590 lines
42 KiB
Plaintext
590 lines
42 KiB
Plaintext
.he CHAPTER 5 CORBIN HANDBOOK AND CATALOG NO. 7, PAGE #.op
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SWAGING WITH THE MITY MITE SYSTEM
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Swaging with the Mity Mite press and dies is a huge step up from
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using a reloading press. It's faster, easier to use, more than doubles
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the power you have, so that the effort is cut by more than half, and
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extends the caliber and design range to dizzying heights.
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You can obtain dies to make any caliber from .14 to .458, any
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weight up to about 450 grains, with a maximum bullet length of about
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1.3 inches. You're read about the CORE SEATING DIE, POINT FORMER, and
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LEAD TIP DIE in the previous chapter (or, if you skipped it, you should
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read it now). Let's explore other kinds of dies that can actually
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adjust the weight of the bullet as you swage, or form boattails on the
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normal flat-base jacket.
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There are FIVE kinds of swage dies for the Mity Mite system:
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(1) The CORE SWAGE die
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(2) The CORE SEATER die
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(3) The POINT FORMING die
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(4) The LEAD TIP die
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(5) The REBATED BOATTAIL die set
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In addition to swage dies, there are draw dies, and special jacket
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forming dies. Copper tubing can be formed into bullet jackets for
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those calibers where regular drawn jackets are not available, too thin
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for big game hunting, or too expensive and difficult to obtain. Tubing
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jackets can be made in the Mity Mite in 0.030-inch wall thickness, in
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the calibers from .308 to .458. The quality of such jackets is
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outstanding, even if they are produced from ordinary copper water tube.
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The literature that comes with the kit of dies explains the process in
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detail. The one die that is used in this set and not discussed here is
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the END ROUNDING DIE, which rolls over the tubing in preparation for
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closing one end. In reality, it is simply a special size of point
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forming die, with a round nose cavity and special punches for tubing.
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The core swage die is made like a core seating die, except that
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both the internal and external punches are very close, sliding fits to
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the bore, and the bore is just large enough to accept a cast or cut
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lead core. Also, there are three orifices in the walls of the die, at
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120-degree positions around the circumference.
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You can easily tell this die from the others by looking for these
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three bleed holes. It is easy to determine which punches go with the
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die: the punches are far too small to fit closely in any other die of
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the same caliber set. Just try them by hand. If they fit smoothly
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into the die cavity, they are right.
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There are really two forms of core swage die. One is the ordinary
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core swage, used to adjust the lead core weight shape before making a
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bullet from it. The other is a variation called the LEAD SEMI-
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WADCUTTER DIE, or LSWC-1. In the Mity Mite system, we place a -M after
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the model number of the die set, and for the same kind of set in the
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Hydro-press system, we place a -H after the model. There is no LSWC-1
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or, for that matter, any kind of core swage or bleed-off die for the
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reloading press.
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The LSWC-1-M can be used to make a complete bullet in one stroke.
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It has a bore size that is finished bullet diameter, and the punches
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have ends that are shaped just like a reverse of the bullet nose and
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base you want to form. Because the punch forms the nose by flowing
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lead into its cavity, there has to be a small shoulder between the nose
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and shank, where the edge of the punch presses into the core. The
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LSWC-1-M cannot make a smoothly curved ogive without a step.
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Let's make a bullet in this die. First, cut or cast a small
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quantity of lead core as described in the earlier chapters. But leave
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from two to five grains more lead than you actually want in the final
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bullet weight. Locate your LSWC-1-M die set. You can see that the die
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has no adapter body like the reloading press die.
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The Mity Mite dies don't use an adapter body, because they are
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made to screw directly into the RAM of the Mity Mite press! The die is
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a very tough knurled cylinder of costly, special steel, heat treated in
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electronic furnaces with a special kind of atmosphere. The Corbin
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process of die-making has been developed over the past twenty years to
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a level far beyond that used by most of the mass-production arms and
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ammo companies. The dies you receive are superior in construction and
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in design to the usual production die, and the bullets you can make in
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them should be superior to those you can purchase, if you do your part!
