New guy Making a 257 Condor
Hello New guy here.
I been lurking on this forum for about a month now. Thought it was time to sign up and post. I bought a condor and going to convert it to a 257 cal. I never own one or even knew what one was but knew this was what I wanted to do. I own a couple Marauders one .177 and the other in .25 cal.
Tofazfou don’t know me from anything but he is the one that inspired me to do this. I came across a video from him and he shot a coke can at 400+ yards. 😯 I was hooked right there. I know others has shot that far and farther too after I done more research. I started to do a lot of research on the subject and found a lot of great info. I found this site and read up on some stuff from here. 257 seems to be a great casting round for airguns. I will start with the Lyman 65gr mold. I got some pluming pipe that I will make my first bullets from. I will need to practise casting because I haven’t done any of it in years and that was only round balls for a muzzle loader. I bought all the stuff I need to start again. This is getting to be an expensive project.
I got me a TJ 257 barrel that is 28″ long. I am in the process of machining it to work in the condor. I will make my own bushings and hammer and breech. I have a lathe and milldrill so I can make most of the stuff I will need. I contacted Doug (dyotat100) about making me a valve. Heard nothing but good things on him. He has been giving me some pointer on what I need to do. I am trying not to bug him to much 😉 I know he is busy.
Anyway just thought I would post and say Hi. I have seen some of you member from other forums so I recognize some of you. I will post more when I get some stuff done on my gun.
One question is what lube should I use when shooting the lyman bullets? I have no experience with lubing the bullets. I asume you don’t use the same stuff as you would with powder burners? Thanks.
Gary
All Replies
Thanks for the video, shouldve refreshed the page before posting up the vid I found, either way its some killer footage, very interesting stuff, wish I had the time & funds for such a build, maybe someday.
And please post up some pics of your build while in progress, this…is cool. :8:
Here is one video on You tube of shooting the 257 airgun at 446 yards,
Tofazfou has done a few videos on this gun. Check out his channel.
Go here to see pics of my build. I started a thread in the mods and machining section.
http://talonairgun.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=28274
Gotta ask, wher can I find the videos of the 400 yards .257 air gun, never dreamed of this kind of performance from a air gun.
And please post up some pics of your build while in progress, this…is cool. :8:
Done a search on YT & found this, talk about drink’n the cool aid.
Your in for a lot of fun Gary. an some frustration. But I promise you, It’s worth it! 😀 I was out busting cow patties at 200 yards today. 😯 (Hey, it’s Texas Ok?) 😆 Shooting the shit in Texas, has a whole other meaning!!! 😈 😉
Knife
I followed RoachCreek’s advice and went with RC shock oil. I found it on amazon for 6.95 i think. I also took his advice on the imperial sizing wax. Man that stuff is good!
Molds to start with Lyman 257420 is a good start, and the NOE, although a bit heavier, is damym accurate! 😯
The Lyman cast out to apx 74 gr. (Even though it is listed at 64 grain)..
The Noe cast out at apx. 80 grains.
I milled both these mould down to my liking. The Lyman is now 54 grain and the MOE is 60 grain. (59.8)
They really preform in my 21″ barrel.That OldGoat sent Dyotat to set-up for me. 😀
Knife
Hi Knife
Thanks for the reply. I’m having fun doing this. I know most of you guy done this stuff a year or two ago. It is all new to me. I been reading up on everything. All you guys have done all the leg work and knows what works and what don’t. Helps me from making expensive mistakes. Doug has been a really big help. He said he will get me a 257 valve made this weekend.
I casted me some lyman bullets last night. They are weighing at 72.2 gr. I just order me a sizing die from Lee tonight. I slug my TJ barrel and it mic at .2572. I ordered a .258 sizing die. Waiting on stuff to come so I can make the hammer and some stuff for a breech.
thanx for the LUBE heads up. See, i’m no expert…lol! But I will try your recommendation on the next casting/lube session
Ced nobody’s an expert.Everyone make his own decisions and experimenting on something until find it works…then just share his experience with other people.
For example neither you or me knew about .257 cal until someone provided some results he got from it.
Something i forgot to mention about silicone shock oil is to use #30wt or #35wt. Anything else will be too thick or thin for shooting purpose.
That Palmolive technique accompanied with firelapping sequencing of silicone lube provides less barrel leading and leading nothingness means better performance-accuracy(if you don’t like firelapping it would be better leave lead to fill the gaps inside the bore and keep shooting until noticed loss of accuracy)….but if you ever feel that your barrel fouls more than normal (it is not necessary…just to know)try this:
Get a 50/50 mixture of white vinegar and Hydrogen peroxide(from pharmacy shop..that one we used to put on a open wound after an accident) ,clog barrels one edge with something,pour the mix into the barrel until spilled over and let it for at least half an hour and then remove it and try some patches cleaning.
