What clever little things have you "invented or discovered" that you can share?
- Thread starter James THR
- Start date
TooTaxed
Member
GNARKILL, I've also found a small Black & Decker folding work table handy for apartment reloading. Cut a piece of 3/4" plywood and bolt it to the top surface and it will stiffen up the table so you can do everything except full-length resize large rifle cases on it. Put your beam measure on a separate adjacent surface to avoid jarring it...
tasco 74
Member
heheheh.... right now my workmate has my plastic gun cleaning-maintience cradle clamped in it!!..............................
scrat
Member
Lead bullet lubing
Ok Just heard a good tip. Those of you who cast bullets and use lee liquid alox. Know how sticky they can be when your done and they dry for a day. So here is the tip. Take a small handfull of Talc powder (baby powder) and apply to the bullets after they dry. This will get rid of the sticky feeling.
Ok Just heard a good tip. Those of you who cast bullets and use lee liquid alox. Know how sticky they can be when your done and they dry for a day. So here is the tip. Take a small handfull of Talc powder (baby powder) and apply to the bullets after they dry. This will get rid of the sticky feeling.
I am still using an old Redding powder measure that locks the settings with a set screw that compresses a small lead ball into the threads. It was always a nuisance loosening this adjustment when resetting it.
I found that using piece of rubber, in my case a chunk of pencil eraser, instead of the lead ball works great. If you try turning the spindle it feels like it is not tight and would turn but don't worry. I have loaded as many as 5,000rounds in a session (rechecking against a scale as I proceeded) and in use it does not move at all.
I have posted this on another board. Johnson Paste Wax (floors, furniture, etc.) makes a great tumble lube for cast bullets. I have used it for many different calibers. It does not collect lint or dirt, prevents leading as good as any, is very cheap, and prevent the exposed noses from oxidizing.
I found that using piece of rubber, in my case a chunk of pencil eraser, instead of the lead ball works great. If you try turning the spindle it feels like it is not tight and would turn but don't worry. I have loaded as many as 5,000rounds in a session (rechecking against a scale as I proceeded) and in use it does not move at all.
I have posted this on another board. Johnson Paste Wax (floors, furniture, etc.) makes a great tumble lube for cast bullets. I have used it for many different calibers. It does not collect lint or dirt, prevents leading as good as any, is very cheap, and prevent the exposed noses from oxidizing.
scrat
Member
Case measurements the fast way
ok case gauging every case is a pain. if you do one at a time.
im on the road right now, so i cant show you. Here is what i did though. i made a gauge of my own. its primitive but works. i took a piece of plywood and cut it to a 1 1/2"X20 " piece. Then i made a raised boarder to go on the back it was a 1/2 inch piece of wood. From there i measured from the back stop out to the maxium length case. I then cut the side strips to be at that exact spot. then i cut a strip of wood that go a cross the entire area. Being wood i had to really do some fine adjustments on sanding to make sure that the measurement was good. the stirps i used oak to make sure they were smooth and flat.
Now all said. I am measuring 30/30. What you have is a rectangle box with a bottom that only covers about 1/2 of the opening. I take about 20 -30 shells lay them in the guage the ones that fall through the guage are still smaller than overall trim length. the ones that stay on top or get stuck in the wood need to be trimmed. i can do easily 20-30 shells at a time so quick. The ones that fall through easily i dont care about. sometimes i will spot check a few of them to make sure. its the ones that get stuck that i will have to double check and trim.
there you have it my primitive guage. can easliy be made
ok case gauging every case is a pain. if you do one at a time.
im on the road right now, so i cant show you. Here is what i did though. i made a gauge of my own. its primitive but works. i took a piece of plywood and cut it to a 1 1/2"X20 " piece. Then i made a raised boarder to go on the back it was a 1/2 inch piece of wood. From there i measured from the back stop out to the maxium length case. I then cut the side strips to be at that exact spot. then i cut a strip of wood that go a cross the entire area. Being wood i had to really do some fine adjustments on sanding to make sure that the measurement was good. the stirps i used oak to make sure they were smooth and flat.
