Ed Harris and the 310 tool

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  • Last Post 19 January 2013
Chargar posted this 16 January 2013

The new Fouling Shot arrived in the mail box today and there is a great piece by Ed Harris on the Lyman tong tool and reloading with such a set up.

I am now retired also and have the time to reload and enjoy shooting the “old school” way. The way I was taught by my mentor Worth Palmer in the late 50's.

After spending a lifetime reloading and shooting each new gadget that comes down the pike, there is a time in a man's life when he like to enjoy the process, the feel of the tools in his hands, the smell of gunpowder and bullet lube and the fun of creating one hand crafted round at a time.

Thanks Ed for the good writing and knowing there is another guy who still enjoys doing things the way we did in our salad days when we were young, limber and could jump a three rail fence.

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Pigslayer posted this 17 January 2013

I can't agree with you more. I just came up to the house from my little shop/reloading room where I cast up some Lyman 358156 GC & some Lee 452-255-RF bullets. I thoroughly enjoy the “process". Time is not the issue. Being in “the moment” is. I left the shop with several hundred crisp, shiney, well defined bullets and proud that I was able to craft these works of art.

Pat Reynolds

If someone else had of done to me what I did to myself . . . I'd have killed him. Humility is an asset. Heh - heh.

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Reg posted this 17 January 2013

Am also in full agreement. All too often the emphases in on speed- speed- speed and in fact should be in care and quality. These old “nut crackers” with just a bit of care can produce the finest ammunition. I actually prefer them in the priming operation. I feel they offer a lot more control as they actually allow you to feel the actual seating of the primer.

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RicinYakima posted this 17 January 2013

My love of the 310 tool lead me to The Antique Reloading Tool Collectors Association website. I liked the people so much I joined their organization also. Love old tools! Ric

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mike morrison posted this 17 January 2013

I have a couple sets of dies for the nut cracker. one never used still wrapped in the wax paper. the other not but maybe not used. one is 30-40 K and the other is 41 Long colt. any idea what they are worth.?? m

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tturner53 posted this 17 January 2013

If you have 310 dies you can't ID for sure I have (somewhere) a reprint of an old Lyman booklet with part numbers that shows what's what. I've been a sucker for these things and have old dies and a JR. press too even for cartridges I don't use. Let me know if you need something looked up.

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Chargar posted this 17 January 2013

Mike..Lots of 310 dies on Ebay and sets sell for $40-$60 depending on caliber and the phase of the moon. There are of course exceptions for everything sold on Ebay. There are a few bargains and a few things sold for crazy prices.

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mike morrison posted this 17 January 2013

the dies are still in the original orange box with the caliber marked on the box. m

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Reg posted this 17 January 2013

For die identification and other references to this fine tool and it's dies, go to Castpics look under references.

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mike morrison posted this 17 January 2013

looking at a ballistics program and downloades it when i did it put a pdf file reader on my puter and it is not compatable with my puter. when i try to access a pdf file it locks everything up. un install does not work. all this said to say castpics info is in pdf files. dead in the water till i get this fixed.

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mulhair posted this 19 January 2013

The best place I've found to get the die listing is in an old Shooter's Bible or Gund Digest from back in the 50's and 60's. You can find them around the gun shows for a few bucks.

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Grant posted this 19 January 2013

I have loaded a lot of cartridges with a 310 tool and cartridge-case powder measures. Here is a general guide to using cartridge cases for measuring powder, leveled with cardboard. The cases you use will probably vary from mine, but this may help you decide what to try.

A .25 ACP holds 3.1 grains of Bullseye.

A .32 ACP holds 5.5 grains of Bullseye or 4.3 - 4.4 grains of Red Dot.

A 9mm Luger holds 12.7 grains of 2400 or 14 grains of Goex FFFG.

A .30 Carbine holds 18.7 grains of 2400 or 21 grains of Goex FFFG.

A .38 Special holds 22.2 grains of H4895.

A .45 ACP holds 25.8 grains of H4895.

Bullseye and 2400 vary plus or minus 0.05 grain, and Red Dot and Unique vary plus or minus 0.10 grain.

 

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Ed Harris posted this 19 January 2013

Thanks, Grant.

Good info.

73 de KE4SKY In Home Mix We Trust From the Home of Ed's Red in "Almost Heaven" West Virginia

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bushranch posted this 19 January 2013

For a quick easy handle on a cartridge case powder measure take about 14 inches of soft iron wire (.063) works well. Chuck both ends in a cordless drill and the loop around the case(held in a vise.) Pull the loop toward you and fit it in the case groove . Use the drill to slowly twist the wire up tight and straight. Cut to length and loop cut end back along the main stem.

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John Alexander posted this 19 January 2013

Grant wrote: "I have loaded a lot of cartridges with a 310 tool and cartridge-case powder measures. Here is a general guide to using cartridge cases for measuring powder, leveled with cardboard.

Bullseye and 2400 vary plus or minus 0.05 grain, and Red Dot and Unique vary plus or minus 0.10 grain.”

 Grant,

Those are great consistencies. What is your technique for dipping,settling, striking off etc.

I have done a fair amount of testing of powder measures and have never gotten consistencies even close to those you mentioned with any powder measure except with some ball powder. Flake powders like Unique have measured especially inconsistently.

What is you secret?

John

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Grant posted this 19 January 2013

Hi John,

I would pour the powder into the cartridge-case measure with a scoop made from a .30-30 case and then level it, imitating the commercial powder measures long before I bought one (now of course preferring the commercial powder measure -- and the Lee hand press to the Lyman 310, but have not loaded at the range for a long, long time).

And thank you for your article “The Good Four-Shot Group and the Flier,” one of the most interesting articles I have seen in the FS. Regression to the mean strikes again!

Grant

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Ed Harris posted this 19 January 2013

The technique I was taught to use charge cups by Frank Marshall was to have the powder in a coffee cup or rice bowl, then with the charge cup held upright, push it down into the powder, letting it flow in of its own weight, then raise it straight up and strike off with a card.

73 de KE4SKY In Home Mix We Trust From the Home of Ed's Red in "Almost Heaven" West Virginia

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norm posted this 19 January 2013

Good article on the Lyman 310. I should point out that muzzle resizer dies for the Tru-line JR have an expander ball and if used in the 310 handles you cannot exract the case. I had saw  to the head off the case and disassemble the die to get the rest of the case out. Don't know if all tru-line dies have the expander ball but my 32 Special does. Incidentally this die is caliber marked and I also have a 300 Savage die set that is caliber marked.

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RicinYakima posted this 19 January 2013

Yep Norm, those are Tru-line Junior dies, but only made for a little while, at the very end. After the Lyman's sold the company in the 1970's, the new owners figured out that they would only have to sell two dies instead of three dies (they never had a primer seating die) and add to the profit. But then you could not use them with 310 tools.

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