Bullet Casting Weather

[JimT]

The weather has cooled off nicely and mornings like this are great to run the lead pot! I started off with an old mold that I have had for years. It is an old IDEAL mold in #454190 ... Ideal's version of the original .45 Colt bullet. I got the mold many many years ago. It had been mistreated and I felt it deserved a good home. It is still kinda difficult to use. The bullets don't drop out easily and now I am having difficulty with the sprue plate. It's either too tight or too loose. I know how to fix it and am gonna work on it today when it cools off.

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#454190

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The second mold I used is an RCBS 44-250-KT which is RCBS's version of the Keith .44 SWC. I bought this mold new back in the 1980's. It drops good bullets almost from the first pour. The bullet come out of the mold easily and everything works just fine. A real joy to use.

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I did not cast a lot of bullets today ... I am not short on any so it's not a priority. But I do like to stay ahead. And it's a good start to the "Casting Season" upcoming.

[weiler]

great minds!

I cast up 22 pounds of MP molds 45-270 (~280 grains) with a medium hollowpoint, powdercoated em the next day. They’ll last me longer than they should

[Ysabel Kid]

No pictures, but make that three.

I only casted up a few rounds each, as the weather has indeed turned perfect for it over the weekend. Let my small pot heat up while cutting the yard, then casted up half a dozen each using a pair of original Winchester Repeating Arms molds for the .25-20 WCF and .32-20 WCF rounds. Ideal at that time sold a combination loading tool that included a single-cavity bullet mold. WRA sold a set, which included the loading tool and a separate mold. I managed to find molds in pretty darn good condition, so decided to mold a few rounds each to see what weight they were dropping as well as the cast dimensions.

I love this time of year!

[marlinman93]

About 10 days ago our weather went from 80's to 50's in one day, so I also began casting with shop temperatures being much cooler. My metal shop building is an oven on sunny days, so I cast outside in my backyard if I need bullets before fall.
Now my old '39 Chev is in the shop for a winter's nap, so I have to cast in one open corner just large enough to set up my bench and casting operation.

[Walt]

I like the 454190 bullets but I prefer crimping into a designated crimp groove rather than over the ogive. I do load them into my New Frontier because their as-cast diameter is .454" which matches the throats of my Colt. It's unfortunate that Freedom Arms made their .45 Colt cylinders too short for the .454190 bullets. I sent the New Frontier back to Colt years ago to request a new cylinder because the chambers and throats were each different and grossly oversized. I requested that they send me a cylinder with .452" throats but it came back with .454" throats, although uniform in dimension. The NF was made in 1982 which was apparently a poor year for quality control.

[ollogger]

Sounds like this bullet casting is popular this time of year, i did a bunch for a S&W 629 today
used a lee 240 gr. gc, goofy gun has a 427 cyl. throat & a 425 bore so it can lead up pretty bad

so i used softer lead today, not sure it will help but gonna try it

Walt is not the only one that has had problems with a Colt NF, mine was a 44-40 high priced Junk



ollogger

[Bill in Oregon]

Jim, I had that RCBS 44 250 KT and it was fine mold. I let it go when I let my previous Bulldog go. My load was light: 5.5 grains of Universal. I didn't chronograph that load but will now that I have another Bulldog. Guessing 650-700. I figured that big Keith would do the necessary work at that velocity out of a belly gun. Now that I have a Colt SAA clone with 7 1/2-inch barrel, I ordered the RCBS 45-270 SAA mold that has gotten some pretty good press -- at least from the bunch at Wolf Publishing.
Vall, is that '39 Chev the one you drove to one of Wind's matches and took a photo of at Grand Coulee Dam?

[Griff]

I'm out running around the country until the weekend before Thanksgiving. That's when I'll start my casting. I'm always low on 30-30 s, the 350 grain .40s for the Sharps and various .45s for the Colts and the 1886. I've barely made a little dent in the 1,000 lbs of WWs I bought 3-½ years ago.

[Walt]

Griff, I cast using wheel weoghts for decades but the incidence of zinc weights among the conventional ones got to a point where I had to inspect every weight that went into the pot. I missed one once and it ruined the entire 20 lbs of lead. Made me sick to throw it all out. Nowadays wheel weights are made of all sorts of stuff that's not suitable for casting so a couple of years ago I ordered ingots of bn 18 pre-alloyed lead from a commercial caster that make the most beautiful bullets. I use the new lead alloy for bullets I want to gas check and use machine cast bullets for everything else.

[Rockrat]

Also fired up the pot this weekend. Some light and heavy 44's and some 38's. I have a small "Boom box" in the shop and burned a CD that lasts about 75 min. By the time its over, I am done casting. About the same when I am reloading. Then, its time for a break.

[Walt]

When my wife and I lived in town 25+ years ago I built a cinderblock building in the back yard that had all my loading stuff in it. It was compact, only about 14' square but one of the most practical ideas was installing a range hood with a powerful fan in it so that I could safely cast inside in any weather. It worked great and eliminated all the smoke and noxious fumes.

