What's cookin' in the pot today?

Beagle333 · February 24, 2013, 07:33 PM

It's my newest bullets! I just got the mold back from the machinist yesterday. It's a 358665 DC with a pin in one side. And it just spews forth nice silver bullets.

This is the pan I did before lunch.... and I did another like it after lunch. I figger there's probably 600± total, just by weight. But I didn't count yet.

And here's a close up of it. I love the profile of this bullet. And with the one groove, it's going to be a snap to dip lube, or just tumble and shoot. It has 3 bearing surfaces so it should get a good grip on the rifling. And it drops at just a hair under .359 so it will size up nice and shiny in my .358 sizer. I'm not a fan of bevel base bullets, but that's the way this one comes.

TXGunNut · February 24, 2013, 08:11 PM

I like! Nice job. Who makes that mould?

Beagle333 · February 24, 2013, 08:12 PM

It's a Lyman. I picked up a used one and had it drilled on one side. That's why it's not exactly mirror smooth.... it had just a little bit of rust at one time in it.

deerslayer303 · February 25, 2013, 10:34 AM

Nice Beagle, What alloy do you use? One of these day's I'm gonna venture out and try loading these new fangled center fire cartridges with some cast boolits.

salvadore · February 25, 2013, 03:56 PM

Here's some of the accurate mold stuff I did two days ago, I have mostly lead in the pot now so I think I'll try some soft cast 454190 hollowpoints to use in my SAA Colt next.

The other pics are what a bench looks like when an organized guy sets it up. I can work on it for two days cleaning and have it look like this in one day or reloading.

Beagle333 · February 25, 2013, 07:41 PM

Quote:

Nice Beagle, What alloy do you use?

These are isotope cores. 95-2.5-2.5 lead. Isotope is great stuff.... no alloying necessary.

Where do ya get it? Now that is the hard part. The guy I was getting it from passed away recently.

Nice work area, Salvadore! I'd take a picture of mine, but it is so messy that it isn't even recognizable as a work area.

TXGunNut · February 26, 2013, 11:01 PM

I'd take a picture of mine but last place I saw my camera was....you guessed it!

LAH · March 3, 2013, 09:14 PM

I also like the 358665. It's a great bullet. As for the BB I thought of having my mold surface ground enough to take the bevel out. My mold was dropping them at 165 grains so I would mind loosing a little weight.

Beagle333 · March 23, 2013, 06:54 PM

It's raining here today, so I'm just sizing a bunch of stuff that I have cast.
But I really like the bearing surface on these 358665s, just look at how much bore riding area is smoothed out when they are sized.

The solids come out 165gr (as LAH said), and the HPs are 150gr.

But..... I got this idea, and it's a good example of what not to do....
I had lots of time, just sitting around while it was raining, and I size with a Lee hand press, so it's much easier if I lube em lightly before sizing, and so I figured I would save lots of Alox if I only painted it lightly on the bearing areas, so it didn't get wasted down in the grooves and in the hollow points.

So I painted one side, then moved the popsicle sticks a little bit and rolled em over and painted the other half. Well....I kept it out of the hollow points, but I used much more Alox than regular tumbling.

Anyway, it was an experiment and I just wanted to share. I'm going back to the old way of Alox tumble lightly, size, then dip lube with TAC#1.

LAH · March 23, 2013, 08:13 PM

Good lookin' boolits Beagle.

GP100man · March 23, 2013, 09:59 PM

Details Man !!!

Mold preheated ??? alloy temp ??? Casting pace ???

Did ya burn ya fingers lookin at the first few ???

We gotta know !!!!

Beagle333 · March 23, 2013, 10:17 PM

Quote:

Mold preheated ???

Always. I even preheat my round ball molds now. I like getting keepers on the first pour.

-------------------------

Quote:

alloy temp ???

That's a guess...... I had the Lee pot set on 8-1/4 on the dial. But since it has worked nicely for everything I have cast so far, I haven't bothered taking my nice shiny new Rotometals thermometer out there and actually measuring it yet.

