Then, suddenly, at the intersection of M-50 and Vermontville Highway, Kubota's phone blew up with calls.
Sharing a truck with Kubota as he drives and talks on the phone is disconcerting. The calls stacked up on each other.
Listening to Kubota's side of the conversation, I learned the reason for Kubota's sudden popularity.
"Dad, do we have a set of dies for .45 ACP?"
Then, the very next call "Dad do we have dies and components for .223?"
The rest of the ride was like that.
I reload for a very small and very select group of family members. I give the ammo away in small quantities and it is given as gifts.
When I got home, I went to my favorite websites that sell reloading supplies. The cupboards were bare except for a few niche products like .477 bullets made from Minotaur foreskins and depleted Uranium.
I cringe at the liability of giving John Q. 22-year-old home rolled ammo. Another thing is that they burn through it in an easy-come, easy-go manner while an adult can make sixty rounds last fifteen years at three-rounds-a-year to verify function and zero plus fifteen rounds on tap if the dance music actually started
On the other hand, I am not adverse to moving the reloading plank to the picnic table outside, letting the young man pick a recipe from a legitimate handbook and letting him manufacture his own. Then he can see the amount of work and maybe take up reloading as his own hobby.
***Edited to add***
I found most of the parts to put one scale together. I need a 7/16", steel ball bearing to serve as the counterweight. If all goes well, one should be here in a week.
I can also use Lee Perfect Powder Dippers. The chart suggests that the 1.6cc dipper will measure out 24.8 grains of H-335 while the book-max for a 55 grain softpoint is 25.3 grains. Given the variation in volume mass density and burn rates, I may make my own dipper with a discarded .38 Special shaved down to be a little bit less than 1.6cc.
Second update:
1.5cc does not look like it is even close to 24 grains. This is a .223 Rem case cut at the shoulder. My memory, which can be faulty, remembers 24 grains getting close to the bottom of the shoulder.
Time to prep brass and wait for goodies to show up in the mail.
Good luck to you and Kubota getting powder and brass. Otherwise sounds like a great idea. ( The picnic table experiment) Hmmm depleted Uranium...wonder if you can get that with titanium plate.
ReplyDeleteI went down to look at the reloading set-up. Somebody was clearly rummaging around. I half half of one powder scale. I found the balance arm from a different scale but it was missing the ball-bearing counter-weight. Frustrated? Who, me?
DeleteThe picnic table project is a non-starter without a powder scale. I have a new one ordered with a promised delivery date of April 4. I am not sure it will show up if businesses and states keep closing.
Rummaging??? I took up reloading after the kids were grown and gone. I do remember them getting into my tools when they were young and driving less reliable vehicles. Yeah... I bet that was good for 20 point uptick in the BP.
DeleteDiddling with my reloading stuff?!?
ReplyDeleteOh Hell no!
Penalty is castration with a dull deer antler..........
How will you teach him the attention to detail required to actually produce SAFE loads? That is something that comes with experience and NOT having any interruptions.
ReplyDeleteI personally load with weighted charges. I use Lee scoops to put the powder on the scale but none of them are precise enough to throw max charges for .357 or .44mag at least with 296. Good luck finding more components. I agree I would not share my reloads with just anyone. On rifle loads, a scale is a necessity of you are working up a distance load. I suppose that a load for the AR series is less important and a dipped charge might be ok. I don't have one but I do have marlin 1894's for both of the above pistol calibers
ReplyDeleteGuns are dangerous! Shame on you.
ReplyDeleteMyron the progressive intern.
I'm sure Kubota won't mind when you loan his truck out for garbage runs during the shutdown.
ReplyDelete