Consolidation of moulds .
Posted: 28 Nov 2016 13:03
For new reloaders and often new to casting folks there are a ton of considerations . What will a load be used for , bullet construction/shape , action types and more .
I see so often so many folks in casting duplicating bullets in moulds for different cartridges . Sometimes it's unavoidable ,a case of having a 380 ACP and 35 Whelen , they might share a mould but that 75-120 gr bullet for the 380 just isn't a bullet that will work well in the Whelen much above hot gallery loads and even FMJ is going to perform poorly at the upper potential of the Whelen . I shot some 75&85 gr gold dots some yr ago in a 357 . I have no idea how fast the were going but it was fast and minimal flash from 4" bbl full of Unique . Plated SWC would plow through the 3/4 plywood and 4x4 post but the little ones stayed in the post . They were probably naked jackets and lead powder in reflection.
Take a look at the real world diameters of bbls . 9mm is supposed be .355 but more often than not it's .357 . 38/357 also runs right at 357. The rifles hover close to 358 and usually on the tight side . So if have a couple pistols ,a couple of revolvers and a couple more rifles spread from 380 to 358 Winchester you have a need for more than 1 mould but if you have a straight water budget you'll want to streamline that , it's likely that you'll have a fewer bbls to feed also .
4 moulds will feed the whole range and 3 if you cross off just a couple critters or a cartridge .
If I toss the 380 then 9mm ,38& 357 can share a bullet like the Lee 358-125 RF . That's nominal for the 9 and light in the revolvers . So for the other end we snag a 358-200 RF . Now we have 2 moulds to feed as many as 7 cartridges from business to pleasure the 9mm actually has a lot of wiggle room for bullet weight so a 140-150 gr bullet would make a better solution for all of the pistols and related carbines while the rifle mould could be stepped up to a 230-250 gr and keep moose in the mix . Meanwhile you have bullets happy in rifles of 35 Rem, 356/358 Win , 9x57 , 35 Whelen and 350 Remington mag. Keep the 200 gr in the mix and the 357 is a bear slayer south of the Dakotas and the 35 Rem will be happier.
I am talking about making do minimalist here .
We face the same problem with 30 cal rifles and 32 pistols toss the ACP and the monsters over 300WM and 100 and 150-180 will feed them all. Keeping in mind that the 312-155 SP will generally cross over to 7.7,303 and 7.62 x39&54 but might not be a good idea in a lever gun . The 30 carbine bullets should be good to go in the 32 HR and 327 but the SWCs may not feed well in the 30 carbine carbines .
25s are harder with the needs of the of the bore/groove , the 25 rifles will get by nicely with just 1 bullet from 25-3000 to 257 Weatherby . It might be a struggle to find 1 bullet for 25 ACP and 256 Win mag .
270 is pretty easy with so few cartridges 130 will get them done .
7mm is also pretty easy just pick a weight 130-175 and get it done .
32/8mm 1 bullet 170-180 although there are moulds up to 215 . Remember the object is to feed a 32 Rem and an 8mm Rem mag .
338 ,366(9.3) is another pair where the 308,06' clans will shoot the same bullet as the assorted mags . I guess a guy might struggle with a Lapua and 338 Federal .
40s by name is going to be interesting and it is unlikely to find rifles that would share a pistol bullet . The autos and revolvers will usually play nice someplace between 165 and 210 .
45s a 230 and 350 with a couple of extra sizers should feed all of the pistols ,rifles and magnums . Although some will argue that .460 down to .453 is too much sizing . The nose dimensions come in to play and may cause you some grief but I would suspect that most 45 owners would not getting by if they have a 1911 , 458 WM and a Freedom Arms 460 revolver with a spare 454 or Colts cylinder . You might , and you might even have an X frame turned for moon clips . Few if any ML will play although I did as a matter of fun and games put a 45 Maxi ball in a brass case for a 45/410 lots of case intrusion .
375 could be a challenge for a 1 mould if a guy were shooting a 1894 94 Win in 38-55 and a 375 H&H .
