As-cast diameter?

L

longfellow

New member
Can you folks post your as-cast diameters for your commercial molds; those that cast 44 caliber would be most useful but I suspect that if there is any trend among manufacturers, that it is fairly consistent among all of their pistol calibers - maybe not. Please also list the alloy that you are using as this is a partial reason for the diameter that you are getting. Also, I do appreciate all of your responses but unless you are using properly callibrated vernier (readings to .0001) micrometers and callipers, the results might not be as accurate as otherwise could be. It's pretty important and I've slipped up myself and found at arbitrary times that my mic's were not zero'ed and I had been using them for months. It happens.
Thanks.

Lyman - ???
RCBS - ???
SAECO -???
LEE - ???
 
They vary quite a bit from batch to batch even between the same mold manufacturers. Depends on how long they use the cherries. I have had Lee and Lyman molds 1 thou undersized, but recently just purchased a .311 mold that drops at .314". QC within some companies is a little less than desired.
 
Bullet Dia.

As we all know as casters bullet dia. can vary & that can mean a wonderfull feeling of succes or a leaded barrel from chamber to muzzle !!!

I have molds aluminum & steel that cast undersized wit stik on WW then .002" over with WW with a touch of linotype , even temp & casting speed has an affect on dia . but the biggest effect is alloys!

I`ve found the older Lymans cast "fat" up to .004" over on the older IDEALs & some very early Lymans .

If I was looking for a specific dia out of a certain alloy i`d look up a custom mold maker in a minute , some over on castboolits.com offer truely custom designs at a very affordable price !!
 
Just to muddy the water further, most cast bullets are not round...some (9mm) I measured today were .002 out of round. So, what size are they? .258 or, .260?
 
That`s true especially with cherry cut molds & large production lines .

A sizer does alot more than some thinks !!!
 
My new lee .323 mold runs .327. I'm trying it in my yugo mauser and a 94 32 spec. sized .323. If the mauser starts leading up I'll try a .325 sizer. Anyway my lyman molds have had as much as .005 for the same calibre.
 
Ther are too many variables in bullet diameters to list. Alloy is the first culprit with mfg. differences being the worst. I try to use older Ideal/Lyman moulds if that's the bullets I want. RCBS and Saeco are way more consistent, but both have some smallish diameter if the alloy isn't right. Trial and error is the rule here- try some with your alloy and mike them. More antimony will make them bigger and harder. Some undersized moulds simply have to have the bands opened up. There is a place out west that can open up a small mould and his repair work is pretty fairly priced. He also offers HP conversions and Cramer style HP work.
 
I must confess !!!!

I`ve never measured many bullets as cast !!!:o

I`ve always cast a test batch then run em thru the sizer to see if there "fat "enuff , then measure springback !!:)
 
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