What did you reload today?

[Local Loader]

Unfortunately I don't have a brass smelter.

Heavy ceramic bowl or crucible bowl and a Propane touch from a hardware store. The torches burn hot enough to melt the brass.

 

[Local Loader]

I have a couple buckets of scrap bullet jackets. The scrap yard didn't want it when I went in there a couple years ago. I hate to throw them away, and have looked into making a furnace to melt them down. The thing that concerned me about that was getting the brass hot enough to melt the copper alloy bullet jackets will vaporize the residual lead on them. One would have to be extremely cautious to avoid breathing any of that.

Use a fan to blow it away from you if you are worried about that. I've been thinking of building a brass smelter as well. On the cheap of course.

 

[misterarman]

I have a couple buckets of scrap bullet jackets. The scrap yard didn't want it when I went in there a couple years ago. I hate to throw them away, and have looked into making a furnace to melt them down. The thing that concerned me about that was getting the brass hot enough to melt the copper alloy bullet jackets will vaporize the residual lead on them. One would have to be extremely cautious to avoid breathing any of that.

Sounds like more of an adventure than I'm up to.

 

[misterarman]

Heavy ceramic bowl or crucible bowl and a Propane touch from a hardware store. The torches burn hot enough to melt the brass.

I already have enough projects I don't have time for.
Great idea though.

 

[ageingstudent]

I have a couple buckets of scrap bullet jackets. The scrap yard didn't want it when I went in there a couple years ago. I hate to throw them away, and have looked into making a furnace to melt them down. The thing that concerned me about that was getting the brass hot enough to melt the copper alloy bullet jackets will vaporize the residual lead on them. One would have to be extremely cautious to avoid breathing any of that.

Yeah it's like four or five hundred degrees hotter then your average bullet casting temperatures. I don't think I would want to be around that with the lead vaporizing under that kind of heat. I managed to make it this far with normal lead levels in my blood I kind of hate to push my luck.

 

[Local Loader]

Yeah it's like four or five hundred degrees hotter then your average bullet casting temperatures. I don't think I would want to be around that with the lead vaporizing under that kind of heat. I managed to make it this far with normal lead levels in my blood I kind of hate to push my luck.

I'm still young enough that I can push my luck.

 

[ageingstudent]

I'm still young enough that I can push my luck.

The older you get, the more you start worrying about the sins of your youth catching up with you . Faster horses, younger women, older whiskey, more money...

 

[misterarman]

I'm still young enough that I can push my luck.

As WC Fields used to say, "It's a shame they waste youth on the young."

 

[misterarman]

The older you get, the more you start worrying about the sins of your youth catching up with you . Faster horses, younger women, older whiskey, more money...

And I can't run near as fast as I used to be able to.

 

[misterarman]

More steel pins magic.

 

[ageingstudent]

And I can't run near as fast as I used to be able to.

Boy howdy

 

[Local Loader]

As WC Fields used to say, "It's a shame they waste youth on the young."

In fairness, I said I "can push my luck" not that I'm going to. I did learn a whole ago that things of my youth have come back to bite me. Plus, medical bills are expensive and I like avoiding those with a passion.

 

[MilGoo]

Loaded 10 38special 158gn with 2.8gn of Nitro 100. Will see tomorrow if they stay subsonic from a 16.25 inch barrel. I have been casting bullets and reloading since 78 and never cast hollow points, any recommendations on a good mold around 158gn for 38/357?

 

[gmerkt]

Wow, thanks. I use an RCBS APS that utilizes these strips, I'd better get over there and order a bunch.

You can't order them directly from CCI, unfortunately. Not retail, anyway. Apparently you need some kind of "arrangement" with CCI to buy direct.

BUT: Natchez Shooting Supply has some, LPP Magnums, for $99 and they are the only CCI LPP they show as available. Probably because not as many people want the primers packed on APS strips.

One bunch of reloading stuff that I bought at auction had some bricks of CCI No. 41 primers on APS strips. To use them in my Lee Auto Bench Primer, I had to break them all out of the strips by the each. It can be done but it's a pain in the neck if you're not using the APS priming tool.

Natchez also has regular pack CCI small pistol and small rifle primers. At present.

 

[oremike]

Ever had a day where the project for the day just gets bigger and bigger? So here's mine for today. I wanted to load a bunch of .357 with 158gr SWC's so got the bullets down off the shelf, then the brass... hmmm I thought I had more brass, must be in the nickel plated pile... nope none there either. I'd bought some 357 brass at the gun show last week that looked shiny and de-primed thru the side of the jerky jar so I'll just use that except it was half shiny and mostly not de-primed. So ok, I'll de-prime and tumble it first but it's only a half load for the tumbler. So while I'm at it I'll sort this bucket of mixed 38 and 357 brass and run all the 357 at once. By 2:30 I had all the 357 ready to tumble. I run the brass for 3 hours and then dry it for 3 more hours. Finally at 8:30 I was ready to load 357... tomorrow.

 

[misterarman]

In fairness, I said I "can push my luck" not that I'm going to. I did learn a whole ago that things of my youth have come back to bite me. Plus, medical bills are expensive and I like avoiding those with a passion.

I get the whole medical bill thing.

 

[misterarman]

You can't order them directly from CCI, unfortunately. Not retail, anyway. Apparently you need some kind of "arrangement" with CCI to buy direct.

BUT: Natchez Shooting Supply has some, LPP Magnums, for $99 and they are the only CCI LPP they show as available. Probably because not as many people want the primers packed on APS strips.

One bunch of reloading stuff that I bought at auction had some bricks of CCI No. 41 primers on APS strips. To use them in my Lee Auto Bench Primer, I had to break them all out of the strips by the each. It can be done but it's a pain in the neck if you're not using the APS priming tool.

Natchez also has regular pack CCI small pistol and small rifle primers. At present.

Been there, done that getting primers out of the APS strips. An amazing theory that never was able to work for me.

 

[gmerkt]

Been there, done that getting primers out of the APS strips. An amazing theory that never was able to work for me.

Yes, some ideas are better than others. Another RCBS idea that never worked for me, the Little Dandy Powder Measure. With all those expensive rotors. Some people have expressed love for the Little Dandy, I'm not one of them.

 

[ageingstudent]

Loaded 10 38special 158gn with 2.8gn of Nitro 100. Will see tomorrow if they stay subsonic from a 16.25 inch barrel. I have been casting bullets and reloading since 78 and never cast hollow points, any recommendations on a good mold around 158gn for 38/357?

You should check out Arsenal molds. I don't know if they have hollow point molds in their regular catalog, but it's probably an option. I got two molds from them last year and I was really impressed with the quality.

 

[Mikej]

I did learn a whole ago that things of my youth have come back to bite me.

Young man, you have no idea.

Ever had a day where the project for the day just gets bigger and bigger?

300 pieces of processed, once fired brass .30-30 brass I had purchased. Well at least the primers had been punched. Not sized though. Meaning not trimmed either. And a bunch of them had dirty media stuck in them for some reason. But I have the time to dick around with it. I'm doing it just for the fun, not the income.