First boolits ever casted - excited for the journey ahead!

[BearGrillz]

Hello All,

I've finally ventured in to the world of casting.

My initial interest of casting began a couple years ago when I purchased my first box of center fire cartridges and couldn't believe the cost. I quickly read Modern Reloading by Richard Lee, purchased a Lee Loader in 303 British and got to work reloading. I was very intrigued by the casting section of the book but figured that it would be too ambitious to attempt to create high velocity rifle boolits while I was learning to reload. Jacketed projectiles were expensive still, but I saved enough money that I felt I could continue this glorious hobby of shooting. I ended up upgrading my reloading process with presses, tumblers, scales, calipers and all the other fun tools that look good on the shelf in the reloading section of the store. I became confident in the process and with all the ammo I produced I became a much better shooter.

As more guns have been added to the collection, the interest in competitive handgun shooting is in the horizon. I want to get lots of practice in but the cost of jacketed 9mm makes reloading cost prohibitive. This is the time for me to cast!

I've lurked around this board from time to time and had many of my questions answered by the excellent information here. Thank you to all that have contributed, much of what you have said has inspired me to give this a try.

This weekend my favourite shooting mate and I sorted wheel weights, processed in to ingots, and casted our first boolits from a Lee Production Pot IV in to a Lee 356-125-2R two cavity mold.

https://i.imgur.com/GOC4W3fl.jpg
clip on wheel weights left, stick on wheel weights right.

https://i.imgur.com/DRmaKjsl.jpg
Love how mistakes can be recycled. Each of us must have casted around 500 each but only ended up with 120 that passed inspection.

https://i.imgur.com/72DiLqbl.jpg
The money shot, so proud of those sharp bases and lube grooves.

Sorting wheel weights was hard on the hands. We chose the squeeze with side cutter method and developed some nasty blisters. The final consensus was that it would be useful to get the ring against some steel method calibrated.

During the melt it was quite easy to find the two zinc weights we missed floating on the top with all of the steel clips. This part of the process was both exciting, and less intimidating then I had imagined. Working with molten lead is not like working with molten steel; the temperatures are like a hot oven, not a cutting torch. We realized that our fan was under powered and purchased a much larger one for the next melt.

Casting was so satisfying. We followed the Lee instructions for the 356-125-2R mold and cleaned the cavities with lighter fluid, smoked the cavities with a lighter, and lubricated the sprue pivot and alignment pins. The first pour dropped bullets without any voids or sticking, success, but the edges of the lube grove and base of the bullet were rounded. We found that some pours would fill out nice and sharp and others would round in the details. We kept casting, after all the duds go right back in the pot. I managed to get lube in to one of the cavities and found that 30-50 casts pretty well stopped the wrinkles from appearing.

By the end of the session we had increased the temperature of the alloy to about 8 on the Production Pot and we were running the mold hotter then when we started. The boolits were almost always dropping nice and sharply filled out. A feel for temperature was an important take-away from this first casting session.

A final measurement of the boolits dropped from the Lee 356-125-2R with COWW alloy was 128.5gr to 130gr and right around 0.3575" diameter.

Our goal is to reload 9mm in volume for future IPSC practice. Ideally a single cartridge that will work in both of our guns is desirable but due to the variations in 9mm bore diameter I understand this may be impossible. I also understand that 9mm is a difficult cartridge to cast for due to the variation in bore diameter, the small case capacity and the higher than average pressures.

I will be developing a load for my Norinco 1911 9mm first. I plan to slug the bore to determine if sizing, or different mold selection, is required. Then determine the proper seating depth, flare and crimp with some dummy rounds and check to see if the load will chamber without swaging the bullet in the case. If all goes well, and I have some luck, then it will be time to determine which powder will be suitable. I think we are leaning towards powder coating as dry boolits seem most attractive to me but the jury is still out.

I'm thoroughly enjoying this venture in to the world of unlimited projectiles and I'm excited to solve some of the challenges ahead. If you've got any good strategies for a newbie like me feel free to send them my way, otherwise thank you for the inspiration to get started!

- Bear

[Gatch]

You're buggered now mate. I sometimes sit at home on weekends and just cast 9mm for the sake of it.