50s ...... What do we have ? 50 AE , 500 S&W , 50 Alaskan and 50 BMG plus MLs . I don't see a work around here minimum of 3 if you have the whole spread .
I see so often so many folks in casting duplicating bullets in moulds for different cartridges . Sometimes it's unavoidable ,a case of having a 380 ACP and 35 Whelen , they might share a mould but that 75-120 gr bullet for the 380 just isn't a bullet that will work well in the Whelen much above hot gallery loads and even FMJ is going to perform poorly at the upper potential of the Whelen . I shot some 75&85 gr gold dots some yr ago in a 357 . I have no idea how fast the were going but it was fast and minimal flash from 4" bbl full of Unique . Plated SWC would plow through the 3/4 plywood and 4x4 post but the little ones stayed in the post . They were probably naked jackets and lead powder in reflection.
Take a look at the real world diameters of bbls . 9mm is supposed be .355 but more often than not it's .357 . 38/357 also runs right at 357. The rifles hover close to 358 and usually on the tight side . So if have a couple pistols ,a couple of revolvers and a couple more rifles spread from 380 to 358 Winchester you have a need for more than 1 mould but if you have a straight water budget you'll want to streamline that , it's likely that you'll have a fewer bbls to feed also .
4 moulds will feed the whole range and 3 if you cross off just a couple critters or a cartridge .
If I toss the 380 then 9mm ,38& 357 can share a bullet like the Lee 358-125 RF . That's nominal for the 9 and light in the revolvers . So for the other end we snag a 358-200 RF . Now we have 2 moulds to feed as many as 7 cartridges from business to pleasure the 9mm actually has a lot of wiggle room for bullet weight so a 140-150 gr bullet would make a better solution for all of the pistols and related carbines while the rifle mould could be stepped up to a 230-250 gr and keep moose in the mix . Meanwhile you have bullets happy in rifles of 35 Rem, 356/358 Win , 9x57 , 35 Whelen and 350 Remington mag. Keep the 200 gr in the mix and the 357 is a bear slayer south of the Dakotas and the 35 Rem will be happier.
I am talking about making do minimalist here .
We face the same problem with 30 cal rifles and 32 pistols toss the ACP and the monsters over 300WM and 100 and 150-180 will feed them all. Keeping in mind that the 312-155 SP will generally cross over to 7.7,303 and 7.62 x39&54 but might not be a good idea in a lever gun . The 30 carbine bullets should be good to go in the 32 HR and 327 but the SWCs may not feed well in the 30 carbine carbines .
25s are harder with the needs of the of the bore/groove , the 25 rifles will get by nicely with just 1 bullet from 25-3000 to 257 Weatherby . It might be a struggle to find 1 bullet for 25 ACP and 256 Win mag .
270 is pretty easy with so few cartridges 130 will get them done .
7mm is also pretty easy just pick a weight 130-175 and get it done .
32/8mm 1 bullet 170-180 although there are moulds up to 215 . Remember the object is to feed a 32 Rem and an 8mm Rem mag .
338 ,366(9.3) is another pair where the 308,06' clans will shoot the same bullet as the assorted mags . I guess a guy might struggle with a Lapua and 338 Federal .
40s by name is going to be interesting and it is unlikely to find rifles that would share a pistol bullet . The autos and revolvers will usually play nice someplace between 165 and 210 .
45s a 230 and 350 with a couple of extra sizers should feed all of the pistols ,rifles and magnums . Although some will argue that .460 down to .453 is too much sizing . The nose dimensions come in to play and may cause you some grief but I would suspect that most 45 owners would not getting by if they have a 1911 , 458 WM and a Freedom Arms 460 revolver with a spare 454 or Colts cylinder . You might , and you might even have an X frame turned for moon clips . Few if any ML will play although I did as a matter of fun and games put a 45 Maxi ball in a brass case for a 45/410 lots of case intrusion .
375 could be a challenge for a 1 mould if a guy were shooting a 1894 94 Win in 38-55 and a 375 H&H .
50s ...... What do we have ? 50 AE , 500 S&W , 50 Alaskan and 50 BMG plus MLs . I don't see a work around here minimum of 3 if you have the whole spread .