[Ysabel Kid]

When my wife and I lived in town 25+ years ago I built a cinderblock building in the back yard that had all my loading stuff in it. It was compact, only about 14' square but one of the most practical ideas was installing a range hood with a powerful fan in it so that I could safely cast inside in any weather. It worked great and eliminated all the smoke and noxious fumes.

That sounds AWESOME!

[Griff]

Yea, the range hood is tried & true! Good investment in safety. I said WW's Walt, but actually, this is commercially mixed lead, antimony & tin, approximating WW. Hopefully the new Accurate mold I ordered for the .32-40 will be in before I get home!

[Walt]

I have every confidence your mold will arrive soon, Griff. I have been very pleased with Accurate Molds, both in the quality of their products and also their turnaround time. I know these are unusual times and that more and more people are casting for the first time or are taking up casting again with components being so scarce. I hope you enjoy that mold.

[samsi]

I've got an old Ideal 454190 mold but it's a single cavity. I like the bullet but it's a chore turning 'em out one at a time.

The RCBS 45-270-SAA was mentioned earlier. I've had that one since shortly after it came out - it's a good 'un. (p.s. HS-6 works nice with it)

[weiler]

I've got an old Ideal 454190 mold but it's a single cavity. I like the bullet but it's a chore turning 'em out one at a time.

The RCBS 45-270-SAA was mentioned earlier. I've had that one since shortly after it came out - it's a good 'un. (p.s. HS-6 works nice with it)

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Samsi that bullet with HS-6 is a dandy for sure

[samsi]

That's some great shooting Weiler! I've been crimping that bullet in the groove and using more powder, is there a reason for deep seating beyond the ability to use less powder? It's obviously working well for you.

[weiler]

thanks! I got the deep seating idea from David Bradshaw on the singleactions.com forum, I’ve had such good luck with it on light/medium loads but would assume similar performance with 13 grains HS-6. One benefit I have on the 45 Colt is seating/crimping with 1 die/stroke, easily remedied with the additional step. I’ve used the same methodology on the 357 mag/44 mag and had pretty good results. Full tilt loads get seated in the crimp groove

[samsi]

Thanks. I've done it a bit using heavy 44 Special loads in magnum cases but it never occurred to me to try it with warmer 45 stuff.

Slow learner I guess.

[Walt]

Weiler, I have a Bisley .45 Colt as well. I had the barrel shortened to 5 1/2" even before I shot it and it's certainly a fine revolver.

HS-6 is a great powder for .45 Colt. I frequently load 13.0 gr behind a 250 gr machine cast RNFP bullet for 1100 fps and it's very accurate with a standard deviation of 12 - 15 fps.

It's a wonderful combination.

Thanks for your picture and explanation.

[weiler]

Weiler, I have a Bisley .45 Colt as well. I had the barrel shortened to 5 1/2" even before I shot it and it's certainly a fine revolver.

HS-6 is a great powder for .45 Colt. I frequently load 13.0 gr behind a 250 gr machine cast RNFP bullet for 1100 fps and it's very accurate with a standard deviation of 12 - 15 fps.

It's a wonderful combination.

Thanks for your picture and explanation.

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many thanks Walt! The first load I tried in this Ruger was the commercial 250 Gr RNFP, it shotgun patterned at 50 yards in my gun, had much better luck a bit lower with 8 grains W231 or deep seated over 6.7 grains for around 800 FPS

The gun has a few things that should be fixed such as tight throats and a slightly off axis forcing cone….but in the end it’s the target that matters

[6pt-sika]

Well it 08:30 on Wednesday and in the low 40’s . I’m perched about 35 feet off the ground in a tree waiting for some poor unsuspecting deer to walk by . And if they refrain from becoming visible for the next 46ish minutes , I’m gonna get down go to the house get my Parker 8 gauge shoot four rounds of slugs then four rounds of punkin balls all on paper . Then go inside take off my camo stuff , put on work clothes and heat up my pot and cast hopefully about 400 pieces of 000000 buck and maybe 30 or so .795” roundballs . After I’m done and get my junk out away , take a shower then a short nap and back out in the woods until dark .

[Walt]

I have enough large-bore Rugers with chamber throat and forcing cone issues that I acquired the proper reamers for the chamber throats and a Brownell's kit that includes forcing cone reamers in 11 and 5° as well as accompanying laps. Firelapping in addition to the throat and forcing cone changes makes quite an improvement in accuracy.

