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Thread: New to casting need advice

  1. #1
    Boolit Mold Ccctennis's Avatar
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    New to casting need advice

    I have been asking around about how to get started into casting. I want to start slow and reload for two guns I shoot the most. 45acp and 357 mag.

    Here is my initial order from Titan reloading. What else do I need? I want to
    keep it simple. I am thinking about trying powder coating rather than lubing?

    order:
    lee pro 4. 20lb melter
    lee dc mold. .452. 230 2r
    lee 6 cavity mold tl 358. 158. 2r
    lee commercial handles.

  2. #2
    Boolit Master MarkP's Avatar
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    A ladle for stirring / fluxing your lead.

    May need a push thru size die for the 45, but may not.

  3. #3
    Boolit Grand Master GhostHawk's Avatar
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    Order looks ok to me.

    Don't let the endless variety of different lubes and different ways of lubing throw you off.

    Check out Ben's Liquid lube, being essentially Johnson's liquid one step wax and Lee Alox.
    While PC is certainly an option, and one every new caster should consider.
    It is not in my opinion the only valid option, and is not necessarily that much easier than lubing.

    I have not played with the Lee 6 cavity molds. I'm retired so time spent casting is time looked forward to.
    I don't feel any need to speed things up.

    A couple of things I do that seems to help.
    A Take the mold, and take a good look at the edge of the sprue plate that will slide across the top of my mold.
    I was noticing that new molds tended to scratch up the top of the mold from rough edges on the sprue plate.
    So taking the plate off, take a file to that edge just 6 or 7 licks to just round that edge, so it isn't sharp and grabby.
    And screws that back out and quickly stuck into place with just a little ball of steel wool dropped into the hole.
    Doesn't take much, just 3-4 threads sticking up to get stuck on the side and grab. Screw can be set to the tightness you like and it will stay there.

    I do smoke my molds, once, lightly. Not till they are black. Halfway between silver and flat black. Just takes a minute.

    And I do polish the holes in the sprue plate first with a dremel, then a piece of steel wool. They seem to cut those with some kind of a ridged cutter and sprue's get stuck in them. 5 minutes careful polishing means fewer distractions, sprue's pop right off.

    Keep your eyes open for a few handy tools like a serving or slotted spoon.

    Enjoy!

  4. #4
    Boolit Buddy
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    You'll need a thermometer--not a turkey-fryer kind, but one that will go to 800 degrees or more.

    Some kind of large metal spoon to stir in flux (use sawdust).

    You might see if you can find some used muffin pans for pouring ingots. A six-muffin pan is about right for fitting under the Lee. Make sure it's all one unit--there's a type with aluminum cups pressed to a lid that won't work (at least, it didn't for me .

    The local thrift/second-hand store is a good place to try for the spoon and the muffin pans.

  5. #5
    Boolit Master DaveInFloweryBranchGA's Avatar
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    You have a casting setup listed. But you do not have a smelting set up listed. Unless you are going to use already clean lead you've purchased, you will need a smelting setup to clean up wheel weights and other dirty free or inexpensive lead.

  6. #6
    Boolit Master Yodogsandman's Avatar
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    Welcome to the forum!

    Heavy welders gloves and safety glasses. An ingot mold to stick under your spout, in case of leaks. A metal can for skimmed off dross. A Lee ladle for stirring, fluxing and skimming. Some beeswax or paraffin wax for reducing the tin back into your alloy.

    Lots of containers for all those Purdy boolits you make!

    With or without powder coating you might have to size and install gas checks on your boolits. By all means, try shooting them without sizing first. The cheapest and easiest way is with a Lee size kit that comes with Lee Liquid Lube. Just put about 50 boolits in a plastic container at a time with just a squirt of Lee Liquid Lube and swish and swirl them around until coated, just barely. Not too much. Better to have to add a little more. Then just spread them out to dry on a piece of wax paper or equivalent overnight. Pretty easy! Cheap too! Much cheaper than investing in all the equipment needed to powder coat. You might just need the sizing dies for powder coated boolits some day anyway. I powder coat some times and it seems like a lot of set up work compared to tumble lubing with liquid alox.
    Last edited by Yodogsandman; 03-21-2015 at 11:04 PM.

  7. #7
    Boolit Master Garyshome's Avatar
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    You need a thermometer. Some channel locks/needle nose pliers [keeps lead from splashing when adding to a hot pot]. Gloves, Eye protection, bathroom scale [old type] comes in handy. I use a 5 gal bucket with some water in it to drop boolits in, it cools them quickly for inspection. I use 6 cavity molds for all my pistol cals., way faster then 2 cav's. Some sort of box [I use cardboard box] to drop the sprue into. Some sort of hardwood doll rod, or something to rap the mold with to get the boolits to drop, I use a piece of hardwood flooring I cut a handle on [I go thru quite a few of them].

