Advice on getting into reloading/casting

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Beadwindow

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Hello All!

In the past week I've begun ordering reloading equipment, my initial aims being to begin reloading .22 Hornet, .303Br, and then some 150 gr .308 for my M305s. I will likely add 6.5x55 to the equation in the near future and keep adding others as time and money will allow.

I have also begun amassing some Lee equipment to cast and load .303 Br, as I have several rifles in that calibre that I haven't even fired yet due mostly due to time/cost of ammo, and it sounds as if casting is the most practical solution.......

Until I set up a proper work bench I'll be using the Lee Hand Press for reloading, and have some Lee Loaders for just case neck re-sizing (as suggested by Steve Regwell on his site.) If I had to begin with just two powders for .22 Hornet and .303 British, what are some suggestions to start with?
For lead casting, where can I get the lead (living in T.O.)? Or how about Gas Checks?
I've ordered Lee's second edition reloading manual and will make some of my further purchases of powder, bullets or other overlooked accessories after reading a little further.

Any advice/recommendations about the aforementioned would be greatly appreciated.

Frank:)
 
LEE equipment is okay for the price. The handloader or LEE Loaders will probably turn you off from the hobby if you keep using them. My personal recommendation would be to purchase the RCBS Rock Chucker Supreme Master Reloading kit. (Since all the calibers you list are for rifles, a single stage press is ideal) RCBS has the best customer service/warranty in the business, their tools are of the highest quality, and once you use an RCBS press, you won't want to go back to a cheap LEE (although I've heard good things about their new cast-iron press) With the RCBS kit, all you need to do is add components and a set of dies and you're good to go. I would recommend you pick up a decent quality caliper as well.

Check with local tire stores for wheel weights. They make for good and cheap cast bullets. My local stores are happy to see me come, as I save them the trouble of disposing of them. If you can't source wheel weights, check your local yellow pages for scrap metals dealers. You should have no trouble finding lead from any dealer. Just avoid recoverd lead from batteries or any alloys that may be contaminated with metals like zinc.

As for powders, I've had good results with IMR 4895 in .303 Brit. H110 in .22 Hornet with 50+gr bullets. Haven't done too much load development for the latter caliber, so I'll leave it to other Hornet fans to comment. As for the .303 Brit, you can't go wrong with IMR 4895. Its good for use with a wide range of bullet weights and all of my Lee-Enfields seem to shoot it well. Hope this helps!
 
no problem casting for bolt actions as long as you keep the velocity low, but don't try it on the M305. You will jam up the gas system with lead
 
X-man said:
LEE equipment is okay for the price. The handloader or LEE Loaders will probably turn you off from the hobby if you keep using them. My personal recommendation would be to purchase the RCBS Rock Chucker Supreme Master Reloading kit. (Since all the calibers you list are for rifles, a single stage press is ideal) RCBS has the best customer service/warranty in the business, their tools are of the highest quality, and once you use an RCBS press, you won't want to go back to a cheap LEE (although I've heard good things about their new cast-iron press) With the RCBS kit, all you need to do is add components and a set of dies and you're good to go. I would recommend you pick up a decent quality caliper as well.

Check with local tire stores for wheel weights. They make for good and cheap cast bullets. My local stores are happy to see me come, as I save them the trouble of disposing of them. If you can't source wheel weights, check your local yellow pages for scrap metals dealers. You should have no trouble finding lead from any dealer. Just avoid recoverd lead from batteries or any alloys that may be contaminated with metals like zinc.

As for powders, I've had good results with IMR 4895 in .303 Brit. H110 in .22 Hornet with 50+gr bullets. Haven't done too much load development for the latter caliber, so I'll leave it to other Hornet fans to comment. As for the .303 Brit, you can't go wrong with IMR 4895. Its good for use with a wide range of bullet weights and all of my Lee-Enfields seem to shoot it well. Hope this helps!
Click to expand...

How true..
started with a lee pro 1000 (used).. what a damn headache. Nothing worked right.
 
I like the lee equipment except for their reloading dies. The seating dies especially have given me trouble with cast bullets. Lee's collet die for neck sizing has worked well for me and would be a near necessity for .303 brit. It's available at reasonable cost from Higginson Powders.

Lee moulds are ok but can be worn out in 10 yrs or so of hard use. You may find it interesting to look at Cast Bullet Engineering's line of moulds - the Australian dollar is worth +/- $.80 Canadian, which makes them very competitive. They have a good assortment of designs for .303, and I've had good results with their .266132 design in my 96 mauser.