[Griff]

I've been feverishly watching my emails to know when to expect my Accurate Mold for the .32-40 when to my surprise and relief, it was sitting on my kitchen counter when I got in this morning after 4 weeks on the road. So, it'll be casting weather tomorrow for me! I'll have to take the propane tank & heater out to the shop while I sit there and cast and load. MY C45S ammo can is on the low side, I've got six empty .30-30 boxes and 3 empty .375Win boxes, and 250 empty .40-90SBN cases and a few hundred empty .45-70 cases... I've been remiss. Except for the C45S ammo, all the others need bullets cast, lubed & sized. Hopefully it won't be too large a job for tomorrow

[Shasta]

I've been feverishly watching my emails to know when to expect my Accurate Mold for the .32-40 when to my surprise and relief, it was sitting on my kitchen counter when I got in this morning after 4 weeks on the road. So, it'll be casting weather tomorrow for me! I'll have to take the propane tank & heater out to the shop while I sit there and cast and load. MY C45S ammo can is on the low side, I've got six empty .30-30 boxes and 3 empty .375Win boxes, and 250 empty .40-90SBN cases and a few hundred empty .45-70 cases... I've been remiss. Except for the C45S ammo, all the others need bullets cast, lubed & sized. Hopefully it won't be too large a job for tomorrow

Griff,
I was wondering which Accurate mold you ordered for .32-40? I got the 180 grain plain base 32-180T for my relined Winchester 1894 and it is working well for me.

Shasta

[Griff]

I've been feverishly watching my emails to know when to expect my Accurate Mold for the .32-40 when to my surprise and relief, it was sitting on my kitchen counter when I got in this morning after 4 weeks on the road. So, it'll be casting weather tomorrow for me! I'll have to take the propane tank & heater out to the shop while I sit there and cast and load. MY C45S ammo can is on the low side, I've got six empty .30-30 boxes and 3 empty .375Win boxes, and 250 empty .40-90SBN cases and a few hundred empty .45-70 cases... I've been remiss. Except for the C45S ammo, all the others need bullets cast, lubed & sized. Hopefully it won't be too large a job for tomorrow

Griff,
I was wondering which Accurate mold you ordered for .32-40? I got the 180 grain plain base 32-180T for my relined Winchester 1894 and it is working well for me.
Shasta

I ordered the 32-170D in a 3- cavity steel mold. The bullets I loaded the first go-round were 170s and the John Wayne Commemorative ammo I have is also 170 half-jacketed. I kinda thought about going with a 165 grain, but decided to stick to the 170.

[JimT]

Today I cast about 100 #454190 .45 Colt bullets ... about 150 RCBS 250 gr. .44 Keith SWC ... and about 200 .38/.357 160 gr. Lyman RFN to empty the lead pot of the alloy I had in it. I then put in some pure lead blocks and cast 250 .457" round balls and about 150 of the .457" heel bullet. It was a good day for it.

[JimT]

I finished up the pure lead that I had in the pot this morning.

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The heel bullet I am using in the Dragoon.

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These are what I cast yesterday.

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[Grizz]

I have enough large-bore Rugers with chamber throat and forcing cone issues that I acquired the proper reamers for the chamber throats and a Brownell's kit that includes forcing cone reamers in 11 and 5° as well as accompanying laps. Firelapping in addition to the throat and forcing cone changes makes quite an improvement in accuracy.

my 5.5" redhawk has chamber issues and it's on my list to hone them so i can press my bullets thru it. i was going to fire-lap the barrel thinking that might help the forcing cone to straighten out and fly right. but don't know about that. what does your 44 chamber reamer produce size wise?

i can't do any of this until i return the revolver to Ruger for the known issue of misfires with the older ones. BECAUSE if i send it to them with modified chambers they might replace the cylinder!

[Walt]

Grizz, my .44 reamer is .4305 and it allows machine cast bullets to pass through the throats with a gentle push. I size my own cast bullets to the same diameter.

I wouldn't firelap by putting grinding compound into the chambers. It's much better to put it into the forcing cone and the first half inch of the barrel. Cleanup is much easier and you don't need to worry about misshaping the chamber throats.

[Walt]

My shooting partner has a Super Blackhawk which he bought from a friend. A couple of years ago we were out shooting and it was apparent that the barrel was loosening because the front sight was no longer straight. He took it to a gunsmith who, when he removed the ejector rod housing, found that the barrel was cracked from the frame to the end of the housing which had hidden the crack.
I told him not to worry, Ruger would warranty the barrel replacement. Instead, they told him that "internal modifications" had been made so the warranty was void. They would not return it in its condition and they charged him about $450 for the repair. I don't know who did the internal modifications but my friend pats it lovingly and calls it his $1000 SBH.

[Griff]

Got to casting today, and started in with the new Accurate mold for the .32-40. By the time the pot got to temp, I was heavily into lube/sizing my 310 grain .40 cal. bullets for the Sharps. Still had to size/lube/gas-check my 150 grain .30 caliber bullets. Never did get around to getting the mold warmed up enough to cast good bullets. They all went back into the pot. Tomorrow is range day, where I'll be testing the loads I did up a couple of weeks ago.

[Ray]

"Today I cast about 100 #454190 .45 Colt bullets".....

reverend T, I surely would be tempted to load one of them bassackwards in one of your horsepistols with a half chamber full of powder......

[JimT]

"Today I cast about 100 #454190 .45 Colt bullets".....

reverend T, I surely would be tempted to load one of them bassackwards in one of your horsepistols with a half chamber full of powder......

I loaded them the proper direction in a friend's Ruger Old Army. Also the Keith SWC. They shot just fine.