Questions and recommendations.

P

Pond James Pond

New member
I'm curious about casting but dubious about finding reliable lead sources so I'd like some input. Firstly, u'd recent thread about bare essentials for reloading got me thinking. What wetld be the bare for casting? A pot, a ladle and a mold? Also what should I look for in a mold?

In addition, what other bits might I need? Gaschecks? When are they needed? My guess is higher velocities. True? I plan to start scouring tyre shops for weights. But I think casting would be a back up rather than a go-to means of getting projectiles. My calibrep word be. 44, .38 and perhaps heavier, slower. 30 cal shelf rounds for a 1:12 twist.
 
First thing you need, James, is a book, or two. Casting is its own "subset" of shooting, and has as many quirks and twists as anything else, and more than some! :D

You will need (minimum) a heat source, something to melt the lead in, a way to pour it, and a mold. Beyond that, it gets a little more complicated. You will need a bullet lube, and a way to apply it (there are different options) but you must lubricate cast bullets or leading results even at low speeds.

Most molds cast the slugs oversize for the desired bore (caliber) by a few thousandths of an inch. The bullets need to be sized for the correct diameter (the actual bore size of your gun). Cast bullets generally need to be .001-.002" larger than bore diameter, sometimes more. Note how this is different from jacketed bullets.

The exact alloy you cast will have an effect on sizing, as different alloys shrink different amounts as they cool.

They make dies for sizing bullets, and Lyman makes a press for doing it, and lubricating the bullets at the same time, but that a bit beyond bare basics.

Cast lead, of the right alloy will get you up to the 1200fps range (maybe a bit higher) without the need for gas checks. Using gas checks the 2200fps range is possible before you exceed the ability of the bullet. NOTE: Bullets are designed for gas checks have a small "step" in the base where the gas check goes. They can be used just fine without the gas checks at lower velocities, where the gas checks are not needed. Bullets NOT designed to use gas checks don't have a place to put them, and so cannot be used with gas checks.

You need to study casting techniques a bit, learn about fluxing the alloy, what different alloys are best for, and general tips. Here's one, wheel weights are a good source of a medium alloy, but take some work to prep. One thing that needs to be done is they need to be washed. Chemicals on the weights (road salt, in particular) do ..not good..things in your melting pot, so keep them out if you can.

Molds are generally either steel, or aluminum. There are pros and cons to both types. Molds need to be at the right temperature to cast good bullets.

Gloves, goggles/face shield, and I recommend a shop apron or other protective clothes, and of course DO NOT BREATHE the vapors!!!

There's lots more, but you can cast perfectly good bullets with a minimum of equipment.
 
Are you implying that my "melt it, pour it, seat it, shoot it" view of casting was maybe, perhaps slightly naive? :o

Sooooo.... It seems like there may be a little more to all this.

Lubes, additional metals.
I honestly don't know where I'd even begin to find them over here...

Partly the reason why I don't want to sink loads of cash into it, if the most I ever get to cast is a handful of bullets.
 
P,JP here is some info http://www.lasc.us/CastBulletNotes.htm for the guy who has no life...lotsa info. I cast for 32/20s, 32 spec., 8mm mauser, 38spec., .357 mag, 9mm parabellum, .44 spec., 45acp, 45 Colt, and various C&B revolvers and a lot of the people in this forum are thinking, "That,s all?" So be careful about that back up thingy.
 
You won't save any money if you don't do more than a handful of them. I would definitely just buy cast bullets from one of the many vendors. They are pretty cheap and there are many alloys and profiles to choose from. All of them are much cheaper than just occasionally casting. :)
 
P,JP, I started out with a lyman iron pot a lyman ladle and a mold. I didn't size them but used a flat pan and kake kutter to lube them. I use a 45/70 piece of brass with the rim sawed off as a kake kutter for my 45/70....gadzooks, I almost forgot,I also cast for the 45/70. There are a lot of lube recipes out there so you can make your own. You can also chill your lube pan full of bullets, dump your lube block out of the pan and just push the bullets out....or you can powder coat them like a lot of the folks in here do.
 
Hey there James...

The link to Glen's writeup over on LASC is a good one as there is a ton of good info in one place laid out fairly well. It should get you going in the right direction no matter what you want to cast for first.

