Gas Check review

Jeff H said:
Take your sized bullet diameter and subtract your gas check shank diameter from that, dived the answer by two.
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The GC shank diameter is .284 I size my bullets to .3094. Both were measured with a mic. Will .014 give me enough grip on the bullet & if so where can I find it. I'm beginning to think This is going to be more trouble than its worth.
 
Just looked up Amerimax roof flashing at Home Depot. Specs. said it was .0092 thick. I have looked at a lot of different brands & thickest I have found is .011 except 1 that was .019.
 
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don't know about the amerimax stuff.
but the way everything from cookies to fence poles have been going the last few years i wouldn't put it past them to have changed by thinning the stuff down.

14 is pretty much the standard for 30 cal gas checks,,, which includes 31 cal bullets.
 
Billy G said:
Just looked up Amerimax roof flashing at Home Depot. Specs. said it was .0092 thick. I have looked at a lot of different brands & thickest I have found is .011 except 1 that was .019.
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Take a micrometer and go to Ace Hardware. I believe the roll Longhunter got there was .014".
 
I checked Amerimax & other brands at Home Depot. thickest I found was .019 which is way too thick & next thickest was .011 which is too thin.
 
One thing I would like to add, even if it runs counter to the science others will offer is that "annealing" home-made, aluminum gas checks makes a BIG difference in seating them well and them hanging on until they encounter your target backer.

If I place a layer of GCs on my hot-plate (which I use to preheat/maintain heat my moulds), and get them to at least 400F for 15 or 20 minutes, they become SOFTER and I can double one over between thumb and forefinger after said treatment. PLEASE wait until they have cooled.

Someone may add that annealing aluminum only happens at higher temps, but I'm seeing SIGNIFICANT softening at 400F for 15 to 20 minutes. I CAN NOT double one over coming right out of the GC tooling, but CAN after said treatment. They "SQUISH" on much better and STAY on much better after said treatment.

I'm jus' a stubborn ol' hillbilly what don't know no better, but I'll be damned if that don't work!

I may be ignernt, I may be stoopid, but I damned sure ain't a liar.

I am basically an honest man.
I am strictly a RECREATIONAL liar,
and I only lie about ONE thing, and that's the TRUTH! ;)
 
Jeff H said:
One thing I would like to add, even if it runs counter to the science others will offer is that "annealing" home-made, aluminum gas checks makes a BIG difference in seating them well and them hanging on until they encounter your target backer.

If I place a layer of GCs on my hot-plate (which I use to preheat/maintain heat my moulds), and get them to at least 400F for 15 or 20 minutes, they become SOFTER and I can double one over between thumb and forefinger after said treatment. PLEASE wait until they have cooled.

Someone may add that annealing aluminum only happens at higher temps, but I'm seeing SIGNIFICANT softening at 400F for 15 to 20 minutes. I CAN NOT double one over coming right out of the GC tooling, but CAN after said treatment. They "SQUISH" on much better and STAY on much better after said treatment.

I'm jus' a stubborn ol' hillbilly what don't know no better, but I'll be damned if that don't work!

I may be ignernt, I may be stoopid, but I damned sure ain't a liar.

I am basically an honest man.
I am strictly a RECREATIONAL liar,
and I only lie about ONE thing, and that's the TRUTH! ;)
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As for annealing.
Google is not science, and is not always right.:eek:

Aluminum alloy heat ranges and times depend on the alloys content.
"Pure" Aluminum (designated at 1100, 1200) starts at 345F degrees for about 15 min. This is the softest.

7075 takes 600 to 650 degrees. (Depending on the exact mix of the alloy.)For 2 hrs then a controlled slow cooling. This is one of the hardest, It contained a bit of copper and zinc.

There are some other proprietary aluminum alloys that edge on being another type of alloy. But aluminum still is the highest percentage. That need to be heated up to 900° for 6 hours to anneal.
Few, even more specialty mixes with large quantities of aluminum in them. Are designed not to aneal. Without almost melting. Like 900 to 1000 degrees. We produce and test one of those for a not to be mentioned company,

I'm just a dumb redneck. But I did learnt' some stuff at work. :cool:
I lab test aluminum for a living.
Live breath eat the stuff. Sometimes literally. ;)
Wish I could be more specific and pull out our charts. To post them. But I would be getting into proprietary stuff.




So your alloy may only need 400 degrees for 15 min then air cooled.
Sheets are often closer to a pure alloy.

So if it works for you, then thumb your nose at the haters, and carry on.:cool:
 
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Yes you are going to have to bring something to measure the rolls. They vary from one lot to another. The rollI have here right now is 0.014" I got this one at Menards. Several years ago. But I remember having to sort through them there and at HD before I found what I wanted.

I have an unlimited supply of litho plates but the ones I can get are 0.019"+. It does not cut well at all. You would have to anneal it before you could use it.
 
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Back in the day (12 years ago?), when I was starting this GC making stuff, I took my mic to Menards and then to Ace. I wanted copper flashing but I also checked out Alum flashing as well. At that time Menards had a few different makes of Alum. Ace had Amerimax.
Menards copper was .016 and I tried making 30 cal GCs, they cut/formed fine, but wouldn't fit the Bullet.
Menards alum flashing was all over the place, I don't recall the numbers, but they weren't .010 or .014 (or anywhere inbetween) which were the sizes I wanted. Ace's Amerimax was .014 and I bought a roll, and cutting it in Patmarlin's checkmakers was so dirty (alum shards), I hated it. I should have tried to anneal, but didn't for some reason?
 
I looked for that .014 Amerimax to offer to ship some to you...but can't find it? it probably got used for something else. I did find some alum flashing I used on my Pear tree, Label says it is Appleton Supply Co., it measures .010" and I got a bunch of it.
 
I've some 200gr Lee RF .44 boolits cast and sized .431. This was before I worked through fire lapping the SBH and they didn't shoot for any account then. Thought I'd put some PB gas checks on them and give them a run next time out. .004, .009 and .014 aluminum thicknesses, about 25% failure rate installing them, ripping the skirts off. Not sure what to do different, I've tried 3 different lubes. Trying to push them thru a .433 die.
Any hints?
 
JonB said:
wanted. Ace's Amerimax was .014 and I bought a roll, and cutting it in Patmarlin's checkmakers was so dirty (alum shards), I hated it. I should have tried to anneal, but didn't for some reason?
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On Pat Marlins web site he says he will not guaranty his dies if you use Amerimax aluminum.
 
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