Wax Bullets?

S

Straightshooter629

New member
I ran across a couple of different videos on YouTube talking about making and using wax bullets. Both guys used an empty case and a primer, and packed the case with wax. It was suggested that these rounds could be used indoors for practice drills. Anyone ever tried this before?:confused:
 
To dangerous and to much work in my uninformed opinion. Buy the Speer plastic practice bullets and load with just a primer. I use them for indoor practice in my shop in the winter, less mess and I have been using some of them since 1973. Beware they will still punch through an aluminum beverage can at 20' but they are amazingly accurate and a lot of fun. I have 38's and 45's, I am sure there are others but that takes care of me.
 
Years ago, like back in the late 60's, Popular Mechanics had these books you could mail-order. Well, in one of them, they had that, Wax Bullets. Take brass, pop in the primer, and then just press the brass in bees wax, ta-da! Wax ammo. If it is any good or not, I have no idea. I have always wanted to try it. I think, it would work better in a revolver then a auto. Thats my 2 cents
 
Yes and actually drill out the primer and countersink a hole that accepts a 209 primer. Then press into paraphine wax or insert a short piece of glue stick. I believe U-tube has a video on this as well. I made 38's and .45LC's. They work but can get messy and wife didn't like it when I shot them.



Be Safe !!!
 
You are supposed to wait till she leaves the house and make sure you keep track of them. Good idea to let the dog and cat outside too. The dog tried to get under the bed but he didn't fit and the cat was chasing the bullets and it was a chore getting them back.
 
On the YouTube video, it was stated that these rounds would not cycle autos. You would have to breech load them one at a time...would probably work ok in a wheel gun.
 
Wax bullets work very well, as do the commercial rubber bullets. Make sure you clean your bore and chamber(s) when using wax.
Many years ago, I pulled bullets from .22 shorts and made wax bullets. Used them in a 4" Beretta Minx, to shoot big spiders in the basement windows of an old building. They would splat the spiders, but not break the glass.
 
The dog tried to get under the bed but he didn't fit and the cat was chasing the bullets and it was a chore getting them back.
Click to expand...
Now that was funny and almost makes me want to get one of each... Not!! :eek:
I've messed over enough cats and dogs that the wife will not have that either.


Be Safe !!!
 
I had that same Popular Mechanics book

Melt enough paraffin to cover about 1/4 inch of an old pie pan,,,
Pull the bullets out of .22 rounds and dump the powder,,,
Push the brass into the paraffin and pull it back out.

You now have a paraffin wadcutter suitable for shooting in your garage.

The Quick-Draw people have been doing this for quite a while now,,,
Not the pie plate thing but molded wax bullets for revolvers,,,
S.A.S.S. shooters are starting it for indoor winter fun.

I read an article recently that supports what Pahoo said,,,
They modify the brass to take shotgun primers.

Here's a wikipedia article you might find useful,,,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wax_bullet

Also google this:
"quick draw" + "wax bullets"

It's feasible to do and has the potential for a lot of fun,,,
I just shoot pellet and air-soft pistols in the winter,,,
I'm a bachelor so only my cat cares.

Hope this helps,,,

Aarond
 
Yes

I have read several threads about wax bullets. Sorry, I don't have the addresses, but they were very informative.

1) A wax bullet will put a dent in a steel door. Use a backstop.

2) They are accurate enough for close-up practice, but beyond 20-25 feet grouping starts to get unreliable and the trajectory becomes problematic.

3) Usually, you have to enlarge the flash hole. If you don't, back pressure on the primer tends to back it out of its pocket. What keeps primers in the pocket is not friction, but the pressure inside the cartridge pushing the cartridge against the breechface. Without that pressure, the primer backs out and can tie up a revolver's cylinder. Once you enlarge the flash hole, don't use those cases for gunpowdered rounds (I have been told; I don't know why).

4) In place of ordinary pistol primers, some people drill out the primer pocket large enough to take shotgun primers to get a little extra oompf.

5) I have used the Speer plastic bullets. They are fun, easier to use than the wax, but once you lose them, they are gone. Over the years I have lost half of the original 50.

