I cast my first boolits yesterday.

[Animal]

I've been a member on this forum for a good little while and I've been reloading for about a year now. I've been shooting a lot of commercial cast boolits and soaking up all the info that I can from you guys.

Well yesterday underneath the tree was the final component I needed to start casting. My wife bought me a Lee 6-Cavity Bullet Mold 452-228-1R 45 ACP, 45 Auto Rim, 45 Colt (Long Colt) (452 Diameter) 228 Grain 1 Ogive Radius.

After everyone opened their gifts, I beat feet outside, fired up the turkey fryer, gathered my lead supplies and got to work. I carefully followed Mr. Lees instructions to break the mold in properly.

It took a good long while before I had any recognizable boolits, but eventually I started throwing some fine, sharp boolits. It took a lot of trial and error to figure out the ideal alloy temp, mold temp and pour technique but I made it.

I found that keeping the alloy at 750deg and touching the mold to the sponge after every drop produced the best boolits. 800deg seemed okay to, but I had too much trouble getting the boolits to drop. Mr. Lee states a frosty boolit is okay to because it helps the LLA stick.

In the end, I came up with 290 excellent boolits. I'm throwing about 150 back into the pot. A good bit of the 150 I threw back looked good, but not 'perfect'. I debated on keeping them but I chose not too because I didn't want to come this far just to shoot 'okay' boolits, I want to shoot perfect boolits.

I water dropped half and am air cooling the other half. The quenching wasn't necessary, but I wanted to compare the 2 and see if there is much difference at the range. The air cooled ones have a much shinier appearance. I'll wait about 2 weeks before I do anything with them.

I went ahead and ran the quenched ones through a Lee .452 sizer and lubed with LLA. I'll try to test them out on Monday and give the air cooled ones a good 2 weeks to cure.

So far I have a bunch of boolits approx 225-226 gr that are perfectly round and at a perfect .452. They all have sharp edges and look great.

I can't wait to shoot'em! I'm glad I can finally say that :castmine:

Thanks for the help from the guys on this forum, Mr. Richard Lee and Lyman.

[Pb2au]

Excellent report! I am glad you are enjoying success.
What firearm are these destined for? The reason I ask is that for most 45-ish applications, water dropping may not be required. I am using the same mold for my 45ACP and simply air cool them and I am off to the races. That particular mold you have also produces a bullet that plays very nicely for my Blackhawk in 45 colt!
Glad you are having fun!

[Animal]

Pb- Rock Island 1911. This firearm is also new and my first non-sixgun.

[Foto Joe]

You might also experiment with not sizing these as well, chances are it really isn't necessary and it will eliminate the need for lubing them twice with LLA. Remember, a little LLA goes a looong way.

[Pb2au]

Pb- Rock Island 1911. This firearm is also new and my first non-sixgun.

Cool. I been wondering about the RI 1911's. I've been hearing some glowing reports about their build quality and function.
That boolit is the one I found that is one heck of a plinker and feeds superbly. I think you will have great success with it. I would be confident in saying that moving forward you shouldn't need to water drop them. I just recently ran a bunch of them through a friend of mine's M-10 full auto! What a hoot that was!
Good luck and let us know if you need anything.

[bangerjim]

Remember.......preheat your mold on a hot plate! You want it pretty much up to temp before you even start. That way, your 1st boolits may/will be perfect right off. With heated molds, I get perfect boolits the 1st drop using a Lee 4-20 bottom pour and pressure casting. Actually I can get perfect slugs with a COLD mold using pressure casting, but I normally pre-heat on my hot plate.

Congats on finally getting in the casting game!

Save up for a Lee 4-20 pot........much better than a turkey fryer for casting. They are about $60 from several on-line sources. Shop around for the best price. You will be much happier with a bottom pour electric pot. Keep your fryer for smelting only.

Bangerjim

[AlaskanGuy]

I want to encourage you sir.... Awesome job.... Maybe next year you can get a lee 4-20 bottom pour... Sounds like you did your homework, and got busy... Awesome Job... Post some pics next time... :) i am very excited for you, and remember last year when i cast my own first boolits.... I have been reloading for over 25 years or so, but till i started casting, i was just a load and shoot kinda guy, and not very interested in reloading except for the necessity of obtaining ammo.. Now i just cant seem to get enough of it... It has added a whole dimension to my reloading, and now it is fun and exciting... My arrow making gear, and archery stuff thinks that i have abandoned them...lol... Havent built a single arrow sence i started casting... Good thing I have a large supply...lmbo..

AG

[osteodoc08]

Pics or it didn't happen!

Good job buddy. Keep up the good work.

[dverna]

Yes, seeing little shinny pills come out of a mold the first time is a great experience.

You are taking the right approach. There is no need to shoot poorly made bullets when you can make good ones.