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The die has an internal punch, which normally is left in the die
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(no need to remove it). It goes into the die from the threaded end of
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the die. The threaded end of the die screws directly into the press
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ram. This is just the opposite of reloading press dies, which screw
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into the press head. In the Mity Mite, the press head holds a FLOATING
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PUNCH HOLDER. This black oxide finished, 7/8-14 TPI threaded cylinder
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looks like a reloading press die. But it holds the external punch.
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The ram of the Mity Mite press is machined so it performs all the
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functions of the universal adapter body. There is a shoulder that
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stops the internal punch from coming out of the top of the die when you
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move the ram forward to swage. There is also a hardened tool steel pin
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with a knurled head, passing through a slot in the side of the ram.
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This is the STOP PIN. It's job is to stop the backward movement of the
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internal punch when you pull the ram back, so that the internal punch
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is forced to slide forward and eject the bullet. You don't need a
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mallet, ejector rod, or the power ejector unit with the Mity Mite.
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When you consider the wide range of calibers, styles, and jobs
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that Mity Mite dies must do, then think of the years of development
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that went into the complete system of interchangable, simple dies and
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punches to fit the Mity Mity press, you may realize why it is better to
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purchase the ready-made system rather than trying to modify reloading
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presses, come up with custom parts or tools, or try to modify dies to
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work in arbor presses, hydraulic jacks, or vises. The universal
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interchange of calibers, jobs, and styles in the Mity Mite system is a
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major benefit, and the ease which which future changes or special work
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can be done in this system makes it far more cost-effective than trying
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to come up with one-of-a-kind tools for specific jobs.
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The FLOATING PUNCH HOLDER, (Model FPH-1), is included with each
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Mity Mite press. Instead of moving the die to adjust for depth of
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punch insertion, you screw the die all the way into the ram until it
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comes to rest on a shoulder. This shoulder, not the threads, takes all
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the force. Adjustment is all done with the micrometer-like movement of
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the threaded punch holder. Screw it toward the ram to make lighter
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bullets, or to push a punch further into the core. Screw it away from
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the ram to fit a heavier core, or to push a punch a little less far
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into the die.
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To install the LSWC-1-M die and punches in the Mity Mite, first
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make sure that the internal punch is correctly placed in the die. The
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internal punch has a 1/2-inch diameter head at one end, and a short
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"tail" protruding from the other side of this head. The tail is about
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5/16-inch diameter, and its length varies from a quarter inch to five
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eighths of an inch, depending on the nominal weight (length) for which
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the punch was designed. This tail, working with the over-all punch
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length and the dimensions of the ram itself, determines the lightest
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and heaviest weight of bullet that you can get into the die. Lighter
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bullets require less of a tail, and heavier ones take a longer tail.
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You don't need to know the technical details -- just let us know
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what general weight range you want, and we'll see that the punch
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provided will do it. If one punch won't handle the whole range, we may
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suggest a second punch. Usually, the range is so great that you can
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reasonably expect to make handgun weights with one punch and rifle
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weights with another. The punch tail determines how much volume is
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left in the die cavity, which
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You don't need to know the technical details -- just let us know
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what general weight range you want, and we'll see that the punch
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provided will do it. If one punch won't handle the whole range, we may
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suggest a second punch. Usually, the range is so great that you can
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reasonably expect to make handgun weights with one punch and rifle
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weights with another. The punch tail determines how much volume is
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left in the die cavity, which nger pressure. It isn't necessary
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to use a pair of pliers. Now identify the external punch.
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The external punch fits the die cavity, but it has no "tail"
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section on its half-inch diameter head. Whereas the internal punch has
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to be as long as the entire die, so it can push the bullet out the
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mouth, the external punch needs only to fit half-way or less into the
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die bore. It is shorter. The part that is matched to the die cavity
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diameter is less than half the entire punch length. There is a section
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of the punch just after the head that is turned to about three eighths
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of an inch in diameter.
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This section slips into a hardened bushing that you will find
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inside the floating punch holder. There are three parts in the punch
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holder besides the body itself. First, there is a hexagon-shaped
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bushing or retainer that threads into the mouth of the punch holder.
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Remove this bushing. It should unscrew easily by hand. Inside the
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punch holder are two hardened tool steel parts. One is a half-inch
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diameter bushing or ring. One side is flat, the other curved.
