RepackboxWidenersLee PrecisionLoad Data
PBcastcoRotoMetals2MidSouth Shooters SupplyReloading Everything
Inline Fabrication Titan Reloading
Results 1 to 9 of 9

Thread: Crimping on old style gas checks.

  1. #1
    Boolit Grand Master Bazoo's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2013
    Location
    Cecilia, Kentucky
    Posts
    6,689

    Crimping on old style gas checks.

    So I have some of the old ideal gas checks. I haven't used them yet, and have been researching their quirks. I've seen where people just use them and deal with the occasional off shot when they come off mid flight. And where people glue them on.

    Well, what about crimping 30 caliber gas checks on with a 7mm lee FCD. My preliminary research shows 7-30 waters has a neck of .306 so that die would be just right. Then fashion a rod inside the die, maybe on a solid shell holder, to position the bullet so it crimps the top edge of the gas check into the shank and boom, crimped on old style checks. Fast and repeatable.

    Opinions?

    Bazoo

  2. #2
    Boolit Buddy dimaprok's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2017
    Location
    Evergreen state
    Posts
    424
    What's diffrent about these gas checks that they won't crimp on? Are they too thin? If you're crimping down to .306 you're below bullet diameter and creating tiny gap potentially allowing gases to bypass gas check. This is just my theory.

    Sent from my SM-G950U1 using Tapatalk

  3. #3
    Boolit Grand Master Bazoo's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2013
    Location
    Cecilia, Kentucky
    Posts
    6,689
    Old style gas checks do not crimp on, and will sometimes come off in flight. If my theory is correct, you would not crimp the whole check, just the leading edge. Similar to crimping a healed bullet. I do not have a 7-30 waters FCD at present to test my theory.

  4. #4
    Moderator Emeritus


    JonB_in_Glencoe's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2010
    Location
    Land of 10,000 Lakes
    Posts
    15,809
    Old Ideal/Lyman GC's were designed for boolits that were cast from old ideal molds....and some old molds marked Lyman.

    If you measure the Shank on boolits from older Ideal/Lyman molds, they are a tad larger. The Thin Ideal/Lyman GC are made from a Gilding metal instead of Copper. The will stay these older boolit designs when run through a lube sizer. Another tidbit of info I've learned is that it is usually difficult to install a modern GC on these older boolit designs.

    So, if you are trying to use these old GC's on boolits cast from a modern Mold, then I'd just get some modern GCs and save your vintage GC's for when you get a vintage mold.
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    “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

  5. #5
    Moderator


    Join Date
    Apr 2014
    Location
    Way up in the Cascades
    Posts
    8,056
    I used to have several boxes of the old Lyman GCs, but only about half a box remaining. They were mostly .30 cal., with some 8mm, and the way I used them was to set them on a table and just push in the cast bullet until they bottomed out. Naturally these were bullets made for use with GCs. If the bullet didn't want to bottom out in the GC or started in tilted I'd just pick the bullet up and tap it on the table top until it was straight and seated. Most of the bullets were used for medium powered loads, and accuracy was good. I can not say that the GCs never came off the bullet in flight, but can't say that any did so either. I think used properly on a bullet designed to accept GCs the likelihood of this happening isn't great.

    Eventually I bought an RCBS Luber/Sizer that crimps GCs when the bullet is sized. But, if I saw a box of the old GCs for sale I'd probably pick them up. They worked for me!

  6. #6
    Boolit Master
    Join Date
    Nov 2011
    Location
    Indian trail NC
    Posts
    784
    i give them 1 drop of super glue

  7. #7
    Boolit Grand Master


    swheeler's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2005
    Location
    Montana
    Posts
    5,471
    Quote Originally Posted by JonB_in_Glencoe View Post
    Old Ideal/Lyman GC's were designed for boolits that were cast from old ideal molds....and some old molds marked Lyman.

    If you measure the Shank on boolits from older Ideal/Lyman molds, they are a tad larger. The Thin Ideal/Lyman GC are made from a Gilding metal instead of Copper. The will stay these older boolit designs when run through a lube sizer. Another tidbit of info I've learned is that it is usually difficult to install a modern GC on these older boolit designs.

    So, if you are trying to use these old GC's on boolits cast from a modern Mold, then I'd just get some modern GCs and save your vintage GC's for when you get a vintage mold.
    The old Ideal gas checks I have are brass and the new Hornady are gilding metal, I don't remember any made of pure copper. I haven't herd the other about gc shanks being different sized either.
    Charter Member #148

  8. #8
    Moderator Emeritus


    JonB_in_Glencoe's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2010
    Location
    Land of 10,000 Lakes
    Posts
    15,809
    Quote Originally Posted by swheeler View Post
    The old Ideal gas checks I have are brass and the new Hornady are gilding metal, I don't remember any made of pure copper
    ...SNIP
    You are correct, I have it mixed up. Oops.


    Quote Originally Posted by swheeler View Post
    SNIP...
    I haven't herd the other about gc shanks being different sized either.
    I will admit, this is my assumption.
    I have a few old Ideal GC style molds. When I install the old style brass GC's and run the GC'd boolits through a Lubesizer, the GCs go on nice & square and stay on well. When I try to install Hornady or Gator GCs on those Ideal boolits, the GC goes on with great difficulty and usually not square, and it's difficult to run 'em through the lubesizer. It's obvious the Shanks are larger...so I assume Ideal did that with all their molds.
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    “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

  9. #9
    Boolit Grand Master


    swheeler's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2005
    Location
    Montana
    Posts
    5,471
    I haven't noticed that and always assumed slightly large or small shanks was more of an individual mold thing, that combined with alloy and mold temp can change shank dia. quite a bit.
    Charter Member #148

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  
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