Lee mould gap?

[ChuLai 68]

I have a Jap 7.7 and a British .303 that have a groove diameter of .315....but Lee only offers mold diameters up to .312, then they jump to .323 ..by "beagling" the .312 mould i was able to drop .315-317 bullets, but there are no sizer dies for a .316-317.... could i use them "as dropped"?....i am fairly new to this....any ideas what i can do here?
Thanks!
Rick

[VintageRifle]

You can order a custom LEE sizing die for $25 or so plus shipping from LEE.

[mooman76]

You should be able to shoot as dropped. Load one and see how it chambers. If you watch the group buys here they do hav moulds special made at a discount because of the group and often order oversized bullets. Lee does have a .314 sizer you could ream out a little or as Vintagerifle said they will do any size sizer you want for like $25 plus shipping. (about $30)

[mtgrs737]

Buckshot also makes custom sizer dies for Lyman and RCBS machines, he does good work and is reasonable.

[docone31]

Since you have just started molding for those rifles, I have a suggestion.
My Enfield barrel was probably made on a Monday, while still haveing an hangover. It slugs at .3135.
I tried to cast and find a sweet spot for my Smelly, and I could not. I went instead to paper patching.
That is the sweet spot in my Enfield. I cast using the C312/185R .303 British mold, using water dropped wheel weights, size to .308, then two wraps of standard notebook paper, let dry, size to .314 using JPW. I leave the wax on after sizing.
The patch is 2 3/16" with 45* angles. I use a cigarette roller to roll them on. Any excessive stretching is rolled flat.
I use starting load data for my loads.
Amazing performance! Better than jacketeds. I tried .312 jacketeds and got marginal performance. With paper, we are talking 2" groups at 100yds! Much better than 20min of berm with casting.
I use the Lee Collet Dies, I had to have them open them up for the patched load. Once I did that, it is a joy to shoot.
I cut a bunch of patches ahead of time, dip them in water, lay them wet on the roller, and they come out damp. They shrink nicely and make an hard jacket. They size really easily.
My bore was .304, rather than .303. The casting is .304. I opened up the mold slightly by using fine lapping compound. The mold now drops .3045.
I do the same with my .30s. I size the paper to .309, sizing the casting to .308. Again, great results. I have an Ishapore 7.62, it favours paper to jacketeds also.
Paper made my day.
When I found my size for the bore/groove, I had some .005 less wrapped up. I smeared some lapping compound on the paper and shined the inners. It took out the hammer marks in the bore.
Try it, you will like it. No need for a custom sizing die.

[ChuLai 68]

Thanks for all the good advise.....i have 2 Brits that are .315 and a Savage and a Longbranch that are .308 and .309 ...i have to admit i have never heard of paper patching, can you tell me exactly what that is?

[docone31]

It is the Grail!
Go to the paper patching section on this forum. I have started several threads on the patching for my Smelly, my favourite rifle of all.
It is simple, effective, and it gets looks at the range. Especially when you make cloverleafs at 100yds.
Essentially, it is making a jacket out of paper instead of copper.
Simple.

[ChuLai 68]

Wow! That could be the answer to getting the .316-.317 bullets i need. I will check it out.
Thanks!

[Bullshop Junior]

I think buckshot makes custom sizer dies for RCBS and Lyman sizers, and lee type dies.
BIC/Daniel/BS Jr.

[docone31]

With sizing to .308, then wrapping, I got between .317-.318 without sizing. That was with two wraps.
I have done three wraps also. I first started with Meade Traceing Paper. Two wraps gave me .3135, three wraps gave me .315. I have not experimented with notebook paper.
I think paper patching will solve a lot of issues for you. It sure did with me.
With castings that small, a cigarette roller will make short work of wrapping, rather than trying to use a board. Pdawg wraps .257, or at least he did. I have a 25-06, and a couple of .243s. I want to wrap for them one day.
When I cut the notebook paper, I cut across the length of the sheet to get the grain. Same with the Meade. I could get more patches cutting them the long way, but the way I do, they shrink most efficiently. You can see the lube lands through the dry patch.
I also use dish soap to lube to push thru my sizer. It rinses off real well so the castings are just plain wheel weight.
Do not use adhesive on the patches. You will not need to.
I got my castings patched first time off. Then it was finding the size.