  8. #8
    Boolit Mold Ccctennis's Avatar
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    Great info guys. I will be purchasing clean lead from rotometals or equivalent to learn the ropes.
    Does a sizing die work on my press? I shoot large amounts of 45acp each month so the expense of purchasing bullets is starting to get too much for my budget. The powder coating concept I like because of how clean they look, plus I can use them in glock barrels, and I really didn't want to buy a lube sizer as I'm trying to be efficient with my time. I'm a complete novice so I appreciate the advice and will keep shooting questions your way.

  9. #9
    Boolit Master freebullet's Avatar
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    Look in the swapping & sellin section for reasonable prices on clean lead ingots. Range scrap should work for your purposes.

    I would tumble lube before getting in to pc. If you get the lee push through sizer it will come with enough alox to get you started. Good luck and post some results.
    If you think your a hammer everything looks like a nail.

  10. #10
    Boolit Master
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    You say you want to keep it simple, but you don't want to waste time....I would fall back and re-think some of your options, the quickest way to make bullets is with a good mold and possibly a Star lubesizer. Your choices will get you into making bullets but you may want to start out with what you may end up with, good quality molds from NOE, Accurate, Saeco, RCBS, etc., the Star machine, RCBS melter, etc.......A lot may depend on your budget!

  11. #11
    Boolit Master

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    If you don't already have it get the Lyman Cast Bullet Handbook.

    Larry

  12. #12
    Boolit Buddy
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    Go here: http://www.lasc.us/Fryxell_Book_Contents.htm

    Download the PDF version and read it. I printed mine out and go to it often. Saved me a lot of headaches when I started out.
    No law ever stopped a criminal. If you disagree then you need to look up the word "criminal".

    How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time. Now how do you lose your rights? Do you see where I'm coming from . . .

  13. #13
    Boolit Buddy
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    Skip the powder coating for right now. Pan lube or try Ben's Liquid Lube system for right now. The liquid lube system is dirt simple.
    No law ever stopped a criminal. If you disagree then you need to look up the word "criminal".

    How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time. Now how do you lose your rights? Do you see where I'm coming from . . .

  14. #14
    Boolit Mold Ccctennis's Avatar
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    I do have lyman cast bullet handbook and I have read the info from the link before. I have done lots of reading on casting. Finally got the nerve to give it a try. I got another $500 I can throw at equipment if needed. I was planning on getting an inexpensive propane burner and cast pot to melt wheel weights once I get better at casting.

  15. #15
    Boolit Master Yodogsandman's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Ccctennis View Post
    I do have lyman cast bullet handbook and I have read the info from the link before. I have done lots of reading on casting. Finally got the nerve to give it a try. I got another $500 I can throw at equipment if needed. I was planning on getting an inexpensive propane burner and cast pot to melt wheel weights once I get better at casting.
    Great plan! Keep your eyes open now for scrap lead and wheel weights and melt them when you can..

  16. #16
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    Welcome!

    Years ago I started casting round balls for black powder cap & ball revolvers. I actually did it over a camp fire just to prove to myself that I could do it. I wouldn't recommend starting that primitive ! I added a small single burner Coleman gas stove and eventually acquired a Lee 4-20 bottom pour pot.
    You need some basic tools:
    A place to cast, I made a casting table but any sturdy small table/bench will work but I would dedicate it to casting.
    A place to dump the dross you skim off, I use an old coffee can.
    A place to dump the cut off spures, I use an old baking sheet with the lip cut off one corner (makes it easier to dump the spures back in the pot) but you can get by with just using the top of the table.
    Some large metal spoon to stir the pot and skim the dross. Old and cheap because its going to be dedicated to melting lead after the first use.
    Some mallet or stick to open the sprue plate. Just about any old hardwood handle will work. I generally use part of an old maul handle.
    You need an old towel to dump the completed bullets on.
    Something to flux with, lots of choices there.
    Someone said channel lock pliers and I'll second that, very handy.

    A flat blade screw driver the adjust the Lee Drip-O-matic !

    You have the molds and handles listed.

    LAST BUT MOST IMPORTANT - eye protection (I like the flip-up full face shield) and welders gloves. You're issued two eyes per lifetime and there are no replacements. A burn to your arms, legs feet, is painful; a serious burn to your hands is a serious disability. I don't wear gloves constantly but I put them on when starting up and preheating the molds or when adding lead to the pot.

    After you cast your bullets you need some way to lube them and maybe size them. I elected to just go with a lubersizer and be done with it but there are less expensive methods.

    GOOD LUCK and take advantage of the knowledge shared on this forum.
    Last edited by Petrol & Powder; 03-24-2015 at 12:09 AM.

  17. #17
    Boolit Grand Master In Remembrance
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    Regards
    John

  18. #18
    Boolit Master
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    Get you a heavy steel pan to set your casting pot on. Trust me. Next time you go by the bakery look at the heavy steel pans they bake on. Those pans are available in half-size at restaurant supply stores. (google for the closest one to you) My local supply sells them for about $6 and they're heavy enough I can pick up a fully loaded RCBS ProMelt by the edge of the pan. (when cool of course!) No cheap cookie trays. I have several I use for casting and drying tumble lubed boolits. Audie..the Oldfart.

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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