If you purchase a mold that drops larger boolits ie .358, you'll be able to size them to fit guns of different bores. Lee sells sizing kits for not much money. They screw into any press that accepts standard size dies.

It's a good hobby eh :)

[Seeker]

For your first time...they look good, really good. You're hooked now. I hope they shoot as good as they look. Welcome to the addiction.

[Wheelguns 1961]

Sounds like you are ready for powder coating. Try adding a little tin to your mix. Welcome to the forum and the great world of casting and reloading! Sounds like you have been doing your research.

[BearGrillz]

You're buggered now mate. I sometimes sit at home on weekends and just cast 9mm for the sake of it.

If you purchase a mold that drops larger boolits ie .358, you'll be able to size them to fit guns of different bores. Lee sells sizing kits for not much money. They screw into any press that accepts standard size dies.

It's a good hobby eh :)

I can see why you would! We lost hours mesmerized by the solidifying sprues and dropping bullets.

I had originally purchased this mold on reports that it dropped close to .358 but it looks like I've got .357 with my alloy. I'm praying for a .356 groove diameter. Any suggestions on a 125gr ish mold that drops .358?

Absolutely it is, no more ammo shortages for this guy.

[BearGrillz]

For your first time...they look good, really good. You're hooked now. I hope they shoot as good as they look. Welcome to the addiction.

Thanks for the warm welcome!




Sounds like you are ready for powder coating. Try adding a little tin to your mix. Welcome to the forum and the great world of casting and reloading! Sounds like you have been doing your research.
Thanks for the welcome! Is a metal supplier the only good source for tin? I had heard that pewter plates at the thrift store are acceptable but I have no idea how to identify pewter.

[Wheelguns 1961]

Check out ebay. I have had excellent transactions with smeltingpot03

[RED BEAR]

Welcome to the board glad to have you.i used a lee pot for a long time and still use it a lot. A setting of 8 seems about what mine likes and turn it down as pot gets lower. +1 for a little tin i went a long time with out using it but it can help. I size all my 9mm at .357 maybe i just got lucky and my bores are the same. I must say your bullets look very good. And as you get more experience you will get fewer and fewer rejects. I use a $10 hot plate to arm up my molds and get good bullets from the start. Lee sizers work well and are not expensive at all. I don't powder coat so can't say much except there are a lot on here that do so it must be something to it . And i am certain that if you run into problems that the members here are more than willing to help. And as i pretty much tell everyone don't hesitate to ask anything . The only dumb question is the one not asked.

[Bookworm]

...Any suggestions on a 125gr ish mold that drops .358?
.

Lee 358-125-rf

It's in the 358 section. I've had a 2 cav, now have a 6 cavity. They drop at .358 - .3585 with 50/50 cww/pb.
I size them to 358, and shoot them in half dozen different 9's, also shot them in 38/357 mag.

[gwpercle]

Welcome to the addiction !
Your story sounds a lot like mine , it started in 1967 and the fun continues to this day.
I've got that mould , size your boolets to .357 and use guns barrels as gauges to set the seating depth.
When both pass the plunk test , you're good to go . The 9mm can be a stinker... It was the only one that gave me difficulties but it was never designed for cast lead .
Modern 9mm's have tight chambers and little throat...that's what gave me fits so watch boolit size , powder coating just makes them larger.
If you run into problems just post them , most of us old dogs still have a few tricks to make them work . I got that boolit and one load to work in 4 different 9mm pistols . Been there .

If you want fatter boolits look at NOE moulds . My favorite 9mm is his 358-124- TC- GC , a 124 grain truncated cone gas check that drops them .358 .
I shoot them in 9mm Luger , 38 special and 357 magnum...I Like It !
Gary

[BearGrillz]

Welcome to the board glad to have you.i used a lee pot for a long time and still use it a lot. A setting of 8 seems about what mine likes and turn it down as pot gets lower. +1 for a little tin i went a long time with out using it but it can help. I size all my 9mm at .357 maybe i just got lucky and my bores are the same. I must say your bullets look very good. And as you get more experience you will get fewer and fewer rejects. I use a $10 hot plate to arm up my molds and get good bullets from the start. Lee sizers work well and are not expensive at all. I don't powder coat so can't say much except there are a lot on here that do so it must be something to it . And i am certain that if you run into problems that the members here are more than willing to help. And as i pretty much tell everyone don't hesitate to ask anything . The only dumb question is the one not asked.

