bullet casting

contender44 · February 10, 2007, 10:13 PM

after several years of reloading for 243, 30-06, 22 hornet and 44 mag I'm ready to try bullet casting for 9mm 38/357 44mag and 45acp my wife and I will be using the 9mm and 45 for IDPA and my son will be using the 38/357 in pistols and rifle for cowboy action I will be using wheel weights a lee production pot, lee molds and sizing dies and alox lube if anyone has helpful hints or precautions they will be apreciated

contender

Rimrod · February 10, 2007, 11:19 PM

Make sure to wear gloves.

rwilson452 · February 11, 2007, 12:01 AM

I would suggest you start with the two cavity dies. There is a bit of art to molding bullets. Like getting the feel of when the pot is at the right temp. and when the dies are right too. Go slow at first and don't get frustrated when your first attemps don't yeld good results. It's just like shooting. when you start all your shots are not in the bullseye. As with other part of the shooting world, SAFETY FIRST. Remeber lead melts at 650 degrees and your mix will be hotter than that. metal at that temp will react violently with water. I drop my bullets on wet sponges covered witha dish towel. I use a pan that is tilted so the bullets roll down the towel and collect at the far end of the pan in a created cavity. By the time they reach there they are cool enough they will not deform. I cut the Lee liquid alox 50-50 with mineral spirits or good old zippo lighter fluid. I use a 3 lb soft spread bowl to tumble the bullets in the alox. when it gets too gunked up I just salvage another. NOW THIS IS IMPORTANT! do not steal towels from the kitchen this will cause considerable friction with your spouse. Go buy your own. Wear heavy leather gloves and a sturdy long sleave shirt. Get a shop apron. Sooner or later you will splash some lead. you don't want to splash it on your skin. The best way I know of to get a new pair of leather gloves broke in is to put them on and get them soaking wet. then wear and use them until they are dry. If you take them off before they are dry they will shrink. they will conform to your hands and develop flex where you need them to flex.

Ruger4570 · February 11, 2007, 10:00 AM

If you are going to use Lee molds, I think all you can get now is a 2 cavity mold. I believe they are discounting many of the old stock single cavity molds for now.
I do most of my casting in the winter months and I use a 5 gallon pail and fill it to the top with snow. I add a "little" water and drop my cast bullets directly from the mold into this freezing cold slush. It seems to harden them sufficiently for me. I also run my bullets thru my lubrisizer and use a hard grease, then I put them into some Lee Liquid Alox and dry them. I have not ever had a bit of leading with these bullets, regardless of how fast I shoot them. Some have been over 1800 fps out of my 45-70

HiltonFarmer · February 11, 2007, 07:11 PM

Ventilation to be sure!

I just started casting myself and found that it's best to have your area dedicated and clear. Casting is the only thing you should do in that area IMO.

Enjoy. I'll be firing my first casted reloads (9mm) this week.

HiltonFarmer

Ruger4570 · February 11, 2007, 07:43 PM

Oh yes! be sure to "smoke" the molds from Lee..It really makes a difference

Cloudpeak · February 11, 2007, 09:21 PM

And, you can always check over at

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/forumdisplay.php?f=2

Cloudpeak

snuffy · February 11, 2007, 09:28 PM

Quote:

If you are going to use Lee molds, I think all you can get now is a 2 cavity mold. I believe they are discounting many of the old stock single cavity molds for now.
I do most of my casting in the winter months and I use a 5 gallon pail and fill it to the top with snow. I add a "little" water and drop my cast bullets directly from the mold into this freezing cold slush. It seems to harden them sufficiently for me. I also run my bullets thru my lubrisizer and use a hard grease, then I put them into some Lee Liquid Alox and dry them. I have not ever had a bit of leading with these bullets, regardless of how fast I shoot them. Some have been over 1800 fps out of my 45-70

Lee also sells 6 cavity "gang" molds.

Dropping boolits into cold liquid will only harden boolits that have some arsenic in the lead alloy thet're made from. Knowing brinnel hardness can tell you IF you are hardening the bullets by cold water quenching. Heat treating can also be done by heating the boolit to just below the melting temperature, or at least to 450 degrees. Lee sells a lead hardness tester for half what most others sell for. It tells you just what the hardness is, then tells you what chamber pressure can be used before you will encounter leading.

cheygriz · February 11, 2007, 10:20 PM

I prefer Lyman, Saeco and RCBS molds to Lee, but if you do use Lee, get the 6 cavity.