Now all said. I am measuring 30/30. What you have is a rectangle box with a bottom that only covers about 1/2 of the opening. I take about 20 -30 shells lay them in the guage the ones that fall through the guage are still smaller than overall trim length. the ones that stay on top or get stuck in the wood need to be trimmed. i can do easily 20-30 shells at a time so quick. The ones that fall through easily i dont care about. sometimes i will spot check a few of them to make sure. its the ones that get stuck that i will have to double check and trim.
there you have it my primitive guage. can easliy be made
Happyshooter
member
I did not think of it myself....
but with walnut media put half a paper towel in the tumbler every few loads and it gets a lot of the dust out with it when you pull it back out after the cases are clean.
but with walnut media put half a paper towel in the tumbler every few loads and it gets a lot of the dust out with it when you pull it back out after the cases are clean.
TEDDY
Member
pull bullets
the Lee reloader press $20.95 makes a great press with hornadys lever bullet puller $16.41.also with Lees universal decapper $7.67.
the Lee reloader press $20.95 makes a great press with hornadys lever bullet puller $16.41.also with Lees universal decapper $7.67.
TEDDY
Member
cat feeder
BRONSON: THATS one I will use.kittys have there own
BRONSON: THATS one I will use.kittys have there own
TEDDY
Member
harbor tool has a mini cut off saw.@$19 to $29 depending on sale it cuts case necks like mad. uses a 2'steel blade. I use it to cut excess brass when making 7.7 jap from 30/06.
yhtomit
Member
Scrat -- re: "Case measurements the fast way," is there any way for you to attach a picture illustrating your system? It sounds efficient, but I'm not quite picturing it yet.
timothy
timothy
550B depriming chute sticking
My deprimer chute had a habit of sticking open, and dumping spent primers on the floor, so I did a little tweaking and polishing on it. Which, of course, didn't work.
Then I got an idea. One of those little high strength Neodymium magnets works perfectly for making sure the chute closes when it's supposed to, and after several hundred rounds, it seems to be staying put. The spot I have it in seems to be the best I could find. The magnet adds weight, but more importantly, it makes the chute stick magnetically to the primer bar during the upstroke, ensuring complete closure.
My deprimer chute had a habit of sticking open, and dumping spent primers on the floor, so I did a little tweaking and polishing on it. Which, of course, didn't work.
Then I got an idea. One of those little high strength Neodymium magnets works perfectly for making sure the chute closes when it's supposed to, and after several hundred rounds, it seems to be staying put. The spot I have it in seems to be the best I could find. The magnet adds weight, but more importantly, it makes the chute stick magnetically to the primer bar during the upstroke, ensuring complete closure.
robertbank
Member
Hey that is neat. Thanks.
Take Care
Bob
Take Care
Bob
colbyjack
Member
i took my old ladies cookie sheet, screwed it under the brass trimmer. it keeps the mess there instead of all over the floor.
-chris
(it wasnt my idea, but i thought id share. )
-chris
(it wasnt my idea, but i thought id share. )
yhtomit
Member
ultra-trivial
The only tumbler media I've used thus far is ground corncob (walnut soon, when I find a pet store that actually has any!), and I found that it sticks in and plugs the primer pocket / flash hole of my .45s (the only caliber I've yet tumbled).
After trying a number of small pointy things, I have discovered what I suspect may be the ultimate detritus remover: the tactical bobby pin
Just tactically bend it open, and tactically poke bits out of that primer pocket from within the case. Bobby pins (unlike most of the other things I started trying with) have a tiny bulbous end node, so it's gentle on the case. (Not that a .45 case couldn't stand to be abused by a ballpoint pen, but the bobby pin worked better anyhow.)
timothy
The only tumbler media I've used thus far is ground corncob (walnut soon, when I find a pet store that actually has any!), and I found that it sticks in and plugs the primer pocket / flash hole of my .45s (the only caliber I've yet tumbled).
After trying a number of small pointy things, I have discovered what I suspect may be the ultimate detritus remover: the tactical bobby pin
Just tactically bend it open, and tactically poke bits out of that primer pocket from within the case. Bobby pins (unlike most of the other things I started trying with) have a tiny bulbous end node, so it's gentle on the case. (Not that a .45 case couldn't stand to be abused by a ballpoint pen, but the bobby pin worked better anyhow.)
timothy
The Bushmaster
Member
whtomit...Why not use a throttle or choke cable handle (used, but broken and usually can be gotten from a small engine repair shop for free) and trim the solid wire to a length of 1 inch. Not only will it clean out flash holes, but will also clean out primer pockets...
W Turner
Member
Or you could just not deprime your brass until after tumbling.
W
W
PowderApe
Member
eOllie
Can't take credit for this but....