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This part is called the ROCKER BUSHING. It slips over the
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external punch, so that the flat side rests against the head of the
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punch, and the curved side faces toward the small end of the punch
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(toward the die). On punches that must be made larger than 0.375-inch
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diameter, the hex bushing and the rocker bushing are permanently
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assembled to the punch. These punches must have the end opposite the
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head larger than the standard hole size in the two bushings. We make
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them fit the standard system by building them with a removable, cap-
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screw secured head. We assemble them here, so you don't have to take
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them apart and reassemble them every time you want to install a
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bushing.
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If your caliber takes a punch smaller than 0.375-inch tip
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diameter, the rocker bushing and hex bushing supplied with the press,
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in the punch holder, will easily slip over the punch. Assemble them
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now. Put the hex bushing over the punch so it will hold the punch into
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the punch holder. Look inside the punch holder. If you use your
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little finger, or a toothpick, you can probably pick out the last part,
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called the ROCKER BUTTON. This part looks just like the rocker
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bushing, but is solid.
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The rocker button fits into a V-shaped surface in the bottom of
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the punch holder cavity. It allows the head of the punch to transfer
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all the tons of swaging force to the punch holder in a safe manner, yet
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still allows the punch to rotate slightly so it can line up with the
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die bore perfectly. If the punch were held rigid, it could not self-
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align or float to keep the punch perfectly aligned under stress. This
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is another advantage of the Mity Mite system over other swaging
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methods.
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Notice that the rocker button has a curve on one side, and is flat
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on the other. Make sure that you put this button into the punch holder
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so that the curved side goes in first. You want the punch head to rest
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against the flat side of the button. And the flat side of the rocker
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bushing presses against the other side of the punch head. The curved
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side of the rocker bushing matches a curve machined in the inside edge
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of the hex bushing. When you screw it all into the punch holder, the
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punch is held so that the exact center of its head is in the center of
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a 1-1/4 inch ball, most of which is not physically present, but the
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working parts of which are formed by the curves and their mating
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surfaces.
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You don't need to take any special precautions with this assembly.
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It doesn't need oiling or maintenance. Just make sure you assemble it
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correctly. Look at the pictures in this manual before you try it. If
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any of the three parts are missing, your punch will not be properly
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supported and could be damaged under swaging pressure. Many people
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purchase spare punch holders so that they can assemble the punch and
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leave it, locking the lock ring on the punch holder to repeat their
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favorite adjustment quickly. This is nearly as fast as having several
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presses, since it is the only adjustment that ever needs to be made.
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With the die assembled into the ram, and the external punch in the
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punch holder, back off the punch holder several turns away from the
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ram. Pick up a core, moisten it with a little Corbin Swage Lube (or
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Corbin Dip Lube, if you want to make a lead bullet with a wax film for
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up to 1200 fps velocity), and place it into the die mouth.
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The core must fit into the die easily. If it won't fit, it is too
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large and you should not attempt to swage it. Never swage anything too
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large to fit into the die by hand. If it is far too small, you will
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tend to get folds and wrinkles in the shank, and it will be hard to get
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enough weight without having the core stick out the die mouth. The
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maximum length of core still must fit into the die before any pressure
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is noticed on the handle. Never try to swage something that is just
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barely inside the die, or sticks out of the die mouth.
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Carefully move the ram forward so that you can align the external
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punch and die. Don't pinch your fingers! Just help the punch go into
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the die this first time, and then, when you have it inside, gently snug
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up the hex bushing so that the punch doesn't move freely (it will still
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move under swaging forces).
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The Mity Mite press is so powerful it can pinch your finger off
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just by dropping the handle with your finger between the die and punch.
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Always keep your hand firmly on the handle when you are adjusting a
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punch, and don't trust gravity or friction to keep the handle from
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falling! I never place my finger between the die and punch. Any time
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I make a manual adjustment or help the punch line up the first time, I
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always keep my fingers on the sides of the punch, away from the tip.
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If I should drop the handle on the press, the die would move my hand
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out of the way. I might pinch myself against the end of the punch
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holder, but that wouldn't be too bad.
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If the punch won't reach into the die at this point, move the
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punch holder forward. The ram should be moved to its foremost
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position, so it reaches as close to the press head as it can go. This
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happens at the point of maximum leverage, with the pivots in the handle
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lined up in a straight line with the ram centerline. This press is
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unique in having all its linkage and ram concentric and in a straight
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line with maximum forward travel. Most presses have a side-torque
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caused by offsetting the handle, and several can't reach full leverage
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because they physically run out of travel before then.