Thanks for the welcome! I was quite pleased with the bullets myself! I certainly won't hesitate to ask as far as I can tell the community here is pretty excellent. I'm happy to hear that 9mm is working for you, it gives me hope. What sort of lube do you run if you're not powdercoating? Do you find it necessary to water quench after casting (assuming you're using wheel weight alloy?

[BearGrillz]

Lee 358-125-rf

It's in the 358 section. I've had a 2 cav, now have a 6 cavity. They drop at .358 - .3585 with 50/50 cww/pb.
I size them to 358, and shoot them in half dozen different 9's, also shot them in 38/357 mag.

Thanks for the suggestion! I'll keep that in mind if I find my bore to be too large for these guys.

Do you find 50/50 COWW to PB to be sufficient harness for the 9mm pressures? From the reading I've done it seems like a pure COWW bullet water quenched was going to be required for the 30000 PSI pressure stated in my Lee manual. It would be nice to use up some of those stick on wheel weight ingots that came from the bucket I aquired.

[BearGrillz]

Welcome to the addiction !
Your story sounds a lot like mine , it started in 1967 and the fun continues to this day.
I've got that mould , size your boolets to .357 and use guns barrels as gauges to set the seating depth.
When both pass the plunk test , you're good to go . The 9mm can be a stinker... It was the only one that gave me difficulties but it was never designed for cast lead .
Modern 9mm's have tight chambers and little throat...that's what gave me fits so watch boolit size , powder coating just makes them larger.
If you run into problems just post them , most of us old dogs still have a few tricks to make them work . I got that boolit and one load to work in 4 different 9mm pistols . Been there .

If you want fatter boolits look at NOE moulds . My favorite 9mm is his 358-124- TC- GC , a 124 grain truncated cone gas check that drops them .358 .
I shoot them in 9mm Luger , 38 special and 357 magnum...I Like It !
Gary

Thanks for the tips! I'll be sure to keep an eye on the seating depths, especially with the o-give of this bullet I expect to down load a bit to start because of the small COAL. I'll be sure to ask if I run in to issues :D

[jcren]

Do give powder coat a try, it makes cast almost like plated lead in the loading and shooting/clean-up departments. It islike casting, not as "hard" as you think, just a few tricks that come with practice. Had an older gent that works at a local gun shop that shoots a lot of cast that was interested in some pc bullets that I showed him but when I tried to describe the process, he lost interest. I stopped in with one of my pc tubs with bb's and smokes clear and a handfull of fresh cast boolits. Explained the process again, dropped the bullets in and shook the wee out of it for 20-30 seconds, opened the tub and showed him the results. He looked shocked and said, "Is that it?!" Now he pc's everything he cast.

[BearGrillz]

Do give powder coat a try, it makes cast almost like plated lead in the loading and shooting/clean-up departments. It islike casting, not as "hard" as you think, just a few tricks that come with practice. Had an older gent that works at a local gun shop that shoots a lot of cast that was interested in some pc bullets that I showed him but when I tried to describe the process, he lost interest. I stopped in with one of my pc tubs with bb's and smokes clear and a handfull of fresh cast boolits. Explained the process again, dropped the bullets in and shook the wee out of it for 20-30 seconds, opened the tub and showed him the results. He looked shocked and said, "Is that it?!" Now he pc's everything he cast.

I really do think that powder coating is pretty slick! I'll likely be heading down that road once I find a used toaster oven at a good price.

[BearGrillz]

*Update*

I have installed a vice to the workbench and slugged the barrel of the 1911. It turns out that my groove diameter is 0.3565. Bullets measure at 0.3570-0.3580. I am using a cheap vernier caliper with a 0.0005" resolution. I'll confirm the numbers with a good micrometer at work tomorrow.

Hopefully the powdercoat can take up the extra 0.0005"

[Bookworm]

*Update*

I have installed a vice to the workbench...."

Sigh.... At the risk of sounding like a school master....

A "vice" is something one does: smoke, drink, chase skirts, shoot cast boolits, etc.