Years and years ago when I was a kid back East (late 60's) in Connecticut, we used to shoot at the local range. There used to be an old guy named Ollie- probably in his late 70's; an "Elmer Keith" type- hanging out constantly at the range. He was probably the first "homeless" person I ever met- since his wife threw him and his guns out of the house.
He lived in an old beat up low rider type car. When he opened up his trunk, there was a rack on the lid and the back panel that held about a dozen of his prized rifles. They were well taken care of and beautiful. He'd select one rifle, take components and 5 live rounds and shoot. This guy had bad tremors until he held that rifle- then rock steady. He's shoot the 5 bullets and then reload them with an old nut cracker type hand press, and pretty much shoot those same 5 rounds all day long....
He'd cast rifle bullets on his campfire at night after picking out spent lead from the backstop berm. Never used gas checks. He'd take a cartridge case and use it like a cookie cutter to cut a bunch of discs of styrofoam from a meat tray (they were thinner then) and use them as an over powder wad instead of a gas check. He claimed it prevented leading just as well as a gas check.
These were not ultra high velocity rifle rounds and certainly wouldn't do it on an ultra fast slug, but he'd do it for his bigger bore stuff like a .35 Rem; 45-70 freightrain, 30-30. Most of his loads were reduced and his accuracy was still remarkable. ...and pretty cheap to roll.
Since I don't cast for rifle calibers, I've never tried it, but a shooting buddy of mine did for both fairly hot pistol rounds and some 30 caliber rifles and he says it does work and never had any serious leading problems.... Over the years, jacketed slugs got cheaper and we no longer cast lead for rifles.
We'd listen to his wisdom and pepper him with questions. I still flash upon some of his wisdom and tricks but over the years they have gotten misplaced in the recesses of the brain. Wish I wrote them down!!
Other "Ollie-isms" he taught us:
* Cornmeal in reduced loads scours the barrel, takes up potential detonation space, and makes the range smell like popcorn.
* Don't over clean your guns- it'll wear 'em out
* Use Brake fluid on a rag to get rid of light surface rust "rash" on blued guns... if it's stubborn or deeper, use a little 4-0 steel wool with the brake fluid
* and finally: "Don't piss off the old lady!"
...and "THANKS" to all for all the hints on this sticky! It's a virtual "eOllie" for me- I can still hear him!
Can't take credit for this but....
Years and years ago when I was a kid back East (late 60's) in Connecticut, we used to shoot at the local range. There used to be an old guy named Ollie- probably in his late 70's; an "Elmer Keith" type- hanging out constantly at the range. He was probably the first "homeless" person I ever met- since his wife threw him and his guns out of the house.
He lived in an old beat up low rider type car. When he opened up his trunk, there was a rack on the lid and the back panel that held about a dozen of his prized rifles. They were well taken care of and beautiful. He'd select one rifle, take components and 5 live rounds and shoot. This guy had bad tremors until he held that rifle- then rock steady. He's shoot the 5 bullets and then reload them with an old nut cracker type hand press, and pretty much shoot those same 5 rounds all day long....
He'd cast rifle bullets on his campfire at night after picking out spent lead from the backstop berm. Never used gas checks. He'd take a cartridge case and use it like a cookie cutter to cut a bunch of discs of styrofoam from a meat tray (they were thinner then) and use them as an over powder wad instead of a gas check. He claimed it prevented leading just as well as a gas check.
These were not ultra high velocity rifle rounds and certainly wouldn't do it on an ultra fast slug, but he'd do it for his bigger bore stuff like a .35 Rem; 45-70 freightrain, 30-30. Most of his loads were reduced and his accuracy was still remarkable. ...and pretty cheap to roll.
Since I don't cast for rifle calibers, I've never tried it, but a shooting buddy of mine did for both fairly hot pistol rounds and some 30 caliber rifles and he says it does work and never had any serious leading problems.... Over the years, jacketed slugs got cheaper and we no longer cast lead for rifles.
We'd listen to his wisdom and pepper him with questions. I still flash upon some of his wisdom and tricks but over the years they have gotten misplaced in the recesses of the brain. Wish I wrote them down!!
Other "Ollie-isms" he taught us:
* Cornmeal in reduced loads scours the barrel, takes up potential detonation space, and makes the range smell like popcorn.
