First casting - looking for feedback

[schwammy]

I've been lurking and learning for what seems like forever and finally took the plunge.

This is my first casting ever and looking for some honest feedback.
I can handle brutality; I'm looking to improve :smile:

Used Lee double cavity .309 120gr (looking to load for a M1 Carbine)
Bought the lead (figured I'd start easy); 92% Pb, 6% Antimony, 2% Tin

Tossed back about 1/3 during visual inspection to get 100 cast.
(So I guess I cast about 130-140 total.)
They all weighed out to 114gr +/- .6 gr.
The mike out at .311" +/- .001"
Have not lubed/resized yet.

Any thoughts/hints for a newb?

http://i1089.photobucket.com/albums/i359/schwammyal/Firstcasting.jpg

[462]

Welcome, Schwammy, you did good, for the first time.

Some of the bases are rounded, but since it's a gas checked design, you can get away with it. If it was a plain base design, then you'd want to toss them back into the pot. The poor fill out could be related to an overly tight sprue cutter or an inconsistant fill. If you are using a bottom pour furnace, keep the mould the same distance from the spout, from pour to pour.

If you haven't already done so, read the Leementing sticky. It contains valuable information on how to get a Lee mould to perform at its optimum.

Now, lube them, shoot them, and report back.

[caseyboy]

There are a couple I can see that I would reject, other than that they look more than good enough to shoot. You can shoot them without the checks, however, they may not cycle the M1.

[Cherokee]

Jolly good my man. Welcome to the habit. Lube them up and sling them downrange. We will want a report.

[stubshaft]

There are a few with slight flaws but for the most part they look great. Loob them up and send them back downrange. I wouldn't worry about perfection when shooting a M1 Carbine, it's not as though it was a BR gun. I shoot the 115 RCBS out of mine and if I get 2"@ 50 I'm a happy camper.

[williamwaco]

When I was a kid, I shot about three zillion 120 grain Lyman 3118s ( now 311008) in a WWII surplus M1 Carbine. Mine was not a gas check bullet but you can shoot yours just fine without gas checks. I do it all the time in .357 Magnum and .30-30.

I do not think you will have any problems with those bullets.




.

[seagiant]

Hi,
I think you did VERY well and believe you are on your way! Here's a few things you might try. I can see by the color and finish you kept your heat down,you might want to pick it up about 50 degrees and see if that helps the bases get sharper. Make sure you flux well!

Here's something to think about. If you can get nice boolits with a 2-cav. LEE mold you will have no problem with a better quality mold!

[lesharris]

Very nice job.
Smart idea to start with a known alloy. So the results can be repeated.
Now that the "bug"has bitten you,imagine how much production when you purchase your first 6cavity mold.
Again congrats.
Les.

[WHITETAIL]

schwammy, Welcome to the forum!
And you did good.:holysheep
The pic. of your boolits are great.
Load them and shoot them we will waight for the report.

[Le Loup Solitaire]

Hi and welcome to the forum. You did a good job, especially for your opening shot. Those bullets look pretty good. If there are any with flaws you can cull them out when you go to size and lube. The flaws will go away in future casting as you pick up savvy. A good manual will give you various possibilities for different loads; several different powders will run your carbine well. LLS

[schwammy]

Thanks for the excellent feedback!!!
I've got gas checks; wasn't sure if I needed them or not.

They are definitely going down range; how can I not shoot them? :bigsmyl2:

I started with the M1 since it is pretty forgiving and I am not going for sub-MOA @ 100 yds the first time out.

By the time I was getting towards the end I was getting a 'feel and rhythm'.
From everything I have read, that is as essential in casting as it is in reloading.

BTW, the bug got me a while back; it's venom has finally saturated my system!

[MikeS]

For the very first time casting, I would say you did great! The only visible problem is the few with rounded bases, and as you're going to put gas checks on them, that makes it a non-problem. I would not change anything in the way you're doing things. If the rounded bases don't go away in future casting sessions (as the mould gets broken in), I would look into making sure the venting of the base is good by using a small fine file on the edges of the blocks along the parting line to make a vent line. If you look for posts by Ben he has an excellent tutorial on how to do this complete with pictures!

