Thank you to all that share their knowledge.

Thank you to all that share their knowledge. I wanted to thank all of those here that share their knowledge and expertise with those like me, new to this hobby. Brian, Unclenick, BigJim and many others not only respond accurately, but do so in a way to encourage learning. I have been skulking among the forums for about six months now, and decided I had something worth sharing. It might be a tad long introduction.

A little background - in December, my best friend told me he was going to build his own AR-15. Knowing him well, and also knowing he wouldn't make that claim without some research. We talked about for the ensuing weeks, and thanks to him he pointed me in direction of videos out there by pros building their own rifles (thank you ITS Tactical and others!). With more reading and research I ordered a lower receiver and other parts from different suppliers. Was kind of a fun treasure hunt right in the thick of abnormally high demand. I was successful in building my rifle piece be piece, and verified at the range soon after. I probably would not have purchased a rifle straight off the shelf, but thru building one, the knowledge of what is going on each time you pull the trigger is priceless.

So, then the ammo crunch and bare shelves at Wal-Mart, shooting my rifle becomes difficult for a bit, and empowered by my recent creation, immediately began to research reloading. ABCs, Modern, Lyman's 49th and endless Internet info. I was leaning single stage or turret, but really liked the Dillon 550. I know a lot of people here think single stage was the way to start, but my best friend had a good nugget of wisdom again. He said I could load one round at a time on a Dillon too, then could 'grow' into the full progressive function when ready. And I give a methodical engineering approach to most things, and decided I would go slow enough to always be safe. Also my shop is free from distractions - a bonus room off the garage. Saw that there was an 8 week wait on the Dillon in April, and pulled the trigger. HA!

While waiting, I picked up a tumbler, puller, scale, calipers, trimmer, prep tool and commenced to prepping the brass I had been collecting from range visits. I was going to load .45 ACP and .223 specifically which covers all weapons. My wife also likes to shoot, so reloading was a no-brainer. Received the press two weeks ago and set up all my dies, and loaded two different loads in both calibers to test. Went to the range yesterday and I can now say I successfully loaded both types of ammo. ))). The .45 with a 4.7 of Red Dot was smooth as silk through the Glock and Kahr. With my test .223, my first two shots at 25 yds in my rifle, checked with scope, and I split the upper arms of the X and the lower with the 2 shots (24.3 gns of TAC). So once again, thank you to all that share experience here for us laymen - it is much appreciated.

__________________
When injustice becomes law, resistance becomes duty. - Thomas Jefferson

I swear by my life and love if it, I will live for no other, nor ask another to live for me. - John Galt

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The British want their handguns back

Sadly I fear you are right csmsss.

I'm British but left. Now living in a much freer country, I dispair of a country that was the cradle of democracy.

The US must fight to retain its freedoms, I know what it is like to lose mine (I was in that march in the Youtube clip), don't let it happen to you.

Believe me, those who would restrict liberty will never go away, and the greatest enemy is from those who believe in "Reasonable measures to restrict... and prevent abuse" Convert as many people to loving freedom as you can. We need all the help we can get.

Scrummy

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What do Benchrest shooters do with their old barrels?

They used to sell them on Ebay for $50.
I bought a number of them, mostly Shilen, but some Krieger, Lilja, and Hart.

They are short, fat, and 1 in 14" twist.

So far I have used only one.
I put one a an old 1917 Savage 99 take down 250 Sav.
I chambered the barrel for 6mmBR.
I have only fired a few rounds with it.
0.1" at 50 yards, 0.3" at 100 yards, and keyholes with 75 gr Vmax bullets.

If you can think of some uses for short fat 14" twist 6mmPPC barrels, let me know.

__________________
The word 'forum" does not mean "not criticizing books."
"Ad hominem fallacy" is not the same as point by point criticism of books. If you bought the book, and believe it all, it may FEEL like an ad hominem attack, but you might strive to accept other points of view may exist.
Are we a nation of competing ideas, or a nation of forced conformity of thought?

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In Memory of all who gave their All

Your heart is in the right place, but there are 364 days a year to thank a veteran for his or her service. Memorial Day is not one of them. Memorial Day is for remembering the dead.

Buy him a beer and let him tell you stories about the buddy he lost.

Sorry to be a downer. Memorial Day is not Veterans' Day nor Armed Forces Day, those come later in the year. (At least conflating them isn't as bad as thinking Memorial Day just means a 3-day mattress sale extravaganza)

Last edited by zxcvbob; Today at 03:25 PM.

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Anyone shoot the following from their .358W?

It's not about gun control, it's about people control. The progressives are using terrorists and the insane to further their agenda. If the socialist news media wasn't complicit, we could sit back and watch Fast & Furious and Benghazi-gate unfold.