This eliminates lead and “reset” your barrel just like you had received from manufacturer….A true lead Killer.Also it is barrel friendly. :wink:…
…Me personally i hate scratching the bore with traditional bronze brushes or anything else,so if the barrel won’t be cleaned with patches i usually try this tip (away from the field).
I use a fishing line with a tiny brass fishing swivel on its edge.On swivels other side i pass a 6″ piece of fishing line and make a knob on the edges instead turn that line in circle(loop).This is where i snag the patch.
Swivel just help the patch to rotate while rides on the rifling without stress the line or wipe bore and trim it with the debris it carry by itself ,in case the patch moves steady and straight while you pull it off.
if you try this tip you ll notice that the patch soiled evenly and not only in the center,and you need less patches for the whole process until being happy about the final result.
However if i m going to try a new bullet design(never test it before) which fouls my barrel badly and very quickly ,i use traditional cleaning rods while it s impossible carry all that equipment and solutions on the field.
In my case those cases are minimal but sometimes it happens and don’t want return back to home before shooting practice or hunting is finished.
You’r gonna love it Gary!
I followed RoachCreek’s advice and went with RC shock oil. I found it on amazon for 6.95 i think. I also took his advice on the imperial sizing wax. Man that stuff is good!
Molds to start with Lyman 257420 is a good start, and the NOE, although a bit heavier, is damym accurate! 😯
The Lyman cast out to apx 74 gr. (Even though it is listed at 64 grain)..
The Noe cast out at apx. 80 grains.
I milled both these mould down to my liking. The Lyman is now 54 grain and the MOE is 60 grain. (59.8)
They really preform in my 21″ bbl.That OldGoat sent Dyotat to set-up for me. 😀
Knife
KQ,
thanx for the LUBE heads up. See, i’m no expert…lol! But I will try your recommendation on the next casting/lube session
KQ,
thanx for the LUBE heads up. See, i’m no expert…lol! But I will try your recommendation on the next casting/lube session
1st off, HELLO and WELCOME aboard. Very glad that you have come forward and started posting. Glad also that you have a Condor and that you want to mod it. Doug is definitely the technical Guru with valves and the AF guns and me knowing him, he is probable very happy to answer your questions as best he can. He is AWESOME.
Doug and i have both used the LEE ALOX lube that comes with LEE bullet sizers with much success. Its not the prettiest or cleanest stuff in the world but good Lord….it works. Doug uses it exclusively. I use food grade silicon on my bullets before and after sizing with much success the barrel for sure stay clean longer and is easy to clean. I also use SAILKOTE which is a Teflon lube that dries quickly and works great. There are lots of lubes one can use and i am no lube expert. The Lee Alox and Food Grade Silicon are my recommendations. They may not be the BEST but again, i am no expert on the subject.
Tofazfou
Thanks for the reply tofazfou. I really enjoy your videos you have made. I am really getting addicted to this airgun stuff. I thought the cast slugs would be a nice step up to try something new. I’m not rich so I have to take things slow. I will start a thread sometime on my progress of my build. I can’t do videos but can take pictures. I will post it in the mod forum.
Personally when i size cast bullets i use a dish washing solution like Palmolive…it is slippery enough to get a smooth exit of the sizing die and after sizing process you just need to rinse bullets with hot water.
That way bullets are totally clean for your next step(lubricating).
Thanks for the reply Killerqueen. The dish soap sounds like a good idea. Once cleaned then can lub with what ever I choose.
Casey
I ordered most of my casting stuff from either Midway http://www.midwayusa.com/ or Midsouth shooting supply
http://www.midsouthshooterssupply.com/
First, welcome to the TAG. Next, please keep us updated, I am very interested in your project, as this is also on my next to do list. I only have a Talon SS, but since I have two, one is my multi cal gun, the other is currently setup as a 10M 177 rifle. Good luck on your project, and Tof, thank you for gathering all the info and posting it here for us to follow. One more thing Gary, where did you gather your casting equipment? I have been looking, and was thinking of just buying a cast iron pot, gas burner, thermometer, and a dipper to get going, so any input would be appreciated. Sorry not trying to jack your thread, but does anyone know a good 25 cal mold for standard 25 cal bullets? That would get me started casting, and maybe I could get some sized to shoot from my LW Airforce barrel for now.
Casey
Gary welcome on TAG and .257 WORLD.
As a bullet lubricant you can use Silicone shock oil for RC cars too.
Something most people have ignorance about,is that you have to avoid mix the silicone with other solutions because this way you can cause loss of silicone benefits which give even better performance and superior lubricating ability.
Personally when i size cast bullets i use a dish washing solution like Palmolive…it is slippery enough to get a smooth exit of the sizing die and after sizing process you just need to rinse bullets with hot water.
That way bullets are totally clean for your next step(lubricating).
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.
Not to mention that RoachCreek posted a Vid shooting a coke can at “615” Yards! 😯
He and Tof are the long range Top Dogs Here! 😆
Best I’ve done is tennis ball size rocks at 250 yards. 10- for 10. :8:
These .257’s Kick Butt!!! 😈
Knife