Great idea Larry, I think I will be hunting for a microscope. Thanks!Originally Posted by Larry Gibson
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Great idea Larry, I think I will be hunting for a microscope. Thanks!
What he says!
The Cabine Tree tester is now sold by Buffalo Arms, and yes it is $30 more, but there is no comparison between the two. So if you like to get accurate readings from the start without any hassle, get the Cabine Tree type, it will last you a lifetime!
Well, if you got a BHN tester, and you get your alloy at your targeted hardness,
then how do you know if it is hard with tin or with antimoney?
What if you test a unknown batch, then how do you tell it is hard with antimoney or tin?
How can you tell if it is not babbit?
You dont unless you get it tested. Most sources will a known range.
Like range scrap or anything swaged wont have tin and will be hardened with antimony. Antimony helps with swaging process.
Wheel weights have range of knowns. So you guesstimate. Just sort them.
Babets, you can get a chart from roto metals. Its guess though unless you know what your talking about. Doubt most of us can pick it out at a junk yard, i know i cant.
Pewter is mostly tin as are lead pipe joints.
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"Speak softly and carry a big stick; you will go far."
~Theodore Roosevelt~
And if you really want a neat toy combo of impression maker/measurement whose accuracy is the cat's meow . . .
https://thefiringline.com/forums/sho...26&postcount=7
The Lee hardness tester is as accurate as it gets
Do not let its price fool you
"The Lee tester appeared to produce the most readings that were both consistent and closest to the actual laboratory results. Although individually other testers came in with slightly smaller standard deviations and numbers that came in closer to calibrated equipment, the Lee appeared to have the best combination between the two areas."
This makes sense based on the design.
http://www.lasc.us/Shay-BHN-Tester-Experiment.htm
Last edited by jmort; 08-23-2019 at 08:10 AM.
I will have to agree here. I did some research of different brands per an article floating around. I used the Lee that a friend has and found it less than user friendly. The Cabine Tree unit is very fast to use and accurate no fuss no muss.
You can check a number of bullets in less than a minutes time. Try doing that with the Lee. Granted if you want a bargain and your pinching penny's the Lee will get you there eventually.
I like my Lee Hardness Tester. When I finish a casting session and have reloaded the pot, I make a puck of the contents and then take it down to the Bunker and do a hardness test on it.
On my next trip out to the Men's Crisis Center, I toss the latest puck into the pot. That way, when I start the next casting session, I know the BHN if what's in the pot.
To make the puck, I ladle lead into my little Lee dipper. I do this in several layers. If you fill the dipper all at once, shrinkage on cooling makes a dip in the surface that makes it harder to get a good reading.
Jeff
Rocketing towards 200 posts!
Before you criticize another man, you should walk a mile in his shoes. That way, when you criticize him, you'll be a mile away from him, . . . and you'll have his shoes.
I have one and happy with it and from what I found it works just as good for then any other for me that I check out.this is my set up I made .Works for me.
Life Member of NRA,NTA,DAV ,ITA. Also member of FTA,CBA
I do like Larry G does but with a DIY wood frame, not a fancy microscope stand. If you don't have/make a stand of some sort you will not be happy with it.
a more complete hardness chart
I use pencils for most of my testing although I do like my lee tester
I had a Lee tester for quite a while. Yes it worked good for what it is. It just was not fast enough for what i wanted to do after a year or two. I bought a Cabin Tree and never looked back. I gave the Lee tester and a spare mold to a friend that is just getting into casting. For what he is doing it works great.
I found mine in a second hand/antique store and have seen others since. Got it for less than $15 if I remember right. Took the lens out and drilled one hole in the bottom for the scope to fit through. Then wrapped the scope with duct tape to a tight fit inside the micro-scope body. Modeling clay is used on the piece of soda case cardboard to hold the bullet. It is quick, easy and very accurate.
Larry Gibson
“Deficient observation is merely a form of ignorance and responsible for the many morbid notions and foolish ideas prevailing.”
― Nikola Tesla
I have been using one of these for many years. I don't use the little micro scope with mine as I have a Full on Nikon 6C Optical Comparator in my shop with a digital readout that goes down to 10 millionths of an inch. With this tool I can interpolate down to . single Bhn digits using the Lee Chart. IE: .1 Bhn
The issue with using this tool is being able to get a repeatable measurement. You must hold the scope solidly which requires a mechanical holder of some type. I have seen many good ideas here at Cast Boolits.
The actual Penetrator is a first class piece of tooling and I get perfectly repeatable results easily by setting my press up so it goes over center when the plunger is flush with the top of the tool, or in the case of my Hand Presses, the handles bottom out on the upper plate thus insuring that the plunger goes to the same depth every time.
I simply test on the Flat Nose of any given boolit, as pretty much all of mine are flat nosed.
IMHO these tools are by far the most Accurate, Repeatable and "Best Made Tools" for this purpose available to the home caster. All you've got to do is hold the scope steady to get good results.
Maybe some one could do a Sticky that had all the different designs of scope holders I've seen here over the years. There's something for just about everybody.
Randy
"It's not how well you do what you know how to do,,,It's how well you do what you DON'T know how to do!"
www.buchananprecisionmachine.com
A sticky is a great idea. I made this post a few years ago (I just made it a sticky today due to this suggestion).
Maybe everyone can add their design to it?
http://castboolits.gunloads.com/show...20x-Microscope
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“If someone has a gun and is trying to kill you, it would be reasonable to shoot back with your own gun.”
― The Dalai Lama, Seattle Times, May 2001
scrap wood I don't use the groove I cut, I file a flat spot on the nose of the boolit, stick it to a small, flat something to move around easily and lower the scope until in focus
I like this solution, anyone can build this
http://castboolits.gunloads.com/show...=1#post3766084
If you are shopping for one try reading this comparison.
http://www.lasc.us/Shay-BHN-Tester-Experiment.htm
Larger batches testing so you know the alloy and can calculate the hardness should work. You know the ingredients, you know the BHN close enough for a government job. Smaller batches it really doesn't matter too much why the alloy has a specific BHN reading you just care that it is hard enough for the use intended. That is where I think the hardness tester would be most useful.
I like the idea of a tester easy enough to haul along to a scrap yard. Accurate hardness could provide some useful information when purchasing. Should be a marked difference between something with a couple percent antimony and plain soft lead. Something harder could have say zinc but if the BHN is a dead on match for linotype then.... So portable and accurate would be nice. I use a harbor freight prick punch, spring loaded so the force is repeatable. Have hit known lead alloys so have an idea of dimple size for know alloys. Not super accurate but enough to give me a clue if it is "too hard" or dead soft or probably close to WW lead. More than once have come across lead in bullet caster ingots. Nice to get a feel for what they are before buying.
Scrap.... because all the really pithy and emphatic four letter words were taken and we had to describe this source of casting material somehow so we added an "S" to what non casters and wives call what we collect.
Kind of hard to claim to love America while one is hating half the Americans that disagree with you. One nation indivisible requires work.
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Works fine ,have used one for 10-12 yrs . I use it strictly as a bench mark soft is BHN 8 for me/ 10-11 is about 1-20 /13-14 is pushing 1-16 and it is consistent year to year and some one else who has a Cabin tree testers shows a different BHN#but it always corresponds to my hardness #,all I need/Ed
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