1. Cast outside!
2. Wear a painter's face mask/respirator
3. Wear a leather shop apron
4. Wear leather gloves.
5. THE MOST IMPORTANT BY FAR Wear OSHA approved, industrial grade safety glasses.

contender44 · February 12, 2007, 04:54 PM

thanks for the info as soon as it warms up i'm going to start melting w/w and putting my alloy together

contender

Hankster · February 15, 2007, 08:23 PM

Bulletcasting is one of the most satisfying aspects of reloading. I have a number of Lee, Lyman and RCBS molds. The Lee molds have to be cleaned and smoked prior to use. Do not forget to lube the sprue plate screw and to warm the mold up prior to use. I heat my up with a propane torch and almost immediately I get good bullets. Remember, safety first. Gloves, apron and glasses are a must. Also, molten lead is extremely explosive if introduced to liquids. Sweat, water, beverages will send molten lead in all directions and cause a hazard to anyone around. If you have little children around with water guns, water hoses etc, then make them understand why it is you do not want water around.
I used Ruger4570's advise and dumped my bullets into a bucket of ice water. This hardened up my bullets substantially. Wheel weights will suffice the vast majority of the time. I have used my bullets for bullseye and ipsc shoots. There is a huge savings when casting. Another precaution, make sure you have adequate ventilation when casting. There are lots of great books that explain casting procedures etc. Good luck, Hankster

cheygriz · February 15, 2007, 08:31 PM

One critical item I forgot to mention. Wear a welder's cap also.

Ruger4570 · February 15, 2007, 09:01 PM

Cheygriz: You mean to tell me my University of Arizona cap won't work. Hell, I would sleep with it on except rolling over messes up the way it looks. Guess I could be cool and wear it backwards to bed...

cheygriz · February 16, 2007, 07:41 PM

Actually, any hat or cap will work. I bought a welder's cap because it's specifically designed to protect the head from sparks, and hot metal fragments.

And when you don't have any hair, that becomes important!

James A. Mullins · February 17, 2007, 03:32 AM

One thing you should do is cast in a place with plenty of air flow. I use a fan to suck the fumes away. Be sure to heat your molds to insure all moisture is out of the mold. Do your alloying before you start to cast useable bullets. What I mean is to make little one pound ingots from your wheel weights. Have fun.
James

February 10, 2007, 10:13 PM	#1
contender44 Junior Member Join Date: February 10, 2007 Location: central ky Posts: 11	bullet casting after several years of reloading for 243, 30-06, 22 hornet and 44 mag I'm ready to try bullet casting for 9mm 38/357 44mag and 45acp my wife and I will be using the 9mm and 45 for IDPA and my son will be using the 38/357 in pistols and rifle for cowboy action I will be using wheel weights a lee production pot, lee molds and sizing dies and alox lube if anyone has helpful hints or precautions they will be apreciated contender

February 11, 2007, 07:11 PM	#5
HiltonFarmer Senior Member Join Date: December 9, 2006 Location: Western Canada Posts: 324	Ventilation to be sure! I just started casting myself and found that it's best to have your area dedicated and clear. Casting is the only thing you should do in that area IMO. Enjoy. I'll be firing my first casted reloads (9mm) this week. HiltonFarmer __________________ I wish gun control could go away. That way I could buy anything I wanted. _______________________________________ Keep the muzzle pointed down range please!

February 11, 2007, 10:20 PM	#9
cheygriz Senior Member Join Date: May 11, 2002 Location: high up in the rockies Posts: 2,289	I prefer Lyman, Saeco and RCBS molds to Lee, but if you do use Lee, get the 6 cavity. 1. Cast outside! 2. Wear a painter's face mask/respirator 3. Wear a leather shop apron 4. Wear leather gloves. 5. THE MOST IMPORTANT BY FAR Wear OSHA approved, industrial grade safety glasses. __________________ If you think a mighty military force is expensive, wait 'til you see what a weak one costs.

February 15, 2007, 08:23 PM	#11
Hankster Member Join Date: February 20, 2006 Location: Ontario Canada Posts: 36	Bulletcasting Bulletcasting is one of the most satisfying aspects of reloading. I have a number of Lee, Lyman and RCBS molds. The Lee molds have to be cleaned and smoked prior to use. Do not forget to lube the sprue plate screw and to warm the mold up prior to use. I heat my up with a propane torch and almost immediately I get good bullets. Remember, safety first. Gloves, apron and glasses are a must. Also, molten lead is extremely explosive if introduced to liquids. Sweat, water, beverages will send molten lead in all directions and cause a hazard to anyone around. If you have little children around with water guns, water hoses etc, then make them understand why it is you do not want water around. I used Ruger4570's advise and dumped my bullets into a bucket of ice water. This hardened up my bullets substantially. Wheel weights will suffice the vast majority of the time. I have used my bullets for bullseye and ipsc shoots. There is a huge savings when casting. Another precaution, make sure you have adequate ventilation when casting. There are lots of great books that explain casting procedures etc. Good luck, Hankster

February 15, 2007, 08:31 PM	#12
cheygriz Senior Member Join Date: May 11, 2002 Location: high up in the rockies Posts: 2,289	One critical item I forgot to mention. Wear a welder's cap also. __________________ If you think a mighty military force is expensive, wait 'til you see what a weak one costs.

