Questions Gallore???????

T

trip_sticker

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I've been reading this forum for awhile now and after reading everything I can find I still have a few questions remaining. Hope you all don't mind my starting a new thread to ask them. I recently starting casting my own. I made a batch of .490 round balls and about 500 .357's. I have the Lee 2 cavity mold TL358-158 SWC.

1. After seating one bullet in a .357 case I found that it is just a hair too large to chamber in my gun. I need to size them. Where is the best place to buy the sizing die? Lee's web site has them for $19.98 +shipping. Midway has them for $15.49 + shipping +$3.00 extra fee. Does anyone has a source for a better price? I like the tumble lube so I'm not looking for a lube sizer, just the sizing die.

2. My .357 mold has one cavity that drops the boolit as soon as I open it and the other one sticks bad. I have to beat the hinge bolt several times to get it to release. I'm looking for suggestions or directions on how to properly lube the mould.

3. I want to buy another mold to make boolits for my 30-30 Winchester. I like a 150 grain factory round nose. Any suggestions for a good mold and load data for that type of cast boolit?

Thanks to anyone who can offer suggestions. I'm new to casting but rapidly getting hooked on it. I made a video of my search for lead to use. You can watch it on youtube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G1VnqbyQdxg
 
I'm new to casting myself, probably close to 6 months now. I cast with the same mold that you have TL358-158 SWC except it's a double cavity. I have both the SWC and the round nose (tumble lube type). I posted some photos in the Bullet photo's thread. I size all my bullets, although I have been told it's not necessary. I bought my sizing die from Kempf gun shop web site http://www.kempfgunshop.com/. Search for Lube and sizing dies. I just checked and they go for $15.95 each (you have to select the caliber) plus some shipping. The kit comes with the sizing die, a red container that sits on top of the die (to catch the bullets) and a 4oz bottle of Alox lube. It's a family owned business and Sue Kempf gives the best customer service after the sale. I also bought a Lee reloader press $24.95 to use exclusively for sizing bullets. It's not a heavy duty press, but perfect to use for sizing. Well worth the money.

If your bullets stick, smoke the mold. I lite a wooden match and let the soot coat the inside of the mold. Works great.
Take care, Citywaterman
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Save your self a lot of grief. Get the Lyman or RCBS cast book. First off the round ball you cast I hope that was pure lead and not wheel weights or something else hard. You may get away with W/W but its not a good idea. Muzzle loaders and shotgun slugs are to be cast out of pure lead. W/W make a good lite load for the 357. Also it is highly recommended to slug the Barrel of the gun you will cast for, The 3030 you mentioned will be some where between .309 to .311 in Dia, A bullet cast from different alloys will cast at different Dia, the 3 main cases for leading are. Wrong Dia bullet. Pushing a soft bullet to fast. Or pushing a hard bullet to slow.
 
The .490 round balls I made were cast out of reclaimed range lead mixed with pure lead as well as a lot of wheel weight lead. They are probably considered hard lead. I haven't fired any yet but since that ball is wrapped in cloth before seating it in the barrel and the cloth is what touches the inside of the bore would it matter? There should be no leading as no metal touches the gun, right?

I'll look into one of those books you mentioned. I always use a book for reloading regular ammo, didn't know there was a special book for cast boolits.
 
For your question #2, there is a good post in the Bullet Casting 101 thread (stickied) that talks about removing burrs and such from molds. It is post #24 by Illinois Coyote Hunter. Following those directions should get your molds releasing well.

I'd suggest reading the entire thread as it has answers to most of the questions that the majority of newbies would have about casting.

Good stuff!
 
The biggest problem with the lead you described is . Antimony alloys have less shrinkage factor than pure lead. antimony will produce an extremely hard over size projectile which is difficult to load. Mold makers create there molds for a specific base material. In the case of Muzzle loaders that is pure lead.
 
on your first ?? your not puttin too much crimp & puckering the case ???
theres also a stiky on crimpin with fantastic pics in the reloading section .
the lees tl sys. & thick brass (my PMC brass is the thickest) will cause chambering problems.
 
I seated that tumble lube wadcutter the same as I do any other 357 round. The OAL was the same as a factory round. The crimp was the same as my factory bullets. When I tried to load it, it went about half way into the cylinder and got tight. I could have forced it all the way in, it was just a hair too large to drop in easy like a factory round would. If I look clse I can see a slight bulge where the base of the boolit is, I can see a ring around the case showing me where the boolit depth is, so I think it is a bit large. I mic'd it at
.360" Most of my casts are all around .359". A few are .360" and a very few are .358"

btw...I just ordered a sizing die from Lee in .358" Lee's direct website was the cheapest of the 3 I looked at. Midway was $25.73 delivered, Kemp was $26.50 delivered and Lee was $23.98 delivered. I should have it in a week or so.
 
For your question #2, there is a good post in the Bullet Casting 101 thread (stickied) that talks about removing burrs and such from molds. It is post #24 by Illinois Coyote Hunter. Following those directions should get your molds releasing well.

I'd suggest reading the entire thread as it has answers to most of the questions that the majority of newbies would have about casting.

Good stuff!
Click to expand...

That was a great post. Thanks for the reference.
 
You need to slug your barrel before you start sizing anything. Boolit fit is the most important part of having success with cast boolits. You want your boolits to run .001" over groove diamter (this is at least a good start, but some guns may prefer .002 over groove diameter). Improper boolit fit can lead to leading and inaccuracy issues. Good luck!
 
as far as a round nose bullet in a 30/30,
i called lee and they said its never happened to theyr knowledge but, they dont recomend a round nose bullet in a tube magazine. theyrs a chance of chain fire. stick to flat nose bullets unless you have a gun with a box magazine.
 
as far as a round nose bullet in a 30/30,
i called lee and they said its never happened to theyr knowledge but, they dont recomend a round nose bullet in a tube magazine. theyrs a chance of chain fire. stick to flat nose bullets unless you have a gun with a box magazine.
Click to expand...

The 30-30 with its tube mag is very safe for a round nose bullet. The 150 gr Remington Core-Lokt factory bullets I buy are round nose. Never heard of a chain fire in the mag because of it. I believe it is hard tipped spire points that might cause a problem in a tube mag, not round nose. There is also a teflon spire point now out that is designed for tube mags. Since I am very happy with the factory 150 gr round nose in my 30-30 thats what I want to recreate with my own cast boolits.
 
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