Don Verna

[62chevy]

Good deal!!! I had about the same results the first time I cast some boolits. The first time you shoot 'em will be just as exciting as the first cast too.

[Animal]

My water quinched boolits don't have the same shine as my air cooled ones. Not sure if that makes a difference.
My logic behind quenching a few handfuls was so that I could have something to load next Monday and to see firsthand the difference in leading and performance. I believe it is normal to allow the air-cooled boolits cure for a minimum of two weeks. Right?
Concerning a hotplate, I assume this would basically be a steel or cast iron plate that sits between the fryer and the melting pot? and large enough to lay the mold on? I was preheating the mold by laying it over my RCBS pot. Is there much difference?
916659166691667

Not great pics, but best I can do with my cell phone. BTW, my alloy was all COWW. I used a Lyman Ladle, an RCBS thermometer.

[Wag]

Awesome looking boolits.

Welcome to the addiction from another newbie!

--Wag--

[boatworks]

I've had a R1 for a little while, shoots everything I put in it, cast 452's included. The only thing I ever did to it was to polish the feed ramp.

[Animal]

I selected this mold because it looked like a fairly easy mold to fill out and its appearance leads me to think that it will feed similar to ball ammo.

One more question... these will be the first lead boolits I've ever loaded for a semi-auto pistol. How far should I open the case mouth to seat the boolit without sizing it down?

[Animal]

Cool. I been wondering about the RI 1911's. I've been hearing some glowing reports about their build quality and function.
That boolit is the one I found that is one heck of a plinker and feeds superbly. I think you will have great success with it. I would be confident in saying that moving forward you shouldn't need to water drop them. I just recently ran a bunch of them through a friend of mine's M-10 full auto! What a hoot that was!
Good luck and let us know if you need anything.

I'm incredibly pleased with RIA 1911. Almost 300 rounds through it and not a single malfunction. I'm using Wilson Combat #608 magazines. I paid attention to details during its initial break in and took great care to keep everything clean and properly lubed... strip, clean, oil and shoot every 5 founds till I got to 30, 20 more and clean again. I've run Armscor ball ammo through it and my own handloads with XTP JHP. The firearm feeds both extremely well.

[Down South]

I selected this mold because it looked like a fairly easy mold to fill out and its appearance leads me to think that it will feed similar to ball ammo.

One more question... these will be the first lead boolits I've ever loaded for a semi-auto pistol. How far should I open the case mouth to seat the boolit without sizing it down?
Your expander die is what it is. It will/should open the case enough to not size the boolit down "In most circumstances". I run oversize expanders on some cast boolits. To be sure, you can load a few dummy rounds, pull them and check diameter. After that, just a slight bell on the case mouth. If I can feel it with my fingers, it's good enough.
Your boolits look great and shine doesn't matter.

[BNE]

"One more question... these will be the first lead boolits I've ever loaded for a semi-auto pistol. How far should I open the case mouth to seat the boolit without sizing it down?"

I think the correct answer is 0.100". (The boolit should drop that far down into the case.) I usually try some and confirm each time I prep to load a few boxes. I am just looking to not get lead shaving off the boolit.

Nice looking boolits! I am happy to hear your report as I got the same mold under my tree. I have been using a steel mold and it makes nice looking boolits, but they are longer than I care for. I hope to cast some this weekend.

Welcome to the addiction. I think I like casting as much as shooting.

[waco]

I just got the same mold a few weeks ago. Casts a bunch of boolits in a hurry! I have not got to shoot any yet....

Mine drop from the mold at around 225-227gr and measure .452-.453"

91670

[Pb2au]

My water quinched boolits don't have the same shine as my air cooled ones. Not sure if that makes a difference.
My logic behind quenching a few handfuls was so that I could have something to load next Monday and to see firsthand the difference in leading and performance. I believe it is normal to allow the air-cooled boolits cure for a minimum of two weeks. Right?
Concerning a hotplate, I assume this would basically be a steel or cast iron plate that sits between the fryer and the melting pot? and large enough to lay the mold on? I was preheating the mold by laying it over my RCBS pot. Is there much difference?


916659166691667

Not great pics, but best I can do with my cell phone. BTW, my alloy was all COWW. I used a Lyman Ladle, an RCBS thermometer.

I do the same thing. My ancient lyman pot has a nice flat area on the back of the pot that fits molds nicely. When I turn the pot on, I set my mold back there to warm up with the pot. It is handy to put an ingot back there too to pre-warm.
As for letting boolits age after casting, I am in the camp of casting them, letting them hang out overnight, then size lubing and loading. That being said, I do have many boolits cast and in storage to be used when ever. Basically, I get a burr up my behind and cast. Then I size them and load them whenever.

Hey! Is that a reloading manual I see???? I thought those things were out of style these days????:grin:

[Pb2au]

I just got the same mold a few weeks ago. Casts a bunch of boolits in a hurry! I have not got to shoot any yet....