I do know it's pretty hot though, because I do sometimes have to back off when using my Mihec molds to keep the frosting down to a minimum.
It seems like when they get overly frosted, they actually get smaller and I lose some definition of the edges. I like em best when they are just starting to show any frost.
-------------------------

Quote:

Casting pace ???

I was really aiming for one pour every 14 seconds. I read that a lot on castboolits as recommended as the perfect pace and I was using that as my guide. It's not as easy when casting with a ladle and also using a double cavity manual pin-style mold, but I kept it close. With this alloy, I can also tell when I'm getting too fast and the mold is getting too hot, because the sprue starts shattering like glass instead of just falling off when I cut it.
--------------------------

Quote:

Did ya burn ya fingers lookin at the first few ???

Nope!

I only cull when I'm finished, unless I just happen to see a really bad one or two while I'm waiting for a fresh ingot to melt and refill the pot.

Rangefinder · March 24, 2013, 12:46 AM

Man-oh-man... Such a pretty sight! NOW we gotta see what they look like when ya HIT something!! Where's your water jugs!!??

Beagle333 · March 24, 2013, 10:15 AM

I got the document shredder and the Sunday paper, and I'm stuffing jugs as we speak.

GP100man · March 24, 2013, 10:32 AM

That's a guess...... I had the Lee pot set on 8-1/4 on the dial. But since it has worked nicely for everything I have cast so far, I haven't bothered taking my nice shiny new Rotometals thermometer out there and actually measuring it yet. I do know it's pretty hot though, because I do sometimes have to back off when using my Mihec molds to keep the frosting down to a minimum.
It seems like when they get overly frosted, they actually get smaller and I lose some definition of the edges. I like em best when they are just starting to show any frost.

Beagle

This tells me the mold is TOO HOT probably close to 500f & "cookin the tin" in your alloy & the alloy is over 800f to support the over temp of the mold .

Bad thing , aparrently not as you`ve kept a good pace to keep it all rite at the verge of the "cook" temp & to cast sharply filled bullets with HP pins ya gotta keep the pin hot !!

At some point most ( I certainly did) casters used this process in their technique & has cast many tons of useable bullets!!

Here`s a pic of a 314299 mold that`ll keep the heat & cook tin qwikly even with the alloy at 650f , I have to pace myself down to let the heat disperse a bit.

These 2 bullets were cast within seconds of each other & I do alternate which cavity I fill first.

m&p45acp10+1 · March 24, 2013, 12:17 PM

I started with theese 200 grain semi wad cutters. (.452)

Next will be .358 TL SWC as soon as the pot heats back up.

Beagle333 · March 24, 2013, 12:52 PM

Them's purdy! Let's shoot somethin'!

m&p45acp10+1 · March 24, 2013, 02:00 PM

I will be shooting lots of things when the wind warms up a bit. Due to sinus problems I am stuck inside today. If it were not for sinus meds my eyes would be swolen shut today.

I am waiting on the pot to heat back up now. I just cast a few of theese. Will be casting a few hundred more when the pot gets back up to temp. (Wife is working now so I have the time.

)

.358 158 grain SWC they drop at about 156 with standar clip on WW.

Beagle333 · March 24, 2013, 02:58 PM

Quote:

NOW we gotta see what they look like when ya HIT something!! Where's your water jugs!!??

This isotope isn't the best for HPs. They are fun to shoot, but they shatter on impact. I think they'd make an awesome SD bullet though. What a wound on a BG!

But not so great for hunting. Fortunately, I don't hunt with the .357, only paper and cans. (unless you count turtles, but that's another bullet.) But it will completely blow apart two milk jugs of paper slush.

I was using 6.2gr of Unique. (I like a big splash!)

m&p45acp10+1 · March 24, 2013, 04:48 PM

Here are some ya' might like beagle.

