What did you do in the reloading room recently?

Michael J. Spangler said:
Alloy can play into how the crimp works out. Some manufacturers run softer alloys figuring that the coating will make up for it. In a lot of cases it does.
I’m also wondering if the coating is softer. I’m worked with powder coated bullets before and that stuff can be super soft. You can scrape it off with your fingernail. The hi-tek is hard as woodpecker lips.

I have some mercury from some old thermostats that comes in handy when I have bad lead issues. Snag it when you see it!

Artie is spot in with the copper chore boy. Make sure the relay copper and not plated steel (magnet test) wrap that around a brush and get at it.
Click to expand...
Thanks. I got 99% of it out after some scraping and chucking a cleaning bore brush into my cordless drill....not ideal I know but it seems to have worked.

I'm almost wondering if this is a brass issue? I just spent the last hour inspecting 600+ rounds and the majority of them didn't have any lead slivers at the casemouth. If I wasn't expanding the casemouths enough then why did ~400 of them not have any lead slivers? Or maybe the overall length of the brass varied enough that some were expanding more than others?

Never had this problem with the tens of thousands of blue bullets I reloaded. They use a polymer coating and are 0.355"

In any event I have a bunch to pull. Sucks that I can't use the hornady cam lock puller so I can easily dump out the powder. I hate wasting powder. Got 2k blue bullets on hand that I'll use.

I think Acme uses HiTek coatings according to an article I read:
"Acme Bullet Company itself labels them as “Lipstick” Bullets due to the bright red coating. This is a HiTek coating applied to cast bullets of a 92-6-2 alloy with the 92 representing 92 percent lead and the others tin and antimony. Acme says the coating is bonded to the bullet on a molecular level and completely encapsulates it"

I'll definitely grab a chore bore too for future use.
 
Agt. Smith said:
For us new guys - I'm looking at exposed lead from damaged polymer coating?

I just got my first order of coated projectiles. Is there (usually) any adjustment needed to the die when changed from jacked to coated?

View attachment 494286
Click to expand...

Yes, exposed lead.

Lead isn't kryptonite IMHO..wash your hands. Get some de-lead soap/wipes...you'll be fine.

You'll generally need to put a lot more bell on the case to seat the coated bullet without shaving the coating off. Takes a little tweaking to get it right. Since you are expanding more, you'll also need to adjust crimp to compensate.
 
andrew1220 said:
Thanks. I got 99% of it out after some scraping and chucking a cleaning bore brush into my cordless drill....not ideal I know but it seems to have worked.

I'm almost wondering if this is a brass issue? I just spent the last hour inspecting 600+ rounds and the majority of them didn't have any lead slivers at the casemouth. If I wasn't expanding the casemouths enough then why did ~400 of them not have any lead slivers? Or maybe the overall length of the brass varied enough that some were expanding more than others?

Never had this problem with the tens of thousands of blue bullets I reloaded. They use a polymer coating and are 0.355"

In any event I have a bunch to pull. Sucks that I can't use the hornady cam lock puller so I can easily dump out the powder. I hate wasting powder. Got 2k blue bullets on hand that I'll use.

I think Acme uses HiTek coatings according to an article I read:
"Acme Bullet Company itself labels them as “Lipstick” Bullets due to the bright red coating. This is a HiTek coating applied to cast bullets of a 92-6-2 alloy with the 92 representing 92 percent lead and the others tin and antimony. Acme says the coating is bonded to the bullet on a molecular level and completely encapsulates it"

I'll definitely grab a chore bore too for future use.
Click to expand...
It could be misalignment when seating the bullets. Shorter cases leading to less bell.

Bell them a little more and see what happens.

Do they have as much of a bevel base as the other brands you use?
 
Agt. Smith said:
For us new guys - I'm looking at exposed lead from damaged polymer coating?

I just got my first order of coated projectiles. Is there (usually) any adjustment needed to the die when changed from jacked to coated?

Like Mike S stated, I would bell the cases a little more and it will certainly help…. I too press a large amount of poly coated heads and what I find that helps to is not only do I increase the bell but I give my polycoated heads themselves a light spray of case lube (I use hornady) let them dry and then reload…I find that minimizes scraped heads and definitely loads a little easier…
Click to expand...
 
Like Mike S stated, I would bell the cases a little more and it will certainly help…. I too press a large amount of poly coated heads and what I find that helps to is not only do I increase the bell but I give my polycoated heads themselves a light spray of case lube (I use hornady) let them dry and then reload…I find that minimizes scraped heads and definitely loads a little easier…
 
Michael J. Spangler said:
It could be misalignment when seating the bullets. Shorter cases leading to less bell.

Bell them a little more and see what happens.

Do they have as much of a bevel base as the other brands you use?
Click to expand...
Good call. I was cranking these out rather fast late last year. I probably got lazy aligning the bullets during seating. They seem to have about the same amount of bevel as the blue bullets, maybe just a hair less.