6) You can cast your own bullets out of hot glue in a regular5) bullet mold. They are even tougher than the wax bullets and reportedly don't "lead" your bore with wax. You could even lube them just like lead bullets.

7) Advice: DO NOT load with gunpowder. You will not get enough pressure to burn properly. Black powder might work OK, but if you are going to do that, why not use real lead?

8) Opinion: If you think you might get away with wax or plastic bullets to avoid Assault with a Deadly Weapon problems, you are wrong. You can even get that trouble with an empty gun.

9) Opinion: Airsoft, Air or CO2 powered guns are easier to deal with than wax and primers, but they do not have the weight and trigger feel of your real guns.

10) Daisy made (several years ago) some laser cartridges that fit into a real 38 Special, 45 ACP, 44 Special, etc. chambers and would emit a laser burst when struck with a firing pin. (Battery powered). A light-sensitive targe would beep when hit. I have a target I picked up at a used goods store, but none of the cartridges. Anyone have any?

If I find the references of the threads I have seen (complete with pictures), I will post them later.

Lost Sheep.
 
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You should be aware that primers contain lead compounds and that shooting wax/plastic bullets will generate some level of lead contamination in the vicinity as a result of the primer compounds being blown out the muzzle upon firing.
 
I have always used the Speer plastic bullets myself, but Bill Jordan did some pretty impressive work using the wax bullets. I'd think they'd make a mess at the target area too!
 
I used to use .45 ACP wax loads for hand-to-hand combat demos (disarm moves, crowd pleasing "noise" from a 1911A1, etc.)

Pull bullets, dump powder, load paraffin wax as described by aarondhgraham.

Alternatively, use fired cases and punch/replace expended primer, then press load wax. Never use powder!

These rounds are not lethal but are still dangerous. They will penetrate clothing, break skin, and deliver a bloody welt onto lightly clothed skin.
They will put out an eye or break teeth, ears, or lips

A scrap piece of hanging carpet (or light plywood) will suffice as a backstop.

The rounds will not cycle a semi-auto action.

Your barrel will become "leaded" with wax. Takes some heat (near boiling hot water) and scrubbing with a stiff bore brush to get most of the wax out.

I'd not fire live ammo through the bore until I had removed the visible wax residue. I worried about overpressure (?).

Think Simunitions on steroids...
 
Used to do the wax bullets all the time. They are fun and reasonably accurate. I bought a pack of X-ring rubber bullets a few years back and they seem to shoot cleaner and straighter. I think the box of 50 was $10 and I have used them probably 8-10 times each into a cardboard trap. Still in good shape.
 
When I was a kid, I cast a hundred, or so, wax bullets in a 300gr SWC mold for my dad's .44 Mag. (Made by actually dripping burning paraffin candles into a cold mold.)

We loaded some with just a primer, and some with 1.5gr Bullseye. They all appeared to shoot the same, and were quite fun. Accuracy was... unpredictable. I suspect my method created bullets that tended to fragment under pressure.

If I were to do it again, I would use sheet wax and primers.
 
Many years ago Bill Jordan used these bullets in his shows where he would draw and shoot asprin tablets for his shooting expositions. This was back in the mid fifties. Don't know if you younger guys know who he was but he, along with Elmer Keith, were the top pistoleros back then.
 
I use the Speer plastic bullets in .45 all the time. They're also good for chasing off smartarse groundhogs when you live in the city. Those stankers used to wander right up to my porch and laugh in the window.
 
I definitely will have to find the book that details how to make these but as I said on one previous reply, U-Tube has a video out there on Glue-Stick bullets. What I do remember, is that you drill out the old primer with the diameter or just under the diameter of the straight porton of a 209 Primer. Then you countersink this hole with another drill bit to allow for the flange of the 209, to fit flush. Then you press the case into a parafin block and trim. In the video, it show to cut a pice of glue stick. I found some of my old drilled cases. They work and are fun but have not loaded any for a number of years. When I find the plans and drill bit sizes, I will repost. ... :)


Be Safe !!!
 
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