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If the die can't be moved forward because the lead core comes up
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against the external punch, back off the external punch by turning the
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punch holder. When you have the ram all the way forward, hold it there
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and screw the punch holder toward the die until you can't turn it any
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more. The punch will have come up against the lead core.
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Back off the ram slightly, and move the floating punch holder half
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a turn forward. Stroke the press forward again. Then pull the handle
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back and almost, but not quite, eject the bullet. You can see the
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bullet at the die mouth, ready to be ejected. Notice whether or not
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the nose is completely filled out. If not, adjust the punch holder
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forward another half turn and swage the bullet again. Within a few
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strokes you will have the press set up so that the nose is forming
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completely.
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A small quantity of lead should begin to move out the bleed holes.
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I like to make my cores so that about one eighth of an inch of lead
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extrusion comes out the bleed holes on every stroke. Also, I like to
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swage the cores so that they are double-swaged: every stroke goes over
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and past the "top dead center" position, and then passes "over the top"
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again on the back stroke. You will notice that the Mity Mite retracts
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the ram slightly as you continue through the end of the stroke. This
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slight retraction gives you a double-swaging action on each stroke, if
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you use it.
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If you eject the bullet and weigh it, you can see whether or not
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to adjust the punch holder and in what direction. If the bullet is too
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light, then you may need to adjust the punch holder away from the ram
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(to make more room in the die at the end of the stroke, and extrude
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less lead). If it is too heavy, then you need to adjust the punch
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holder toward the ram (to reduce the volume in the die at the end of
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the stroke, and force more lead out the bleed holes).
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Obviously, if your lead cores start out too light, there is no way
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to make them all weigh the same by swaging and still come up with a
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heavier bullet. The only way to get consistent core weight by this
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method is to start out with plenty of lead, and remove all the surplus
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along with the variation. The hardness of the lead has a good deal to
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do with consistency of weight. Harder lead will flow more slowly. You
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may get variations in weight with harder lead, because you don't allow
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enough time for the lead to quit flowing. I recommend only pure, soft
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lead for the Mity Mite. You can get by with alloys of up to 3%
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antimony, in the smaller calibers.
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If you don't notice any lead coming out the bleed holes, stop
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swaging and figure out whether the core is so short that it lets the
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external punch move past the bleed hole location. If this happens to
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be the case, then you need an internal punch with a shorter tail
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section. Most people assume the external punch is too short. But
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making it any other size tends to cause other problems. The right way
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to adjust for extreme weight ranges is with the design of the internal
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punch tail.
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After you have swaged some bullets, the internal punch may be more
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difficult to move. This is because the three extrusion holes in the
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die become filled with the last lead wire extrusion made. The ends of
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the lead wire press against the punch sides. This is normal. You
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should still be able to remove and re-insert the external punch, though
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there is no reason to do so unless you want to change to another style
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(such as going from flat base to cup base).
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Read this part over again and make sure you understand the
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principle involved. This is the same operation you use with all the
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various core swages and lead semi-wadcutter dies. It works the same
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way whether you use the automatic proximity detectors and pressure
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transducers of the Hydro-press or whether you do it by hand on the Mega
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Mite or Mity Mite press. It doesn't matter whether you are making
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benchrest .224 rifle cores, handgun .44 Magnum cores, or .40 Sharps
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rifle bullets for paper-patching. Airgun pellets or precision lead
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weights for phonograph cartridges all are made exactly this way.
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Two notes about high precision: (1) Make sure the ram does indeed
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go past the "top of stroke" position each time, and (2) try to use the
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same timing for each stroke. Timing is important because lead flows on
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an exponential curve with time. Lead has a creep rate that can
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continue for years under a constant low stress. If you maintain a
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steady rate, your cores will come out much closer than if you whip the
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handle back and forth one time, and lean on it to drink a cup of coffee
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the next.
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You should be able to get less than 1% variation in total core
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weight on your first attempt. If you are really good, you can get less
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than 0.5% variation. Some people actually achieve such high precision
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that there is no discernable weight variation on a normal reloading
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scale. It is all the same equipment. Your skill in operating it makes
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the difference.
