Christmas gift

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Last Post 24 February 2024
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cbaMollyy42 posted this 09 January 2024

I'm turning 82 this February and decided to give myself a christmas present I could and would use. I ordered the 3 volume set of Cast Bullets for the Beginner and Experts from the CBA store. The first chapter had an artcle on how to avoid double charging a cartridge and avoiding problems with "bridging" of powder. These two topics are close to home. My shooting partner blew 3" of the end of a great 45/70 barrel, including an expensive front sight off into never-neverland because he had only a primer underneath a 535 gr postel bullet. He had a brain-fart and thought he had chambered an empty and chambered another cartridge because He had no recoil upon pulling the trigger. It was a preventable accident!! He should have looked inside the rollingblock barrel first. Also if He had looked at every reload before seating his bullets it is kind of hard to miss 68 gr of 1 1/2 Swiss. So if you have the books by Brennan dig-em out and read them on a snowy day. If you don't have them, buy them and also give them as gifts to your fellow reloaders that are near and dear to you.

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Buttersdad posted this 17 February 2024

I too bought the 3 volume set and I remember the sections you mention, but you have encouraged me to re-read them. Thank you.

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Ken Campbell Iowa posted this 17 February 2024

dipstick ... really fast and simple .. i can dipstick fifty brass in about 10 seconds.

about once every two years i find i jumped a brass in my loading block ... way too often, but it happens especially with 84 year old eyes.

i just use an aluminum ... no magnetic charge ... rod and on the first test dip i put my fingernail on the rod at the case neck and test the rest. such a good feeling when all cases measure the right height of powder charge..

ken with 10 fingers

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beemer posted this 18 February 2024

I like to use a small flashlight to look in every case, easy to spot anything wrong. A dipstick is also used depending on the case.

About a month ago I caught a bridged charge with a powder measure. After 10 charges I decided to check the weight and take a look with a light. One case was short and the next had to much, dumped all 10. I set up another measure that worked better and carried on but still looked in every case. I like Unique but the stuff doesn't meter very well.

Anything doesn't look, feel, smell or sound right gets investigated and wear glasses.

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fa38 posted this 19 February 2024

It helps to count the number of cases you dumped powder into. If you have a loading block with 40 cases in it and you got to the last row and the count was 45 or 35 guess what you did.

And then I dip stick them even if the count was 40.

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oscarflytyer posted this 19 February 2024

I keep the brass in a tupperware bowl as I am charging them. Brass doesn't go in the case tray until I charge it. I then check all brass in the tray with a flashlight. (I DO like the dipstick method! need to try that). Last, I now use an RCBS Chargemaster scale. It keeps a brass count as I charge them. If/when the count matches (brass and counter) all good. If not - uh oh. It has been a very comforting addition.

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Ken Campbell Iowa posted this 20 February 2024

i have a benchrest redding ... and an RCBS crank measure ... but guess what I use ... now for 70 years ( gulp ) ?

... my Belding and Mull VISIBLE powder measure ... it dumps the powder into a hollow tube so that you glance at the fill level before you dump into the brass ...

that is 50 per cent of the job ... still have to dipstick each brass in case my cell phone rang with a distracting important political message ...

*********************

ok, if i am in a real hurry I use my RCBS Little Dandy to zip thru 50 plinker loads ... but I still dipstick each brass .

oh, anybody interested in a once used Redding crank measure ? pm me if.

ken

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Brodie posted this 24 February 2024

I do not use a dipstick, or a flashlight to try and view or even assess the powder level in my cases, nor do I use a loading block. When I began reloading some 61 years ago I could not get my hands on a loading block for love nor money, which I had little of, so I simply charged the case and then immediately seated the bullet. as I have kept to this practice ever since I have not had any trouble with double or overcharged cases.

B.E.Brickey

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