A "vise" is a device one uses to hold something stationary.

Sorry, I can't stop myself. Refer to my screen name.

Now, back to our regularly scheduled programming....

[Bookworm]

Thanks for the suggestion! I'll keep that in mind if I find my bore to be too large for these guys.

Do you find 50/50 COWW to PB to be sufficient harness for the 9mm pressures? From the reading I've done it seems like a pure COWW bullet water quenched was going to be required for the 30000 PSI pressure stated in my Lee manual. It would be nice to use up some of those stick on wheel weight ingots that came from the bucket I aquired.

I must confess, I rarely shoot cast 9mm at full power. If I did, I would probably use a gas checked boolit.

Having said that, I have no problems with the 50/50 up to about 1100 fps in a 9. Never went faster.

I have taken plain base 50/50 up ~1300fps in 44 Mag, and 1250 fps in 357 Mag.

[BearGrillz]

Sigh.... At the risk of sounding like a school master....

A "vice" is something one does: smoke, drink, chase skirts, shoot cast boolits, etc.

A "vise" is a device one uses to hold something stationary.

Sorry, I can't stop myself. Refer to my screen name.

Now, back to our regularly scheduled programming....

I actually no the difference to. I must have just slipped up in my excited frenzy. Thanks for the correction, I'll have to go back and make sure their aren't any other mistakes. ;) ;)

[BearGrillz]

I must confess, I rarely shoot cast 9mm at full power. If I did, I would probably use a gas checked boolit.

Having said that, I have no problems with the 50/50 up to about 1100 fps in a 9. Never went faster.

I have taken plain base 50/50 up ~1300fps in 44 Mag, and 1250 fps in 357 Mag.

Interesting! I suppose it's just a trial and error sort of business eh? Do you down load based on the formulas set out in the lee book? I was intending on starting about 0.5 gr below minimum and working up from there.

[Iwsbull]

Looks like we are starting about the same time. One thing that will help to check the wheel weights is a piece of angled aluminum or a piece of bar aluminum. Use the squared edge to scratch the weights. Lead is the only one that scratch with just a quick strike. Almost forgot a big 👍 on the powder coating. Using 50/50 wheel weights to pure lead I am pushing my 44 to the mid upper 1400 with Lyman 429421 at 256 grains.

[BearGrillz]

Looks like we are starting about the same time. One thing that will help to check the wheel weights is a piece of angled aluminum or a piece of bar aluminum. Use the squared edge to scratch the weights. Lead is the only one that scratch with just a quick strike.

Right on! I wish you the best of luck in your endeavor.

Ohh I like that! Another test for the toolbox. I like to have multiple ways to check the weights. When you say scratch do you mean like you would to strike a match? Are you looking for a deep gouge?

[Iwsbull]

I hit it a bit harder than I would strike a match. You can see the difference between the marks it makes on lead vs zinc or steel as well as the sound.

[BearGrillz]

I hit it a bit harder than I would strike a match. You can see the difference between the marks it makes on lead vs zinc or steel as well as the sound.

Excellent, thanks! I'll give it a go when we start sorting the second bucket.

Those are some nice looking boolits you've got there.

[Bookworm]

Interesting! I suppose it's just a trial and error sort of business eh? Do you down load based on the formulas set out in the lee book? I was intending on starting about 0.5 gr below minimum and working up from there.

I don't know what book you are using. You mention the Lee manual, which some deride. I think the Lee manual is very useful, and I have #1 on PDF, and #2 hardcopy. I reference both regularly.

Get yourself a Lyman Cast Bullet Handbook, either #3 or #4. It uses different powders than some other manuals.

Casting opens an entire new aspect of loading, and allows you to move from reloading to handloading. If you go slowly, and pay attention, you will start developing "off book" loads safely.

The panoply of projectiles (boolits, if you will) available to the caster are vast in comparison to store-bought. One can tailor loads to one's wishes - be it a heavy for caliber bruiser, or a light casual shooting load.

I regularly shoot 9mm at ~950 - 1000 fps, and the brass just drops in a pile at my feet.
I can load 44 Mag at 800 fps, and my wife can shoot it as long as she pleases (and cackle with her friends -"I fired a 44 Mag yesterday, it was no problem at all!").

