My First Cast!!

[jcrntx]

I am a new member and have been reloading for a few months but have never cast my own until today! Order of lead showed up and I poured up about 250 40S&W boolits. My wife got me the Lee 4 20 melter for my birthday recently and it worked pretty smoothly. Don't even have a gun in 40 right now but that is the only mold I own at the moment (but not for long!) and I couldn't wait to give it a try. The first pic is of the very first bullet I poured in the 2 cavity mold, they came out nice right from the get go!

A question about my pot, Lee's instructions say to coat the exposed surfaces with a little wd40 or other rust preventative if it is going to be stored. It will probably sit on the shelf til next weekend and then fired up again. Should I use something after every session? Any and all tips and advice are welcome!

I have a bad feeling about what this is going to do to my poor finances. I can't decide on ordering molds, more lead, guns to shot them in, brass, etc, etc, etc...

I don't think I will shoot that first boolit, I put it up on my workbench shelf to hang on to.:lovebooli

http://i757.photobucket.com/albums/xx215/jcrntx/SU1BRzAyNzguanBn.jpg

http://i757.photobucket.com/albums/xx215/jcrntx/SU1BRzAyODAuanBn.jpg

[mooman76]

Really nice looking boolits, especially for a first go. I don't coat my caster with anything and don't know of anyone that does. It certainly wouldn't hurt but it is going to get rusty no matter what you do. WD40 will only protect it for short term at best. I also top my pot off before shutting down. It helps keep it good below the lead line.

[RobS]

They look good; and now for putting them to the test; let us know how they fly. The pot can rust quickly especially if you are in an area where there is humidity so I would spray it down. You have definately stepped into the threshold of the silver stream addiction...............welcome, and welcome to the forum.

[HeavyMetal]

That is a perfect boolit for the 40!

I have that mold in a 2 cav, Lee didn't seem to get it for a 6 banger, and I have the 155 Tc we ran as a group buy a few years ago.

Both work and shoot great!

These go into one of the guys at works 40 Sigma I don't own a 40 but I will someday!

[gray wolf]

That's a nice bullet which one is that ?

Also nice job on the casting.

Sam

[jcrntx]

It's from the Lee 145 grain .401 SWC 2 cavity mold. I helped a buddy of mine pour some 45 and 357 one evening and I was hooked! I probably don't shoot enough to make it worth it but maybe I can change that!:bigsmyl2:

[RobS]

I'm a bettin man that you'll change it.

[Bambeno]

I probably don't shoot enough to make it worth it but maybe I can change that!:bigsmyl2:

Don't worry, now that you got started casting you will get in the swing of things and start shooting more too :smile:

Welcome aboard!!

[Shiloh]

Great job.

Your new pot is coated from the factory with some sort of petroleum based anti rust compound.
It burnt off when you fired it up. I have never found the need to spray between uses, but I do coat it with heavy weight gear oil at the end of the season. I have one more casting session to go. 148 gr wad-cutters and 140 gr. SWC.

It'll start being to uncomfortable to cast in the garage.

Shiloh

[jcrntx]

It's just getting to be great casting weather here in San Antonio. Was about 65 and breezy today. Just hope it stays that way for a while!

[blikseme300]

It's just getting to be great casting weather here in San Antonio. Was about 65 and breezy today. Just hope it stays that way for a while!

+1 ^^^^^^

At last we can go outdoors again. I am more south that you, but weather is similar.

Bliksem

[jcrntx]

I have seen a little talk on this on the forum but will ask here anyways...these boolits are not the tumble lube type. I have read on the forum, written by folks who seem to know what they are talking about [smilie=l: that I can tumble lube them as long as I don't push em down the barrel too fast, sound right??

[Will]

How did you get your wife to buy you that Lee pot?

[44man]

Wonderful bunch of boolits.
Please, NO WD-40, the junk actually causes rust. I do nothing with mine but if you do have a rust problem, use something like Birchwood-Casey Sheath or Zip anti corrosion spray.

[jcrntx]

How did you get your wife to buy you that Lee pot?

She asked, I gave her my Midway log on and had the stuff in my shopping cart, Midway gives out a Birthday discount (if they have your bday) of about 12-15% and she ordered my pot and some accessories.

My 2 oldest daughters got me a new lee turret press kit as well!

All in all, a great birthday :drinks:

[casterofboolits]

You could pan lube the boolits and use a Lee push thru sizer set up. I belive there is a very good article on this site, might even be sticky.

Look at this: http://www.midwayusa.com/viewProduct/?productNumber=447228

Kudos on your first casting session, those look to be excellent boolits.

