Casting for 45ACP - Jumping in

[Winger Ed.]

I would like to know if any of you are casting 45 with the LEE TC mold and not having to size?

I've had minor variances with 'as cast', from how tight I hold the mold, etc.
I've found that some have more resistance than the next one, so I size everything.

[charlie b]

Had the SWC, TC and RN molds from Lee many years ago. The SWC worked well in most pistols. Some you may have to play with OAL to get it to feed reliably. I didn't like the std groove TC as it had a bevel base. The Lee sprue plate over time would work loose a bit and I'd get overflow at the base, and, it really didn't perform better than the SWC. Father-in-law used the RN mold to make a hollow point for his little .45 (Star PD). Worked really well.

If buying one today I'd probably still go back to the SWC design at around 200gn. I just liked how it shot and if hunting with it, the SWC cuts a nice round hole with plenty of internal damage and good penetration. The wife liked it in her Light Commander cause it was a little less recoil than the 230gn loads.

I would like to know if any of you are casting 45 with the LEE TC mold and not having to size?

I never sized any of the plain base bullets from the Lee molds for pistols. That was an advantage to the Lee molds. Lee made the dimensions such that they work for most pistols. The bad part is if you have a bit oversize barrel they won't work well. I guess I should add that you could powder coat to make them a little bigger.

[guy_with_boolits]

I've had minor variances with 'as cast', from how tight I hold the mold, etc.
I've found that some have more resistance than the next one, so I size everything.

let me ask you this....for the ones you accidentally cast oversize..did you see flashing or other obvious visible evidence they were oversize or did you only discover that by trying to chamber them or measuring them?

[Winger Ed.]

let me ask you this....for the ones you accidentally cast oversize..did you see flashing or other obvious visible evidence they were oversize or did you only discover that by trying to chamber them or measuring them?

Usually not.
Seems like I couldn't tell any difference until they went into the sizer.
If I'd really studied them, I might have been able to see a difference in width of the mold's split line on the sides.
I just didn't examine them that closely.

I don't go all fancy with handgun ammo, but I figure if I'd weighed them,
there would be a measurable high-low spread on their weights too.

If I'd loaded for a match, I'd get all fancy, but just practice stuff--
It all seemed to hold a 1 minute of soda pop can quite well.

[bakerjw]

As I have found to be typical here at GB... I am always impressed and VERY helpful advice.
Many thanks and a lot of reading to do.

I went ahead and picked up the 230 grain truncated cone mold. Primarily because the supplier where I got it was the only one with any stock of Hornady .451 XTP 230 grain bullets. Tough to find in stock anywhere and at 24 cents a bullet was hard to pass up. I also picked up a Lee sizing die. There are better options out there but I have to keep my budget in check.

The Baby Desert Eagle is blow back rather than gas operated. I am pretty sure that the TC bullets will feed fine into it. On other forums, 1911s have been brought up here and there which makes me want to take my Mitchell Gold Series 95 1911 out to the range. Might have to go out and pop off a couple of magazines today.

[BamaNapper]

The Baby Desert Eagle is blow back rather than gas operated.

Thanks for the info. I was going to look into it but got lazy. That makes it an option. I really don't want a pistol that I have to shoot jacketed in.

I've use the LEE sizing dies for just about everything I cast and have nothing negative to say about them. They might be inexpensive, but they do the job. The only caliber on my bench that doesn't get the LEE is the .44, but that's only because I had the Lyman lube/size from decades past.

I recently picked up a LEE 200gr TC mold for the 45. Hard to find in stock as I stick to 2-cavity molds, but they showed up after a couple weeks on backorder. I have a jug cast up, PC'ed zombie green and sized, but haven't tried them yet. Maybe this weekend.

I've been casting the LEE 228gr RN for the last year or two and never had a problem. Then a friend tried them in a Taurus G2s and they wouldn't cycle until the OAL was shortened to 1.060". Switched over to the 200gr TC as a result of the issue with the Taurus

[Burnt Fingers]

Id forget about gc for that cartridge just a waste of money and time. Get a case trimmer and watch out for the roll crimp

Case trimmer for 45 ACP???????

I load thousands a year and have never needed a case trimmer. 45 ACP brass gets SHORTER the more you reload it.

[tazman]

Case trimmer for 45 ACP???????

I load thousands a year and have never needed a case trimmer. 45 ACP brass gets SHORTER the more you reload it.

This is true and has been studied. Here is a link to the article. http://www.massreloading.com/loading45ACP.html