I have a mold very similar to that.
I haven't tried it in my 358.
but i'd bet something like 6grs of unique would make it shoot just like my 357 lever gun.

it's all an educated guess,,,, till the trigger is pulled.

the more i find out about shootin boolits, the more it contradicts everything i ever learned about shooting jaxketed.

I have a mold very similar to that.
I haven't tried it in my 358.
but i'd bet something like 6grs of unique would make it shoot just like my 357 lever gun.Lamar,

Don't you have an M77 in 358W too?

I'm going to cast some SAECO 399's (if I can find my mold!) this weekend and shoot 'em from my M77 next Friday with about 20 grains of WC-820. If they shoot well, I may just spring for a 4-cavity version of the PB look-a-like (#396).

MJ

It's not about gun control, it's about people control. The progressives are using terrorists and the insane to further their agenda. If the socialist news media wasn't complicit, we could sit back and watch Fast & Furious and Benghazi-gate unfold.

I do have a 77 in 358, but I also have several leverguns I would rather shoot.
I worked a hunting load for the 358 with a 250 gr boolit at jaxketed velocity and that was good nuff for the rifle.
If I had fewer than 20 leverguns and [I dunno how many] hunting type rifles I would make each of them much more flexible.
as it is now, one or maybe two cast loads and maybe one jaxketed load, is about all I can manage in most of them.

it's all an educated guess,,,, till the trigger is pulled.

the more i find out about shootin boolits, the more it contradicts everything i ever learned about shooting jaxketed.

I've used Lyman's 158 RN - similar design - actually used Lyman's Thompson 150 SWC and 180 FN SAECO boolit more.

Ben,

I also have the GC version of that boolit (SAECO #354).

Have you chronographed the 10.5 grain Russian Unique load? What alloy were you using to shoot that very nice group? When 353 is seated in the case, are you able to cover the lube groove with the case neck?

Looks like it's time to dust off the .358.

MJ

It's not about gun control, it's about people control. The progressives are using terrorists and the insane to further their agenda. If the socialist news media wasn't complicit, we could sit back and watch Fast & Furious and Benghazi-gate unfold.

... and 180 FN SAECO boolit more.Which one... #353, and are you getting results similar to Ben's?

MJ

It's not about gun control, it's about people control. The progressives are using terrorists and the insane to further their agenda. If the socialist news media wasn't complicit, we could sit back and watch Fast & Furious and Benghazi-gate unfold.

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Abbreviations used in Reloading
Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt"

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Wiping their little noses.

Boolit Bub Join DateMar 2013LocationI challenge your middle of nowhere, and raise you 5.Posts46

As I'm very new to casting, using tl boolits, does everyone wipe the lube off (alox) after their bullets are seated?
If so what's the best household cleaner for this?

Last edited by BBQJOE; 04-07-2013 at 11:25 AM.

I have never wiped off excess lube, just one less step. No need to IMHO.

Slim

DISCLAIMER: This is a generic comment. It is not directed at any specific human
being, real or fictional. The comments in this message speak directly to the
TOPIC no matter the quoted clips - and nothing else. If I have not typed your
name, specifically, into the message, it IS NOT ABOUT YOU.

Boolit Bub Join DateMar 2013LocationI challenge your middle of nowhere, and raise you 5.Posts46

My concern is mostly gumming up the ramps and stuff on my semi-autos.

mineral spirits.

try cutting the alox with it before application and heating it and the boolits.
it helps the lube flow across them better and thinner and helps it dry better too.

but mineral spirits on a rag will clean the noses off.

it's all an educated guess,,,, till the trigger is pulled.

the more i find out about shootin boolits, the more it contradicts everything i ever learned about shooting jaxketed.

Makesem feed better. If yer usin a wax mix its a cleaner in unto itself. Just sayin.

I use charcoal starter fluid. I don't use LLA but I do wipe finished rounds. I drop the rounds into their storage boxes.....the standard plastic ones....but I leave the lid open over night. I have no idea if I didn't do that if accumalated fumes would effect the primers in a closed box I just do it that way to be sure.

I use a clean rag, no solvent. I put my Lee case holder in a cordless drill and chuck each round up and give er a spin. They look shiny as a new penny. When loading in large volume this is very laborious but I've gotten on top of my inventory so I load in 100 round lots nowadays.

It IS worth the effort for autoloaders. I hate getting that mess out of my Glock. ...and I use 45/45/10 which is much thinner and MUCH less tacky than straight mule snot.

If you wanna wipe, use a rag slightly dampened with mineral spirits. FWIW; I don't like goop (alox or 45-45-10) on the bullet noses, (jes don' look rite to me!), so I dip lube ala Ranch Dog. http://www.ranchdogoutdoors.com/Tips/Alox/ Some may complain that this is too labor intensive, but it's fine with me. I did 100+ .45 ACPs yesterday in about 25 minutes. No big deal...