[noylj]

You had a mold in a caliber that you don't have a gun for?
And, you started casting for it?
You want me to buy you some alloy and you can ship me the bullets?
Do you have a pile of brass for cartridges you don't have a gun for? This is VERY common, but casting for a gun you don't have? That is a real case of wanting to cast.
Bullets look great.
Now, I will step up on my soap box and give you my opinion as gospel fact:
Don't do anything with these bullets. Set the first one aside to keep forever.
Investigate tumble lube and pan lube materials and methods. Do not start out sizing your bullets. Just try a simple tumble or pan lube and as-cast bullets.
When you get a gun, slug the barrel to determine the groove diameter. Make sure your bullets are at least 0.001" over groove diameter. I find that 0.402" is a very good diameter for .40 S&W and 10mm Auto and 0.403" is almost as good in my guns.
Start with the simplest way to lube and load the bullets and see how things go.
Keep us informed and have a lot of safe fun.
About the pot, I never did anything special with mine. The only reason mine started to corrode was because of the flux I started using. Great flux, but it attacked metal.
Be sure to place the pot in a catch pan (cookie sheet with sides or some such). At some time, you may get the spout stuck open and a river of silver will pour onto your bench if you don't have a catch pan.
The Lee pot is so cheap, that even with lousy maintenance, you can afford to replace it every 10 years or so. A few people have even mounted one above the other so there is always hot metal available to fill the main pot.
Some Alox on the metal will protect it and you will then get used to the smell.
If you hadn't used the pot, I would have said to give all metal surfaces a coating of Johnson Paste wax or carnauba wax and then bake the wax for 30 minutes at 300°F and then buff it. This is how industry oftentreats molds that can't be Tefon coated to prevent corrosion and keep "stuff" from sticking.

[ghh3rd]

Regarding lubing, before I acquired a lube sizer, I "pan lube/tumble lubed at times. That is, I melted the lube in a pan and dropped in a handful of boolits, removed them with tweezers and set them on their base. The lube covered the boolit, and settled in a small ring at the bottom of each lube groove. Seemed to provide adequate lube for me.

[jcrntx]

You had a mold in a caliber that you don't have a gun for?
And, you started casting for it?
You want me to buy you some alloy and you can ship me the bullets?
Do you have a pile of brass for cartridges you don't have a gun for? This is VERY common, but casting for a gun you don't have? That is a real case of wanting to cast.
Bullets look great.
Now, I will step up on my soap box and give you my opinion as gospel fact:
Don't do anything with these bullets. Set the first one aside to keep forever.
Investigate tumble lube and pan lube materials and methods. Do not start out sizing your bullets. Just try a simple tumble or pan lube and as-cast bullets.
When you get a gun, slug the barrel to determine the groove diameter. Make sure your bullets are at least 0.001" over groove diameter. I find that 0.402" is a very good diameter for .40 S&W and 10mm Auto and 0.403" is almost as good in my guns.
Start with the simplest way to lube and load the bullets and see how things go.
Keep us informed and have a lot of safe fun.
About the pot, I never did anything special with mine. The only reason mine started to corrode was because of the flux I started using. Great flux, but it attacked metal.
Be sure to place the pot in a catch pan (cookie sheet with sides or some such). At some time, you may get the spout stuck open and a river of silver will pour onto your bench if you don't have a catch pan.
The Lee pot is so cheap, that even with lousy maintenance, you can afford to replace it every 10 years or so. A few people have even mounted one above the other so there is always hot metal available to fill the main pot.
Some Alox on the metal will protect it and you will then get used to the smell.
If you hadn't used the pot, I would have said to give all metal surfaces a coating of Johnson Paste wax or carnauba wax and then bake the wax for 30 minutes at 300°F and then buff it. This is how industry oftentreats molds that can't be Tefon coated to prevent corrosion and keep "stuff" from sticking.

Yes, yes and yes. I have several thousand rounds of brass for calibers I plan on acquiring. I had picked up the mold second hand for a few bucks and once I got the pot and lead for my bday, I couldn't wait! Got a 45 mold and a 365 Makarov mold now so at least I can make somethings I can shoot. Picked up a cookies sheet at the goodwill so I am good to go there. Still watching for a 40 cal but it will have to wait until after the holidays. Thanks for all the advice!

[jcrntx]

Regarding lubing, before I acquired a lube sizer, I "pan lube/tumble lubed at times. That is, I melted the lube in a pan and dropped in a handful of boolits, removed them with tweezers and set them on their base. The lube covered the boolit, and settled in a small ring at the bottom of each lube groove. Seemed to provide adequate lube for me.

Yeah, I have tumble lubed and tried my hand at pan lubing this weekend just for the experience. Have not done any sizing as of yet, that may come later on. Will have to see how the molds treat me and how the as cast boolits shoot!