Post by Bullshop on Oct 27, 2022 9:12:20 GMT -7
We recently had a customer order some Ranch Dog 44 caliber 265 grain bullets at .432" diameter which we supplied. He re contacted us saying he received the bullets and they looked very good and he was pleased. He inquired about how large they would drop from the mold and about the Ranch Dog designs. I though it might be a good idea to share my reply that is to the best of my knowledge the short history of Ranch Dog bullet molds.
The story of the Ranch Dog bullet designs is a short and sad one. Michael did his homework in designing his bullets using Marlin chamber specs and his designs are a very good fit in Marlin chambers with the cartridge over all length obtained when seated to the crimp groove as designed. His intent was to supply bullet molds that did not require sizing so a person lacking sizing equipment could still utilize his molds. This is why he designed all his bullets with the micro groove lube design intended to be tumble lubed in Lee liquid alox.
His problems arose from the fact that he had Lee Precision cut his molds at a time before they replaced their production equipment with modern CNC machinery. The result was poor adherences to his design specs with molds that produce bullets that are over size by a substantial margin from his design. This production flaw defeated his purpose in that the molds produced for him produced bullets that in many cases had to be sized down to be used. Our RD 44 caliber 265gn bullets drop at on average .435” diameter and up to .436” at the widest point.
While he was in production he asked and we agreed to supply bullet samples to his potential mold customers that wanted a small sample to try before they purchased a mold. For this purpose he sent us a mold for each of his bullet designs. Shortly after he had a serious family health issue and he rightly decided that his time was better spent with family than with the challenges of his mold business so he just dropped out of it. There are a few custom mold makers that list Ranch Dog designs but the ones I have looked at have differed in design in some way. We still have all the original Ranch Dog designs as designed by Michael in all calibers he originally offered. He had a great product that had some initial start up issues that needed tweaking to be as intended but unfortunately his business ended before that could happen.
The story of the Ranch Dog bullet designs is a short and sad one. Michael did his homework in designing his bullets using Marlin chamber specs and his designs are a very good fit in Marlin chambers with the cartridge over all length obtained when seated to the crimp groove as designed. His intent was to supply bullet molds that did not require sizing so a person lacking sizing equipment could still utilize his molds. This is why he designed all his bullets with the micro groove lube design intended to be tumble lubed in Lee liquid alox.
His problems arose from the fact that he had Lee Precision cut his molds at a time before they replaced their production equipment with modern CNC machinery. The result was poor adherences to his design specs with molds that produce bullets that are over size by a substantial margin from his design. This production flaw defeated his purpose in that the molds produced for him produced bullets that in many cases had to be sized down to be used. Our RD 44 caliber 265gn bullets drop at on average .435” diameter and up to .436” at the widest point.
While he was in production he asked and we agreed to supply bullet samples to his potential mold customers that wanted a small sample to try before they purchased a mold. For this purpose he sent us a mold for each of his bullet designs. Shortly after he had a serious family health issue and he rightly decided that his time was better spent with family than with the challenges of his mold business so he just dropped out of it. There are a few custom mold makers that list Ranch Dog designs but the ones I have looked at have differed in design in some way. We still have all the original Ranch Dog designs as designed by Michael in all calibers he originally offered. He had a great product that had some initial start up issues that needed tweaking to be as intended but unfortunately his business ended before that could happen.