Recent content by NuJudge

If you are loading on a progressive press, two different size primers can cause huge problems. People who like the traditional large primers in .45 acp get really upset when a small primered case sneaks onto their machine, and they get either a tied-up machine or a "bang!" as the machine tries...

You appear to be shedding primers during the ejection process. The primers in the lower box appear to be smaller. I see two very different primers, which might indicate one is factory and one is handholds. Is there any indication that the brass is soft, or the load is too hot (I do not see...

You can load very accurate ammo on a progressive:

I started in the 1970s with a Wilson. It was very accurate, suitable for Benchrest, but I am mostly a Service Rifle shooter, for which that level of precision is not needed. When I got out on my own, I got a Forster, which was almost as accurate as a Wilson, but spinning that Mini-Lathe by...

Brass can go bad with age. The only clear example of it I can cite is a batch of 6.5x55 M-S brass I bought from Midway about 1985. It was beautiful, and shot well in my Mannlicher-Schoenaur rifle, with no issues. I tried shooting some more of it about 2015 and got structural failures of the...

What is your barrel groove diameter? A cast bullet has to fit the throat on a 1911 .45 acp, maybe .001" larger than the groove diameter. Most 1911 .45 acp are .451". My experience is that a Lee mold may run a little larger than it is supposed to, and if so, you may need to size it down. My...

The advice you got to perhaps buy some bullets of the general design you like, before buying molds, is good. Remember that Lead bullets, even with a base support ("gas check"), are much weaker than Jacketed, and absolutely must be at least groove diameter. There are several old NRA technical...

Regarding your crimp, if there is a small central hole, but it does not leak shot, it is not a problem. If you notice a wad is sitting particularly low, and therefor the crimp will be dished in or may have a big enough hole to dribble shot, a thin card on top of the shot will prevent both. I...

In the 1960s, the NRA did a lot of technical work on cast bullets, what worked and did not, and why. Some of those works were compiled and are now available on-line. I will try to find links at Cast Boolits and LASC. You ask a lot of questions, and I will try to answer them based on my...

I have one of the old Beretta-made conversions, and one of the newer Umarex products. They both shoot about the same (from a rest, they will use all of the black on a NRA 50 ft target), but the Umarex magazine can be easily loaded without the tool the Beretta conversion requires. I believe...

Caution: the Federal legislation which banned all bullets supposedly designed to penetrate soft body armor, 18 USC Sec 921(a)(17), banned all bullets made from one or a combination of Tungsten, steel, iron, brass, bronze & beryllium copper, or depleted uranium. Brass and bronze are just...

I like using them on a progressive loading machine, as it eliminates the need for changing the priming system from small to large primers. Also, if I use the large primered brass and a piece of small primer brass gets on the machine, I have a hug mess when the small premiered brass encounters...

For rifle, you need to size cast bullets for the throat, which is probably going to be at least .002" larger than the groove diameter. On bolt actions, having the bullet pushed into the rifling on loading creates no problem with slam fires, and supports the bullet on firing such that it does...

My experience with .45 acp barrels is that they are usually about the diameter they are supposed to be. My experience with 9mm barrels is very different. I really like Walther and Beretta 9mm pistols, and their barrels typically are about .3575" groove diameter. If you shoot a bullet of the...

I use them in a 1911 and a Beretta 96, and have round wire springs in others. They seem to last longer than those made with round wire. For pistols that have short recoil spring life, they may be a real plus. The 1911 has always seemed to me to have short recoil spring life, and the 96 is...