Best place/price to get gas checks

N

Nova316

CGN Regular
Rating - 100%
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Location
Ctown, Alberta
I'll be finally starting to cast this winter after finding a sizer, have had lead for a while.
Just wondering where everyone gets their gas checks from and the best price. I am looking to grab them for a 30 cal.

Thanks!
 
Well...find the plans on the internet and make your own gas check maker.

I originally bought a Pat Marlins check maker. I then found plans to make my own and did so. Sold the PM check maker soon afterwards. His two step process is a PITA.

I think I have roughly 5000 squirreled away :)
 
Charlie that makes the freechex system is a great guy to deal with. I've bought a few dies off him. He can make any caliber. Then you can make your own out of roof flashing from home depot, pop tins, other metal sheet sources. Metal thickness is important so will be experimental. To churn them out quickly a arbour press will help. I was producing around 800-1000 an hour on my setup.(i don't have the time/Want to produce for others now) Some people don't like the idea of non copper checks. If you go this route do some research first, it is a hobbie like reloading. Otherwise just buy on eBay. Remember when components were cheap! Lol
 
In Ctown as you call it I've bought at both Wholesale & Pro-line. I think there is a gunshow coming up at Thorncliffe and I see then on tables now and again.

I have built my own "cutter (as others have mentioned) for the Aluminum GCs but there is more to it than they mention, at least in my trials. If your mold has the GC base for factory checks then the alum will be too thin. You will need a very robust cutter/ press to make checks from heavy enough metal that they will perform and grip the bullet base.

I have had good luck with the home made GCs gripping and staying mounted to the base of a very flat based bullet but any bullet with a bevel/rounded base has trouble holding the check in place.

I think homemade have their place, fun to experiment with and almost costless (my punch is homemade as well, plans on the CAST Boolits site) but do they replace the store-bought in all uses...I think not.
 
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fingers284 said:
You will need a very robust cutter/ press to make checks from heavy enough metal that they will perform and grip the bullet base.
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Wrong on so many levels.

First you have to have a full understanding of the relationship between base dimensions, die dimensions, punch dimensions, and material thickness. There are some really good articles which explain these relationships and the calculation needed.

You can set up your home made checkmaker to use what ever material is easiest to get.
 
fingers284 said:
In Ctown as you call it I've bought at both Wholesale & Pro-line. I think there is a gunshow coming up at Thorncliffe and I see then on tables now and again.

I have built my own "cutter (as others have mentioned) for the Aluminum GCs but there is more to it than they mention, at least in my trials. If your mold has the GC base for factory checks then the alum will be too thin. You will need a very robust cutter/ press to make checks from heavy enough metal that they will perform and grip the bullet base.

I have had good luck with the home made GCs gripping and staying mounted to the base of a very flat based bullet but any bullet with a bevel/rounded base has trouble holding the check in place.

I think homemade have their place, fun to experiment with and almost costless (my punch is homemade as well, plans on the CAST Boolits site) but do they replace the store-bought in all uses...I think not.
Click to expand...

Maybe the aluminium checks you were using needed to be annealed. If they are too hard they spring back after you size them and don't stay swaged onto the bullet base. Had the same problem with a couple batches of aluminium checks bought off ebay so I annealed them and problem solved. Some of the ebay checks are not so good. The best aluminium checks I've used have been from Sage Outdoor Products. He sells on ebay but also has his own website. But lately I've been buying copper Gator checks from NOE.
 
All the aluminum I've used or tried have been home made from 6-8 thou thick pop/beer cans or 12 thou thick flashing.

When I couldn't get a reliable grip onto a bevel based bullet I tried a larger size disc to give more side-wall coverage but the longer "lip" wrinkled enough to create very distinct gas escape venues that would defeat the purpose of a GC all together I think.
 
Loyalist said:
I bought mine off of the EE. Rebelson sells them on there for $22/1000 shipped. They work great on 30-30 and other 30cals.
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Awesome thats a really good deal, I'll but a few thou from him
Was looking at tooling and making my own but it seems a big hit or miss if you can't get the right thickness/etc
 
I've bought from DragonLube a number of times. Gator copper gas checks and his own lubes. Excellent service, good pricing and good products. Gator gas checks come out of the states (I think) where they receive excellent reviews on Cast Bullet site. I've used thousands of Hornady's over the years but Gators seem to work as well for about half the price.
 
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