.459 HBRNFP 405 grain. They drop at about 395 to 398 with COWW alloy. They shoot like laser beams from my Marlin with 16 inch barrel going at just a tad over 1100 FPS.

Nice and shiney too.

Cary · March 24, 2013, 05:17 PM

m&p45acp10+1,
Is that mold the one Lee sells for a .459 HB bullet? I already have their 340 gr. & 405 gr FP bullets for my Marlin 45-70. I have considered adding that HB mold to my collection as well. Do you have any feeding problems with your Marlin? That bullet looks longer than the ones I use.
Thanks,
Cary

m&p45acp10+1 · March 24, 2013, 05:42 PM

That is indeed the HB mold that Lee sells. It is by far the best Lee mold I own. I have no feeding problems at all with this bullet. I crimp in the crimping groove, which is not realy a groove, but more of a slight sholder over the last lube groove. I shoot them as cast after tumble lubing them in LLA. I load them with Trail Boss.

salvadore · March 24, 2013, 05:56 PM

Cast about 250 dead soft HPs last weekend for my own attempt at a non +p FBI load, and almost 900 of the wadcutters this weekend from an old Modern Bond mold. Instead of a life, I have a lead pot.

Beagle333 · March 24, 2013, 07:12 PM

Quote:

Instead of a life, I have a lead pot.

Salvadore, you say that like it's a bad thing?

salvadore · March 24, 2013, 07:39 PM

Pinochle and golf with friends and neighbors? No way, like the man said, the more people I meet the better I like my dogs.

February 24, 2013, 08:11 PM	#2
TXGunNut Senior Member Join Date: January 16, 2010 Location: If you have to ask... Posts: 2,860	I like! Nice job. Who makes that mould? __________________ Life Member NRA, TSRA Smokeless powder is a passing fad! -Steve Garbe I hate rude behavior in a man. I won't tolerate it. -Woodrow F. Call Lonesome Dove My favorite recipes start out with a handful of used wheelweights.

February 24, 2013, 08:12 PM	#3
Beagle333 Senior Member Join Date: January 7, 2012 Location: Auburn, AL. Posts: 2,332	It's a Lyman. I picked up a used one and had it drilled on one side. That's why it's not exactly mirror smooth.... it had just a little bit of rust at one time in it. __________________ . . . Have a Colt and a smile.

February 25, 2013, 10:34 AM	#4
deerslayer303 Senior Member Join Date: January 10, 2011 Location: Leesville SC Posts: 2,654	Nice Beagle, What alloy do you use? One of these day's I'm gonna venture out and try loading these new fangled center fire cartridges with some cast boolits. __________________ "I prefer dangerous freedom over peaceful slavery." - Thomas Jefferson

February 26, 2013, 11:01 PM	#7
TXGunNut Senior Member Join Date: January 16, 2010 Location: If you have to ask... Posts: 2,860	I'd take a picture of mine but last place I saw my camera was....you guessed it! __________________ Life Member NRA, TSRA Smokeless powder is a passing fad! -Steve Garbe I hate rude behavior in a man. I won't tolerate it. -Woodrow F. Call Lonesome Dove My favorite recipes start out with a handful of used wheelweights.

March 23, 2013, 06:54 PM	#9
Beagle333 Senior Member Join Date: January 7, 2012 Location: Auburn, AL. Posts: 2,332	got too much time.... stop the rain! It's raining here today, so I'm just sizing a bunch of stuff that I have cast. But I really like the bearing surface on these 358665s, just look at how much bore riding area is smoothed out when they are sized. The solids come out 165gr (as LAH said), and the HPs are 150gr. But..... I got this idea, and it's a good example of what not to do.... I had lots of time, just sitting around while it was raining, and I size with a Lee hand press, so it's much easier if I lube em lightly before sizing, and so I figured I would save lots of Alox if I only painted it lightly on the bearing areas, so it didn't get wasted down in the grooves and in the hollow points. So I painted one side, then moved the popsicle sticks a little bit and rolled em over and painted the other half. Well....I kept it out of the hollow points, but I used much more Alox than regular tumbling. Anyway, it was an experiment and I just wanted to share. I'm going back to the old way of Alox tumble lightly, size, then dip lube with TAC#1. __________________ . . . Have a Colt and a smile.

