Disappointing 225646

[GrizzLeeBear]

Well I finally got around to casting with the Lyman 225646. I was planning on working on finding some loads for my AR15. Casting with WW + a little lead free solder to add some tin to aid fillout of these little boolits. Once I got everything up to temp. and casting good looking boolits, I started dropping them in a bucket of water. After I had a pile of 150 or so in the bucket I called it quits.
Boolits weigh right at 60 grains, but here's the disappointing part. Cast dia. is slightly out of round at .223 - .224. Crap. I haven't slugged my AR barrel, but I know the boolits will need to be at least .225 to have a chance of shooting without leading. Lyman must be letting their cherries go a bit too long before replacing. The parting lines are already very visible, so I know if I try to beagle the mold I'll get finned boolits.
I know its not my alloy. I cast some 358-158-rf out of the same pot and they dropped .358 - .359 just like they always do.
Damn, what the hell am I going to do with this mold?

[35remington]

How about some straight lino to fatten up the bullets some?

You may well get another thou out of it. Worth a try, anyway.

[JIMinPHX]

I've never worked with that particular boolit, so I don't know what it looks like. If that's a gas checked boolit, you might get away with raw boolits of that size. If it's plane base, then a soft alloy, like 12bnh, just might obdurate enough from the pressure of the .223 to work OK. Try it & see what happens. There is no sense fixing something unless you are sure it is broke.

[1Shirt]

It shoots well in my Sav 223 which is a 1-9 twist. Will not shoot in my 222 or
22-250 as the twist is to slow. It is just an odd looking blt, but have found it to cast well. Sizing die, MIGHT take care of your just a bit out of round, but you won't know unless you try. Might also look close at the alignment of the blocks???? Good luck!
1Shirt!

[GrizzLeeBear]

1shirt, what size does yours drop at?

The out of round doesn't bother me as much as the dia. being so small. My .225 sizing die will not help with a boolit that is .224 or smaller. I think I will try beagling just the back of the boolit. This boolit is tapered from the nose portion to the drive bands, so mayble a small piece of beagling tape at the base will get the drive bands at the rear to fatten up enough. May get some finning, but at this point it can't hurt to try.

[1Shirt]

Griz, Mine drops with my alloy (hard-22BH-Water drop) at .2265. Agree that it can't hurt to try anything once.

Just noticed that this is my 1000th. Msg. Am probably spending to much time on the computer, but there is so much to learn on this forum. Guess when/if I quit learning, I will stop sending. (Fat chance of that!)
1Shirt!

[inuhbad]

Don't your boolits swell a little larger after cooling for a while?

I've pretty much sucked @ casting boolits as I'm just a newbie, but I've noticed water-dropped wheel weights tend to 'grow' in size a few days later (or else I'm just an idiot newbie that can't measure consistently).

My 452 boolits actually drop around .451 after cast & dropped into a bucket. I keep a few 'plucked' boolits on the side to meaure size, and I let the rest of them dry off, and set them on a rag on my loading bench. After ~2-4 days, I go back & measure the boolits, and they appear to have 'grown' a bit. Usually 453 or so. I only have a ladle & cast iron pot over bonfire, nothing fancy.

Maybe it's the goofy alloy I've got, who knows. I've got to read more to learn how to get better consistency. And I have to buy a propane burner for consistent temperatures too.

Would it help to keep a couple 'sample' boolits off to the side, measure them once as-cast, and then measure them a few days later?

[mroliver77]

Which direction are they out of round? Mebbe a complete beagleing will be the cats meow, they will be larger and round. I have lapped molds out a thou before but never a .22. Heck try shooting them lubed with the .225 die.
J

[GrizzLeeBear]

inuhbad, hmmm, something to keep an eye on. I'll measure them during the next few days to see.

mroliver, in fact they are larger across the seams, so the beagling would add the width across the smaller dimension and make theme more round.

[inuhbad]

I'm just a newbie, so don't take my word for it. I might be doing something wrong.

I use a Lyman 452 LRN boolit mold. I think it was made a little 'small' though. Or I'm doing something wrong.

Maybe the other veterans here can answer this? Can Cast Boolits 'expand' a little bit after they've been left sitting on a bench for a few days?

It could just be me not using my el-cheapo plastic dial calipers correctly, but I'd almost swear the things grew a little bit after letting them sit for a while. I know they harden after water dropping them, but do boolits expand a bit and harden a little more if you let them sit for a few days before sizing?

I dunno, because I'm just a complete rookie here, but I'd have sworn I measured them a little larger after about 2-4 days. Keep in mind my cheap plastic calipers aren't exactly what I'd call 'Consistently Accurate'.

I really DO need to get a good, metal set of calipers!

[garandsrus]

GrizzLeeBear,

I may have it backwards, but if you cast them from Linotype they will be .001 or so larger when compared to WW.

John

[303Guy]

Maybe the other veterans here can answer this? Can Cast Boolits 'expand' a little bit after they've been left sitting on a bench for a few days?

I'm not a veteran but ......
after following this thread and wondering about it, I happened to pick up a boolit and would you believe, it is bent! How on earth! It is a long boolit - 1.22 inches and is nominally .311. The bend occurs about 1/3 from the base. At a quick glance, it looks like the g/c was set skew in the mold but a closer look and rolling it reveals that it's bent. So, did one side shrink or did the other side 'grow'? Lead and its alloys does age harden, meaning crystals grow over time so....?

[Slow Elk 45/70]

You might want to lap your mold , take it out to .225 , this should help with the out of round measurements. It really isn't that hard to do , I have "saved" several molds this way through the years and now days if you buy Lyman molds, you can just about count on doing it or fighting with them about the molds. Easier to fix it and move on. I prefer this to Beagling for this problem. Just my Humble Opinion , but it works for me.

[MtGun44]

I'd guess it probably bent when it fell from the mold, hot and soft and landed across another
boolit.

Bill

[GrizzLeeBear]

UPDATE: THE BEAGLING WORKED!!

I put a small piece, a little over 1/8" square, of beagling tape (high temp. flue tape) at the two top corners of the mold. This fattened up the base bands and I only got a tiny amount of flashing on the noses of a few boolits that comes off easily with a fingernail or exacto knife. Most came out just fine, with no flashing.
The best part is they measure .225 - .226. Ran one into the .225 lube die and it came out a nice round .225. Looks like I'll be in business! Only problem is I don't have the proper top punch for this boolit. I thought I bought one when I got the mold, but I guess I forgot. None of my other top punches work with the tiny nose on this boolit without making the semi-point into a blunt round nose and they won't push the boolit into the die enough to lube both lube grooves. Just ordered one from Midway, so I won't be able to lube/size them for a few days, but I'm glad I will be able to work with this boolit after all!