Core casting and jacket annealing questions

[wmitty]

I just acquired a set of Corbin .224 swage dies along with the jacket making die for rim fire brass. These were in a huge quantity of reloading equipment which a local pawnshop had purchased from the daughter of a gentleman who had passed several years back. The equipment had been stored in a garage and was somewhat rusty and dirty. I wasn’t sure if the dies were usable but after cleaning them up and doing some reading; I believe I have a fine and workable set of dies. Can a six cavity lee mould be adapted to casting cores for the dies? Is there an easier/ cheaper/ better route to take on obtaining cores? As far as annealing the jackets, is it possible to get by with a quick pass thru the flame of a propane torch? Or is using a heat treatment oven necessary to obtain satisfactory results?

[Gew]

A torch is fine that's how I do it. As soon as it starts turning orange I quit. I put 100 finish nails in a board and then put the 22lr jackets on the nails and move on down the line. 2 minutes latter all done. If you use lead wire I I saw a guy on ewetube (ammo smith I think) use a wire stripper with an attached bolt and wash to cut any length uniformly.

[garandsrus]

You need cores that fit inside the jacket, so about .185” in diameter. You probably could turn a pistol mold upside down and drill/ream holes for cores. You would need to attach the sprue plate also.

[Bent Ramrod]

Corbin sold (and maybe does still) a core mould to go with that .22 RF swage die set. I think BTSniper sells one as well. .22 cast boolits won’t fit in the reformed .22 shell jackets.

I’ve always annealed my .22 RF shells by wadding them in a piece of aluminum foil and putting the foil ball in the charcoal grill after the latest round of barbecuing is over. Cover the grill, let the remaining coals burn out, retrieve the next day.

Have done hundreds at a time, and never found one that was still hard.

[wmitty]

I have a lee six cavity for their 55 grain .224 design; think I’ll try drilling the bottom and re-locating the sprue plate. I am looking for a 55 gr swaged bullet so roughly a 45 grain core. I’m going to try annealing the jackets with a small propane torch and hopefully try to not over-heat them. Sounds like the portion of the jacket needing the greater annealing is the part which forms the ogive of the bullet.

[GONRA]

wmitty - looong ago, GONRA made at least 1-2 "new moulds"
by taking existing Lyman cast iron (or wotever) blocks,
centering in a 4 jaw chuck and boring new cavities in bottom to suit.
Make a tap but believe I could have purchased one...
Drilled / tapped block and reinstalled sprue plate. etc.
just as you suggest, Verked Just Fine!
(Top & Bottom Mould Cavity Blocks!)