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But think about what this means: If you start with a 100 grain
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core, one percent is one grain. Half a percent is half a grain. With
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a 50 grain core, one percent is half a grain. With a 500 grain core,
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one percent is five grains. In other words, don't just expect half a
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grain or less on everything, because it is very sloppy for light
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bullets and beyond any reasonable expectation for heavier ones.
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Besides which, weight variation alone has very little to do with
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accuracy.
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Weight variation that is caused by differences in jacket thickness
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or alloy composition is a bad thing for accuracy. It means the trouble
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is elsewhere, and it means differences in bore friction, bullet upset,
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and other factors. Weight variation that is merely the result of
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having another grain or two of lead is quite insignificant. I have won
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matches with bullets that varied more than five grains in weight.
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Fortunately, there was nothing else wrong with them. A great number of
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factory bullets have horrible weight variation from lot to lot. If it
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came from having more or less core material, I wouldn't worry about it.
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But usually it comes from having differences in jacket material, and
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that affects groups.
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You've made some nice lead semi-wadcutter bullets now, using the
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LSWC-1-M, and they are ready to shoot if you used Dip Lube on them.
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Using Corbin Swage Lube, you would have made lead cores that could then
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be further processed into bullets. In that case, you would want to
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clean off the cores to remove any lube before putting them into
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jackets. The reason is that any lube inside the jacket contributes to
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a possible unbalance of the bullet.
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Put the cores in a strainer or wire basket and slosh them around
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in a strong solvent. Corbin Cleaning Solvent comes in pint cans, and
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is able to remove any lubricant traces, fingerprints, and grease from
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either cores, jackets, or from your guns. It will remove some
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finishes, too, so be careful around stocks and table tops! After
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cleaning the cores, spread them out to dry. Change the core swage die
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for the core seating die.
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We've already talked about the reloading press core seating die.
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It is exactly like the one for the Mity Mite and Hydro-press systems.
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Only differences in size and how it is held in the press apply. A core
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seating die looks like a core swage without any bleed holes. That is
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your first clue. The second is that the bore is larger, and it accepts
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the right caliber of jacket for the bullet you want to make. Try a
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jacket in the die -- if it fits, probably it is the same caliber as the
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die. A positive test for caliber is to swage a lead core in the core
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seating die, and then use your trusty micrometer to measure the
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diameter of the lead after swaging.
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Core seating dieore swage without any bleed holes. That is
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your first clue. The second is that the bore is larger, and it accepts
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the right caliber of jacket for the bullet you want to make. Try a
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jacket in the die -- if it fits, probably it is the same caliber as the
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die. A positive test for caliber is to swage a lead core in the core
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seating die, and then use your trusty micrometer to measure the
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diameter of the lead after swaging.
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Core seating dies or rifle
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bullets, and there is no need to purchase another special die for lead
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bullets, and (2) you can sometimes get a more precisely formed bullet
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|
for critical applications by doing it in more steps. This is
|
|
especially true for harder lead alloys.
|
|
The internal punch of the core seating die fits into the die bore,
|
|
and either has a flat face, a probe (for hollow base bullets), a dome
|
|
(for a dish or cup base bullet), or it can have a cavity (for some
|
|
kinds special bases, not usually on jacketed bullets as the jacket edge
|
|
has a hard time jumping over the edge of the punch). The external
|
|
punch can be almost anything!
|
|
If you want to make a handgun bullet, the external punch will have
|
|
a nose cavity shaped like a mirror image of the nose. This is only for
|
|
lead nose bullets, not for those with the jacket curved around the
|
|
ogive. If you want to make an open tip bullet, as most rifle bullets
|
|
tend to be, then the external punch should fit into the jacket rather
|
|
than the sides of the die. This means that the external punch can be
|
|
quite a bit smaller than the die bore.
|
|
A hollow point bullet uses a core seating punch with a probe
|
|
machined on the tip. This probe pushes down into the lead core and
|
|
displaces lead around itself. The punch is made so that it centers
|
|
itself either in the jacket (for an internal hollow point, having the
|
|
jacket wrapped around it), or on the die walls (a typical lead tip
|
|
hollow point). This keeps the cavity concentric with the sides of the
|
|
bullet.