Your first session went better than my first session did! As another poster already said, if you can cast good boolits using a Lee 2 cavity mould, you should do great when using a higher quality mould!

[williamwaco]

Hi and welcome to the forum. You did a good job, especially for your opening shot. Those bullets look pretty good. If there are any with flaws you can cull them out when you go to size and lube. The flaws will go away in future casting as you pick up savvy. A good manual will give you various possibilities for different loads; several different powders will run your carbine well. LLS


Interesting comment. I find that no matter how many times I inspect them I find more culls.

I give them a quick inspection when they drop from the mold and cull some.

When they cool, I inspect them again, cull some more.

When I gas check them and resize them I inspect them again. Cull some more.

Would you believe that when I seat them I still find bullets I don't like.

Ain't this a great hobby?




.

[Alchemist]

schwammy,

Welcome to the madness! Overall, I'd say ya dun good....a couple of the bases on your boolits look like you may be cutting the sprue a tad too soon. It makes the base tear out instead of shearing off (cutting) smoothly. Again, for the first session you have some good looking boolits. You may be amazed at how quickly you'll get the feel for casting. Keep practicing.

[x101airborne]

Yepp... That is how it starts.... OOH and AAAH, then later there is credit cards and screaming from the wife.... LOL!!! Really, You did Great. It is an addiction. Worse for me than anything I have ever tried and a lot more beneficial. These guys and gals are very helpful and friendly, so WELCOME!!!

[462]

Williamwaco,
Weighing boolits is another step in the culling process.

[Lefty SRH]

Hey there Schwammy, glad to see you over here too. Becareful, casting is addictive!

[Boolseye]

Great job! welcome.

[williamwaco]

Williamwaco,
Weighing boolits is another step in the culling process.



Yes it is. And I lose a few there too, but I thought the response was getting too long.


.

[41 mag fan]

Interesting comment. I find that no matter how many times I inspect them I find more culls.

I give them a quick inspection when they drop from the mold and cull some.

When they cool, I inspect them again, cull some more.

When I gas check them and resize them I inspect them again. Cull some more.

Would you believe that when I seat them I still find bullets I don't like.

Ain't this a great hobby?




.

WW, I've had that happen too. I myself think it's a conspiracy. I think that some of my culls sneak back into my good ones when I've got my back turned. i've got too goo of eagle eyes not to spot them on the first inspectioon.[smilie=1:

[Ole]

Welcome to the forum!

You're going to save so much money casting your own bullets you'll eventually go broke. :Fire:

[Alchemist]

Welcome to the forum!

You're going to save so much money casting your own bullets you'll eventually go broke. :Fire:

:goodpost: Ole sums it up pretty well.

[schwammy]

Welcome to the forum!

You're going to save so much money casting your own bullets you'll eventually go broke. :Fire:

Yeah, I save so much by reloading, I am now casting to save more.

Actually I've been wanting to do this for a while.
Since I reload 23 calibers I know darn well I'm going to be laying out quite a bit for quality equipment and be broke forever.

So that I am prepared...
Any suggestions on the best way to store 100 molds and keep them organized in the least amount of space?

[schwammy]

Here's a little update on my results and what I learned..

As I cast more I got a better feel for the temp of the mold and sprue plate.
After a bit they were all coming out with uniform bases, total fill out, uniform weight.

They did all right out of my P944 .40.
I made up 4 different recipes at different velocities.
No leading and decent groups.

I have a Blackhawk convertible in 10mm / 38-40 WCF in which I also gave them a go.
Throwing them into my 10mm worked beautifully!
The results were well beyond my expectations.
11.5 gr of 2400 and had one ragged hole off the bench at 25 yards.
I did another batch of 100 with the same results and zero leading.
Yea!

I also loaded up a batch in 38-40 and gave them a try.
Being cast and water dropped for the pressures of .40 and 10mm, they were way too hard.
Did another batch with straight lead and air cooled and that made all the difference.

The bug got me bad and I also picked up a 115gr RN gas checked for my 30 carbine.
Again, amazing results from my Automag III and will be headed out tomorrow to run them through the M1 Carbine.

Thanks for the feedback and help!!