rifle PTD Pointed
BR Bench Rest M Magnum RN Round Nose
BT Boat Tail PL Power-Lokt SP Soft Point
C Compressed Charge PR Primer SPCL Soft Point "Core-Lokt"
HP Hollow Point PSPCL Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" C.O.L. Cartridge Overall Length
PSP Pointed Soft Point Spz Spitzer Point SBT Spitzer Boat Tail
LRN Lead Round Nose LWC Lead Wad Cutter LSWC Lead Semi Wad Cutter
GC Gas Check