I normally allow 48 to 72 hours for hardening before sizing and lubing. I will normally size and lube sound 200, and put the remainder in a jar properly labeled, until I need them. Curious about the general consensus.
I normally allow 48 to 72 hours for hardening before sizing and lubing. I will normally size and lube sound 200, and put the remainder in a jar properly labeled, until I need them. Curious about the general consensus.
I only cast handgun boolits currently. I water quench from the mold blocks. I try to get the sizing and lube done inside 24 hours since the boolits will get very hard to size if I wait.
If for some reason I have to wait longer, I run them through a Lee push through sizer before running them through my lubrisizer.
The boolits still harden quite well even if sized before they reach full hardness.
I can't speak for how well this system might work for rifle boolits.
I water quench, then dry them in the oven, and push the .461" as-cast through the .460" Lee push-through sizer, which also seats the gas checks. Less particular about when I lube them as I use the Lubrisizer to lube only. I let them rest at least a few days before I use them.
-Paul
I don’t have any set times. I most often wait a few weeks or more.
TAZMAN, I cast only handgun bullets so far, from .357 up to .475. I water quench virtually all of my casts. I think I am correct in saying the hardening from quenching has more to do with antimony content? Most of my stuff is close to Lyman #2, or a little softer. Right now I am awaiting my first PID which should arrive tomorrow. Member Hatch, was kind enough to make for me. I can’t wait to learn it and test my alloys.
Air cooled. Size any time.
Water cooled, wait 2 weeks to fully harden. Size anytime.
Why wait to harden and make more work? Do exterior dimensions change as the alloy crystalizes?
I find if I wait any time at all they've hardened so much that sizing can be pretty tough.
-Paul
I have no set waiting time. It might be the same day or years after casting.
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Sooner is better with harder alloys. I water drop out of the PC oven, so try to get them sized in 2-3 days.
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I try to size them as soon as possible after casting. They can age up and make sizing difficult, and If I want them hard, I'll heat treat them in the oven after sizing and installing gas checks.
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The only reason to wait is if you happen to have an alloy that grows a lot with age, mainly antimony heavy alloys. I don't use such alloys. I've cast a bullet, sized, loaded, and shot it within 20 minutes before. It's pretty regular I cast and shoot my muzzleloader bullets the same day.
I size and lube as soon as they get cool enough to handle!
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I water quench most of the time. I don’t size right away only because I’m not loading them right after. I size what I will be loading just before. I bought a Rockchucker that I use only for sizing. Never any problems sizing, even after PCing.
If I air cool, about 2 days. If I water quench, The next day.
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The fact that I bake my bullets twice during the HiTek coating process means I probably lose some of the hardness I might gain by aging my air cooled casts, I use an effective lube, only size down 0.001” and have an undemanding application for what I produce, so I don’t worry about the timing.
With WQ, I try to size the same day. It really depends on how much I need to size down. If only .001" it doesn't matter. If .003 I need to size the same day with my Star or I risk putting to much force on it.
Qualifier, I rarely cast more than 200 or 300 at a time.
Normally I do the first size same day. Then PC is done the next day and finish sizing is done that same day.
If I quenched then I'd size them same day just so they do not get too hard.
When I store bullets they are ready to reload. I don't keep batches of unfinished bullets lying around.
BP | Bronze Point | IMR | Improved Military Rifle | PTD | Pointed |
BR | Bench Rest | M | Magnum | RN | Round Nose |
BT | Boat Tail | PL | Power-Lokt | SP | Soft Point |
C | Compressed Charge | PR | Primer | SPCL | Soft Point "Core-Lokt" |
HP | Hollow Point | PSPCL | Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" | C.O.L. | Cartridge Overall Length |
PSP | Pointed Soft Point | Spz | Spitzer Point | SBT | Spitzer Boat Tail |
LRN | Lead Round Nose | LWC | Lead Wad Cutter | LSWC | Lead Semi Wad Cutter |
GC | Gas Check |