lee 310 grain bullet..

[myronman3]

anyone use these?   look like just the ticket and a guy near me makes and sells them.   just wondering if anyone here has experience with them.

[Thomas Krupinski]

I cast them and use them in Contender barrels and a friends Anaconda.  Work great.  I cast them from straight wheel weight material and lube with the Lee liquid alox and seat a Hornady gas check.

I only wish that they would offer that design in a six cavity rather than the two cavity moulds.

[myronman3]

that is the animal.   thanks for the info.   got any idea on loads?   i want a milder load and am thinking on using unique.   this will be a close range deer round.

[Thomas Krupinski]

I think the last batch I loaded up with 2400.  Don't have the information in here with me, but they were not the max. and did well in the revolver.  

I know I can push them a whole lot faster, but I am happy with the performance on these.  They shoot well in the Contender barrels and for all practical purposes, no leading.  Without checking my records I think they went through the Chrony at almost 1,100 fps out of a 10" Contender barrel that I used to measure them.

[redhawk44p]

Just took a russian boar using them, they are great. We have also killed several deer with them.  It is my favorite mold.
www.ruger454.com

[myronman3]

thanks for the replies, gentlemen.   congratulations on your boar! :toast:

[Nobade]

As an added benefit they (at least the moulds I have) cast out at .433, big enough for my Ruger cylinders and the shoot exceptionally well in them. Have to go with a taller front sight though, the Blackhawk is about 3 feet high with the factory sights and bullets that heavy.

[myronman3]

thats what the fella that makes them said, too.   interesting about the shooting high.   thanks for the heads up!

[444marlin]

Thomas I am thinking of trying to cast my own bullets and am curios as to how you seat the gas check onto the bullet is it done when sizing? what if you don't need to size the bullet is there another way to seat the gas check? thanks for the help

[Thomas Krupinski]

You really need to use a gas check design to match the design of your bullet.  The Lee moulds I use do well with the Hornady (crimp on, have a little edge that bites in at the top of the cup) as opposed to the Lyman type which is the same thickness all the way from top to bottom and are just held on by friction and the inside of the case.

I really don't know of any way of seating the Hornady gas checks other than with a sizing die.  However you don't need to reduce the size of the bullet you cast to seat the gas check.  You could cast a .430 bullet and size it with a .430 die and the only thing the die will do is crimp on the top of the gas check cup into the reduced portion of the bullets base.

The procedure for seating the gas checks with the Lee sizing dies is pretty simple.  You place the gas check on the base of the bullet over the reduced area by hand.  Then insert the bullet nose first into the bottom of the die and run it up through the die with the ram of your press.  It is just like pushing a cartridge case into a die, except you don't pull it out.  There is a little ram for the sizing die that slips into your press ram like a shell holder and that pushes the bullet through the die and into the plastic container sitting on top of the die to catch the bullets.

Pretty simple and effective.  Now with the Lymans I guess you could just place them on by hand and then seat them into the case just like any other bullet.  Haven't had any real experience with the Lyman, just with the Hornady.  The Hornady's don't fall off during tumble lubing or after, and I suspect won't come off if seated below the neck on a bottleneck case.

[Bug]

Thomas, I heartily agree with you on the six-cavity mold. But, man, would that sucker ever pull down a pot! I just wish the nose were about .002 smaller, so I could use them in my Taurus :cry:  Anyway, they are good bullets, for what you pay for the mold.>>>>>>>>>Bug.

[444marlin]

thanks Thomas for the help, you said what I was thinking, but never having done it its nice to heat it from an experienced caster/reloader.