Boolit Bub Join DateMar 2013LocationI challenge your middle of nowhere, and raise you 5.Posts46

I just put together a batch of 9's.
I'm currently wiping their noses using a commercial kitchen degreaser. It's working just fine, but what a PITA!
There's no way I'm going Ranch dog dip either.
This lubing thing needs a serious rethink. I might just be the man to do it too.
I'll put it in the "dreamer" tonight, see what comes out.

45-45-10 and no wiping my boolits

on the other hand, when I lube with tamarack (50/50) in my star, I get some excess lube on the ojive and/or nose. I wipe those right after seating/crimping, while I inspect them.
Jon

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I will be offering the GC seater plate for the lyman 45.
Also I have replacement springs for the Lyman 45 lubesizer, If your's is weak or missing, let me know

In the past I used Lee Alox on massive quanities of boolits to the point of purchasing it in four gallon cases and after a long break from casting and reloading I now use Delux 45-45-10 from White Label Lubes , the blend Recluse started here. The Lee lube was a bit much smoke wise shooting on an indoor range so I use to Tumble in a tumbler not a viberator with corn cob media and a few tablespoons of mineral spirits added. It only took about 15 minutes to clean them up real nice.

There have been numerious debates as to the safety of using a viberator to clean / polish loaded rounds. I am not about to get into that debate but I will state that I have used a viberator with corn cob and mineral spirits to clean up both straight Xlox and Delux 45-45-10 loaded rounds just out of curiosity, it worked and no problems were encountered. Honestly I shot outdoors only and thus do not bother with the extra lube on the boolits, just not a problem in my mind.

Some may wonder about the effects of the Alox on the powder after long term storage, well 9mm I loaded over 30 years ago with all of the Alox left on the boolits still functions just fine and it was not stored under idea conditions all of the time.

NRA Endowment Member
Vet . 2nd of the 47th 9th.Inf. Viet Nam Mar. 67-68

Oh! Please not the "to tumble or not to tumble live ammo" debate again...

If anybody is curious, google "tumbling live ammo" and you'll get hits for info going back years.

NEVER tumble loaded rounds.
Lube on the nose is OK unless it gobs up a seating stem.
I hate Alox in any case or any form. I refuse to use it.
Most decent lubes with Alox REDUCES the amount and buffers it.
Could 45-45-10 be made with a better oil like Safflower? Peanut oil? Castor oil? How about Ballistol?

Never tumble loaded lead rounds as the boolits will turn black from collecting all the garbage in your media.

If your using 45-45-10 you shouldn't have to worry about your seating steam as it is dry and doesn't seem to come off very easy.

"Life isn't like a box of chocolates...It's more like
a jar of jalapenos. What you do today, might burn
your *** tomorrow."

Tumbling loaded rounds can change the powder burn rate by busting the deterrent coating. It can change the shape of kernels too.

Tumbling loaded rounds can change the powder burn rate by busting the deterrent coating. It can change the shape of kernels too.I've been following the "tumble vs. no tumble" discussion for quite a while and have read this argument several times. But (and no offence intended to 44man, whose opinion I respect) I have never seen/read of any factual proof, either from a powder manufacturer or an empirical study as to the validity of the "powder breakdown" statement.......

Boolit Master Join DateAug 2007LocationSouthWest USPosts816

No, I have never worried about cleaning the bullet meplat or ogive, nor would I consider it.
Likewise, I have never worried about tacky bullets.
I worry about accuracy and barrel leading--and I get good accuracy and no leading with a simply light tumble lube of LLA (bullets still look silver and not brown/amber).
Instead of looking for problems, why not try just shooting them. It really really won't hurt anything, including accuracy or reliability.

I often wipe the lube off of my boolit noses, but I use Johnson's Baby oil instead of mineral spirits on a cloth for clean up all around. Baby oil readily cuts through Alox or 45-45-10. (Baby oil also smells better than mineral spirits indoors)

It's pretty easy to do if you set up all your loaded boolits in a loading block, or in 100 round closeable top case boxes. My last step is to just swipe a wet cloth (wetted with baby oil) over the top of the boolits, and then another pass with a dry cloth.

I figure it's that much less lube residue to clean up from the inside of my pistol when I'm done shooting. Ive skipped doing this, and left both Alox or 45-45-10 on the noses before. Leaving it on has never caused me any problems, but sometimes I get compulsive and like the noses to be "lube free".

- Bullwolf

You may not post new threadsYou may not post repliesYou may not post attachmentsYou may not edit your postsForum Rules

Abbreviations used in Reloading
Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt"

View the original article here

Wiping their little noses.

