New 450 Parts and New Lube

[ColColt]

Today I finally got my internal parts for the old Lyman 450 and put all O-rings, etc in. I had a new .358 Lyman die and after putting it in, I was anxious to try out the Carnuba Red I received a few days ago. It does take some heat, doesn't it? I had to use a heat gun to warm the sizer up and then trained a 75W light about six inches away after that to keep it warm.

Here's the problem I encountered. I kept adjusting the amount the bullet went into the die and after I found that sweet spot where it wasn't lubing the crimp groove as well as the lube groove, I still get lube in the bevel part of the bullet no matter how I adjusted the seating screw. It's now adjusted up so far as to not get lube on the base of the bullet, that I've only got a few threads left to secure the nut. Is this something you have to live with with bevel base bullets? There's little room for more adjusting. If I go higher with it, it gets on the top band of the bullet.

[MR45]

With a BB bullet and a 450 or a RCBS type luber you will have to live with it.
Mike

[ColColt]

With a BB bullet and a 450 or a RCBS type luber you will have to live with it.
Mike

Why? Is there an adjustment I'm not doing correctly?

[MR45]

The BB is like a lube groove. There is no adjustment that I found in 40 years of loading.

[ColColt]

Maybe I need to get a bullet that doesn't have a BB. These were 158 gr raw bullets from Missouri Bullet Company. I liked them and wanted to try the Carnuba Red and they agreed to send me raw unsized/unlubed bullets. tonight was the first time I'd had a chance to use them with the new lube. They are BB and I doubt I'll find a 158 gr commercially that isn't as I think they and Penn bullets as well make the same bullet.

What's happening is the lube is being squeezed a little between the seating stem and the inside die body from the looks of things. I guess a flat based bullet would stop that.

[peerlesscowboy]

I'm a little confused on whether you're trying to push the bullet into the die deeper or not so deep :confused: .........anyway, sometimes if you run out of adjustment you can get more by putting the locknut on the other side of the casting.
That said, I agree with the others, with a bevel base bullet you can't avoid getting lube at the beveled edge of the base.

John C. Saubak

[peerlesscowboy]

Maybe I need to get a bullet that doesn't have a BB. These were 158 gr raw bullets from Missouri Bullet Company. I liked them and wanted to try the Carnuba Red and they agreed to send me raw unsized/unlubed bullets. tonight was the first time I'd had a chance to use them with the new lube. They are BB and I doubt I'll find a 158 gr commercially that isn't as I think they and Penn bullets as well make the same bullet.

What's happening is the lube is being squeezed a little between the seating stem and the inside die body from the looks of things. I guess a flat based bullet would stop that.
Commercial bullet casters seem to like BB bullets 'cause they drop from the mould so easy :mrgreen:

[ColColt]

I'm a little confused on whether you're trying to push the bullet into the die deeper or not so deep :confused:

I tried both. First time I was getting it into the lube grove as well as the crimp groove so, I adjusted for that by seating it higher. Then, I saw the lube on the bevel and attempted to adjust for that but ran out of threads for the nut. I suppose this is the curse for BB bullets and if that be the case, so be it as that particular bullet is all I have at the moment. I can easily wipe it off before loading.

[HammerMTB]

Try putting a flat piece of closed cell styrofoam on the die, then letting a boolit be the punch to cut it to the die size. It should now remain with your die set, and protect the base of the boolit from getting lubed.
I've heard here that a shotgun wad petal can work for this too, and intend to try it but have not as yet. If you try it and succeed, let us know!

[ColColt]

Try putting a flat piece of closed cell styrofoam on the die, then letting a boolit be the punch to cut it to the die size.

Sort of like an egg crate? I may have to give that a try...sound reasonable enough.

[Doby45]

Looks like it is time for a Star. :-) Sell that nicely restored 450 and order you up a Star if you are not planning on casting your own. The cost of the Star is easily cheaper than getting started casting and you would not have to worry about the type of boolit you get.

[ColColt]

I'd probably have to take out a load to buy a Star. They're about like Harrell's powder measures but, I reckon you get what you pay for...most of the time. I can't say all that money I spent on the ex-wife was worth it.

I have an old Lyman Mold Master Model 61 that still works so I'm not out anything having that plus the refurbished 450. I still have 5-6 Lyman molds and die sets from days gone by like two for the 45 Colt to include the great 454424 and the 429421 for the 44 Mag/Special and others.

BB is good for loading but apparently, not for lubing from all I've heard and read about. Lyman doesn't seem to have the selection of molds they once did. I think later on when time permits I'll get back into casting and get a decent 4-cavity mold from Saeco or one of the other companies recommended here...non-BB.

[Doby45]

One day, you will own a Star and when you do, you will smack yourself for not getting it sooner. Promise. ;)

[fryboy]

i have to agree that for the BB boolits the star is ideal , having said that and not owning a star ( can icome visit someone who does ? lolz ) the foam trick helps but it needs replaced every so often , one can have the plug machined to better fit the base , i wipe every base even on plain based boolits , the bevel based ones i wipe twice , once on edge and again on the flat ( unless they need a lil more ) i fold a paper towel of decent quality in half and place it on my leg , it's pretty much become second nature for me , another thing that helps is when you learn just how much pressure it takes to fill the grooves and then only apply that much pressure when the boolit is firmly down in the die , too warm of a lube will negate that somewhat

[Doby45]

I forgot about getting the plug machined with a divot in it. Buckshot could make you one of those, everything he makes is top notch and really good prices.

[ColColt]

One day, you will own a Star and when you do, you will smack yourself for not getting it sooner. Promise. ;)

You're probably right there. I'm into ease, comfort and convenience at this age and I feel sure from the video I saw of a guy whacking bullets out it would do the trick. Here's the problem for me and casting. Although I have a furnace and sizer, and metals it's a thing about time. I work 4/10 hour days and have to leave my Corgi home all during that time.

I hate spending 2-3 hours in the evening doing other things and feel guilty leaving him alone while I reload, much less cast and size bullets. Being totally transparent about it all, that's the truth of the matter. Not that he needs to be entertained or baby sit, I just feel guilty about being gone all day and then ignore him while I do other things. So, I have to compromise and just reload. It's just the two of us so, he's my only family. It sort of makes things difficult. This is why I've just ordered bullets already sized/lubed or gotten some raw ones to size and lube which doesn't take near as long as adding the casting to it.

[stubert]

Simple soulution is to forget the b/b boolits. The only people who like them are the people that sell them. They can be hard to get to shoot good, and they are probably to hard to seal the bore.

[ColColt]

I haven't had any problem getting them to shoot good and the bevel base makes going into the case easier.

http://i180.photobucket.com/albums/x220/ColColt/Misc%20Stuff/_DEF3873.jpg

[stubert]

I bought a bunch of hard cast b/b boolits a few years ago for my 44 mag. I could not get them to shoot worth a hoot, ended up melting them down and mixing with pure.