That said, you mentioned sizing, don't get caught up in automatically thinking a big outlay of cash or lot more equipment. The Lee sizing kits will handle 99% of any sizing needs and are priced very reasonably. The lube which comes with those kits, can easily be blended with some Johnson's Paste wax or similar to give a nice slick dry finish when your done. It takes little more than a heavy duty plastic bag or dish to apply. When you use this, you lube your bullets, let them dry, then shove them through the Lee sizer, and lube again. Once dry the second time your ready to load and shoot. Most of the time I wait until I am ready to load a batch of ammo to do this, but I have also done it ahead of time and stored them in small cardboard boxes and they stay just as good. One tip, use a hair drier to warm the bullets up before you add the lube to them and they will be dry and ready in about 5-10 minutes.

For molds, The Lee molds are cheap and yes they get a bad rep for it, but with just a little care they will drop some very fine bullets. Some, depending on your exact needs, might not even need to be sized. I have loaded some of the 358-158 RF's of the exact same batch both sized and unsized and could tell no difference what so ever in the accuracy or performance from my revolvers. Then again they dropped right at the size I would have used anyway. As mentioned the alloy will be the deciding factor on the end size result. Most molds used to be bored to use Lyman 2 alloy or Linotype. As such using something that has less antimony in it will result in a slightly bigger bullet, which would then need to be sized. Nowadays more folks are using WW's so most of the molds are set up to pour close with that alloy. The Lee molds work real good with straight WW and usually are very close to hitting the desired diameter. Still the sizing of these is a good idea simply to ensure everything is concentric.

Be sure to look over on Castboolits in the Lead and Alloys section for the wheel weight identification post. It has a ton of info and pictures to give you an idea of what to look for in your weights. You DO NOT WANT the zinc weights mixed in with your lead. There are also instructions on what to use to test for zinc, and how to reduce it if you do get a contaminated batch. Not easy but depending on how easily lead is to come by, maybe worth it if needed.

So yes you can get by with a few minor tools, and still make great bullets. Things I highly suggest, slugging your cylinders and bore first, picking a mold that is similar in weight and shape to what you have already been shooting, a casting thermometer, not expensive, but very handy for keeping things on keel while smelting and pouring. The Lee sizing kit, while maybe not essential it will pay for itself in short order. If your ladle pouring go with the 2 cavity mold, as it will be easier to keep the heat up on than the 6C version. If you find you want to go hog wild, and pick up a bottom pour pot, then add the 6C mold to your list then. Gas checks are nice insurance, but if everything else is proper you can easily run plain based bullets just as fast, but you might have to use a different powder. If you DO go with a GC mold, you CAN shoot them plain based at lower loads. You could also look into the PB gas checks which are designed to be added to non gas checked bullets. These can be applied using the same Lee sizer as you would use to size and/or install the check on a checked bullet.

Tons of info I could add, but hopefully that answers some of your questions.
 
Thanks for all the information! So much to read and understand. Still trying to assess what I need and I hope to start scouring the local tyre merchants.
 
Probably your biggest issues will be collecting or securing a good supply of alloy. One other thing you should consider while searching it out, is also finding some source of tin to add to it. If you have a local radiator shop somewhee around that might be a good source for "sweepings" which is simply what they sweep up after repairing radiators. Most use a 95% tin solder some has a bit of a % of brass in it which isn't going to hurt anything. Another source is siply a roll of 95-5 solder you can pick up at the hardware store. Might be a bit more expensive, but your not talking adding it by the pound, more like the ounce.

Don't get caught up in thinking you have to have some super hard alloy either. Most of the time straight clip on wheel wheel weights will cover about all your needs. For handgun loads you can even cut that with 10, 25, or even 50% pure lead and still get good performance from your bullets. The thing with cast is, it adds a whole nother deminsion to handloading as your doing a balancing act with your powders, pressures, and alloys to find what works the best.

That said however, don't be discouraged, it isn't rocket science, and there are plenty of us who have probably been there, done that, or know where to find the answers to answer your questions.
 
Get the stuff and start doing it. Worst case is you'll make some bad bullets that you will melt and turn into good bullets. It makes shooting and reloading more rewarding in the same way that reloading makes shooting more rewarding /fun.
 
They have lead wheelweights in Estonia?

Reason I ask, careful as here in the states they have switched to steel (marked Fe) and zinc weights, which look nearly identical to lead. They're worthless and will mess up your lead melt.
 
They have lead wheelweights in Estonia?
Click to expand...

Yes and no. I have bought wheel weights that I believe are lead in the past and they are sitting in a bag in the garage, but suspect that those that are still around are probably being phased out.

There are now stick on WW, as well as clip on. I'd have to ask around to see what they are.

Still on my to-do list!! :o
 
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