Cast Ball Weight?

Hog Buster · March 27, 2011, 11:24 PM

I need to know how much a .690 cast lead ball weighs. I searched around and can’t seem to find a weight for it.

Mauser Rat · March 28, 2011, 12:00 AM

Hog Buster,

Calculated weight should be something like 483 grains in pure lead. But I don't have one to weigh to verify that.

Brennan, over on lasc, gives the weight of a .693 ball as 500 grains so I guess it checks and please help me if I violated the copyright rule things.

Mauser Rat · March 28, 2011, 12:46 AM

Sorry for the double post but I thought about it and decided that as a general rule, folks might like to know how to calculate this in general:

1500x(diameter)^3 = weight in grains for a sphere of pure lead, diameter in decimal inches

read as "1500 times the diameter in inches cubed"

so the .690 inch ball is 1500 times .690 cubed = 482.85 grains or so

(the actual multiplier is 1500.18 for anal types like me :barf

a .75 inch diameter ball would be about 633 grains for instance

Rifleman1776 · March 28, 2011, 08:39 AM

I found this calculator:
http://www.beartoothbullets.com/resc....600&v2=2876.1

snuffy · March 28, 2011, 09:37 AM

HB, your thread caused what few brain cells left functioning to activate! And this early in the morning!

One cell said to another we have a lee 690 mold, and I just saw one laying on the bench last night

WOW.

Then I actually found it, weighed it and viola!

488.5 Now, I know it's not 99.75% pure lead, but some real soft lead I got as scrap lead. So the calculator is right on,(495), the little bit of tin that's probably in that lead causes it to weigh a bit less.

Oh, why have a huge ball like that? To try out single ball loads in my 12 ga. shotgun, your plan also? No, I never got around to trying them, it's on my list of things to do this summer NOW THAT I'M RETIRED!

And to fire them heavy loads, I got a lead sled that I still have not tried out, had it for most of a year.

Hog Buster · March 28, 2011, 12:06 PM

Thanks guys for al the information on the round ball weight. I hope that I didn’t cause any of you brain damage in figuring this out. Pythagoras would be proud of you all. I was hoping that someone would just toss one on a scale and give me the weight.

I intend to take a Lee round ball mold and make a cast net sinker mold out of it. I’ll drill a hole between the mold halves, insert a removable pin and then cast a round lead ball with a hole thru it.

It should give me a sinker weighing about 1 ounce (437.5 grains) or close thereto. At 1.5 pounds per foot of net length I’ll then divide the number of sinkers by the number of stitches in the nets circumference for proper spacing. Plus the round ball will fit between the stitches readily.

Why go to all this trouble to make a cast net sinker mold? Because you can’t buy one already made. You can buy egg sinker molds everywhere, but the hole is too small for cast net lead lines and these molds are too hard too modify easily, I know I’ve tried.

snuffy · March 28, 2011, 02:22 PM

Good luck!

I mean that. As to why I say good luck, that pin will have to be tapered, or you'll never get it out of the ball. Not without a lot of force. It wouldn't take a lot of taper, but if straight sided, it would hold onto the ball pretty tight.

Interesting though, let us know how it turns out!

zippy13 · March 28, 2011, 04:17 PM

I suspect snuffy is correct about the difficulty involved. It may take less time to pierce the balls afterwards than to work the pin in a hot mold.

Hog Buster · March 28, 2011, 07:55 PM

No problem with the pin, make sure it’s brass, 1/8 - 3/16 inch brazing rod, loop on one end, just pass it thru an oily rag before inserting in the mold, the lead won’t stick, hook the loop over a nail in the bench and give it a pull, rod slides out, open mold and drop sinker. I’ve done thousands of egg sinkers with commercial molds over the years, they all work the same way. It’s not much more trouble than casting hollow points.

Talking about hollow points, I've got a Lyman 45/70 hollow point mold that's almost new. