What did you do in the reloading room recently?

TZCHRIS said:
I did shoot about 50 of them in my stock MCX pistol with excellent results, ave 2444 fps, I started way low with the charge and worked up to that. No issues, wife loves it as well. I going back for more testing this weekend so tell me what you want to know, I'll report back!View attachment 543840
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Thank you for the reply. It sounds like fun.

First, can you tell me what hardness the lead alloy is you are using? If not what is the source (example wheel weights)?

I was just curious to know if you saw any signs of leading? So if you break down the firearm for cleaning are you seeing any lead on the flash hider or muzzle break, in the barrel, etc...

I've heard Elvis Ammo and FortuneCookie45LC talk about powder coated boolits. There is just not very much information out there as far as sources go on the subject. I am always trying to learn more about this because I love reloading and getting out on the range more.
 
TZCHRIS said:
Went today, those guys are awesome! Top notch. I walk through the door with a bag of parts and right away sales guy/kid says, you have a 650, what do you need? I hand him the bag and 5 min later he hands me a pile of new parts with my old parts. He says, dont forget to retime it with the timing fixture. I reply, I dont have one of those, he says hold on, grab a a fixture and throws it in the bag. No questions asked, didn't charge me a dime!
I felt bad getting all this free stuff so I look around and holly crap, they have CFEpistol powder, 1 lb for $32, not terrible as I wont pay hazmat or shipping so I grab some. Didn't know they sold powder and primers? No primers in stock but he says they are very well stocked in Dillon spares, almost walked out with a new 1100 press for $2300. They also will 100% referb the press for $85, that's a great deal! Tours of facility are not available at this time but I'm glad I stopped in.
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That pic is almost as good as the woodworking girl pic. Almost.
 
darrowj said:
Thank you for the reply. It sounds like fun.

First, can you tell me what hardness the lead alloy is you are using? If not what is the source (example wheel weights)?

I was just curious to know if you saw any signs of leading? So if you break down the firearm for cleaning are you seeing any lead on the flash hider or muzzle break, in the barrel, etc...

I've heard Elvis Ammo and FortuneCookie45LC talk about powder coated boolits. There is just not very much information out there as far as sources go on the subject. I am always trying to learn more about this because I love reloading and getting out on the range more.
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I actually just cleaned my AR for the first time, about 200 rounds thru it, it was dirty but no signs of leading and no signs of paint, I was impressed!
I'm using straight COWW for rifle and a mix of SOWW with COWW for pistol. BHN=14.5 for the rifle rounds, BHN=10 for pistol. Just ran a bunch for my buddies, I call it the let's go Brandon patriot pack!
20211120_140338.jpg
 
Tumbled some brass. Sorted it out.
Prepped 100 or so 45-70
Prepped 125 44 special
Fiddled around with an old 2 cavity 38 special 148 WC mould that was set up for machine casting. Broke it all down and tightened it up.
I’m going to mill this sucker down a bit and make a light weight wadcutter mould at some point. I knew I kept it around for 5 years for something.
 
TZCHRIS said:
I actually just cleaned my AR for the first time, about 200 rounds thru it, it was dirty but no signs of leading and no signs of paint, I was impressed!
I'm using straight COWW for rifle and a mix of SOWW with COWW for pistol. BHN=14.5 for the rifle rounds, BHN=10 for pistol. Just ran a bunch for my buddies, I call it the let's go Brandon patriot pack!
View attachment 544436
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Did you cast those? Nice color choices! 🇺🇸
 
I continued my masochistic excourse into precision reloading, processed and trimmed 200 of IMI brass then made 70 rounds from previously processed creedmoor sports brass with ELD and SMK .223 bullets in 4 different powder drop weights - 23gn , 23.4, 23.6, 23.8gn.
gotta say that the upgrade of dillon powder bars really helped - i see now from drop to drop powder amount differs by barely 0.1gn from time to time, but usually mostly stays stable at the dialed in amount, so that $80 micrometer thing with a $20 piece of bended tin :) actually helped quite a lot.

my dillon 750 now operates as a single step press pretty much - i separated depriming and FL die from powder drop and sitting setup. still waiting for backordered type S FL die, but, i do not think it is what matters most right now. should get 8208 powder on tuesday, will load more then with it as well to compare with TAC.

PS. i did check weight of hornady 73gn ELD match bullets - the weight deviates by as much as 0.4gn there, most are at 73 ad 73.1gn, but some get to 73.3gn and 1 was at 73.4gn.
 
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darrowj said:
Did you shoot these cast .223 powder coated boolits? If so can you share the results?

