Please forgive me if this has been posted before. I find this amazing tool and process fascinating!
The Round That Won The West - YouTube
The Round That Won The West - YouTube
How To for Cowboy Reloading Around the Campfire
- Thread starter TheTinMan
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Cool thanks for sharing!
hyena
Member
Very interesting. Thanks for sharing!
Ivan the Butcher
Member
About a year ago I loaded 50 rounds using the Lyman 310 tool, which is a little faster than the old Winchester tool! It still took over an 75 minutes!
SAFETY NOTE: In the early 80's there was a magazine article about loading around the campfire. The man in the article sat on the ground with a bowl of gunpowder in his lap. Then a spark from the fire popped into the bowl, igniting the powder. The description of the burns leads me to believe it was Black Powder, as smokeless would take longer to be consumed. After he got out of the Hospital he went camping and repeated everything, including the trip to the hospital. This man was not smart enough to learn from his mistakes. Don't follow his example.
Ivan
SAFETY NOTE: In the early 80's there was a magazine article about loading around the campfire. The man in the article sat on the ground with a bowl of gunpowder in his lap. Then a spark from the fire popped into the bowl, igniting the powder. The description of the burns leads me to believe it was Black Powder, as smokeless would take longer to be consumed. After he got out of the Hospital he went camping and repeated everything, including the trip to the hospital. This man was not smart enough to learn from his mistakes. Don't follow his example.
Ivan
gwpercle
Member
Right ... the Lee Hand Press has the tong tool beat seven ways to Sunday .
Lyman had the cost of the Tong Tools and it's special reloading dies priced way too high , I wanted one back in the day but didn't have the "jingle" ... then Lee Hand Press hit the market ... affordable and uses regular dies and shell holders ...
I bought one so fast it made my head spin ... reloaded all my handgun and 30-30 rifle with it ... bought a second to keep at my office to reload at my desk ... some work is just more important than other !
Gary
There is/was a club near here that does the cowboy thing. They ride their horses into the wilds ( thousands of acres that have been strip mined ) and play cowboy, shooting and cooking ect. Lucky for them they ain’t living in 1873 because we now have helicopters and ambulances. They are always good for a few headlines every year.
OP
I assumed that the video creators were joking about the campfire… apparently not!
Ivan the Butcher
Member
I did my first reloading with a Lyman tong tool. Alas, resizing (even neck resizing) .44 Mag brass eventually broke the handle. Had to break down and buy a press. Sadly, they're apparently no longer made
I have a 310 tong tool from the 80's that is aluminum, that is very light duty! I also some from the 20's and 30's that are Iron or steel, very heavy duty! If using cleaned or new brass, they will need lubed some even for neck sizing. Bar soap, K-Y jelly, RCBS case lube, but also a small tin of graphite powder works for neck sizing.
There were two sizes, small & large, and also Hornet marked tongs work with small cases like 32 S&W and 22 Hornet. I have very early Nickel plated 310 tongs marked Ideal. Pre-war tongs marked Ideal/Lyman. And Post-war tongs made of blued steel marked Lyman, As well as the inferior aluminum tongs. All use the same dies (which interchange with Tru-Line Lyman Dies). I have around 30 die sets most in odd-ball rifle rounds. Almost none is guns I shoot!
My 44 dies are so old, they are marked 44 S&W Russian. They can be adjusted to work with 44 Special, but not with 44 Mag!
I would guess W.R.Moore's problem was his dies were set too deep in one way or another. (and/or no lube)
I found the Lee Loading Tool (AKA Whack-a-Mole) is also Neck size only, but easier and quicker than 310 loading. I also own the big Lee "Nut Cracker" tool, for 7/8-14 dies. I Didn't Dare try to FL 45-70, but neck size with graphite lubing worked well. (I have 18 Lee Loaders again mostly odd-ball rounds. I have presses from single stage to Dillon 550 progressive. I like to load a batch "Old Style" every winter, just to remind me of how good we have it these days. I load 117 Metallic cartridges and 4 gauges of shotgun.
Ivan
My tong tool was from the late 1960's. Used plenty of lube, but unfortunately, the handles were aluminum. I still have the 310 dies and the seating dies see limited usage in a press.
Ivan the Butcher
Member
At the time they broke, Lyman warranted them no questions ask! The current owners of the Lyman name, only warrant 1 year with lots of questions! ATK/Lyman has the worst customer service in the gun industry these days.
Ivan
venomballistics
Member
I have one. It does the job like any single stage should.
I wouldn't recommend it as your main press, but it sure does fill that niche away from the bench.
BigMuddy
Member
I have a loading tool just like the one in the video, only mine is for a 38 wcf (38-40). It does work but doesn’t put much of a crimp on the case. When these were sold, usually with the rifle, the case was loaded with a full case of black powder and the bullet would sit on that charge. Thus a strong crimp isn’t necessary.
Like mentioned in the video mine did not have the de-capping pin.
Dan
Like mentioned in the video mine did not have the de-capping pin.
Dan
gwpercle
Member
If you are looking for something compact and portable ... check out the Lee Hand Press . Good for all / most handgun ammo and small rifle like 30-30 Win. and the cost is reasonable ... $53.00 and in stock @ Midway USA !
I'm 73 and have the upper body strength of a wet noodle and have had no trouble reloading handgun up to 44 magnum and 30-30 rifle ...
You younger guys with some hand and arm strength could probably do 30-06 and such with it ... I'm was a Draftsman ... pushing a pencil doesn't develop any muscle .
Gary
I'm 73 and have the upper body strength of a wet noodle and have had no trouble reloading handgun up to 44 magnum and 30-30 rifle ...
You younger guys with some hand and arm strength could probably do 30-06 and such with it ... I'm was a Draftsman ... pushing a pencil doesn't develop any muscle .
Gary
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Interesting method. All I can is I that am ecstatic Mike Dillon was born! I have reloaded tens & tens of thousands of rounds over 45 years and with my Dillon Presses I can get it done efficiently and produce high quality ammo. If I had to reload as in the video, I would not be a happy camper - lol! I am the type of reloader who does so strictly to feed my guns - not because I really enjoy it. I am good at it, but it's just a chore to me.
Pacific sold their "PAKIT" portable kits in the 70s or so. My father has quite a stack of them and I have one in .270. Neck size only, but high quality parts and no whacking. No squeezing either - it is all based on turning threads.
Maybe if I had a great interest in working up ideal loads from a bench some day this might allow on-the-spot tuning but I can't see a practical need otherwise. All of the various hand tools are interesting.
Maybe if I had a great interest in working up ideal loads from a bench some day this might allow on-the-spot tuning but I can't see a practical need otherwise. All of the various hand tools are interesting.