* Don't over clean your guns- it'll wear 'em out
* Use Brake fluid on a rag to get rid of light surface rust "rash" on blued guns... if it's stubborn or deeper, use a little 4-0 steel wool with the brake fluid
* and finally: "Don't piss off the old lady!"
...and "THANKS" to all for all the hints on this sticky! It's a virtual "eOllie" for me- I can still hear him!
Last edited:
Kevin108
Member
I reload with a Lee Classic Loader. I work off a 2x8 laid across my lap most of the time. I squirt a blob of case lube in the far right-hand corner and work from it like a painter's pallet. Nothing special but it makes things easy for me.
Homemade Media Seperator
I had it with dumping corn cob media all over the floor every time I emptied my tumbler. So today I was messing around in the workshop and came up with the idea of making a rotating cylinder that would fit over a Rubbermaid type plastic container. It was easy and cheap to make. I cut 2 11” circles out of ¾”plywood, attach them to a 1/8” threaded rod. Installed 4- 16”X 1”X2” wooden strips between the end caps for support and to install the door to. I used a piece of plexiglas for the door, I heated and bent it to the size of my cylinder. Cylinder is cover with ¼” wire. I have used it many times and it works great. I spent $6.00 for the wire mesh from Home Depot, everything else was laying around my shop.
You could adapt this to any size you want. This one is very big. I would recommend using a larger diameter threaded rod, like ¼” rod or maybe even ½” conduit. Also after using this I realize that if the door was mounted all the way to one end, it would be easier to empty, verse the door mount in the center. Sorry about the large pic.....
I had it with dumping corn cob media all over the floor every time I emptied my tumbler. So today I was messing around in the workshop and came up with the idea of making a rotating cylinder that would fit over a Rubbermaid type plastic container. It was easy and cheap to make. I cut 2 11” circles out of ¾”plywood, attach them to a 1/8” threaded rod. Installed 4- 16”X 1”X2” wooden strips between the end caps for support and to install the door to. I used a piece of plexiglas for the door, I heated and bent it to the size of my cylinder. Cylinder is cover with ¼” wire. I have used it many times and it works great. I spent $6.00 for the wire mesh from Home Depot, everything else was laying around my shop.
You could adapt this to any size you want. This one is very big. I would recommend using a larger diameter threaded rod, like ¼” rod or maybe even ½” conduit. Also after using this I realize that if the door was mounted all the way to one end, it would be easier to empty, verse the door mount in the center. Sorry about the large pic.....
sighthound
Member
I was recently taught that putting 9mm Luger brass through a 38 Super sizer eliminates any sizing issues inlcuding Glock fired brass. Since I started doing this it has almost eliminated reject 9mm rounds. I do this on a single stage and then load using the three 9mm dies on a progressive.
Carl N. Brown
Member
ArchAngelCD
Member.
How will you chamber the round when the front of the cartridge is wider than the lip at the base? Even if the lip were slightly larger the case will deform because there is no support for the cartridge walls usually supplied by the cartridge fitting into the chamber, a chamber which is now much larger than most of the cartridge because the front is necked-up. I don't think that will work because the only part of the cartridge which will have support by the chamber is the very front.
308win
Member
Maybe you could also invent a rifle that loads backwards.
Carl N. Brown
Member
OK, here is my block design for an action using the necked-up
(pardon my mumbling, that is how I talk with my tongue-in-cheek):
dark grey is receiver
light grey is breech bolt
magenta is cartridge chamber piece
and blue is barrel.
Obviously the feed is complicated by having seperate two
piece cartridge chamber to inclose the necked up round
for insertion into the breech of the barrel.
Consider this: in the 40mm grenade round, the powder chamber
is about the size of a ten gauge shotgun shell. Most of the
40mm grenade cartridge case is metal to bring the outside
diameter up to the diameter of the projectile. This necked-up
cartridge system might have an application, although I
admit I did the sample cartridge purely as a joke.
(pardon my mumbling, that is how I talk with my tongue-in-cheek):
dark grey is receiver
light grey is breech bolt
magenta is cartridge chamber piece
and blue is barrel.
Obviously the feed is complicated by having seperate two
piece cartridge chamber to inclose the necked up round
for insertion into the breech of the barrel.
Consider this: in the 40mm grenade round, the powder chamber
is about the size of a ten gauge shotgun shell. Most of the
40mm grenade cartridge case is metal to bring the outside
diameter up to the diameter of the projectile. This necked-up
cartridge system might have an application, although I
admit I did the sample cartridge purely as a joke.