Enjoy yourself in the new book you've opened. I'm certain you'll start saving money very shortly.:bigsmyl2:

[mattw]

Wow, I have to say the you approached this with your mind first and avoided many of the early pitfalls. I have a feeling that many good boolits are in your future! I have been casting for around 30 years and I almost find it as much fun as shooting, almost. I find the rewarding part to be picking up an old and odd mould and working with the historic load date or non-existent published data and working up a load that meets or exceeds accuracy expectations. The downside... I have somewhere around 70 Ideal and Lyman moulds plus the moulds from LBT, NOE, Lee and Arsenal that I store and maintain.

My 16yo daughter loves to do my lube sizing and also loves to do PC for me. She has cast a couple of times and really likes that as well, she will be hooked. She has reloaded a few 38's and 223's under close supervision and loves to empty 9's, 32 H&R's, 38's and 45's. She is small at 5'3" and has small hands, she can't deal with L and N frame revolvers but loves J and K frames and 1911's. And OMG if you put an AR in her hands, you had better hide some of the ammo supply if you want to shoot. :)

[lightman]

Welcome to the hobby of casting. I looks like you are off to a good start.

Don't let sorting weights get you down. After you have sorted a few buckets worth you get a feel for spotting the zinc and iron ones and you won't have to cut every one.

[gwpercle]

Sigh.... At the risk of sounding like a school master....

A "vice" is something one does: smoke, drink, chase skirts, shoot cast boolits, etc.

A "vise" is a device one uses to hold something stationary.

Sorry, I can't stop myself. Refer to my screen name.

Now, back to our regularly scheduled programming....

I have to bite my tongue at times , our old English teachers insisted on proper spelling and usage , seeing the lack of correct spelling/usage makes me wonder what they teach in school now...how to use apps I guess.
I'm giving you a big ATTABOY for trying to do it right !

[Texas by God]

"To" used in lieu of "too" irks me. I can't explain why. The Lyman books are highly recommended for good reason. Enjoy the ride!

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using Tapatalk

[daloper]

When I sort WW I run them across a piece of threaded rod. You will learn quickly how to tell the lead for the steel and zinc.

[pworley1]

Great job. Congratulations on you first effort!

[murf205]

Good looking boolits on your part Bear. Welcome to the board and congrats for the effort. My first attempt looked like anything but that. The best part about casting is that you will never be at the mercy of the manufacturer again. You might not have exactly what you want but you will have something to shoot.

[trapper9260]

You on a good start. If you may get a Lee hardness tester that way you will know what BHN to cast for .I see you ask how hard to cast for . The tester have the information you looking for on the chart that comes with it. I do not drop my boolits in water I just air cool my.I rum my in a lube sizer and make my own lube. It works for me. Like also stated about the Lyman cast book .I learn from the 3rd ed. Welcome to the fun. it just a start. as for smelting your WW just do it with low heat and all the zinc will float for you.

[Gatch]

I actually just bought a MP molds 145gr rn bb in 9mm. 6cav, brass, it rains boolits. I'm hopefully going to test the first lot this coming monday with universal powder. I've been struggling with the hitek coating, though that's probably down to me not paying full attention to the instructions..

[BearGrillz]

I don't know what book you are using. You mention the Lee manual, which some deride. I think the Lee manual is very useful, and I have #1 on PDF, and #2 hardcopy. I reference both regularly.

Get yourself a Lyman Cast Bullet Handbook, either #3 or #4. It uses different powders than some other manuals.

Casting opens an entire new aspect of loading, and allows you to move from reloading to handloading. If you go slowly, and pay attention, you will start developing "off book" loads safely.

The panoply of projectiles (boolits, if you will) available to the caster are vast in comparison to store-bought. One can tailor loads to one's wishes - be it a heavy for caliber bruiser, or a light casual shooting load.

I regularly shoot 9mm at ~950 - 1000 fps, and the brass just drops in a pile at my feet.
I can load 44 Mag at 800 fps, and my wife can shoot it as long as she pleases (and cackle with her friends -"I fired a 44 Mag yesterday, it was no problem at all!").