Mine drop from the mold at around 225-227gr and measure .452-.453"

91670

That is going to make some funky tasting coffee.
I love that mold. It simply works.

[Animal]

Down South/BNE- Thanks. I'm going to try making up a couple of dummy rounds when I get home tonight.

[Animal]

Waco, thanks for posting the pic. It's a good reference for knowing what they should look like :grin:

[Animal]

Now, before I start fooling with my air cooled boolits I'd like to ask another question. A few of you mentioned that sizing may not be necessary. I was under the impression that sizing them all would provide more consistency with accuracy?

If not, I may just pan lube them the way they are because I'd hate to put LLA on those nice looking boolits.

[CJR]

Animal,

A couple of suggestions. Buy a loaded cartridge gauge, sold by Dillon or Wilson, to measure the loaded rounds before shooting them. If your unsized diameter is too large or you have a split neck the gauge will tell you. It's much better to eliminate problem loads before they jam up your piece. Also, I turn my flaring stem diameter down so that it just enters a sized 45ACP case up to the stem's flaring diameter. Then when I seat the CB and taper crimp it,the CB is very tightly held and will not be shoved deeper (i.e. raises pressures) in the case during the chambering process in a 1911. Finally, you're going to like the RIA because they go bang every time.

Best regards,

CJR

[Garyshome]

Congrads!!!! Way to go!!! Time to get some really cheap ammo together!

[Foto Joe]

Sizing will make your boolits perfectly "round" which sounds like something you would want right? Round is actually very good but keep in mind that you're not shooting 300-1,000 yard targets with these things. A slightly out of round boolit isn't going to make or break you at 15-25 yards. Two doses of LLA, one before and one after sizing will put a pretty substantial coating on the nose of the boolit which in turn comes into direct contact with non-moving parts during chambering causing the LLA to rub off then get heated by combustion byproducts, i.e. "It makes goo."

I first started out sizing that exact same boolit through a Lee sizing die. My first change was to start using 45-45-10 which cut down on the "goo" in the gun quite a bit. The second change was to stop sizing altogether and it made little if any difference in accuracy. The third change was to use my Cabela's points to by a Lyman 4500 Lube Sizer and start using NRA 50/50 lube.

The LLA or 45-45-10 will work quite well for what it was intended, more so the 45-45-10. I personally wouldn't take the time nor aggravation to pan lube those boolits in lieu of LLA or 45-45-10. Worst case you can wipe the LLA off the nose with paint thinner or mineral spirits before you box 'em up.

[Recluse]

Now, before I start fooling with my air cooled boolits I'd like to ask another question. A few of you mentioned that sizing may not be necessary. I was under the impression that sizing them all would provide more consistency with accuracy?

If not, I may just pan lube them the way they are because I'd hate to put LLA on those nice looking boolits.

Welcome to the world of pouring and rolling your own.

As far as shiny versus non-shiny, makes no difference. When you watch quench, often times the heat of the alloy causes the minerals in the water to adhere to the surface of the boolit.

Secondly, water-quenching for .45 anything is totally unnecessary, and can even cause you some undesirable results if the boolit ends up too hard. I'd recommend simply going air-cooled and be happy.

I size every single boolit I cast and I do it so as to ensure consistency of diameter and that they are all concentric (round). If you choose to tumble-lube, the best formula is to "lube, size, lube, load, shoot." You can tumble-lube .45 ACP all day long with excellent results. If you choose to use Lee Liquid Alox, you're going to use way too much your first few times at it. Everyone does, so just be prepared.

The aesthetics of the boolit are for our benefit and ours alone. An ugly boolit shoots just as accurate and true as a beauty pageant winner. Lube is messy, no matter if you pan lube, tumble-lube, or use a lubesizer. The pictures you see of pretty boolits with neat little lube rings filled all nice a beautiful are more often than not the result of someone shining and prepping the boolit for a photograph. Have done it myself on many an occasion for the purposes of photography, but not for actual shooting.

Expand your case (belling the mouth) just enough to seat the boolit without shaving any lead. Do not use a FCD (Factory Crimp Die) with that boolit. Combined with water-dropping and the swaging that the FCD does, you will get leading in all likelihood.

And finally, with that boolit, be VERY careful with your OAL as it is critical to the case pressures that will be generated. 35 Remington knows this boolit and the 45 ACP forwards backwards and all points in between. A quick PM to him would be advised if you are still relatively new to reloading and are going to use this boolit for your 45. It's a very good boolit, but I remember 35 Remington pointing out a few things that are an absolute necessity for safe loading of this boolit.

Good luck, have fun, be safe and welcome to the world of self-sufficiency. Feels good, don't it?

