Ranger 45
Well I have a tracking number for the Ranger 45 that was assembled, test fired, chronyed, and shipped today.
28 inch barrel, standard stock and black crerakote finish, $1230 dollars including shipping.
To early to get the arrival date, it is not in the system yet.
Chrony numbers were:
Round ball. low setting 3000 PSI……1018 FPS
225………. low setting 3000 PSI……..877 FPS
405 shot 1 hi setting 4500 PSI………804 FPS
340 shot 2 hi setting 4500 PSI………843 FPS
These numbers will improve by 30 to 50 FPS as the rifle breaks in.
Regards,
Roachcreek
All Replies
Benneboy,
It has rained here like a cow pissing on a flat rock all day long. I didn’t shoot yesterday for the same reason.
The day before that the eagle had shit and I went to town
I have all my tanks charged up, Butchers Devestators all ready to go, a spare Bushenell 7×21 3200 all set up in identical rings like the 2×7 Burris to wring every last “inth” of accuracy out.
And large fucking fish are swimming past my window. 🙁
Regards,
Roachcreek
We still talking about this gun????
😆 😆 😆
I’m just playing RC! Go kill something with the dang thang!
Ya’ll see the new dragon claw 50 cal! I kind of like it but the numbers are unimpressive. And even worst PA sits there in the ad and says 230fpe but none of the numbers they post right under it reach that. Not even the 1st shot???
Slayer,
The first 6 Bullets I fired into Elk were pass thru shots with round nose bullets, the 7th was a lung shot with a bullet almost identical to the one I bought the mold for, All but one exited, none hit large bone, some were broadside most were raking. None seemed to epand much if at all.
The round nose slugs do not impart mcuh energy, the flat nose bullet wound was impressive.
Deer did have some shattered shoulders, and were shot with numerous slugs of both hard and soft points.
The fact is tho, when 400 grains comes in contact with just about any bone on this continent it is going to shatter. A 22 lr will break deer leg bones, but the impact stop the tiny bullet.
Regards,
Roachcreek
Does the soft lead perform well on game when hitting bone?
Or is all lead hard enough for complete pass thru on game?
I would assume softer lead would form better to an air gun barrel?
Sorry for the silly questions but have been following this with interest.
Jerry,
That is 8 slugs to the pound, shit howdy. I would worry more about it landing on my foot.
The free freight from SF is a good deal for me and for you it is a big savings.
Regards,
Roachcreek
man i finally finished the stock , 3 layers of brushed on west system epoxy sanded every coat then sanded with 500 -1000-1500 then buffed with 2 types of compound , with a buffer -and by hand , it is as hard as a rock and looks like transparent candy 😆 😆 , my frikken arms are dead as hell !
RC,
We just got another 100 pounds of lead from Rotometals, nice outfit with fair prices. You’re right about Midway and their lead prices…I deserve at least a reach around for that coin! What’s worse, I ordered from them once before I knew about roto and needed lead fast for some high dollar orders. Naturally, instead of pure lead, they mistakenly sent linotype…it’s not a good thing when you can roll two pellets together and they ring like a bell! I’ve also bought lead on ebay and been burned. I thought I had a trusted source but then he sent me a short order followed by a hard lead order and I stopped at 2 strikes. When I order lead, it’s almost always because we have or need to be ready for orders. I don’t like to tell customers that their order is on hold because I can’t manage the raw materials, and as a customer of the metal supplier, I don’t appreciate getting less or other than what I ordered.
You’re right about big slugs being fragile if soft. The key is to not drop the damn things! 😆 I’m not just being cute there, one of the slugs Timmy makes and has sold at least a thousand of, is a 905gr model for the .87 Justice smoothbore. Every slug takes so much lead, you can watch the level in the pot drop. What is REALLY disappointing is when you get an order for 100 of those in MATCH GRADE and let one of the ones that has already been sorted and passed roll off the table!
Let us know what you think of the moly. I really have no idea if it will help with anything, hurt anything or be benign. I just wouldn’t recommend the expense because I’ve got a cheap solution that covers my requirements.
I bought my alloy thru Rotometals, they are in SF Bay area. If you buy over $100.00 it is free shipping, and folks on alloy that is a stellar deal.
I bought my casting equipment, except for the mold, thru Midway and their prices seemed as good as any.
The exception is Midways alloy, your going to take it in the ass without the benefit of either a good sloppy kiss, or a courtesy reach around if you order alloy from Midway.
I bought a little over 30 lbs, the same freight free deal from Midway is $50.00 more.
Thanks guys for the link to Rotometals.
Regards,
Roachcreek
Jerry,
Ditto on the Lee sizing dies, I found they performed as advertised.
The 20-1 is not carved in stone, one thing about casting, you do know your going to go thru lead, so if 20-1 proves too hard, it is a simple matter to order a like amount of lead and blend it together for that 40-1 mix.
Jerry I had one of the first RCBS furnaces, I had it before I retired in 1981 if that tells you something, I sold it when I downsized to a 28 ft trailer and moved to the SE Oregon desert town of Fields Oregon, population 12. I was still making the Corbin slugs then so I went to a core cutter, not wanting to cast in a 28 foot trailer.
