GTA
All Springer/NP/PCP Air Gun Discussion General => Machine Shop Talk & AG Parts Machining => Topic started by: nimblebee on November 20, 2023, 11:09:54 AM
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You can buy blank aluminum molds from the usual reloading sources.
These come with 2 aluminum "clam shell" pieces with sprue cutter/funnel for pouring lead into top of mold's pellet cavities.
When you've poured pellets, next swing open sprue cutter, removing excess poured lead & giving smooth, flat finish to pellets.
Mold is then opened up and pellets extracted. These will likely, once removed from mold, have to be pushed through resizing die, so pellets will become correct dimension for shooting.
These dies come blank, no cavities, and you have to make a cutter to create correct pellet shape within the blank die, that you're wanting to cast pellets from.
The process starts with drilling holes in the blank, which are smaller than the smallest outside dimension of pellet's shape. This is your starting "pilot hole" when machining cavities into pellet mold.
It's possible to produce pellet-shaped cutter from a drill bit, once correct pellet shaped profile has been ground into the drill bit's outer surface.
You're better off using drill press than hand drill, but "profile pellet cutter" can be produced via either method.
Select drill bit of size for largest diameter of pellet's profile.
Use grinder, dremel, file, etc. whatever you have to use, and create from drill bit, the exterior profile of desired pellet's shape.
You'll need to make this profiled drill bit into an actual cutter, needing to take some form of cut off wheel and cut a gouge at "cutting angle" into drill bit pellet profile, such that it acts as a "tooth" cutting into aluminum mold.
You want to leave outside profile of pellet cutter intact, but need to provide clearance for cutting, having to remove excess material away from cutting edge of profile cutter.
This space provides somewhere for the chips being cut from aluminum to go, as the cutter is reaching final dimensions in the aluminum mold cavity.
Now that you've got pellet profile cutter ready for finishing aluminum mold, comes the fun part:
Each half of the aluminum blank mold has pilot holes previously drilled into it. Tricky task now is to run drill press with pellet profile cutter turning, pressing each aluminum half mold pieces into and against spinning pellet profile cutter, for each pilot hole drilled
When you are done with the above step, now are ready to finish machining for pellet mold. For each pellet cavity, bring both sides of the mold.
into and against spinning pellet profile cutter, enclosing profile cutter inside mold.
This finishing step provides an exact fit to cut of profile cutter for the pellet in each cavity inside aluminum mold. Do this right, and you will have a correct-sized pellet cavity for pouring lead pellets.
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This makes a tin of pellets sound like the best deal since Manhattan for $24. ;)
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This makes a tin of pellets sound like the best deal since Manhattan for $24. ;)
Nothing like appreciation for what you have. I too, have a newly purchased tin of pellets, and appreciate not having to go through all the work making pellets, to get there. Why have a cow, when you can get the milk for little cost?
Building and creating can be a stimulating experience, however. Sense of satisfaction for a job well done, brings it's own rewards. Repairing my Crosman 670 created a sense of pleasure,
satisfaction of curiosity for how it worked and what was inside and needed repaired. Sometimes it's more about the journey than the destination.
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Not just all about sending lead down range for me. About the only thing I imagine I wouldn't enjoy about airgunning would be hand pumping. Well maybe waiting for a delivery also.
From smelting down wheel weights, skimming out the junk and pouring ingots to pouring, tumbling and culling pellets.
From building, repairing, tuning and testing airguns to sighting in and making little holes in things at various ranges.
From building targets and traps to recovering pellets to begin the cycle again.
I enjoy doing it all.