Enjoy yourself in the new book you've opened. I'm certain you'll start saving money very shortly.:bigsmyl2:

I've read both Modern Reloading 1st and 2nd edition, and have 2nd edition in hardcover. I grab the majority of my data from the 2nd edition. I agree that the Lee manuals are very useful, I like the way he explains pressure. I've also read From Ingot to Target: Cast Bullet Guide for Handgunners that I found in the stickies. The Lynman Cast Bullet Handbook #4 is certainly next on the list.

I certainly see how referencing information changes when you have the freedom to change your boolit. Currently I'm trying to understand how seating depth affects powder selection and charge reduction. It appears that I'll have to seat these boolits around 0.100" deeper than what the Lee manual lists as minimum COAL. I've got the impression that I have to select a slower powder and reduce the charge considerably.

I've got an eye on a couple of other molds now too! The prospect of such a wide selection of projectiles is exciting to say the least.

Well I'll certainly enjoy myself but I don't know if I'll be saving any money :D

[BearGrillz]

Thanks for such a warm welcome everyone! I appreciate all of the words of wisdom you've given me. I've got some more strategies to try with wheel weight sorting that I know my hands will appreciate, there are more molds that I have a feeling will be added to the collection and I've got a ton of encouragement to keep going down this rabbit hole.

You're all a good bunch of folks.

So I've gone ahead and slugged my bore (0.3565) and measured my boolits (0.3570-0.3575). I've loaded a couple dummy rounds and it seems like I'll have to seat these boolits at 1.065" COAL maximum.

Once I figured this out I seated a projectile in to a flared case then pulled it to find that it was getting swaged down. After some research I ordered a 38 S&W expander plug for my Lee Powder through expanding die. Hopefully this expands the case to 0.358 as expected and my boolits keep their shape.

The biggest decision I have to make right now is selecting a good powder to meet these conditions. Due to the shallow seating depth I'm most concerned about a powder that has a larger margin or error allowable. From what I understand, fast powders with small case capacities can cause big problems. What would be some good choices for a slower burning powder for a 9mm 130gr projectile seated to 1.065" COAL?

[David2011]

BearGrillz,

Welcome to the forum and the addition. Sounds like you and your shoot mate are having a ball casting. I’m curious about one thing you mentioned- getting a bigger fan. What is the purpose of the fan? The reason I ask is that it could be working against you by cooling what you’re trying to heat.

I admire and applaud the methodical approach you’ve taken. It is putting you ahead of the typical learning curve of new casters.

While the pressure of the 9mm is high the surface area of the base of the boolit is small so you need a firm but not super hard alloy. As others mentioned they’re pushing larger boolits faster with straight COWW alloy. Just something to consider. Have fun!

[BearGrillz]

BearGrillz,

Welcome to the forum and the addition. Sounds like you and your shoot mate are having a ball casting. I’m curious about one thing you mentioned- getting a bigger fan. What is the purpose of the fan? The reason I ask is that it could be working against you by cooling what you’re trying to heat.

I admire and applaud the methodical approach you’ve taken. It is putting you ahead of the typical learning curve of new casters.

While the pressure of the 9mm is high the surface area of the base of the boolit is small so you need a firm but not super hard alloy. As others mentioned they’re pushing larger boolits faster with straight COWW alloy. Just something to consider. Have fun!

Thanks for the warm welcome!

The large fan is to generate airflow in the garage so that we can keep from inhaling the fumes from the melt. It proved to be most required when we were rendering wheel weights. During casting we figured out that hotter seems to work better so I agree with your advice to keep the fan from blowing at the pot and mold.

Thanks for the compliment! I try my best to search out plenty of information before I take on a new hobby, especially if that hobby is safety sensitive. I figure it's easier to learn from others mistakes.

I was planning on using straight COWW and possibly water quenching if required. Do you figure that quenching may be unnecessary due to the small surface area of the base?

[lightman]

Except for doing a few experiments I have never water quenched. Play around a little bit with it and see what you think.

[RED BEAR]

Thanks for the welcome! I was quite pleased with the bullets myself! I certainly won't hesitate to ask as far as I can tell the community here is pretty excellent. I'm happy to hear that 9mm is working for you, it gives me hope. What sort of lube do you run if you're not powdercoating? Do you find it necessary to water quench after casting (assuming you're using wheel weight alloy?