February 10, 2007, 11:19 PM	#2
Rimrod Senior Member Join Date: October 19, 2005 Location: Behind enemy lines Posts: 1,309	Make sure to wear gloves.

February 11, 2007, 12:01 AM	#3
rwilson452 Senior Member Join Date: June 10, 2004 Location: Tioga co. PA Posts: 2,647	I would suggest you start with the two cavity dies. There is a bit of art to molding bullets. Like getting the feel of when the pot is at the right temp. and when the dies are right too. Go slow at first and don't get frustrated when your first attemps don't yeld good results. It's just like shooting. when you start all your shots are not in the bullseye. As with other part of the shooting world, SAFETY FIRST. Remeber lead melts at 650 degrees and your mix will be hotter than that. metal at that temp will react violently with water. I drop my bullets on wet sponges covered witha dish towel. I use a pan that is tilted so the bullets roll down the towel and collect at the far end of the pan in a created cavity. By the time they reach there they are cool enough they will not deform. I cut the Lee liquid alox 50-50 with mineral spirits or good old zippo lighter fluid. I use a 3 lb soft spread bowl to tumble the bullets in the alox. when it gets too gunked up I just salvage another. NOW THIS IS IMPORTANT! do not steal towels from the kitchen this will cause considerable friction with your spouse. Go buy your own. Wear heavy leather gloves and a sturdy long sleave shirt. Get a shop apron. Sooner or later you will splash some lead. you don't want to splash it on your skin. The best way I know of to get a new pair of leather gloves broke in is to put them on and get them soaking wet. then wear and use them until they are dry. If you take them off before they are dry they will shrink. they will conform to your hands and develop flex where you need them to flex.

February 11, 2007, 10:00 AM	#4
Ruger4570 Senior Member Join Date: April 3, 2005 Location: Rochester, New York Posts: 2,136	If you are going to use Lee molds, I think all you can get now is a 2 cavity mold. I believe they are discounting many of the old stock single cavity molds for now. I do most of my casting in the winter months and I use a 5 gallon pail and fill it to the top with snow. I add a "little" water and drop my cast bullets directly from the mold into this freezing cold slush. It seems to harden them sufficiently for me. I also run my bullets thru my lubrisizer and use a hard grease, then I put them into some Lee Liquid Alox and dry them. I have not ever had a bit of leading with these bullets, regardless of how fast I shoot them. Some have been over 1800 fps out of my 45-70

February 11, 2007, 07:43 PM	#6
Ruger4570 Senior Member Join Date: April 3, 2005 Location: Rochester, New York Posts: 2,136	Oh yes! be sure to "smoke" the molds from Lee..It really makes a difference

February 11, 2007, 09:21 PM	#7
Cloudpeak Senior Member Join Date: March 25, 2005 Location: Wyoming Posts: 288	And, you can always check over at http://castboolits.gunloads.com/forumdisplay.php?f=2 Cloudpeak

February 12, 2007, 04:54 PM	#10
contender44 Junior Member Join Date: February 10, 2007 Location: central ky Posts: 11	thanks for the info as soon as it warms up i'm going to start melting w/w and putting my alloy together contender

February 15, 2007, 09:01 PM	#13
Ruger4570 Senior Member Join Date: April 3, 2005 Location: Rochester, New York Posts: 2,136	Cheygriz: You mean to tell me my University of Arizona cap won't work. Hell, I would sleep with it on except rolling over messes up the way it looks. Guess I could be cool and wear it backwards to bed...

February 16, 2007, 07:41 PM	#14
cheygriz Senior Member Join Date: May 11, 2002 Location: high up in the rockies Posts: 2,289	Actually, any hat or cap will work. I bought a welder's cap because it's specifically designed to protect the head from sparks, and hot metal fragments. And when you don't have any hair, that becomes important! __________________ If you think a mighty military force is expensive, wait 'til you see what a weak one costs.

February 17, 2007, 03:32 AM	#15
James A. Mullins Senior Member Join Date: October 10, 2006 Location: Vancouver Washington Posts: 124	One thing you should do is cast in a place with plenty of air flow. I use a fan to suck the fumes away. Be sure to heat your molds to insure all moisture is out of the mold. Do your alloying before you start to cast useable bullets. What I mean is to make little one pound ingots from your wheel weights. Have fun. James

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