Partial slightly undersized cast bullet.

[Bazoo]

So let me run this by y’all. So in times past I had a bullet mould or two that made bullets slightly out of round with the narrowest section being undersized. I swapped them off without even trying the subsequent bullets.

I currently have a lee mould like this. It’s 429-240-2R. It is .430+ for most of its cross section, but just to the side of the parting line it measures .4285/.429 depending on mould temp and technique when I poured. It measures this I’d say 1/8 of the bullet.

So my query is, with my bore being .4292, will it lead? If that small part hits the land in the barrel it’ll be fine, but if it hits the groove, what’s gonna happen? Will the pressure from a land on either side make that small portion bump up? Will it only bump up if its a soft for pressure alloy? It is standard 44 special pressures, But would 44 mag act different? Alloy is ww+Sn, but I also use 50:50 ww/pb+Sn.

Has anyone traveled this road and save me the trouble?

I have 18 from ww alloy loaded to test, but I want to know what’s everyones else’s experiences are.

 

[JJFitch]

Your barrel will tell you if it likes this diameter, the lead hardness and the quality and softness of your lube.

Always start with a surgically clean barrel to begin testing!

In most cases the larger diameter helps,+.002-.003 the BRN in the "10" range and lube that isn't too hard all help with mitigating excessive barrel leading!

How's that for a non-answer?

I clean my 9mm, 45 ACP and 38 Spl barrels with a rolled up paper towel!

Smiles,

 

[243winxb]

mould temp

When Lee molds are over heated, bullets become frosted and pull away from the mold on cooling. Some parts of the bullet will be like your bullets.

To me your bullets are scrap. Sorry. After sizing, i like a nice round .430" diameter for 44 mag.

So my query is, with my bore being .4292, will it lead?

No leading. The undersize part will not enter the bbl at the same location, each round. . Lube should fill the void.

Can't have to much lube. Fill the lube grooves and coat with Lee Liquid Alox.

 

[AJC1]

Just powdercoat them and then run them through a sizer. Done and done.

 

[BC17A]

I currently have a lee mould like this. It’s 429-240-2R. It is .430+ for most of its cross section, but just to the side of the parting line it measures .4285/.429 depending on mould temp and technique when I poured. It measures this I’d say 1/8 of the bullet.

So my query is, with my bore being .4292, will it lead? If that small part hits the land in the barrel it’ll be fine, but if it hits the groove, what’s gonna happen? Will the pressure from a land on either side make that small portion bump up? Will it only bump up if its a soft for pressure alloy? It is standard 44 special pressures, But would 44 mag act different? Alloy is ww+Sn, but I also use 50:50 ww/pb+Sn.

Has anyone traveled this road and save me the trouble?

I have 18 from ww alloy loaded to test, but I want to know what’s everyones else’s experiences are.

Which bore are you referring, cylinder throat or barrel groove? Knowing both would help answer you question. Just a WAG, but if your groove dia is .4292" and your throats are at least that, or larger, you may be okay and shouldn't have a leading issue. If .4292" are your cylinder throats, and the groove is larger, then all bets are off. As mentioned above, if you PC your bullets then you'll be fine either way. Accuracy could suffer but there's not much chance of having leading problems.

 

[Bazoo]

Bore diameter given at .4292 is the barrel. Throats are larger. However, I don’t want this to turn into a “pin gage your throats and size to that” discussion.

I also am not interested in powder coating as solution. I know PC will bandaid this issue.

I really am curious if this will work. I have other bullets I can size as large as I want, so I’m not trying to make an imperfect combo work out of necessity.

 

[bullseye308]

Have you thought about opening the mold up a little and correcting the problem that way? I had a 9mm mold that was like that. I poured a bullet with the spruce upended and inserted a screw before it solidified. Once cooled I put some toothpaste on the bullet and put it back in the mold and spun it a few times with a slow speed cordless screwdriver. After a few turns clean the mold, cast a couple, and measure. Repeat as necessary until you get a nice round bullet of the desired diameter. Now remember this will work fine till you change your alloy, then the diameter could also change a hair.

 

[Bazoo]

Yes, I have considered lapping the mould.

I haven’t ever used one that sized like this and always just figured it wouldn’t be satisfactory. So, I’m curious if others have done the same as me and never tried it, or if they did and what the results were. That’s while I loaded 18 to test. Hopefully in a few days.

 

[Bazoo]

When Lee molds are over heated, bullets become frosted and pull away from the mold on cooling. Some parts of the bullet will be like your bullets.

To me your bullets are scrap. Sorry. After sizing, i like a nice round .430" diameter for 44 mag.



