Crooked gas checks?

[thejanitor]

I have a question about gas checks, if we size/lube the bullets and when done some of the bullets stand crooked, will this result in the bullet leaving the bore at a wobble or will ignition "seat" the gas check flat? I kind of figure they will wobble but before I melt them down I want to know others thoughts. Thanks  thejanitor

[res45]

I would be looking to see why my GS's are going on crooked,is the sprue cutting off nice and clean,do you press the GC on first before crimping it onto the bullet.  You could also anneal the GC's before seating them to make them softer so they conform to the bullets base easier.  You can also use a small round headed lag bolt and give the GC a little tap to open it up if needed if it's a tight fit.

I seat all my GC's using the Lee push through sizers can't recall ever having an issue with them going on crooked so I can't speak to how they will affect accuracy.

[us920669]

Trying to think of anything it could be, don't be insulted if the questions sound stupid, but:
The mold is for a gas check bullet, right?  Little groove around the base.
Bullets come out pretty much round and the right size.
Gas checks and sizer the right size and top punch holding bullets straight.

Is the workshop so hot that they size so easy that there is almost no pressure required to seat?

[kbstenberg]

  My 2 cents  This is the way i seat all my checks.  I made a small wooden block from 2   1/2" thick blocks about 7/8ths of an inch square. One block has a hole drilled in it the size of the stud to size my 44 caliber bullets. The other block has a hole drilled in it to fit whatever bullet I want. Then glue the 2 blocks together so the smaller hole is centered over the larger hole.
  Mount any Lee sizer die in your reloading press, an leave the stud in the hole in the sizer. Put the sizer stud that fits the larger of the two holes in the reloading press. Place the woodblock onto the stud in the press ram. Now all you have to do is put the GC on the bullet so it stays in place. Turn the bullet with the GC upside down into the smaller hole in the wood block. Raise the ram so that the GC is driven onto the bullet. Since the bullet is in a straight line with the ram your GC will be seated straight every time
  Kevin

[thejanitor]

I will have to ask these questions to my buddy I cast with he knows more than me, but I don't plan to make any more of these if aprox 20% are crooked. I do know the mold is for GC bullets but I am not sure about the spru? that could be why when I tapped them to try to set the GC straight it didn't budge.  I can try the straightest ones for plinking but I will melt the worst ones down and recycle them. Thanks for the replies.  thejanitor

[anachronism]

Well, simply put. Does the sprue project below the base of the bullet at all? If so, this could be your problem. The bullets base needs to be perfectly flat for the gaschecks to seat perfectly straight. If you have projecting sprues, try breaking the sprues with a gloved hand. Lots of guys still beat their moulds with sticks to break the sprue, and if you catch it at an angle you can spring the sprue plate upwards a bit. This often causes a bump on the base that makes it impossible to seat a gascheck squarely.

[thejanitor]

Well, simply put. Does the sprue project below the base of the bullet at all? If so, this could be your problem. The bullets base needs to be perfectly flat for the gaschecks to seat perfectly straight. If you have projecting sprues, try breaking the sprues with a gloved hand. Lots of guys still beat their moulds with sticks to break the sprue, and if you catch it at an angle you can spring the sprue plate upwards a bit. This often causes a bump on the base that makes it impossible to seat a gascheck squarely.

I know when we cast I always use a stick to break the sprue loose and swing the plate, this may be what we did wrong.
 
Also Thanks KB for the tip with the wood. - Thanks  thejanitor

[Lloyd Smale]

they will not shoot well.

[.22-5-40]

Hello, thejanitor.  There is a good writeup on this very problem in the latest issue of Fouling Shot (cast bullet association).  I had this problem with cast .22 bullets..though it was more of a gas-check problem..in the .22 size, those little cups are so thin they tend to warp on base.  My solution was to have a swaging die made up by Corbin, with matching nose punch.  A lubed bullet is compressed just enough to flatten & square gas-check to bullet sides.  I was able to equal best match jacketed bullet accuracy doing this.

[thejanitor]

Thanks everybody!  thejanitor