Beagling round Ball?

[OKSaddletramp]

[smilie=2:Would this be possible/feasible?

I came across the "mouse fart" thread in the Stickies (yes, i do read them, often) and I'm thinking of trying it in my .308 Encore with a Lee .311 rb mould. If it works as well as others have found, once I obtain a Mosin variant (assuming the prices don't get squirrelly) I would definitely want to be able to do the same with it. Unfortunately, there doesn't appear to be a .314 RB, but if I could Beagle a .311, then I could use the same mould for both rifles.

I am also interested in using an ultra-small .380 mould for plinkers in my .38 Special Taurus. I think Beagling would be perfect for this application. One problem: How would I Beagle a hollow point cavity? The first picture in the article shows a shim on a HP mould, but the placement doesn't match the later description. Squirrelly minds want to know.


Saddle

[bhn22]

What is the "as cast" diameter of the balls from your mold? You may not need to do anything at all.

[MT Gianni]

It would be out of round and therefore out of balance, IMO. IIRC, Lee makes a 319 RB mold that would be better if run through a size die.
Beagle an HP mold by putting the tape on the sides of the mold face, away from the pin.

[cbashooter]

Buy some Hornady 00 (.330 dia.) buckshot and push it through a lee .314 sizer.(or a standard lyman type also works ok)it will have parallel sides and shot very well. I do this for mine. You don’t need lube at mouse fart levels.This is one of the only loads I use a filler. I use 2g or so of fast stuff(R-Dot B-E Etc.) and top it with a piece of construction sill sealer cut to proper diameter. These loads shoot well to a bit over 25 yards.

[Wayne Smith]

And if you still want to do it all yourself go ahead and beagle the mold and run the results through your sizer.

[OKSaddletramp]

Thx for the quick replies, all. Of course, a .314 ball (or whatever the bore slugs out to) would be best, since anything else would have to go through the sizer, out of round was going to happen anyway. I'll try a couple of the suggestions, and if accuracy goes down the toilet, I'll just go ahead and get the .314 TL from Lee.

BTW, I don't have the 3.11 yet, I don't even have enough .308 brass to start reloading . I do have the Lee C309-200-R mould for loading thumpers when I get some brass. I'm going to try powder coating with this one.

Saddle [smilie=2:

[longbow]

Just another thought, and I have not done this myself, but I am sure a search would turn it up:

Some people report that cloth patching round balls into brass cartridges, like loading them into a muzzleloader, works well.

I would have figured the patch would not make the trip through the throat but several people say it does work. It is an extra step but would allow the smaller ball to be used.

Possibly another option.

Personally I would go the 0.319" ball and size it or pick up a Lee .32 cal. SWC mould. Different strokes.

Longbow

[beagle]

Kind of a waste of time. I've had goo luck bumping round balls to the appropriate lubricator/sizer. More consistent in this case than "beagling"./beagle