I ask because I consider myself pretty brave on this front. I have shot .308, 30-06 and 7.62x39 case boolits. Each time though I used a powder and or charge that was reduced to keep the velocity down. I've watch Elvis before and he seems to be a trial and error type guy with little to no fear. He said in the first video that the rounds would travel at over 2k FPS. That is impressive for a cast boolit powder coated. I did not catch if he is using gas checks. I just can't believe that the boolit would stay intact at the speed. But, I am not willing to experiment with my AR and its gas system. So I may never know.
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Pushing cast bullets is highly dependent on barrel twist and actual rpm
My short stint in reloading 223 cast with gas checks and traditional lube in the AR I was able to get some decent results down range until I stepped up powder charge to get 100% reliable function and then I started having problems, from tumbling to bullets just vanishing in a puff at 15 yards or so.
I was water dropping Lyman #2 for a bit of hardness.
Cast bullets have a rpm threshold —-if you look at rifles /pistols design around cast bullets the twist is “slow”
My AR cast slinger was 1/9 twist and I was just creaping into that low 2xxxfps range. Used H4895 . I used Hodgdons H4895 reduced load instructions and started loading until I had function.
I got to about 80% finction before groups started to really open up

Will coated bullets keep a cast bullet from going poof from rpm limits? Doubt it. Have had jacketed bullets go poof.

I was given some 223 cast bullets that where supposed to be 24bhn they performed the same
 
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mac1911 said:
bullets just vanishing in a puff at 15 yards or so.
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First time I heard someone telling me about that, I thought they were pulling my leg. As I recall they were talking about working up a 22-250 with something like 40 grain varmint bullets and they couldn't figure out why they weren't even on paper at 100 yards. Somehow they eventually pieced together that the bullets were coming apart somewhere between the muzzle and the target.

Are you speaking figuratively, or could you actually see the bullet disintegrate? I can't even see the shot string on a skeet range, so I envy those with eyesight that allows them to see vapor trails and stuff like that, that I can only see on video.
 
p.. said:
First time I heard someone telling me about that, I thought they were pulling my leg. As I recall they were talking about working up a 22-250 with something like 40 grain varmint bullets and they couldn't figure out why they weren't even on paper at 100 yards. Somehow they eventually pieced together that the bullets were coming apart somewhere between the muzzle and the target.

Are you speaking figuratively, or could you actually see the bullet disintegrate? I can't even see the shot string on a skeet range, so I envy those with eyesight that allows them to see vapor trails and stuff like that, that I can only see on video.
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Sweet. 4000 ft/s 22-250 birdshot!!!!
 
Don't get any time to play during most of the year, reloading is limited to winter, so I forget everything and have to start over again every year. :) Browsed my old reloading log to see what to do with some cast 162 grain .358 SWCs I picked up from the local shop's estate sale section. Not sure what hardness rating they would come up as, but I can peel casting flash off them with my thumbnail. Went with transmission assembly lube and 3.4 grains of Titegroup to run through a S&W 442.

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Love finding brass at the range.
24 pieces of Federal 357 magnum
3 pieces of Starline 44 magnum,
Bunch of federal 30-30

Anyone reload 450 bushmaster? Found 15 of those inside a Winchester 450 BM factory box. Giant brass. Couldn’t allow it to be scrapped😂

Also found a few 454 Casull cases.
 
andrew1220 said:
Love finding brass at the range.
24 pieces of Federal 357 magnum
3 pieces of Starline 44 magnum,
Bunch of federal 30-30

Anyone reload 450 bushmaster? Found 15 of those inside a Winchester 450 BM factory box. Giant brass. Couldn’t allow it to be scrapped😂

Also found a few 454 Casull cases.
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I scrounge brass as well ........ Why let it sit if I reload the caliber. My girlfriends dad laughs at me , I tell him keep paying Starline for that stuff , and I'll pick up everything you miss the next time I shoot without you.
 
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steven grammont said:
I scrounge brass as well ........ Why let it sit if I reload the caliber. My girlfriends dad laughs at me , I tell him keep paying Starline for that stuff , and I'll pick up everything you miss the next time I shoot without you.
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i was just resizing and trimming the brass i got after depriming - so far went over 60 FC cases, about of 40 IMI cases, set aside shorter cases.
it is a surprisingly calming activity for me, i got to say, i tend to like it very much now. and i think there is like 150 or more cases to deprime and go through later.
 
paul73 said:
i do not know how do you guys manage to force yourselves to pick up all that 9mm brass...
on ARs i got brass catcher now, and it helps big time, but pistol throws it all over the place.
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Cheap tripod + this. Too old to be crawling around picking up cases (grin).

iu


Friends think it's either funny or cool. Either way, they all want to see if they can hit the net with their ejected brass. Works for me (grin again)!
 
paul73 said:
i do not know how do you guys manage to force yourselves to pick up all that 9mm brass...
on ARs i got brass catcher now, and it helps big time, but pistol throws it all over the place.
Click to expand...
My brass is a mix up pickups and mostly brass that I bought. I lose all of my brass at USPSA/IDPA matches so I have to replenish it somehow.
 

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