February 24, 2013, 07:33 PM	#1
Beagle333 Senior Member Join Date: January 7, 2012 Location: Auburn, AL. Posts: 2,332	What's cookin' in the pot today? It's my newest bullets! I just got the mold back from the machinist yesterday. It's a 358665 DC with a pin in one side. And it just spews forth nice silver bullets. This is the pan I did before lunch.... and I did another like it after lunch. I figger there's probably 600± total, just by weight. But I didn't count yet. And here's a close up of it. I love the profile of this bullet. And with the one groove, it's going to be a snap to dip lube, or just tumble and shoot. It has 3 bearing surfaces so it should get a good grip on the rifling. And it drops at just a hair under .359 so it will size up nice and shiny in my .358 sizer. I'm not a fan of bevel base bullets, but that's the way this one comes. __________________ . . . Have a Colt and a smile.

February 25, 2013, 03:56 PM	#5
salvadore Junior member Join Date: January 1, 2007 Location: Idaho Posts: 2,282	Here's some of the accurate mold stuff I did two days ago, I have mostly lead in the pot now so I think I'll try some soft cast 454190 hollowpoints to use in my SAA Colt next. The other pics are what a bench looks like when an organized guy sets it up. I can work on it for two days cleaning and have it look like this in one day or reloading.

March 3, 2013, 09:14 PM	#8
LAH Senior Member Join Date: March 22, 2002 Location: In The Hardwoods Posts: 1,188	I also like the 358665. It's a great bullet. As for the BB I thought of having my mold surface ground enough to take the bevel out. My mold was dropping them at 165 grains so I would mind loosing a little weight.

March 23, 2013, 08:13 PM	#10
LAH Senior Member Join Date: March 22, 2002 Location: In The Hardwoods Posts: 1,188	Good lookin' boolits Beagle.

March 23, 2013, 09:59 PM	#11
GP100man Senior Member Join Date: August 1, 2007 Location: Tabor City , NC. Posts: 1,969	Details Man !!! Mold preheated ??? alloy temp ??? Casting pace ??? Did ya burn ya fingers lookin at the first few ??? We gotta know !!!! __________________ GP100man

March 24, 2013, 12:46 AM	#13
Rangefinder Senior Member Join Date: August 4, 2005 Posts: 2,017	Man-oh-man... Such a pretty sight! NOW we gotta see what they look like when ya HIT something!! Where's your water jugs!!?? __________________ "Why is is called Common Sense when it seems so few actually possess it?" Guns only have two enemies: Rust and Politicians.

March 24, 2013, 10:15 AM	#14
Beagle333 Senior Member Join Date: January 7, 2012 Location: Auburn, AL. Posts: 2,332	I got the document shredder and the Sunday paper, and I'm stuffing jugs as we speak. __________________ . . . Have a Colt and a smile.

March 24, 2013, 10:32 AM	#15
GP100man Senior Member Join Date: August 1, 2007 Location: Tabor City , NC. Posts: 1,969	That's a guess...... I had the Lee pot set on 8-1/4 on the dial. But since it has worked nicely for everything I have cast so far, I haven't bothered taking my nice shiny new Rotometals thermometer out there and actually measuring it yet. I do know it's pretty hot though, because I do sometimes have to back off when using my Mihec molds to keep the frosting down to a minimum. It seems like when they get overly frosted, they actually get smaller and I lose some definition of the edges. I like em best when they are just starting to show any frost. Beagle This tells me the mold is TOO HOT probably close to 500f & "cookin the tin" in your alloy & the alloy is over 800f to support the over temp of the mold . Bad thing , aparrently not as you`ve kept a good pace to keep it all rite at the verge of the "cook" temp & to cast sharply filled bullets with HP pins ya gotta keep the pin hot !! At some point most ( I certainly did) casters used this process in their technique & has cast many tons of useable bullets!! Here`s a pic of a 314299 mold that`ll keep the heat & cook tin qwikly even with the alloy at 650f , I have to pace myself down to let the heat disperse a bit. These 2 bullets were cast within seconds of each other & I do alternate which cavity I fill first. __________________ GP100man