Boolit Bub Join DateMar 2013LocationI challenge your middle of nowhere, and raise you 5.Posts38

As I'm very new to casting, using tl boolits, does everyone wipe the lube off (alox) after their bullets are seated?
If so what's the best household cleaner for this?

Last edited by BBQJOE; 04-07-2013 at 11:25 AM.

I have never wiped off excess lube, just one less step. No need to IMHO.

Slim

DISCLAIMER: This is a generic comment. It is not directed at any specific human
being, real or fictional. The comments in this message speak directly to the
TOPIC no matter the quoted clips - and nothing else. If I have not typed your
name, specifically, into the message, it IS NOT ABOUT YOU.

Boolit Bub Join DateMar 2013LocationI challenge your middle of nowhere, and raise you 5.Posts38

My concern is mostly gumming up the ramps and stuff on my semi-autos.

mineral spirits.

try cutting the alox with it before application and heating it and the boolits.
it helps the lube flow across them better and thinner and helps it dry better too.

but mineral spirits on a rag will clean the noses off.

it's all an educated guess,,,, till the trigger is pulled.

the more i find out about shootin boolits, the more it contradicts everything i ever learned about shooting jaxketed.

Makesem feed better. If yer usin a wax mix its a cleaner in unto itself. Just sayin.

I use charcoal starter fluid. I don't use LLA but I do wipe finished rounds. I drop the rounds into their storage boxes.....the standard plastic ones....but I leave the lid open over night. I have no idea if I didn't do that if accumalated fumes would effect the primers in a closed box I just do it that way to be sure.

I use a clean rag, no solvent. I put my Lee case holder in a cordless drill and chuck each round up and give er a spin. They look shiny as a new penny. When loading in large volume this is very laborious but I've gotten on top of my inventory so I load in 100 round lots nowadays.

It IS worth the effort for autoloaders. I hate getting that mess out of my Glock. ...and I use 45/45/10 which is much thinner and MUCH less tacky than straight mule snot.

If you wanna wipe, use a rag slightly dampened with mineral spirits. FWIW; I don't like goop (alox or 45-45-10) on the bullet noses, (jes don' look rite to me!), so I dip lube ala Ranch Dog. http://www.ranchdogoutdoors.com/Tips/Alox/ Some may complain that this is too labor intensive, but it's fine with me. I did 100+ .45 ACPs yesterday in about 25 minutes. No big deal...

Boolit Bub Join DateMar 2013LocationI challenge your middle of nowhere, and raise you 5.Posts38

I just put together a batch of 9's.
I'm currently wiping their noses using a commercial kitchen degreaser. It's working just fine, but what a PITA!
There's no way I'm going Ranch dog dip either.
This lubing thing needs a serious rethink. I might just be the man to do it too.
I'll put it in the "dreamer" tonight, see what comes out.

45-45-10 and no wiping my boolits

on the other hand, when I lube with tamarack (50/50) in my star, I get some excess lube on the ojive and/or nose. I wipe those right after seating/crimping, while I inspect them.
Jon

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I will be offering the GC seater plate for the lyman 45.
Also I have replacement springs for the Lyman 45 lubesizer, If your's is weak or missing, let me know

In the past I used Lee Alox on massive quanities of boolits to the point of purchasing it in four gallon cases and after a long break from casting and reloading I now use Delux 45-45-10 from White Label Lubes , the blend Recluse started here. The Lee lube was a bit much smoke wise shooting on an indoor range so I use to Tumble in a tumbler not a viberator with corn cob media and a few tablespoons of mineral spirits added. It only took about 15 minutes to clean them up real nice.

There have been numerious debates as to the safety of using a viberator to clean / polish loaded rounds. I am not about to get into that debate but I will state that I have used a viberator with corn cob and mineral spirits to clean up both straight Xlox and Delux 45-45-10 loaded rounds just out of curiosity, it worked and no problems were encountered. Honestly I shot outdoors only and thus do not bother with the extra lube on the boolits, just not a problem in my mind.

Some may wonder about the effects of the Alox on the powder after long term storage, well 9mm I loaded over 30 years ago with all of the Alox left on the boolits still functions just fine and it was not stored under idea conditions all of the time.

NRA Endowment Member
Vet . 2nd of the 47th 9th.Inf. Viet Nam Mar. 67-68

Oh! Please not the "to tumble or not to tumble live ammo" debate again...

If anybody is curious, google "tumbling live ammo" and you'll get hits for info going back years.

You may not post new threadsYou may not post repliesYou may not post attachmentsYou may not edit your postsForum Rules

Abbreviations used in Reloading
Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt"

View the original article here