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Old June 4, 2013, 11:11 PM   #1
Grump
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1960s Tong Tool for Wax Bullets?

I'm looking for information on an aluminum or perhaps pot metal, silver unfinished color, tong-type tool that was sold for seating primers and wax bullets. This was once popular for the Bullseye Pistol shooters.

It was probably made by CCI for use with their "Red Jet" wax bullets.

My Google-fu is not yielding anything useful.

Unlike the old 310 tool, the business end of this one is out at the end sort of like an oddball set of pliers.

My Dad had one, matched up with purpose-built .38 Special size aluminum cases with larger flash holes...but it seems to have vanished.

Ideas?
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Old June 6, 2013, 10:43 AM   #2
SL1
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I am surprised that you would be using a tool to seat wax bullets.

When I shot them, I settled on a technique for casting them into unsized cases, directly. I lightly oiled the cases on the inside and outside, then melted the wax in a cake pan and set the pan on a level surface to cool I waited for the wax to get to the temperature just before it develops a "skin" and then inserted the cases mouth-down in the wax. After letting the wax harden well, I simply pulled the cases out of the wax with my fingers, using a twisting motion. Then I wiped the outside of the cases and primed them with magnum primers. Of course, they were special cases that I had previously enlarged the flash holes.

For those of you who wonder if the oil on the cases affects the primer's reliability, I never had any misfires.

But, shooting wax makes a big mess. I eventually bought some rubber bullets to use instead. They were less accurate, though. At least initially. The wax bullets require quite a bit of cleaning after 10-20 shots, or accuracy goes away. If I shot enough of them, the bore was so full of wax, that the rifling was obstructed and the bullets would not engrave, so they actually would start tumbling. Rubber bullets don't do that.

SL1
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Old June 6, 2013, 01:29 PM   #3
Grump
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The greatest use for the tool was decapping and then priming the cases.

Another source appears to have verified my suspicion that the tool was sold by CCI way back when.

At least one person on the planet claims to still have one.
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Old June 6, 2013, 01:30 PM   #4
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Oh, and CCI and others say that bores need to be cleaned every 20-30 shots to keep accuracy with wax bullets.
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Old June 6, 2013, 02:52 PM   #5
TATER
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Grump, here is an option.
Special Brass and bullets...I use spitfires with 209s,
Waxbullets.com or cowboyfastdraw.com
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Old June 9, 2013, 12:06 PM   #6
bfoosh006
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Sorry about the size of the photo.


From E-Bay...http://www.ebay.com/itm/CCI-38-Speci...p2047675.l2557
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Old June 12, 2013, 01:11 AM   #7
Grump
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Yup, that's the one.

Still have a few corners in the garage to search for it...but I fear that it's long-gone.

THANKS for finding the evidence of existence!

Later,
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