Casting hot glue boolits

[Capn Jack]

DANG! If that don't sound like the time I wanted to see if I could fire a 12 GA. shell with my old Red Ryder.


Yup it did and the primer went by the side of my head so close it moved the hair over my ear.

Didn't think it needed a second try.

Jack...

[Psypher]

You folks are awesome! I'd heard of this years ago and just got into casting this year, reloading over the past 18 months. Fortunately, I now have NEW excuse for the heavy duty glue gun I recently purchased and told my wife it's a "hand's-off, guy tool".

[Capn Jack]

Just cast up my first batch of Glulits 150gr. HP .357 mold. I have an extra plug I made to use it as a solid mold.

I sprayed the mold with PAM and started casting. First used a small "craft" glue gun. Took about 40 pulls of the trigger to fill the mold, but the Glulits were hard almost immediately. Next I tried a "commercial" sized glue gun. Two squirts and the mold was full, but dam! That thing got hot and the glue took longer to harden up. The Glulits are sticky out of the mold, hopefully that will go away as they age.

I'm going to try these Glulits in a 9mm. I have been using black plastic .38 bullets from Speer, but they're getting harder to find.

Jack...

[bangerjim]

Just cast up my first batch of Glulits 150gr. HP .357 mold. I have an extra plug I made to use it as a solid mold.

I sprayed the mold with PAM and started casting. First used a small "craft" glue gun. Took about 40 pulls of the trigger to fill the mold, but the Glulits were hard almost immediately. Next I tried a "commercial" sized glue gun. Two squirts and the mold was full, but dam! That thing got hot and the glue took longer to harden up. The Glulits are sticky out of the mold, hopefully that will go away as they age.

I'm going to try these Glulits in a 9mm. I have been using black plastic .38 bullets from Speer, but they're getting harder to find.

Jack...

Use an ice cube to cool the mold!

It will not hurt it. I do that all the time. Just hold the freshly filled mold over a plastic pan and rub the cube on the bottom and sides for a short time. I normally get 3 mold fills (6bangers) per ice cube. Just wipe the water off and go again. Pam makes the water bead up and roll off the cavities. I re-Pam the cavities and sprue plate about every 8 fills using a Q-Tip only. Spraying the Pam lays waaaaay too much down.

I use a commercial gun also and they fill fast (especially those 300gn 45's) and put out really hot glue. Those toy craft guns are worthless for our needs.

banger

[Capn Jack]

Thanks BangerJim,

I'll give that a try. Haven't tried shooting any yet. The Speer plastic bullets are good out to about 15", but that's out of a 3" barrel. A little better out of a .38 Spl. with a 4 3/4" barrel. I haven't drilled out any primer pockets yet as I didn't want to waste the brass.

Jack...

[bangerjim]

Thanks BangerJim,

I'll give that a try. Haven't tried shooting any yet. The Speer plastic bullets are good out to about 15", but that's out of a 3" barrel. A little better out of a .38 Spl. with a 4 3/4" barrel. I haven't drilled out any primer pockets yet as I didn't want to waste the brass.

Jack...

I quit drilling out pockets a while back. I now put about 1.5gn of ANY fast powder in there. It add a real zing to the glulit and is still very quit......at least out of my long guns.

I use a 100 weight paper disk of the appropriate size for the cal against the small powder load to insure full burn.

I have found the primers do not back out any more.....no wasting brass.

I have about 70 cases of 4 different cals I drilled out early on and have marked the ends with bright red die.

banger

[Capn Jack]

HELP ! JIM !!

OK, so I cast up about 2 dozen Gluelits in my .38Spl. mold. Things looked good until I tried to push one into a case. OOPS! Wazzzup a? Wouldn't fit. The Gluelit mic'ed out .360 and wouldn't go into a .38Spl., or a 9mm case. I checked a couple of the Speer Plastic bullets and they Mic out at .345.

Just for grins, I pushed a couple of the Gluelits through my .357 sizing die. Waste of time....All it did was leave a mark on them. Bugger!! This is beginning to look like a "Trash Can" project.

Am I missing something here?

Jack...

[bangerjim]

I cast 5 different 38's and they all work perfectly! As do the 9's, 30's, 40's, and 45's.

