Lloyd Smale
02-17-2017, 08:21 AM
got a 55 grain 6 cav lee mold. Casted about a 1000 bullets. Installed checks and ran through a lee 225 sizer. then tumbled them in smokes black. (for a short time because I wanted a thin coat) dumped them on a try with non stick foil and baked 20 minutes. Took them out and let them air cool and put them back in the tumbler and did another quick run, baked and when I took them out I water dropped them in a bucket of water. Took them back to the sizer and ran them all through again. Had to at least make a few go bang yesterday. Loaded 10 of them up (5.56) with a ww primer and 20 grains of ramshot exterminator. I pick that powder because I have two 8lb jugs of it. They went bang. They ran the ar15 (but didn't lock back after the last round) No leading but I guess with only 10 shots its to early to say. Going to try 21 grains and see if the action will lock back on that load. Also going to try 20 again with my suppressor on it to see if the suppressor gives it a bit more back pressure to run the action.
No accuracy testing yet but I shot them at a snow bank 40 yards from the porch and they all went into one hole in the snow. One other thing I will fool with is the crimp. I had to buy a lee universal neck expander to flare the neck for the cast bullet. At the same time I bought a lee factory crimp die figuring I have to iron out the flared neck. Yesterdays were loaded with the crimp die down tight enough that you could see the little crimp groves on the neck. I wonder if when I shoot that those crimps wont strip the coating. So I'm going to readjust that die till it just bumps the neck back. Kind of cool shooting an ar15 with bullets you made yourself even though it was a lot of work.
No accuracy testing yet but I shot them at a snow bank 40 yards from the porch and they all went into one hole in the snow. One other thing I will fool with is the crimp. I had to buy a lee universal neck expander to flare the neck for the cast bullet. At the same time I bought a lee factory crimp die figuring I have to iron out the flared neck. Yesterdays were loaded with the crimp die down tight enough that you could see the little crimp groves on the neck. I wonder if when I shoot that those crimps wont strip the coating. So I'm going to readjust that die till it just bumps the neck back. Kind of cool shooting an ar15 with bullets you made yourself even though it was a lot of work.