Going to take forever to pull these but it must be done lol.
 
andrew1220 said:
Good call. I was cranking these out rather fast late last year. I probably got lazy aligning the bullets during seating. They seem to have about the same amount of bevel as the blue bullets, maybe just a hair less.

Going to take forever to pull these but it must be done lol.
Click to expand...
Shoot a couple then shoot some some good ammo. I had some poorly coated 38s that would lead.
I would shot 4 or 5 then chase it with a dozen good bullets.
Barrel was clean when I was done.
 
Well - had a bunch of "firsts" this morning at the range. (baby steps.........!)

Loaded (and shot) my first cartridges with lead bullets, loaded (and shot) my first .44 MAG cartridges, used a chrono for the first time (the wifi even worked), and last but not least - got my first ever LPP strike with no ignition (went off on the second strike/time around in the cylinder).

44_testing.jpg

Here's the chrono data for anyone interested in lighter .44 loads using Alliant SP:

- Temp +77 F, RH 79%, Wind: None, Chrono positioned ~3m from muzzle.
- Chrono: Competition Electronics ProChrono DLX Chronograph (# CEI-3820)
- Revolver S&W 629 PC, 2-5/8"
- 20/24 shots landed on a paper plate at 25' (the other 4 were pretty freakin' close)
- Bullets were hard cast and lubed by Jeff Baker (Cary Plt, ME)
- Barrel was clean as a whistle (no lead residue) when finished

215gn RNFP (J. Baker), 4.5 gn Alliant SP, 44 SPL New Hornady case

{"velocity":660,"date":"2021-06-21T09:15:55-04:00"}
{"velocity":556,"date":"2021-06-21T09:15:57-04:00"}
{"velocity":661,"date":"2021-06-21T09:16:11-04:00"}
{"velocity":589,"date":"2021-06-21T09:16:15-04:00"}
{"velocity":581,"date":"2021-06-21T09:16:17-04:00"}
{"velocity":569,"date":"2021-06-21T09:16:21-04:00"}
mean = 602.2, standard deviation = 46.2

215gn RNFP (J. Baker), 4.7 gn Alliant SP, 44 SPL New Hornady case

{"velocity":696,"date":"2021-06-21T09:30:48-04:00"}
{"velocity":697,"date":"2021-06-21T09:32:16-04:00"}
{"velocity":704,"date":"2021-06-21T09:32:18-04:00"}
{"velocity":721,"date":"2021-06-21T09:32:24-04:00"}
{"velocity":723,"date":"2021-06-21T09:32:28-04:00"}
{"velocity":688,"date":"2021-06-21T09:34:20-04:00"}
mean = 704.8, standard deviation = 14.2


215gn RNFP (J. Baker), 5.0 gn Alliant SP, 44 SPL New Hornadycase

{"velocity":821,"date":"2021-06-21T09:34:22-04:00"}
{"velocity":791,"date":"2021-06-21T09:34:26-04:00"}
{"velocity":844,"date":"2021-06-21T09:34:28-04:00"}
{"velocity":807,"date":"2021-06-21T09:34:32-04:00"}
{"velocity":843,"date":"2021-06-21T09:36:18-04:00"}
{"velocity":828,"date":"2021-06-21T09:36:34-04:00"}
mean = 795.5, standard deviation = 46.7


215gn RNFP (J. Baker), 5.0 gn Alliant SP, 44 MAG Everglades OF case

{"velocity":648,"date":"2021-06-21T09:39:52-04:00"}
{"velocity":594,"date":"2021-06-21T09:40:00-04:00"}
{"velocity":611,"date":"2021-06-21T09:40:06-04:00"}
{"velocity":602,"date":"2021-06-21T09:40:10-04:00"}
{"velocity":592,"date":"2021-06-21T09:40:12-04:00"}
{"velocity":632,"date":"2021-06-21T09:40:14-04:00"}
mean = 613.2, standard deviation = 22.2

I had 6 more, but I couldn't resist going over and knocking over a few plates with them.

I also checked a few dozen 9mm loads - PM me if interested in the recipe and chrono results.
 
EddieZoom said:
@andrew1220 what caused you to change up from using the Blue's ? Smoking deal ? Availability?
Click to expand...
Mainly curiosity and I guess availability. Last year I tried playing around with other coated bullets just for the hell of it. And they ship WAY faster than blue bullets. Though I still have 2k blue bullets left...
 
andrew1220 said:
Mainly curiosity and I guess availability. Last year I tried playing around with other coated bullets just for the hell of it. And they ship WAY faster than blue bullets. Though I still have 2k blue bullets left...
Click to expand...
I've never tried coated bullets and was poking around on Blue's site a few days ago. Debated ordering some, but I'd like to load before Christmas..
 
Agt. Smith said:
Well - had a bunch of "firsts" this morning at the range. (baby steps.........!)

Loaded (and shot) my first cartridges with lead bullets, loaded (and shot) my first .44 MAG cartridges, used a chrono for the first time (the wifi even worked), and last but not least - got my first ever LPP strike with no ignition (went off on the second strike/time around in the cylinder).