March 24, 2013, 12:17 PM	#16
m&p45acp10+1 Senior Member Join Date: May 3, 2009 Location: Central Texas Posts: 3,930	I started with theese 200 grain semi wad cutters. (.452) Next will be .358 TL SWC as soon as the pot heats back up. __________________ No matter how many times you do it and nothing happens it only takes something going wrong one time to kill you.

March 24, 2013, 12:52 PM	#17
Beagle333 Senior Member Join Date: January 7, 2012 Location: Auburn, AL. Posts: 2,332	Them's purdy! Let's shoot somethin'! __________________ . . . Have a Colt and a smile.

March 24, 2013, 02:00 PM	#18
m&p45acp10+1 Senior Member Join Date: May 3, 2009 Location: Central Texas Posts: 3,930	I will be shooting lots of things when the wind warms up a bit. Due to sinus problems I am stuck inside today. If it were not for sinus meds my eyes would be swolen shut today. I am waiting on the pot to heat back up now. I just cast a few of theese. Will be casting a few hundred more when the pot gets back up to temp. (Wife is working now so I have the time.) .358 158 grain SWC they drop at about 156 with standar clip on WW. __________________ No matter how many times you do it and nothing happens it only takes something going wrong one time to kill you.

March 24, 2013, 04:48 PM	#20
m&p45acp10+1 Senior Member Join Date: May 3, 2009 Location: Central Texas Posts: 3,930	Here are some ya' might like beagle. .459 HBRNFP 405 grain. They drop at about 395 to 398 with COWW alloy. They shoot like laser beams from my Marlin with 16 inch barrel going at just a tad over 1100 FPS. Nice and shiney too. __________________ No matter how many times you do it and nothing happens it only takes something going wrong one time to kill you.

March 24, 2013, 05:17 PM	#21
Cary Senior Member Join Date: November 18, 2010 Location: Boise, ID Posts: 131	m&p45acp10+1, Is that mold the one Lee sells for a .459 HB bullet? I already have their 340 gr. & 405 gr FP bullets for my Marlin 45-70. I have considered adding that HB mold to my collection as well. Do you have any feeding problems with your Marlin? That bullet looks longer than the ones I use. Thanks, Cary __________________ Shooters. We are a community. United we stand divided we fall.

March 24, 2013, 05:42 PM	#22
m&p45acp10+1 Senior Member Join Date: May 3, 2009 Location: Central Texas Posts: 3,930	That is indeed the HB mold that Lee sells. It is by far the best Lee mold I own. I have no feeding problems at all with this bullet. I crimp in the crimping groove, which is not realy a groove, but more of a slight sholder over the last lube groove. I shoot them as cast after tumble lubing them in LLA. I load them with Trail Boss. __________________ No matter how many times you do it and nothing happens it only takes something going wrong one time to kill you.

March 24, 2013, 05:56 PM	#23
salvadore Junior member Join Date: January 1, 2007 Location: Idaho Posts: 2,282	Cast about 250 dead soft HPs last weekend for my own attempt at a non +p FBI load, and almost 900 of the wadcutters this weekend from an old Modern Bond mold. Instead of a life, I have a lead pot.

March 24, 2013, 07:39 PM	#25
salvadore Junior member Join Date: January 1, 2007 Location: Idaho Posts: 2,282	Pinochle and golf with friends and neighbors? No way, like the man said, the more people I meet the better I like my dogs.