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Posted: 3/9/2012 1:14:36 PM EDT
| Please let me know if this is the wrong forum. I will be casting .38 spl. 125gr RNFP bullets for a pair of Uberti 1873 cattleman .357 Mag. SA revolvers, loaded to about 750 FPS. Two questions: Is 357 dia. the right size or should I go larger? and is a sizing die needed? I would like to skip the sizing step if possible, thanks. |
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There is a reloading forum. Quoted: Please let me know if this is the wrong forum. I will be casting .38 spl. 125gr RNFP bullets for a pair of Uberti 1873 cattleman .357 Mag. SA revolvers, loaded to about 750 FPS. Two questions: Is 357 dia. the right size or should I go larger? and is a sizing die needed? I would like to skip the sizing step if possible, thanks. No .357" is not the size you want. You should slug your barrel and add .002 to that to that. .357" is good for a 9mm which is .355" Yes possable to skip the sizing step, but I don't. |
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I cast Keith bullets for my .38s and .357s. I size mine to .357 and they shoot very well out of my S&W Model 27, but it depends on your guns. Ideally, your bullet should be .01-.02 over bore diameter, measured across the grooves. I shoot my .44 bullets unsized and pan lubed, and neither the .357s nor the .44s are dramatically more accurate than the other. I use a Star lubrisizer to size and lube my bullets. If you're not going to size them, how do you intend to lube them? Pan lubing? |
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Quoted:
I was gonna use the Lee Alox. Why am I seeing most cast 38's at 357 diameter, and only a few larger, what's the problem with a bullet .001 or .002 undersized? It will allow a poor seal and can cause major leading in the barell. When I cast for .357 I have good luck sizing to .358. But as stated before. Slug your barell. |
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Quoted:
I was gonna use the Lee Alox. Why am I seeing most cast 38's at 357 diameter, and only a few larger, what's the problem with a bullet .001 or .002 undersized? For me accuracy is better when I cast 1 or 2 thou over, also imo the bore seal is better which helps keep leading due to gas blow by down. I've found that when I cast with a softer alloy rather than a harder alloy the bullets will drop out with a slightly larger diameter. ETA: damn caught me mid temporal shift –– had to type it all over again.... |
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All I use are Lee tumble lube bullet molds for 38/357 and 44/44 mag loads
Just cast, tumble in liquid alox and dry. Load them up and shoot. I have never had a problem with leading if the loads are kept within lead bullet speeds. They are fast easy and accurate. A lot less work. |
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Quoted: I use a star sizer / luber. I have been reloading and casting since 1995 and I would not do it any other way there is the right way to do something and the easy way. I truly do not believe in pan lubing. I dont feel it works properly. Look IMHO unless you have a strong grease ring you may as well just shoot them dry. As for sizing well if you cast them really hard you might get away with it... but over sized lead is going to lead up bad ....Please let me know if this is the wrong forum. I will be casting .38 spl. 125gr RNFP bullets for a pair of Uberti 1873 cattleman .357 Mag. SA revolvers, loaded to about 750 FPS. Two questions: Is 357 dia. the right size or should I go larger? and is a sizing die needed? I would like to skip the sizing step if possible, thanks. Quoted: Attention all stations... attention all stations... please stand by for temporal shift... LOL |
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Cast a few bullets with the alloy you plan to use and see what diameter they are. You can actually vary the diameter by alloy mix but I am not sure exactly how that is done. As others have said, slug your barrel but generally you will actually get better accuracy by measuring the chamber throats on the cylinder. Ideally for a revolver the chamber throats in the cylinder is the same size or .001 larger than the barrel diameter. If your barrel is a larger diamater than the chamber throats you are not going to get the best accuracy.
As for lube, tumble lube or pan lubing works fine. Most of the commercial cast bullets you can buy have a hard lube designed more to keep ithe lube n the grove of the bullet than to actualy lube the bullet as it goes down the barrel. At the velocities you are planning to shot them at, you are not going to have a problem with pan or tumble lube at all. You may want to check out castboolits.com for more detail on casting bullets. |
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with reloading we know the basic rule is not to take short cuts. to do it right the first time cuz if u do it wrong their might not be a next time. I cast for the following:
9,40,45, 357 sig, 38 sp, 357 mag, 10 mm, 44 mag and 500 mag. always size no matter what mold u use. yes the lee states it should be the perfect size. the actuality is that it doesnt. lots of variables from lead temp to mixture. the lee sizing die is $12. it will size it and also give u another level of quality checking. u will be surprised how many less than perfect rounds u will pick out. lee tumble lube is quick and easy and isnt too smokey. like others stated, .001 over fmj size is where u want to start. or you could look up how to slug ur barrel to find out its exact measurement. |
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