View attachment 494350

Here's the chrono data for anyone interested in lighter .44 loads using Alliant SP:

- Temp +77 F, RH 79%, Wind: None, Chrono positioned ~3m from muzzle.
- Chrono: Competition Electronics ProChrono DLX Chronograph (# CEI-3820)
- Revolver S&W 629 PC, 2-5/8"
- 20/24 shots landed on a paper plate at 25' (the other 4 were pretty freakin' close)
- Bullets were hard cast and lubed by Jeff Baker (Cary Plt, ME)
- Barrel was clean as a whistle (no lead residue) when finished

215gn RNFP (J. Baker), 4.5 gn Alliant SP, 44 SPL New Hornady case

{"velocity":660,"date":"2021-06-21T09:15:55-04:00"}
{"velocity":556,"date":"2021-06-21T09:15:57-04:00"}
{"velocity":661,"date":"2021-06-21T09:16:11-04:00"}
{"velocity":589,"date":"2021-06-21T09:16:15-04:00"}
{"velocity":581,"date":"2021-06-21T09:16:17-04:00"}
{"velocity":569,"date":"2021-06-21T09:16:21-04:00"}
mean = 602.2, standard deviation = 46.2

215gn RNFP (J. Baker), 4.7 gn Alliant SP, 44 SPL New Hornady case

{"velocity":696,"date":"2021-06-21T09:30:48-04:00"}
{"velocity":697,"date":"2021-06-21T09:32:16-04:00"}
{"velocity":704,"date":"2021-06-21T09:32:18-04:00"}
{"velocity":721,"date":"2021-06-21T09:32:24-04:00"}
{"velocity":723,"date":"2021-06-21T09:32:28-04:00"}
{"velocity":688,"date":"2021-06-21T09:34:20-04:00"}
mean = 704.8, standard deviation = 14.2


215gn RNFP (J. Baker), 5.0 gn Alliant SP, 44 SPL New Hornadycase

{"velocity":821,"date":"2021-06-21T09:34:22-04:00"}
{"velocity":791,"date":"2021-06-21T09:34:26-04:00"}
{"velocity":844,"date":"2021-06-21T09:34:28-04:00"}
{"velocity":807,"date":"2021-06-21T09:34:32-04:00"}
{"velocity":843,"date":"2021-06-21T09:36:18-04:00"}
{"velocity":828,"date":"2021-06-21T09:36:34-04:00"}
mean = 795.5, standard deviation = 46.7


215gn RNFP (J. Baker), 5.0 gn Alliant SP, 44 MAG Everglades OF case

{"velocity":648,"date":"2021-06-21T09:39:52-04:00"}
{"velocity":594,"date":"2021-06-21T09:40:00-04:00"}
{"velocity":611,"date":"2021-06-21T09:40:06-04:00"}
{"velocity":602,"date":"2021-06-21T09:40:10-04:00"}
{"velocity":592,"date":"2021-06-21T09:40:12-04:00"}
{"velocity":632,"date":"2021-06-21T09:40:14-04:00"}
mean = 613.2, standard deviation = 22.2

I had 6 more, but I couldn't resist going over and knocking over a few plates with them.

I also checked a few dozen 9mm loads - PM me if interested in the recipe and chrono results.
Click to expand...
Nice work. That seems to have answered your questions.
 
10 each test loads of 45acp using 230 grain plated rn woth 6.3 and 6.7 grains CFE pistol.

Then I churned out 100 using 5.o grains bullseye.

Will test the CFE pistol loads tomorrow night. Need to branch out and find new powders....in this current world I can't rely on one powder for 45 and 38 like I've been doing with bullseye. Gotta get testing some others. Have to say cfe pistol meters like a dream! Threw 15 test throws and every one was 6.3 on the nose. 20210621_205252.jpg
 
Debated starting a thread but figured I'd just post it here, since it impacts my "reloading room."

I'm in the process of building a new workbench, and I'm wondering what everyone's stances are on how they mount their presses.

Should I just mount my single stage to the new bench, or get a reloading stand, or mount it to some random smaller wood pieces and clamp that onto the bench?

I have room for the stand and it would free up the table top, I suppose, although it's not something I "need" for space concerns or anything.
The clamping onto the bench idea I thought might give me some flexibility; I wouldn't have to drill through the bench top and alter it permanently if I wanted to move things around or change presses down the line.

I'm wondering how sturdy clamping it would work. I'm thinking with enough clamps it'd be stable.
Or do people that have stands really like them? The Lee one is apparently $120-$140 and has decent enough reviews.

I guess a stand would let me be somewhat mobile although I don't envisage a scenario where I'm going to need to move the press into a different room and actually load with it. I don't want to try to justify $120-$140+ for no reason.

Maybe I'm overthinking it and I should just mount it to the bench itself?

ETA: Just running a single stage at the moment although I've put off getting a progressive for about four years now. Maybe a progressive could go on a stand in the future. I could always try the clamp route and if it's no good, mount it directly.
 

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