July 24, 2011, 10:21 PM | #1 |
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Melting down cast bullets
I'm planning on casting my own in the near future and had a question about melting down some cast bullets that I have. These bullets do not feed properly (they're 115 grn flat point). Since I can't use them I figure I could just use them to cast new bullets. These have a blue lubricant on them and the question is do I need to scrape the lube off before melting them down? Or will all of the lube collect together in the furnace where I can scoop it out.
Thanks Chris |
July 24, 2011, 10:45 PM | #2 |
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Don't worry about the lube, melt them and don't worry about the smoke. They are likely a hard alloy so blend accordingly.
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July 24, 2011, 10:47 PM | #3 |
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The lube will be a good flux. When the melt starts to smoke throw a lit match in it to ignite it; otherwise you might get a big surprise when it ignites on it's own. Sounds like you need to do more reading on casting. Here is 1 good place to start.
http://www.lasc.us/CastBulletNotes.htm. Gunloads.com is another. There is also a sub forum above this one for casting. Good Luck and enjoy the addiction. You will have a lot more questions as you continue the hobby.
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July 24, 2011, 11:05 PM | #4 |
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I size with a heated Lyman tool and use Blue Angel lube. All of my culls go directly back into the pot, lube and all. As azjohn mentioned, the lube is just additional flux.
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July 24, 2011, 11:09 PM | #5 |
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Thanks TXGunNut & azjohn.
I am fairly new to casting. I do know about alloys and BHN but never melted down anything and used my mold yet. I'll probably have more questions as things come up or as things happen. Thanks again. Chris |
July 24, 2011, 11:18 PM | #6 |
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The hotter your melt is, the more caution you want to give it. Don't put in too many at once if you're running very hot. I got a small WHOOM like that once.
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July 25, 2011, 11:48 AM | #7 |
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The lube is some sort of wax. It'll melt along with the lead, then smoke, then self ignite with a WOOF! As said above, it will work in your favor to help flux the melted lead,(flux is a term used to describe a purification process used to clean the lead and return some oxides to a metallic state). Best thing to do is wait for it to start to smoke, then ignite the smoke, it'll make for a lot less smoke. Stir the lead with something to mix the lube/flux with the lead. When it's done burning and smoking, skim the dross, (the crap that's floating on the shiny surface).
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