Molds/brass question

Jericho

Jericho

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First off, are bell 7.62x54R and 7.62x39mm brass reloadable? Are they brass? Got a bunch for dirt cheap and am not sure the primer style or of the cases are washed in brass or all brass. They don't look washed in brass. Also wondering if Remington UMC .303 brit is reloadable brass or not. It looks like bright brass but the casings are a little dirty (doesn't look washed).


Also, wondering if Lee molds will suffice or do I NEED to purchase big expensive molds. I can't find anything north of the border... Wanting to reload .45acp, 9mm, 30-30win, 7.62x54R and yes 7.62x39 (I'm a cheap ass and hate the czech stuff).
 
I can't say for sure on the Bell brass as I have no experience with it, but the Remington .303 Brit brass is reloadable.


Lee molds work, but are a bit more fussy to use than some other more expensive molds. Lee molds are made of aluminum, and require a bit more work to get to and maintain at the optimal temperature for casting. For the price, I doubt you can go too far wrong, but as money permits, you may find yourself upgrading to more expensive steel/iron molds.
 
I hope. The bell ammo looks like decent quality. Any idea where I can get some moulds? What about the Lee sizing setup, what do you think of that?
 
It's the same old story, you get what you pay for, I'm not sure if the Lee sizing setup will crimp on gas checks. For the calibers you are using you will want a gas check design, with gas check installed. Lee molds tend to fall apart in ones hands but if you get a couple hundred bullets from them first, you will have gotten your monies' worth.
 
I've made over 3000 bullets with my Lee 45 cal double cavity mold with no signs of wear. Probably close to the same with my 170 grain flat nose for my 30-30 bullets.I can't speak for any other manufacturers. Once you get them up to temp and get going, they work fine. Read the instructions. Clean them really well with some rubbing alcohol. Smoke them with a bic lighter. Heat them up and put some bullet lube on the mating surfaces, being careful not to get it into your freshly cleaned and smoked bullet cavities. Put a little on top where the sprue plate slides across and go at it.
 
Skills are learnt as you begin to cast. I have maybe 5-6000 leads out of a six cavity Lee and I feel sure that I will get 20 000 from this mould.

Keep the sprue plate clean and smoked.

Lube the bolts.

Start by casting one or two out of the six to start off - or warm it up with propane torch to start.

Yes the Lee resizer crimps gas checks just fine. 'Course you don't need 'em on .45 or 9mm.
 
I have over 200 pounds of ingots so far and I have about another 150 pounds of ww's to pick up tomorrow and I dibbs on 3 garages which will have a bucket each for me by the end of may... and my bucket is about 90 pounds or so. 400-500 pounds of lead should do me for a long long time eh?
 
- Bell brass I had was reloadable (check your's with magnet ;))

- Lee molds and bullet sizing / gas check setup work good. I also use Lee Alox for bullets. Don't hummer molds too hard and they will last long enough.

You may want to slug your barrels to find the best bullet diameter to cast/size, could be .310 - .313

For rifle bullets hardness tester (Lee) is a good investment too.

Good luck!
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I have had great sucess with the lee moulds(45-9-38-500-45/70) in total I have 5000+ with no propblems yet, once you get them hot they stay the right temp while you use them. I water drop and have great hardness with wheel weights.
have fun
Jamie
 
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