Have you ever wanted to seat a gascheck on a non-gascheck lead bullet

[Bigbore44]

Well, here's the answer.

You'll need a SWAGE die body in a caliber you require -- like the type that C-H makes, it must be the one with the rounded ogive at bullets top.

In my case, I wanted to seat gaschecks on .44 caliber lead bullets of different weights.

To be able to get the Lyman GC to seat on the bullet one has to run a lead bullet backward up into the SWAGE die body with rounded ogive to put a very slight taper on the bullet's base. You'll know when you've got the right taper when the GC barely wants to go onto the bullet's base.

Next and final step is to put bullet and gascheck into a lubesizer press and seat the gascheck firmly onto your bullets base. The ramming seating action dispaces the lead base to fill the gascheck and making it firmly attached.

Try it, you'll like it...Mikey.


Jim

[Toney]

I will try that

[Bigbore44]

Toney, let us hear how you make out doing that. Can help if you have trouble.

jim

[Bigbore44]

Thought I'd post some pictures of the bullets being processed to take the .44 caliber gaschecks.

Step one, take a lead bullet that has no gascheck cut and convert the plain base of the bullet into a C-H .429 diameter .44 caliber swage die...it has the rounded ogive at the top of its entourier.

This round ogive is what gives the taper slant to the bullet when you gently press the bullet up into the die to a point where it barely touches round ogive.

You'll know when you've got it right by the gascheck just barely being able to start to slip on the taper curve of the processed bullet.

The bullet is of course run up backward into the swage die to receive the benefit of the rounded ogive of the die.

To seat the gascheck onto the bullet can be done two ways, put GC and bullet into a bullet lubesizer press and press it on. Or, put in swaging press with proper swage type die and swage it onto the bullet...either way works fine.

In the pictures you can barely see the faint taper of the bullets base from the rounded ogive from the C-H swage die.


Jim

[Toney]

Nice set up Jim!!!

[Bullshop Junior]

I have never thought about that. Will tell my dad to try it.
Delbert/BS JR.

[Bigbore44]

Tony, the old Herter's No.3 press is over 40 years old. Its had its toggle link bar to the ram piston shortend by a half inch so it will allow the ram stroke to top out lower on the final up position. You need this for swaging bullets in any press.

Bullshop Jr, if you're dad or you, decide to try this method of mine...just a slight touch in swage die with the ogive bullet slant will do the trick. If you taper it too much you will have to enlarge the bullets base with no taper and start in again -- it won't take a good crimp on the gascheck if too much taper.

But with practice you'll get the swage die adjustment just right and it will be set for repeated bullet taper operation to accept the gaschecks for seating.

This method does not require a swaging press to perform the job. It takes very little pressure to put the taper on the bullet.

But you will need the C-H swaging die in whatever caliber you choose to do this in, the die with the rounded ogive is the one needed.

Final step is to seat the gascheck in a lubesizer press or your swaging press.

Jim