No leading. The undersize part will not enter the bbl at the same location, each round. . Lube should fill the void.

Can't have to much lube. Fill the lube grooves and coat with Lee Liquid Alox.

I always discard the frosted bullets because they are always smaller.

I’ve never tried out of round bullets. I have read they will work fine often times but never tested them myself as I always have just used moulds that dropped right and sized down.

 

[.38 Special]

No guarantees. I've had imperfect bullets which worked just fine and perfect bullets which didn't. I personally don't put up with molds like that any more and would lap yours if it was mine, but there is a real chance that those bullets would do what you want them to.

 

[AJC1]

I always discard the frosted bullets because they are always smaller.

I’ve never tried out of round bullets. I have read they will work fine often times but never tested them myself as I always have just used moulds that dropped right and sized down.

There is an entire technique called beagling to generate larger bullets that would be out of round. I would buy a different mold first.

 

[GeoDudeFlorida]

Bore diameter given at .4292 is the barrel. Throats are larger. However, I don’t want this to turn into a “pin gage your throats and size to that” discussion.

I also am not interested in powder coating as solution. I know PC will bandaid this issue.

I really am curious if this will work. I have other bullets I can size as large as I want, so I’m not trying to make an imperfect combo work out of necessity.

Sizing dies (Lee, Lyman, RCBS, etc) do a great job of leveling out concentricity issues. They push the lead around, up and over until it fits the die completely. It's an extra step but it can help a LOT when bulelts don't come out just right.
Here's the cheapest, best solution: https://leeprecision.com/new-lube-size-kit-430.html

Also VERY handy for fitting gas checks.

 

[mdi]

Bore diameter given at .4292 is the barrel. Throats are larger. However, I don’t want this to turn into a “pin gage your throats and size to that” discussion.

I also am not interested in powder coating as solution. I know PC will bandaid this issue.

I really am curious if this will work. I have other bullets I can size as large as I want, so I’m not trying to make an imperfect combo work out of necessity.

If you don't try them you won't know if they work. I can't help much, but look up "Beagling bullet molds"...

 

[Bazoo]

I’m aware of beagling thanks for all the suggestions to that end.

It’s been my experience that sizing the bullet doesn’t really make a difference on the smallest diameter. The material seems to move up into the lube groove instead of around the circumference of the driving band. I’ve tried several bullet styles that hand an undersized section, including this specific bullet, both with Lyman lubesizer and lee push through dies.

I know if I tried shooting a .428 bullet I’d likely have bad leading, and while I ain’t tried that either, it makes total sense. But I’ve never seen anyone mention a bullet with only a small portion undersized. Even over on castboolits where I frequent and have read a lot.

 

[Bazoo]

I shot the sample bullets today and they leaded moderately. They were from ww alloy. Accuracy was okay at 15yards. From a fouled but not leaded bore.

So my conclusion is, ww alloy won’t bump up. So I either have to use a softer alloy that would bump up, or lap the mould.

I likely will make some from 50/50 ww/pb alloy and test those with an identical load.

Forgot to mention the load was 4.4 bullseye.

We shall see. I appreciate everyone’s input thus far.

 

[AJC1]

Is this a two or six cavity mold. I've seen people measure bullets from each hole and have them come out slightly different. Also curious if they are all out of round the same?

 

[Bazoo]

It’s a two cavity, and they cast the same. It’s an older one I bought reasonably cheap.

Lapping it will not be too hard, and will be the ultimate fix.

 

[Bfh_auto]

It’s a two cavity, and they cast the same. It’s an older one o bought reasonably cheap.

Lapping it will not be too hard, and will be the ultimate fix.

That's the route I would take. No point in bandaids.

 

[Bazoo]

I agree. I never had seen anyone talk about loading bullets like this though so I was curious as to the results.

 

[tightgroup tiger]

My Lee 2 cavity TL SWC 158gr mold will make out of round bullets. I had a lot of trouble with it and used my dremel with a polishing wheel on it and opened it up a little. I used a very little bit of polishing compound with it because it really didn't need much. When I run them through the resizer they are resized the whole way around at .358" and they seem to work fine now.
I am using WW only. l also use liquid alox for lube. I do get some leading from time to time but one swipe with a barrel brush and it's gone.
These are tumble lubed and I don't think much of their two bullet molds. I have heard the 6 bullet molds are of much better quality but like you, I got these cheap and don't use them often enough to need to buy the 6 drop mold.
If I would buy a decent mold like the Noe, H&G, RCBS, or Lyman cast iron molds I would probably cast more, but I spend enough money on reloading and don't have the lead supply I used too have.
So I don't cast much any more. Maybe a couple times a year.