:coffee:

[Pitchnit]

Welcome, This is a great hobby. I started just a couple years ago casting for a 45 just like you. Don't use the Lee factory crimp die. Seat and crimp in separate stages and COOPER Chore boy may be your friend until you get things dialed in. Lots of fun things to learn. Good luck and have fun. Regards

[Sweetpea]

I can't quite tell from the pictures, is there a nice flat base on these, or that goofy little bevel?

I might have to get one if it is flat.

Brandon

[Animal]

I can't quite tell from the pictures, is there a nice flat base on these, or that goofy little bevel?

I might have to get one if it is flat.

Brandon

Yes, they are quiet flat.

[Animal]

Recluse- Thanks for the heads-up on the seating depth. I will PM 35 Remington. As for the FCD, I purchased one recently and removed the sizing ring at the base of the die; I just wanted a die that that would taper without sizing so I wouldn't have to constantly adjust dies (i assume this is exceptable?).

I just got finished playing with the seating depth on a few dummy rounds. Reloading for this 1911 reminds me of how good I had it with my revolvers. It's a whole different world when trying to seat a boolit to the correct depth without being able to see what it looks like in a revolvers chamber.

Foto Joe, proper lube will probably be a whole new endeavor of it's own. I've only used 60/40 beeswax/Vaseline when not using LLA. How do you figure it will hold up in a low pressure 45? It did very well in my mild .357 loads.

[Down South]

Recluse- Thanks for the heads-up on the seating depth. I will PM 35 Remington. As for the FCD, I purchased one recently and removed the sizing ring at the base of the die; I just wanted a die that that would taper without sizing so I wouldn't have to constantly adjust dies (i assume this is exceptable?).


If you knocked out the sizing ring on the FCD, you will not have any problems with the die swaging the boolit.


I just got finished playing with the seating depth on a few dummy rounds. Reloading for this 1911 reminds me of how good I had it with my revolvers. It's a whole different world when trying to seat a boolit to the correct depth without being able to see what it looks like in a revolvers chamber.


I do what we call a "Plunk Test" to help determine the seating depth on any pistol. That's where you have the barrel out of the pistol, drop the Boolit in the chamber and see if it fits. If it fits, the case mouth will rest at the bottom of the chamber and the Boolit will not be touching the rifling."Hope this makes sense" If not, someone with better sense than me can explain it.
I like to start with a long OAL to start the test, one that I know will be to long and work from there until the Boolit chambers by itself. Then I like to shorten the OAL another .010-.020". Then you can check to see if the Boolits fit your mags. You can also check OAL against your reloading manual OAL recommendations.

[Animal]

Down South, that is basically what I tried. I had some pretty good progress, but nothing I want to say for sure until I have more time to tinker with it.

[Animal]

For the hotplate proponents.... I think I'm going to try and pick up a large brake rotor and use it as a hot plate. I'll lay it over the turkey fryer and set my RCBS pot in the middle. This should be enough to work as a hot plate for my boolit mold and give me a convenient spot to set my ladle down.

I already heated, welded and rigged up a sturdy bracket for my thermometer... why stop there?:2_high5:

[Foto Joe]

If the 60/40 beeswax/vaseline combination was working for you in 357 I don't really see why it wouldn't in the 45 but I don't have any experience with it. From your previous post I'd assume that you'd be pan lubing with it though. If that's the case, stick with the LLA or 45-45-10 for convenience, both work very well in my opinion.

I know that there are folks out there who don't care for the Lee FCD but I do use one in 45ACP and it still has the ring in it. I was recently setting up dummy rounds for a new 200gr SWC in 452 and pulled a dozen or so boolits when I was done fitting and measured them. Low and behold they were all still .452 just like they came out of the Lube Sizer.

[Down South]

Not all FCD's are not created equal so to speak. From what "I've Heard" the sizing ring can vary in size from die to die in the same caliber. My opinion from the experience that I have is buy a good crimp die to start with and don't bother with FCD's. But if you have one, try a few dummy loads and pull them. If the die doesn't swage the Boolit down, leave well enough alone.
Another note, Some brands of brass are thicker than others. This can make a difference between a Boolit being swaged in an FCD or not as well.

[JSnover]

I made a lid for my Lee 4-20. It keeps the temp a little more stable and gives me a place to warm my ingots. If I need to keep another mold ready to go, I have a Lee Precision Melter on the bench. A single or double cavity mold fits in there well enough.

[Tn Jim]

Sounds like I dodged a boolit then. I've been using a FCD for my 45acp without a hiccup for over 5 years. My 45 is a Springfield and is more accurate with my cb loads than I can shoot it.

[waco]

A look at a loaded PC round

91875

[Animal]

A look at a loaded PC round

91875

PCing huh? I'm still trying to wrap my head around casting my own boolits. I'll be in touch with you on this subject at some point.