|
|
You can use another external punch in the same die. First press a
|
|
cavity into the lead core, as deep as you wish (you don't have to use
|
|
the full extension of the punch into the core, you know...). Then,
|
|
change punches and push a Keith nose or a round nose punch into the
|
|
die, setting the adjustment so that you don't completely reform and
|
|
close the cavity you just made. Again, you will soon see that there is
|
|
a lot of control possible between not forming the bullet sufficiently,
|
|
and completely forming it to the punch shape.
|
|
Your first punch should be used with reasonable force, compressing
|
|
the lead core and filling out the jacket to meet the die walls. It
|
|
should leave the jacket and core in the die, not pull it out with the
|
|
punch. But any subsequent punch that you want to use does not have to
|
|
be pushed so far or hard into the core. The shank is already formed.
|
|
Everything else is just a matter of styling the bullet. Go ahead and
|
|
experiment. Two punches can make twenty different bullet shapes if you
|
|
use them with various degrees of insertion and in different orders.
|
|
But the point forming die really brings out the power to
|
|
experiment! You read about this die already under the reloading press
|
|
section. It has a cavity shaped just like the bullet, except there is a
|
|
little hole in the tip for a strong, spring-wire ejection pin to push
|
|
the bullet back out again. In the Mity Mite system, this die has a
|
|
major difference from the reloading press types. It has a captive
|
|
internal punch instead of a retraction spring.
|
|
You'll recall that the point forming die has a very small ejection
|
|
pin instead of a conventional internal punch, and it is held out of the
|
|
die cavity by a spring. In the Mity Mite press, there is no spring.
|
|
That stop pin we discussed earlier is pulled out of the top of the
|
|
press, and slipped into a slot in the head of the ejection pin after
|
|
you screw the die into place. Don't forget to do this, or you can
|
|
damage the ejection pin.
|
|
The first thing I do is pull out the stop pin. Then I place the
|
|
ejection pin in the end of my point forming die (it goes in from the
|
|
threaded end, just like all internal punches in all dies), and screw it
|
|
into the ram as one assembly. With the ram in the right position, it
|
|
is easy to grasp the tip of the ejection pin while it sticks out the
|
|
die mouth. I do this, and slide and turn the ejection pin until I can
|
|
see the slot underneath the stop pin hole. Then I push the stop pin
|
|
back into place, and give the ejection pin a tug to make sure it is
|
|
actually locked in place.
|
|
Now, the ejection pin will be retracted automatically from the die
|
|
without any spring pressure, and it will be held in place to eject the
|
|
bullet. The Mity Mite system has less of a problem with a stuck
|
|
bullet, since you can use the press to retract the pin again and make
|
|
another attempt to swage it. If you feel resistance to ejection, it is
|
|
usually better to unscrew the die and use a short piece of the same
|
|
diameter of spring wire as the ejection pin, along with a small mallet,
|
|
to tap the bullet out. This happens when you use over-sized
|
|
components, try to reswage a finished factory bullet in the same
|
|
diameter of die (many people do this, not realizing that you usually
|
|
need a slightly larger die for it to work), or forget to use the right
|
|
lubricant.
|
|
The most common problem people have when first starting to swage
|
|
is bending the ejection pin. After a while, you get a better feel for
|
|
the kind of resistance that is normal, and bent pins become less and
|
|
less frequent. It is a good idea to purchase spares if you would be
|
|
under any pressure because of having your set out of commission for a
|
|
little while due to a damaged ejection pin or a stuck bullet (usually
|
|
the cause). One or two spare ejection pins can save your day.
|
|
Now let's talk about a set of dies that we usually consider one
|
|
package: the RBT-2 set, or rebated boattail forming dies. This is
|
|
actually a matched pair of dies, not just one. They replace the usual
|
|
straight-walled core seater whenever you want to make a rebated
|
|
boattail bullet.
|
|
A rebated boattail bullet has a step, or shoulder, like a Keith
|
|
nose on a pistol bullet. That step acts like a spoiler to break up the
|
|
blast of hot muzzle gas just as the bullet exists your barrel. On a
|
|
conventional smooth boattail design, the gas flows with the streamlined
|
|
shape and zips past the bullet, flows along the ogive, and then breaks
|
|
up right in front of the bullet as it tries to get away. A boattail
|
|
means that you are probably shooting through your own muzzle blast
|
|
turbulence! That can add perhaps another 10% error factor to the
|
|
bullet dispersion.