Sorry to take so long to get back to you. I made what can only be called a concoction for my lube i wish i could remember what was in it. It had a lot of stuff in it lithium grease stp atf vasoline alox bees wax parifin wax not sure what else or how much of each. But it works great in my pistols and rifles both. I was just about out but brother returned some as he quit loading so i can go a while longer before i have to make some again. Will write down what i use this time. Last time i went out with mini 30 fired 500 rds came home ran a swab with hoppes then a brush then a patch the second patch came out clean. Now these were gas checked so i am sure that helped. The bore on this gun has also been polished. But i was surprised at how easy it was cleaned.

[RED BEAR]

Thanks for the warm welcome!

The large fan is to generate airflow in the garage so that we can keep from inhaling the fumes from the melt. It proved to be most required when we were rendering wheel weights. During casting we figured out that hotter seems to work better so I agree with your advice to keep the fan from blowing at the pot and mold.

Thanks for the compliment! I try my best to search out plenty of information before I take on a new hobby, especially if that hobby is safety sensitive. I figure it's easier to learn from others mistakes.

I was planning on using straight COWW and possibly water quenching if required. Do you figure that quenching may be unnecessary due to the small surface area of the base?

+1 for the large fan. I to cast in my garage and finally got around to making a casting table in front of a window and have a large box fan to suck the fumes out. Water quenching ww gets them very hard. Mine end up at 25or26 bnh. I jjust air cool almost everything my ww air cooled come out about 12 or 13 bnh which seems to be about right. The wrong hardness can cause leading also. Powder coating from what i understand should cure that.

[OldBearHair]

In the archives are much information on reloading for 9mm.. ... seating to deeply so that the gun will go to battery...builds pressure rapidly. Note: See Doug Guy how he can correct the problem of lands all the way back to headspace not allowing the boolit to be seated in the crimp groove, so you might want to correct by seating deeper. . OK, one more caution: Don't let the big fan move the air close to your powder measure. Much more info in the Stickys.

[BearGrillz]

Sorry to take so long to get back to you. I made what can only be called a concoction for my lube i wish i could remember what was in it. It had a lot of stuff in it lithium grease stp atf vasoline alox bees wax parifin wax not sure what else or how much of each. But it works great in my pistols and rifles both. I was just about out but brother returned some as he quit loading so i can go a while longer before i have to make some again. Will write down what i use this time. Last time i went out with mini 30 fired 500 rds came home ran a swab with hoppes then a brush then a patch the second patch came out clean. Now these were gas checked so i am sure that helped. The bore on this gun has also been polished. But i was surprised at how easy it was cleaned.

No worries! I've got time.

Well I may have to look in to gas checks if I need to drive these real fast. Once I finally get around to testing these out I'm sure I'll have to make some adjustments. Hopefully I'll be able to hit that lube/hardness sweet spot so that I can keep my barrels nice and clean.

[BearGrillz]

+1 for the large fan. I to cast in my garage and finally got around to making a casting table in front of a window and have a large box fan to suck the fumes out. Water quenching ww gets them very hard. Mine end up at 25or26 bnh. I jjust air cool almost everything my ww air cooled come out about 12 or 13 bnh which seems to be about right. The wrong hardness can cause leading also. Powder coating from what i understand should cure that.

I want to be able to do this for a long time so air flow is certainly important to me too.

I've read that too hard can be a menace too. I hope that powdercoating will give me some leeway. I'm amazed by how much water quenching can change the harness - thanks aresenic ;)

[BearGrillz]

In the archives are much information on reloading for 9mm.. ... seating to deeply so that the gun will go to battery...builds pressure rapidly. Note: See Doug Guy how he can correct the problem of lands all the way back to headspace not allowing the boolit to be seated in the crimp groove, so you might want to correct by seating deeper. . OK, one more caution: Don't let the big fan move the air close to your powder measure. Much more info in the Stickys.

I've been using Google to search the site and many others that use the mold seem to be seating it quite deep as well. I'll keep looking through the stickies to try and feel comfortable about which powder I want and how much of a reduced charge to start at. I'm leaning towards Winchester 231.

Haha I could see how that would cause problems. Lucky for me I keep the fans in the garage and the powder stays inside the house with the press.