For powder choices, you have to know what you're trying to do. If you shoot on a range for fun, you'll likely be happier with faster powders in your 303 and 6.5. More reloads per lb of powder, frequently better accuracy and far less noise and recoil. If you are going to develope hunting loads, then the medium rate powders are probably the best bet. H110 and H4895 are probably good starting points. For the Hornet you're going to use the fast powders anyway. I've had very good luck with 2400 over the years in 303 sized cartridges. I'd try about 16 - 17 gr of either H110 or 2400 in the .303, 10gr or so in 6.5. It's been 30 yrs or so since I reloaded for the hornet, so I won't offer load advice, but will say it did respectably well with cast bullets - just watch twist rate and bullet length.

If cost is a consideration, you can do very well using Lee bullet sizers and hand lubing with machine grease. I use Canadian Tire Moly Grease and find it superior to most commercial bullet lubes. Just seat your bullet on the first driving band, apply grease with your fingers, seat to full depth and wipe away the excess. Use money saved on lubrisizer to buy more powder, lead, primers or other shooting equipment.

Hope this helps and you enjoy your cast bullet shooting.

Grouch
 
Sorry I missed your lead and gas check question. If you were in Vancouver, you could check the yellow pages for lead. Some companies deal in lead alloys, and you can buy the aloy of your choice at pretty reasonable prices. If you are like most of us, you can mix your own lead. A lot of us use wheel weights. It's worth your while to add about 2% tin to improve your bullet quality. For the calibres you mentioned, if you drop the hot bullets from the mold into a container of water with a pad at the bottom, they will get a lot harder. This helps achieve higher velocity. Another common alloy is 20:1 lead and tin. A soft alloy that a lot of rifles shoot well - but probably not your 6.5.

Gas checks you can get from Higginson Powders or Wholesale Sports for two. You can probably get them from a local supplier as well.
 
Hi Guys,

Thanks for your input! On the issue of presses, it looks like I will use the Lee Hand Press kit for starters until I set up a proper work station at which I can set up a good quality press. I still threw in the two Lee Loaders in my order due to an article I read on Steve Regwell's site suggesting that they were still usefull for neck sizing fired brass, and don't expect to use them beyond that purpose. Beyond that I ordered Lee .22 Hornet dies, .303br RGB dies, .303 Case Lube and Sizer Kit, some Lee case trimmers, primer pocket cleaner, chamfer tool, powder measure kit (scoops), 2nd Edition Basic Reloading, a melting pot, lead ladle .303 mould, ingot mould and a Hornady Magnetic Scale. The 6.5 and .308 dies will come later.

On the issue of powders, I was looking at 4895 for .303 hunting loads, though I am hoping to also create mild reloads with cast bullets for target, plinking and perhaps small game shooting (i.e. a reduced load for incidental grouse or other critters in deer season). Is there a preferred powder for these lighter loads in .303? For now I'll settle for jacketed bullets for the Hornet, for which I gather that 4227 would be a good start.

Further on the issue of lead reloading, I had thankfully read elsewhere on this board about the hazards of firing lead from Garand/M1A type rifles, and plan to load SP 150 grainers for the M305, as the lighter .308 hunting loads are not always available locally. I've just gotten the Higginsons Powders price list and will send for Lee's universal expanding die along with the gas checks, and most of the other cartridge components that I require. I don't anticipate finding it difficult to get wheel weights locally, and will look at the Australian moulds for when I'm ready for other calibres like .22 hornet and 6.5 mm.

Thanks again for all of your input. Though I am not too limited by money long term, it does looks like the cost of components (bullets, powders, primers and cases) will be such as to require that I put off thinking about an RCBS or equivalent kit until at least a couple of months in the future. In the meantime I'll focus on loading up some hornets for the small game season (it's the top barrel of my Savage 24) and perhaps getting some .303 and .308 hunting loads set up and sighted in, hopefully with some cast .303 loads to boot. I will keep you posted and look forward to when I'll be able to contribute back to the forum.

With Regards,

Frank
 
If you want some light hunting loads for the .303 you can use pistol bullets .32 auto people usually load these with pistol powders I believe. Aparently they'll make quite accurate rounds out to about 50 yds.

The melting pot (if it's the stove top variety) will be quite small. I have just upgraded to a new pot I found at a flea market for $3.00. A small cast iron pot will do excellently.

Scrounged wheel weights will be a good medium for your lead. Be aware that they are also being made of zinc and steel. This will float in the pot so pull them out. The clips are usually riveted on also.

You will probably want another pot for smelting your lead. Do this outside on a coleman stove (some guys use turkey fryer burners). Remember to stay upwind while smelting and wear protective clothing.

Good luck and welcome to the club.
 
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