|
|
The small rebate has a minor drag effect, but over-all, the
|
|
improvement in total performance is greater. Not only do you gain
|
|
ballistic coefficient by reducing base drag, but you also retain the
|
|
natural good disperson characteristics of the flat base bullet during
|
|
that critical exit time from the muzzle. Add to that the fact that the
|
|
dies and punches last longer, there is less gas cutting and a better
|
|
seal in your barrel. Those are compelling reasons to forget about a
|
|
conventional boattail design if you have the option of making your own
|
|
bullets.
|
|
The process is just like seating a regular core. You use the same
|
|
external core seating punch that you would use with your flat-base core
|
|
seater. But instead of using the flat base core seating die, place the
|
|
core and jacket into the BT-1 or BOATTAIL PREFORMING die. This die has
|
|
a standard boattail shape inside. You push the flat-base jacket into
|
|
this die, seat the core, and the jacket is converted into a boattail.
|
|
Having this taper on the bottom of the jacket makes it easy to
|
|
form the rebated step or edge. The next die, BT-2 or RBT FINISHING
|
|
DIE, has a shoulder that transposes itself into the jacket when you
|
|
once again seat the core. If you tried to use this die alone, the
|
|
shoulder would catch the jacket bottom and tear it. But the taper gets
|
|
the bottom of the jacket past the shoulder before any real pressure is
|
|
applied. The jacket moves outward to take on the die shape, instead of
|
|
trying to draw over this shoulder.
|
|
Included with the RBT-2-M set (which can be purchased as an add-on
|
|
to a conventional three-die or four-die set) is a special external
|
|
punch for the point forming die. This punch has a cavity in the tip,
|
|
to match the shape of the boattail. The punch supports the rebated
|
|
boattail shape, and keeps it from being mashed out of form. The punch
|
|
is a little fragile, so don't use it for other experiments without
|
|
considering the forces you plan to apply to those edges.
|
|
In a short, fat pistol caliber, you can use a Keith nose punch for
|
|
a rebated boattail bullet. First form a conventional jacketed bullet
|
|
with a nice truncated conical nose. This is done in the point forming
|
|
die. In fact, you can make the whole bullet in the point forming die
|
|
if you put the jacket into this die backward (base first) and then use
|
|
a core seating punch to seat the core. Eject this bullet, turn it
|
|
over, and now you have a tapered section facing out of the die and an
|
|
open tip flat end facing in. Use the Keith punch to push the bullet
|
|
into the die.
|
|
The tapered nose will fit into the Keith punch nicely, and will be
|
|
made into a rebated boattail base. The flat open end will be formed
|
|
into a new nose in the point forming die. It is simple, effective, and
|
|
the bullets seem to gain between 20% and 40% in ballistic coefficient
|
|
at subsonic speeds. This doesn't work if the bullet is much longer
|
|
than its caliber, so don't try it with conventional rifle bullets.
|
|
Lead tip dies for the Mity Mite system are just like those
|
|
described for reloading presses, except, of course, they are made to
|
|
fit the press ram. They look very much like a core seating die. Some
|
|
people wonder why we can't use a core seating die. The reason is that
|
|
the bullet won't slip back into the core seater after it is finished at
|
|
full diameter. It will go in, but only under some force. And the
|
|
force is greater than that required to form the lead tip.
|
|
Making a lead tip bullet requires a little experience. At first,
|
|
you will probably have some experimenting to do, because you need to
|
|
have just enough lead protruding so that the cavity in the internal
|
|
punch of the lead tip die can reshape it fully. Too much lead showing
|
|
doesn't hurt, but too little is a problem. It can't fill the cavity,
|
|
and won't shape up properly. With the lead tip die, it is necessary to
|
|
use very light pressure. Pressing too hard makes a ring in the ogive
|
|
of the bullet. In some small tips, it helps to grind a sharp wedge
|
|
shape on the ejection pin of the point forming die. Then, the ejection
|
|
pin will split the protruding, deformed lead and come to rest against
|
|
the jacket edge.
|
|
The jacket edge won't split easily, so the bullet can be ejected.