One thing tho, on big slugs, handling them if they are very soft becomes in issue, one drop and they deform so easily, that and the castabiliity of 20-1 was the motive for me last night when I pushed the button on the add to cart on the 20-1.
One thing I like about this forum is the information you learn, I had no idea about the power steering fluid, but I will try that if the Moly does not work and it runs out, thanks for that information.
I used moly on the Corbin rimfire jacketed .224 bullets. They had a tendency to foul, and when I taught myself to anneal them twice rather than once, they went from a fragile explosive bullet to a controlled expansion bullet capable of retaining 45 of 55 grains when fired into meat, not bad for a 223 Rem. Problem was that made them much softer and they fouled worse than any bullet I ever fired until I molyed them. I tumbled them in a vibrating tumbler with wax and steel ball bearings in a two stage treatment.
So if everything goes right, I should be casting next week.
Regards,
Roachcreek
RC,
Your experience with Lee gear is understood and appreciated. Not all of it transfers to airgun work (fortunately), the work you did with cartridges is more precise and requires gear where the machine has to work well so the re-loader can work well and turn out great cartridges. For airgun slugs, there is less demand on sophisticated gear and more demand (OK equal demand) on the caster. We went through several Lee pots and wore them out. We used the bottom pour light duty and inexpensive pots but they just can’t handle the volume of even serious home casters without turning into a major PIA and productivity hinderance. We currently use an RCBS bottom pour pot that has supported probably 80,000 slugs without having a problem like dripping or random temperatures etc. We use a bottom pour not just for speed but because it allows certain techniques that cannot be duplicated with a ladle. (BTW, if anyone here is wondering if they want to cast…go ahead and buy the cheap Lee pot, it is so affordable that it is the best way to confirm if you want to do this)
The Lee dies I have are all good, save one. That’s a .309 that is really .308. I should have sent it back but the bother would cost more than the die and I found I only need .308 and .310… For sizing airgun slugs all you need is the cheap Lee handpress. We bought a bench mounted press just because of the volume not because it sizes any better. Also, Lee dies are just fine so long as the bore is what it is supposed to be. We’re talking about a tapered tube here…
You won’t have any need for a top punch because you no longer need to press the slug into a gas check or crimp it in a case. All you need now is to press the slug through a die and keep it from falling on the floor. The Lee hand press and dies work just fine and cost less than a cheap meal for two…
I would have recommended against spending money on moly lube or buying 20:1 lead. I’ve found that rolling the slugs around in some cheap power steering fluid provides all the lube needed (or for hunting just wrap the slugs in a moist with lube paper towel in your pocket). I used 3 in 1 oil for years but I found that the PS fluid does not have solvents in it that dry out. The cheap stuff works great and a $2 bottle can last years! Feel free to spend more if you want! As far as the lead goes, well, I’ve made my points. I hope the hard stuff works for you but I’d have gone for 50:1 (not a standard mix) as even the 40:1 is a bit harder than I like and the convenience factor of not doing my own tin mix (usually a lot less than 50:1) is not worth it. I usually only add enough tin to the lead to break the surface tension of the lead and get pure fills.
The only casting I ever did was .75 round balls the the Brown Bess!
I melted a bunch of scrap lead someone gave me (a plumber) have no idea how hard the lead was skinned some crap off the top of the melting pot and poured away. SCIENTIST i am not. lol
I do find this process interesting but would not want to be the one doing it RC! lol
When RC is all done I can buy my Ranger know which cast bullets to buy from where and shoot! lmao THANKS RC
i was wondering if any of you guys have tried a 200 grain truncated cone bullet like for a 45 ACP, i believe they drop at .454 or so out of my moulds, i can’t find one right now that has not been sized , i wonder if they would shoot.
I’ve seen great accuracy out of the “.45Slim” design Mark Whyte of WhyteLeatherworks invented. About 175grains. Shot my best measured group with them cast in BHN6 lead…. three shots .45inch c-to-c @50yards.
So the truncated cone design has definitely worked before.
Accurate molds has a 180grain copy of the EPP/UG available, too. That will probably be my second mold, having already bought an old 4-cavity Lyman #454424
They seemed to enter the sizer die better in my opinion Butcher. It always seemed easier to push it into the die from the base that it could move on to center itself, rather than try to get the top punch centered on the nose of the bullet perfectly and push it down into the die.
But then again I prefered not to size if I could.
Regards,
Roachcreek
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It has rained here like a cow pissing on a flat rock all day long. I didn’t shoot yesterday for the same reason.
The day before that the eagle had shit and I went to town
I have all my tanks charged up, Butchers Devestators all ready to go, a spare Bushenell 7×21 3200 all set up in identical rings like the 2×7 Burris to wring every last “inth” of accuracy out.
And large fucking fish are swimming past my window. 🙁
Regards,
Roachcreek
ya it has rained like hell all day long in Portland and Vancouver , i am sick of this crap ! some-one needs to turn the dam rain valve off !
i can still shoot though because my table is set up under the breeze-way shooting out the back of the property at my back stop … 20ft from my front door ! BOOM !