Question About RD 45/350 gr and gas checks

[Brother_Love]

Well, they say the only stupid question is one you do not ask. I have just got back into bullet casting after a 28 year absence. I have never used gas checks before and have a question. I am using one of the Ranch Dog molds for the 45 caliber, 350 gr. bullet. I am also using RD .460 Lee sizer. I push the dipped (in Lee alox) bullets through the die to seat the gas check. I can feel some resistance but not much. The checks can be easily removed after sizing.

My question is: Is this normal or is it dangerous? Could the checks come off and block the bore? I am assuming that the checks regardless of how tight it fits is still forced out of the bore by the powder. As I said, I have never used gas checks before and wanted to be sure that I am on the right track.

Thank you, Malcolm

[leadeye]

Welcome back to casting, I returned this year after a 25 year absence. Things sure have changed. When I have loose gas checks I use some red loctite to secure them as insurance.

[wmitty]

I obtained a six cavity group buy mold for this design and I found the shank for the gas check was slightly small, as did a number of those in on this group buy. Several milling tools were made by one of the forum members here and they were circulated among the purchasers of the six cavity blocks and used to open the portion of the mold cavities which formed the shank for the gas check. The amount of aluminum removed was very small, and this allowed the gas checks to be seated securely. I wound up with one of the mills and would be glad to send it to you if you'd like to use it to open the cavities of your mold. Send me a p.m. if you are interested.

[Brother_Love]

I was afraid of that! I have already loaded 50 rds, so I will have to check the bore after each shot. That does not bother me. What bothers me is I have cast 1,000 of those bullets, back in the pot they will go.

Yes, I will pm you about the milling device to open the mold. Thanks, malcolm

[Ranch Dog]

Was this a two or six cavity mold? (its tough or impossible to associate a forum name with a customer name) I would like to get that reamer when you are done.

I would like to have some made to check all my molds before they ship and also make one available to remove the gas check completely to PB the bullets if that is what the customer wants. Having that little reamer in hand is worth one stage of development at the machine shop!

Before I recast the bullets, I would try annealing the gas checks. Just do a couple, heat them up with a torch till they glow red and then let them cool. See if this works on a dozen or so.

Please consider sending me that reamer when you are done with it. Anybody know who originally made the reamer, I think he put two in circulation.

[pls1911]

Guys, unless you're planning to shoot benchrest with your 45/70, I wouldn't worry about the slip on gas check situation. I'm still working off 2000 old style Lyman slip on check for .45 /70.just a smaer of LLA or wax lube on the heels when lubing and loading and you'll do fine.
If you ahve 1000 slugs cast, there's no reason to recast 'em unless you need the exercise.
With either the RCBS 300gr GC , the lee 340 gr pb, or the RD 350, 15gr of Unique will put in in a small cloverleaf cluster at 30 yards. At about 1300 fps, this round will also penetrate most pigs at the 30-70 yrd ranges I normally shoot.
Just ww, not heat treated.

28gr 2400, or 40gr RL 7 do the same, with more velocity, noise and

[Brother_Love]

Hey guys, thanks for all the input on this. I have PM'ed "wmitty" about using the reamer to open the mold a little to make the gas checks tighter.

I did something tonight that I should have done before. I got the RCBS cast bullet handbook and read the section on gas checks. It mentioned the "old style" slip on gas checks vs. the "new style" crimp on gas check. From reading that it seems that my worry of a gas check sticking in the bore is not so much to worry about. I will still check the bore for the first few rounds and I will open the mold with the reamer if I can catch up with "wmitty".

Ranch Dog, glad you liked the boxes for the bullets, I did not. I have new revised version that I will post photos of tomorrow. They are "stackable", and I use them for unsized and sized/lubed bullets, got a little OCD going on here:-D. Also, RD, I hope your wife is better.

Thanks again for the help, Malcolm

[Lloyd Smale]

I just posted on another section of this fourm my results with this bullet, i had a sizer ordered but was strapped for time and what i did was stick the check on while the alox was still wet and used it to sort of glue on the check. It probably wasnt ideal but it still was the best that gun ever shot so i guess in that case it didnt really matter that they were crimped on. Are you sure your using a rd bullet design. I dont recall any group buys on here for a design of his.

[Brother_Love]

Well, my 6 banger is now a five banger:(! I had the bright idea that I would shave just a little off the base area of the mold to make the gas check fit better. Woulda worked too, if I had not taken a shade too much. Thank goodness I only did surgery to one cavity. It is a shame I had to do that to try to make it work, but it was my idea.

Guess I'll just use the mold as is and shoot these with no gas check. I will get a new mold for a gas check base.

Malcolm

[Lloyd Smale]

try wihat i did when i shot them unsized. Just dip the shank in alox and seat a check and let them dry. i dont know if you stay on every time after being fired but as well as they shot in that gun i really dont care if they did or not.

[amosp1]

I just bump my boolits in a vice. I use a RCBS 300gr fp with gc. The gc sometimes is a little loose so, I put the cast boolit in a small vice with a little pressure by hand and hit it with a 6 oz. hammer and then size them to .4585. They stay on very good. I am shooting them at 2,000 fps and get 1" groups at 100 yds. with 49gr IMR 4198.

[Sagebrush7]

For you FC guys I had Charlie make me some smaller mandrels for my check dies. If you tell him Lee bullets he will knows what to do! Results using .016 + aluminum you can run them thru the Lee push thru base or nose first and get a great crimp. All my Lee molds casting WW run from .397- .399 on the shank.