I do not know what is going on with your mold process. Glue should fill out the cavities perfectly and not expand beyond the sized cal diameter.....at all!


And no, a sizing die will do NOTHING!

I use Lee dies and have them flare (with the powder-thru die) the case just a bit so the glue goes in tightly, but not as to shave off any! I seat and crimp the gluelits just like lead slugs.

Try expanding the mouth a bit more!

banger

[boltons75]

Are you possibly not holding the mold together tight enough.

[Capn Jack]

Have any of you guys mic'ed your gluebits. My mold is closed tight. Been using the same one since '62. It's not a GC mold and I open it by cutting the sprew, just same as a lead boolit.

The cases have all been full length resized with a slight flare. Would someone please mic one of their gluebits and see if it is less than .360 ?

Might point me in the right direction.

Thanks, Jack

[bangerjim]

Have any of you guys mic'ed your gluebits. My mold is closed tight. Been using the same one since '62. It's not a GC mold and I open it by cutting the sprew, just same as a lead boolit.

The cases have all been full length resized with a slight flare. Would someone please mic one of their gluebits and see if it is less than .360 ?

Might point me in the right direction.

Thanks, Jack

I just checked several (different molds) and all are 0.358-359 and load in the 38 and 357 cases just fine. I have never noticed any side shaving occurring when I load them with my press.

In looking at spent rounds removed from my "target box", I can see very slight rifling grooves in the sides, as should be there. I reuse most of the slugs at least 3 times.

Have not found any glue "stringers" in the barrels. No so with my S&W 9!!!!!

I use only Lee 2 & 6 banger molds for 38's.

banger

[Capn Jack]

Thanks Banger,

Looks like my Gluelit diameter is within range. I'll have to see if my brother has a few fired, un-sized cases. 38Spl., or 9mm.

Too cold and wet to go popping caps at the range just for the empties.

Jack...

[douglasskid]

I'm out to buy a glue gun. Have to try in my rifle!

[bangerjim]

I'm out to buy a glue gun. Have to try in my rifle!

Make sure you buy a GOOD one! The ones where you have to push the stick thru with your thumb will not work.....pressure is needed to quickly fill the cavities for successful boolits. And those "hobby" toys will not work.

Get one that has trigger feed action and is a hight temp class. And make sure it uses the BIG sticks not those tiny skinny ones.

Harbor Freight sells one but I have no experience with it.

banger

[Capn Jack]

OK.Here goes.....

Shook brother down for some un-sized 9mm cases this morning. The Gluelits I had made were with two different guns, each using a different glue. The little "Hobby" glue gun has a white glue that seems to cast truer to mold diameter. While, the big glue gun has a yellow colored glue in it that casts slightly larger.

Both colors will go into an un-sized 9mm case, abet, one is tighter. Tomorrow, I'm going to lube a couple with a heavy grease and give them a try.

Jim, You can use the large triggerless glue guns for casting, but you can sure burn your fingers trying to start a new stick "One handed".

[Pinsnscrews]

Hmmm...me thinks I have found a new fire forming tool

[Alferd Packer]

Haven't tried it yet, but for those with too large Gluelets cast out to.360.
I would try a shaving outside cutter make from a resized .38 special case with the primer drilled out for a push rod.
I would sharpen the edge of the case-outside edge -and push it down over the round end of the Gluelet and thereby shave the bullet to fit a resized case.
Push out the gluelet and see howit fits in a fired case.
Remember the cases get thicker toward the web and the gluelet should fit.

[Bull Shoals]

Saw the thread about chasing off bears. If you prime an empty shell, push a wad down as far as it will go, put in a cotton ball and a paint ball on top then carefully crimp you get a fast moving paint ball that will "mark" your target. Good for "marking garbage-can animals.

[MaxJon]

Old thread, but whats the best priming method in the .303?? 209 shotgun modified case, or large rifle primer, std/drilled case??

[bangerjim]

I shoot cast HMG boolits in 30-30 and 30-06 with standard primers, no drilled pockets, 1.2 or so grains of fast pistol/SG powder, and tuft of Dacron to keep the teeny bit of powder back against the primer.

Decent performance. For a piece of cast plastic.