Buying roll of aluminum flashing for GC

[pistolman44]

Ordered a roll of of aluminum flashing advertised thickness was .014". But when it arrived it was .016"+. It works in the FreechexII 44 cal. but with a lot more effort. The cup sticks to the mandrel and has to pulled of with your fingers. Now I will have to buy a 1/2 ton Arbor press to use this tool effectively. If I buy the press I'll have over $100 invested in making my own gas checks. Flashing came from acehardwareoutlet.com Don't be surprised if you see it all on FleaBay.

[Multigunner]

I would have thought aluminum wouldn't be a good choice for a gas check.

Have you used it before with success?
If so what can you tell me about its properties.

[Tom W.]

Thanks for the info. It looks like I may have to get my flashing that way. I already have the arbor press...
Multigunner, the aluminim works just fine from my .454 and is just as accurate as the copper Hormady checks..Altho I do have to use the .014 thickness for success...

[mrbill2]

Save your money. Don't buy a arbor press, you'll still have checks that stick to the mandrel. Buy aluminum that is the size you need or have the tool altered.

[StarMetal]

I polish my check tools with a little felt wheel and jewelers rouge. It helps a lot.

Joe

[Mugs]

The flashing that Ace carries is made by Amerimax. If you look at thier website they show .0092 as economy the .014 as standard and .0167 as commercial. Sounds like they sent you some commercial thickness. If you look under stickies you will find a Hornady gas check chart. Hornady shows .010 thickness for .44 checks. If the Freechex II in .44 is designed for .010, using the .014 or the .016 would cause your sticking. Hornady shows .017 thickness for .30 cal. someone with a .30 set of dies might be able to use your .016 alum.
Mugs
IHMSA 5940L

[pistolman44]

The .016 fits the bullet(44) good and the heavier gage gives you a deeper cup. It's simular to the hornady check. It just a little harder to work with. I use a Lee push thru sizer and it went thru ok and it sized to the die size of .430. The .o14 punched out of the FreechexII with just one wack of a plastic hammer, but with the .016 it takes a good 3 wacks to cut out the disk. And the same force to form the cup. Also you have to remove the cup from the forming mandrel because it sticks on to it. A sample of .014 was sent with my FreechexII 44 and was recomended from manufacturer. The .014 sample that was sent with tool worked perfect. That is why I ordered .014 in the first place.

[Mugs]

I'm lucky i've been able to get .014 right off the shelf at my local Ace. To bad your so far away i'd trade you some .014 for some .016. I'd like to try some .016 in my Pat Marlin .30 cal. die.
Mugs
IHMSA 5940L

[RU shooter]

Just open up the forming die slightly! It should be over your "size to" dia. a few thou. anyways .And as StarMetal said it helps to polish well the punch and forming die.


Tim

[HamGunner]

I had a bit of flashing left over from when I had the house sided and the eaves wrapped. It was painted on one side so I just heated the other side a bit and the paint peeled off leaving a .016-.017 aluminum sheet. Apparently the commercial stuff. Worked out great for my Lyman 31141 in my .30 cal. Freechex II. The mandrel was sticking a bit to the chex so I polished the tip down about .001 and they still stick a bit, but come off easily. They actually grip the bullet shank better than before as it reduced the inside diameter of the chex . I did slightly polish the bottom portion only on the Freechex II die and the extruding was reduced to almost normal. I can still use the thinner .014 just fine and in fact it works even better than before also.

One side benefit that I found to the polishing, was that my earlier unsatisfactory three layered soda can chex (they used to separate from each other easily) now come out perfect with a nice bottle cap finish. They can not be separated with my fingernail and they fit very good on the shank. With three layers it comes out at about .0135-.0140.

Not all bullet molds are created equal, so the shank end just as the bullet diameter at the sides will cast differently by changing alloy. One must be prepared to slightly modify any check making tool if using anything that it was not specifically designed for or if your application needs tweaking. Just be certain that you know what the results will be before you alter anything.

Oh, I use two layers of soda can material for my .225 Freechex II gas checks. They work great.

[pistolman44]

Got an answere from acehardwareoutlet.com on returning the .016 that they sent me instead of the .014" that I ordered. The answere I got from customer Service that they sent me the right roll of flashing even though thier advertised size was .014" it wasn't thier problem that it was .016". Beware ordering on line because you can't be there to Mic it. Also before buying the Freechex II 44 you better find some .014" first that is the size recomended for 44 FreechexII. I have been about everywhere that sells flashing and can't find the .014.

[Mugs]

Pistolman
If your roll of alum. is Amerimax brand the part # for the .014 should be 68104. I'm still interested in some of the .016 if we can work a trade.
Mugs
IHMSA 5940 L

[pistolman44]

Yes that is the no. that is on the Label on the roll 68104 Amerimax. Someone at the factory must put the wrong Label on the roll which is .0167". acehardwareoulet.com said I got the right roll I ordered because the roll label had the right no. 68104. and won't exchange it for the .014. Told me to call Amerimax. I'm going to waite for the Pat Marlin gas check maker in 44. It seems to be a better set up in that you use your reloading press to use the tool.

[pistolman44]

Ace wouldn't exchange the .016" flashing for the correct size I ordered .014". Called Amerimax told them that they put the wrong label on the roll of flashing I got. So they sent me a free roll of the .014". Pays to make a little noise. I was surprised when the lady on the phone said would it be allright if I sent you out a free roll of the .014". Got it yesterday and it mic'd .014".