am i on the right track?

[Catsmith]

ok, i slugged my dan wasson 357 8" a few minutes ago. i took like 20 measurements. gettin a consistant .356 . so this is telling me that i should be running a .357 or a .358 sized bullet, right? the 158 swc i bought a while back are running right at .358. they have been shooting great. cutting playing cards.

so if i were to order a lee push thru i should go with a .358? trying to get this right.

[leadman]

What parts did you slug? Ideally you want the cylinder throat to be the same size as the barrel or .001" or so larger. If your cylinder throat is .357" you can size to .357" or .358" with no problems. Just so you know a boolit may not size to the exact size of the sizing die. Different alloys of lead have a different rate of springback.
If the .358" (measured?) boolits are working well I would not change anything.

[Catsmith]

i slugged the barrel. should i size each cyl? yes i measured about 20 of the swc. i am learning to cast my own and hope to get another mold to move up to about 180 gr to hunt with. then i would need to size my own.

[williamwaco]

A famous American once said:
"In theory there is no difference between theory and real life. I real life, there is." ( Yogi Berra )

If you are cutting playing cards, it is time to forget the theory and go with what is working.

If it aint broke, don't fix it.

.

[cbrick]

A famous American once said:
"In theory there is no difference between theory and real life. I real life, there is." ( Yogi Berra )

If you are cutting playing cards, it is time to forget the theory and go with what is working.

If it aint broke, don't fix it.

No kiddin!

But sometimes it's just plain fun to tinker. I wouldn't change a thing if it's working that well and not leading but for your future info the correct method is to slug the throats, yes, all of them. The only reason to slug a revolver bore is to know that it is at or a tick smaller than throat diameters and no tight/loose spots. Size to the throats in a revolver. In your case it sounds like .358" is right near perfect.

Rick

[Catsmith]

Last nights fun in the back yard. I am running 3.5gr bullseye behind the 158swc. I guess if it ain't broke don't fix it. I am loking ahead for cooking up my own. I will slug the cyl next. I love this site, I have learned so much.

[runfiverun]

the lyman 358477 sized to 358 will do what you want in that dan, it has in every one i have owned.

[44man]

No kiddin!

But sometimes it's just plain fun to tinker. I wouldn't change a thing if it's working that well and not leading but for your future info the correct method is to slug the throats, yes, all of them. The only reason to slug a revolver bore is to know that it is at or a tick smaller than throat diameters and no tight/loose spots. Size to the throats in a revolver. In your case it sounds like .358" is right near perfect.

Rick
Right on Rick, leave well enough alone.
Yet another thought about a Lee size die and what a boolit comes out at. I would buy a .357" and go from there, lapping if needed.

[captaint]

So then, the answer would be - Yes, you're on the right track. Go shoot that thang. I had to fool a little with my old Dan. The cylinder in mine needed a little work. The holes were right at .356+, so I had them opened up a little. Now they're rounder and .358. All's well. enjoy Mike

[Catsmith]

thanks for the replies everybody. the cyl all allowed a 357 sized bullet to slide thru. i an guessing i am good to go.

[Bullwolf]

I would say that what your doing is working great - so stick with it.

I wouldn't bother sizing them unless you get another mold, or want some kind of consistency step, or perhaps if you start casting with a different alloy.

These days I use a Lee .358 sizer die on all of my 38 special and 357 mag cast boolits as a check step really, to help catch any massively over sized boolits that might not have fit in the cylinder. You can feel if anything is really out of whack while you run em all through the sizer die. Any obvious rejects will be harder to size, and in extreme cases one can actually size away the tumble lube grooves on a TL style boolit.

Using a sizer die on everything just helps me catch any casting rejects I might have missed during a visual check. (like if I don't close the mold all the way for example, but hey I never do that!) It also helps keep everything consistent. In the past I had loaded and shot quite a few "as cast" or just the way they dropped from the mold. These days I nitpick more, and I tend to size everything before loading. I also don't get any rounds too large to fit in the cylinder this way, when I go to shot.

I would probably just case gauge, or use the cylinder on your Dan Wesson to check all your loaded rounds. Then shoot them as cast, if that's what your doing since it seems to be working well for you.

It also sounds like .358 is a good size for your gun. If you want to pick up a sizer die for another mold, go with .358 for your gun. My Dan Wesson also likes boolits sized to .358 Sometimes Lee gets it perfect the first time, and sometimes they don't. It can also be alloy related (spring-back), but every so often you have to lap out a Lee sizer die a little bit, to get things to just the right size. For as little as they cost, I can live with doing that.

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=52571&d=1311909165

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=53541&d=1338931287

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=56300&d=1355973401


- Bullwolf

[Catsmith]

im jealous bull. i only have the 8" barrel. i traded to get this one and really like it. i would like to find a cased set one day. one wish list at a time lol

[nhrifle]

Just shoot the sucker and give it lots of love! The way that's shooting I wouldn't change a thing. I envy your pistol skills too!

In rifles and handguns I started shooting my boolits at .002" - .004" over bore size and I get great accuracy and little to no leading.

[Bullwolf]

im jealous bull. i only have the 8" barrel. i traded to get this one and really like it. i would like to find a cased set one day. one wish list at a time lol

Thanks Cat. I adore the pistol packs too, the Dan Wesson revolvers have such a rich heritage.

I have a good friend who just got a complete unused Monson Mass 15-2 VH pistol pack from a relative, still in the locked case, and with all the fixings. What a lucky dog.

I borrowed this picture from Google images, but his pistol pack was set up pretty much the same way.

http://i107.photobucket.com/albums/m302/jeffrice6/IMG_0964.jpg

It even had the original paperwork, barrel tools, patch, and belt buckle. It was really neat to see, and totally immaculate for a gun from the late 70's to early 80's. The set up was just to die for. He let me drool over it some, and handle it with kid gloves on. I don't think it had even been shot. Worse still is that I doubt it ever will be fired. It will be a safe queen for him. Personally I prefer guns that get used.

My stainless 714 Dan Wesson just came with a couple of barrels and shrouds in boxes when I purchased the gun (Kind of wish that I had kept those boxes now). While it did not come in a pack, I have often considered buying one of the pistol packs or hunter packs just for the novelty factor. That 714 was my first Dan Wesson revolver, and to this day I still love the versatility of the Dan's from 22's to Supermags. I just can't resist playing dress up with the guns. As Trey45 said, they really are Barbie dolls for us men.

I recently tried out a few different scopes on my 8 inch shroud with a drilled/tapped scope mount base, since that barrel assembly doesn't have iron sights.

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/imagehosting/thum_1879050611de713760.jpghttp://castboolits.gunloads.com/imagehosting/thum_1879050611e0034075.jpg


- Bullwolf

[MtGun44]

What measuring tools are you using?

Bill

[Catsmith]

mtt i am using a starrett dial caliper thingie. guess that is technical term for it.

[Catsmith]

bullwolf, i like the scope mount you put on there. i just cant bring myself to do it. i aint crazy bout scopes to begin with. part of the draw to me is to work up to taking a deer with a open site revolver that most consider to be undergunned to begin with. i have alot of work to do before next fall to get ready. i have been hitting the sandbags twice a week with three rounds a day. getting used to the trigger. if i do that for a few months then i will start backing off a little each day. i still have to get a heavy mold and develope a load that the dw likes. most importantly........i have not found her name yet. every good barbie deserves a name.

[Wayne Smith]

How big of a boolit can you chamber? My Smith's will just chamber a .358" boolit, tight but they go in. That's what I shoot.

[Catsmith]

never really thought of it that way wayne. good point.