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Rookie Press Operator Prepares to Blow Things Up

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I'm re-resizing, and trimming a couple hundred .223 LC cases, that didn't pass the gauge. Apparently there were some variations of my die settings when I originally sized/deprimed.
 
I noted a small difference in powder capacity with LC brass. Maybe the base is thicker? Remingtons held maybe 4% more powder.

I recently loaded a large lot of Federal Champions & Remington's.

Also a small collection of assorted range brass. 10 of this, 12 of that, onsies and twosies; just to see what the differences were, check the growth and internal volumes, etc.

I was kind of surprised that there was so much difference in the internal volume between brands. Then I cut some cases open and now I understand why.

They are only made so accurately on the inside. They sacrifice internal precision to more easily get a consistent size and finish on the outside of the case, where it's really critical.


Excess work and work hardening of the brass is thus avoided.
 
My issue was operator error. I would just pop the die in, and crank through a hundred or so rounds at a time. I didn't realise they weren't getting properly sized until I started having issues with my most recent AR build. Prompted me to get a gauge. The problem is my reloads, not the firearm.
 
I loaded up (21) 16 gauge rounds, with number two buckshot tonight. These had been reloaded once before and the crimps were splitting on a few.

These are all test loads as I have not shot the #2 buckshot through a 16 gauge yet.

I also tried out my new Lyman dies & sized/de-capped a handful of 30-30s.

It seemed to work OK. This was new once-shot brass, not from my gun, so I did a full length resize.

I also bought a .30-30 set from Lee, just for comparison. Well, actually I bought the Lees first but I found the Lymans on sale.

I need more empty brass to try it though.
 
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Since I now have dies for every caliber I shoot, I started going through my collection of recovered brass.

I was amazed at how much 9mm, .38 and .357 I had collected. Almost no forty-fives as I had given itall away to buddy Bobby.

Anyhow I went through and cleaned, lubed, sized. Decapped, and re-tumbled about 300 rounds of 9mm and about the same of mixed .38 Special & .357 brass.

I can shake it out tonight and start priming, but think the 38s take large primers. I need to get some for the .45s for sure. Also lead for both, but I may try casting some .38s too.
 
Your .38 and .357 are going to be small pistol primed.

So you are short on .45Auto brass huh?
 
OK, thanks Nitesite. Glad I bought that box of 1000 small primers. :)

I have 300 rounds of unfired .45 ammo, so when the time comes to re-load, I will have enough brass to be happy.
.45 has been easy to find. I just gave it out to Bobby who was re-loading it for me.

But Bobby can't work the press right now so I will probably just "borrow it all back".
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If you're looking for 45acp brass, here's what I suggest.

http://www.xtremebullets.com/45-Auto-Primed-Reprocessed-Brass-p/xb45p-500.htm

These are PRIMED and there are no haz mat fees associated with shipping them to you. They are not loaded ammo, so I don't think you'll have any problems having them shipped to you either due to state/local laws.

Don't get the new brass. Get the reprocessed. I ordered a big bag of these back just before Christmas and I think I culled maybe 4 of them. One because it was one of these junk freedom munitions stepped internal case, and the others were because the primers were seated upside down. The remaining were name brand headstamps.
 
Thank you Nitesite.

I told them one year ago, that I would retire Feb 15, but they still haven't hired anyone to take over my desk.

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@CaddmannQ

Cadd, let me be the first to congratulate you and welcome you to the wonder world of retirement.

You now may change your weekly calendar to read:

Saturday
Saturday
Saturday
Saturday
Saturday
Saturday
Sunday

When you get to KY you will be a nextdoor neighbor of mine and I'd be happy to buy you a meal.
 
@Scoop
Chances of me visiting in Kentucky are very good but chances of me moving there are not so good.

So thank you, and I can't wait to meet you at the chili parlor. LOL
 
. . . these junk freedom munitions stepped internal case . . .


Yes I bought a couple boxes of those Freedoms, and I shot them, and I have the cases, and they do look like junk. They did seem to feed and fire okay and I shot both 45 and 9 millimeter.

I gave all the empty .45 Freedom cases to Bobby and now he's going to give them back to me and I'm going to throw them out.

:jester:
 
Awwwwdammie.... that looks like it's gonna take a while to heal.

He was pulling a pallet mule backwards and tripped over a pallet that was on the floor. Broke his elbow...had surgery...titanium screws and plates installed...it came apart..(!)...he went back for a second surgery... so far so good.

I'm not sure if they used bailing wire this time or what, but it's working. He was in pretty bad shape there for a while.

 
Have you been doing chrono on you rifle batches. What kind of deviation are you getting?

Bobby was supposed to come with me and run the Chrono but he broke his arm.

I'll probably get it out this weekend and put a fresh battery in and see what happens.
 
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My collection of 9mm .38 and .357, all clean and ready to charge.

Most of them are sorted and I've got about a hundred and seventy-five of them primed. But I need to make another trip to the store.

I can charge the 9 millimeters tonight but I don't have any 38 caliber lead yet.
 
I have lead now for all the calibers which I intend to load myself.

There's about five hundred shells there in my photo above. They are now all flared, & primed, and I have about 35 magnums about 30 .38s, and over a hundred 9mm charged, loaded and crimped.

I trickled every load by hand.

So I still have about 350 loads to do but I'm going to go and shoot these, and see how they go before I load the rest.

The cowboy gun didn't need too many test loads but for the semi-auto XDs-9 I decided I wanted 100 shells for reliability testing.

These are not maximum loads. In fact I'm loading with Clays, and these will end up being fairly low velocity all the way around.
 
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The rain has continued more-or-less relentlessly, so instead of going up to shoot I stayed home and loaded more ammunition.

I've got everything loaded except the last two hundred nine millimeter cases, and I only have 50 slugs left so I'm not going to get them all done tonight.

I loaded some of the 9 millimeters with Hodgdon Clays and I loaded some with HS-6.

The Clays takes up about the same volume per weight, but the HS-6 is much easier to meter through the RCBS powder dispenser. The HS-6 comes out almost perfect on every drop.

With Clay's I'm always trickling, and I'm catching and chopping the big flakes in the powder dispenser, so it's difficult to meter.

No clue how these loads are going to shoot yet, but I hope to find out soon.

I may just say screw it and go shooting in the rain.
 
Once again my buddy Bobby had to cancel out on shooting plans and I stayed home to work on the motorcycle, load some bullets, and play with my new electric lead melting pot. :D
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$69 +tax at Sportsman's Warehouse.

Can I get a HOORHAH? This retirement biz is great. That lead in the pot I inherited from my dad, and it was about third of an ingot which I chiseled in half.

Yes, I figured this casting biz would be more fun with the right toys, and I am so happy about the way it worked out.

This thing really melts the lead and it heats up the Lee mold just fine, 1 top of the pot. I put some insulation over the top of the boolitz mold as it was heating up, to make sure it got to a good uniform temperature.

It only took a couple minutes.

I fluxed the pot with candle wax, skimmed it, candled the mold with a Bic lighter, and poured two lovely .38 cal wad-cutters on my first try.
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They mike out at .357" dia, but they have a few tiny blemishes.

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Okay more than a few lol. When you magnify the picture it looks like a cratered lunar surface made of shiny metal.
I was just really pleased at how well they came out.
 
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