First trip to range with cast loads, need advice.

OverUnder725

OverUnder725

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I took my first cast bullets I loaded to the range today and need help deciphering what went on. I cast using a Lee mold 357-124-2R with range scrap and they were dropping at .3575 and 129gr. Barrel slugged at .3555" - .356". I put them through my Lyman lube sizer with a .357" bottom die with Lyman Alox lube. Loaded to 1.102" with a .377" crimp using Bullseye starting with 3.0gr up to 4.0gr. Slight leading was noticed at 3.0gr after 5 rounds and got increasingly worse with higher loads. Smoke was noticeably bad at 3.7gr - 4.0gr. Accuracy was very poor in comparison what I had the gun shooting with plated Berry's 124gr plated bullets. I ran a brush through the bore after each charge increase but leading may have been some what cumulative. Attached are some pictures of the bore and bullets as cast and then as lubed and loaded.

Any input appreciated.

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to me it doesn't look like you have proper mold fill out as the edges are very round and not sharp. on a side note your top punch could be sanded on the inside to stop it from digging into the bullet and leaving the ring on top. i do it by putting the top punch in a drill press and get a small file and slowly re shape it, testing it with fresh cast bullets (a new one after each test even if it doesn't mark it).

i would start by adding 2% tin to your mix and see how that works, but you may have to get a .358" sizer die.

what temperature are you casting at?


9mm seems to be very finicky when it comes to casting from my reading and learning but luckily i haven't had much leading from it accept for a bit in my factory glock barrel.

is that a norinco np29?
 
Could be lube not up to the task of pressure of the 9mm

Read this
h ttp://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?121607-Setting-up-for-boolits-in-a-new-9mm
 
i've since built a PID temp controller for better control of the tempature, but that's the setting i used to use. i cast at 715 F and preheat my molds with a torch or in a full pot.

with regards to lube you can make your own and see how that effects it, i make Ben's Red lube recipe here - LINK i didn't like how soft it was so i believe i added an extra pound of beeswax. i made 2 batches so i won't have to make it for a LONG time.
 
you can use a hair dryer to heat up the sizer until it stops flowing nicely or use a propane torch which is what i did when it was really cold outside. mine came with the heater but i never use it, i will build another PID controller for it at some point, but ben's red flows good enough for now. i did notice that i could size more bullets having some amount of heat on the lubesizer. just don't leave to much pressure on the sizer, i had a playdoh factory when i walked away for 5 minutes...

if you can find pewter cookware or dishes, etc and get it for a good price it's usually 70% tin or more. from reading though most thrift stores put it in the antiques section and charge way to much for it for our purposes. i was able to get a really good deal from one of the hvac suppliers i go to for work and got 10lbs of 95/5 solder (95% tin and 5% antimony) for $100 tax in.

link for PID controllers - http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?115724-Project-PID-on-Lee-Pro-4-20-furnace

Pewter info - http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?127929-Pewter-pictures-and-hallmarks&highlight=pewter
 
I am just doing some work with this bullet for my CZ75 SP01 Shadow. The Mold that I have does not produce any bullets much over .3575 with proper fillout , and any bullets with improper fillout barely get touched in a .357 sizing die. I agree with Spawn in that your bullets do not like they have proper fill out and are probably a little undersized. Or the lube is not performing well enough.
I have been making my own bullet lube from a recipe on cast boolits called simple lube, and so far with good success in 44-40, 45ACP and now 9mm. It is a bit tacky but flows through the sizer without heat and stays nicely in the lube grooves. Also nice lube star at the muzzle.
I would suggest only changing one thing at a time. So for instance see if a sizing to .358 has any effect using your current lube. If you still have leading switch lubes and see if that fixes things. By changing too many variables at one time you will never really know what was causing your issues.
 
JRC said:
I would suggest only changing one thing at a time. So for instance see if a sizing to .358 has any effect using your current lube. If you still have leading switch lubes and see if that fixes things. By changing too many variables at one time you will never really know what was causing your issues.
Click to expand...

+1 to that!
 
Orange Magic Not the best and not the worst------> better in the heat of the summer
need heater or heat sizer up with a desk lamp (incandescent bulb) or trouble light
 
I added some tin to a pot of lead and started pouring. I think there is something wrong with my pot or it is plugged. It only pours a very small off centred stream so I dumped the lead and cleaned out the hole as best I could and refilled it, still no better. I then started filling the mold with a spoon and then things started looking better. The bullets came out with nice crisp features and were full right to the top of the mold. When I run them through the sizer, they were just barely being touched by the .357" die. Could it be that the pot is pouring the lead to slow and making the bullet to cold? If that makes sense? Side note: learned not to pour 6lbs of hot lead into a mold larger that your pot can take…..
 
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Too slow a pour rate could affect fillout especially if your mold isn't heated up. "Side note: learned not to pour 6lbs of hot lead into a mold larger that your pot can take….."
I know what that's all about bud. Live and learn.
 
You said your using range scrap, where are melting it? I only put clean ingot's in my casting pots as crud can mess up the spout like it has with yours.

I keep a bent paper clip to jam into the spout when it pours bad.

You can use a small cast iron pot or stainless steel pan and a coleman stove to melt your scrap in and a muffin tin to make ingot's
 
I cast a LEE 230 TC TL and just tumble lube them. Straight WW with a little bit of tin for pourability.
I use them out of my 45 Win Mag with a 19 inch barrel, no leading.
You can never have too much lube!!
 
OverUnder725 said:
I did all of my melting in a big pot on a propane burner and poured the refined lead into muffing tins to make ingots.
Click to expand...

Try the paperclip and see how it pours after, hopefully your not discouraged by all the issues you've been having. It's alot of trial and error getting things running smooth.
 
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