|
|
Then, when you put the bullet into the lead tip die to finish the end,
|
|
the neatly split blob of lead will reform nicely and become whole
|
|
again. This technique is useful for problem cases, where one must have
|
|
a small tip size and bring the jacket nearly closed. Generally it
|
|
isn't required. Large handgun-style lead tips, which are probably a
|
|
quarter of the caliber or more, don't generally require the lead tip
|
|
die in order to form properly. A conventional three-die package for
|
|
open tip bullets works well for making large lead tips of this type.
|
|
The lead tip die (LT-1-M) can be purchased separately as an add-
|
|
on, or it can be included with your set of dies in the LTFB-4-M, RBTL-
|
|
5-M, or the FRBL-6-M sets. These all have an "L" in their catalog
|
|
number. The "L" stands for "Lead Tip". All it means is that a lead
|
|
tip die has been included: you can still make open tip bullets. All
|
|
the various sets of dies are assembled from the same basic individual
|
|
dies. Everything but the LSWC-1-M set starts with a core swage and a
|
|
core seating die, and adds a point forming die, and various
|
|
combinations of lead tip and rebated boattail dies.
|
|
A "FB" in the catalog number means "Flat Base". It indicates that
|
|
you have a standard core seating die in the package, not necessarily
|
|
that you are limited to flat base rather than cup, dish, or hollow
|
|
bases. In fact, if you order a pistol set with the cup base specified,
|
|
you could very well receive a set that doesn't have a flat base punch
|
|
at all, but it still has the basic ability to make one if you get the
|
|
right punch. We'd still call it a "FJFB-3-M" if it has a core swage,
|
|
core seat, and point forming die.
|
|
The "FJ" only stands for "Full Jacket", and is primarily to fill
|
|
in space in the catalog number, since any set with a point forming die
|
|
can be used to make a full jacket bullet. The letters "RB" or "RBT" in
|
|
the catalog number stand for "Rebated Boattail", and they mean that the
|
|
two RBT dies are included, along with the proper RBT punch for the
|
|
point forming die. If the "F" for "Flat base" is also in the catalog
|
|
number, then it means that you can make both flat and RBT bullets.
|
|
Both the standard core seater and the two RBT core seaters are
|
|
included, in that case.
|
|
The number in the catalog number tells how many dies are in the
|
|
set. For instance, in a "FRBL-6-M" set, you have flat base (F) core
|
|
seater, two RBT core seaters (RB), a lead tip die (L), and of course a
|
|
core swage and point former, which are assumed present in anything
|
|
above a two-die set. That makes six dies, ae both flat and RBT bullets.
|
|
Both the standard core seater and the two RBT core seaters are
|
|
included, in that case.
|
|
The number in the catalog number tells how many dies are in the
|
|
set. For instance, in a "FRBL-6-M" set, you have flat base (F) core
|
|
seater, two RBT core seaters (RB), a lead tip die (L), and of course a
|
|
core swage and point former, which are assumed present in anything
|
|
above a two-die set. That makes six dies, a one die with matching punches, and it makes the same kind of bullet
|
|
with the exception that you cannot use jackets so long that they cover
|
|
the bleed holes. That means half-jacket and straight lead bullets are
|
|
the proper kind for a LSWC-1-M.
|
|
The techniques of swaging are covered in much greater detail in
|
|
the other books. I recommend that you invest a little time in reading
|
|
about the process, if you have not done it before. Bullet swaging is
|
|
quite simple, but also quite powerful. Because there are so many
|
|
possible variations, it is far more important to learn the principles
|
|
than it is to try and follow a block of pictures and repeat each step
|
|
exactly. With six different kinds of dies, and hundreds of different
|
|
techniques and styles in thousands of calibers, can you imagine the
|
|
number of pages you'd need to keep on hand, in order to have a "1-2-3-"
|
|
cookbook to follow for each possible bullet you wanted to make?
|
|
On the other hand, if you understand how a core swage works, how
|
|
to use a core seater, and what kind of bullets you could expect from a
|
|
point forming die and a lead tip die, you can work out all the
|
|
variations for yourself, and probably come up with others that none of
|
|
us have yet discovered! In the Mity Mite system, pressures run from
|
|
20,000 to 50,000 psi or more. That is some kind of power! And, it's
|
|
all under your control.
|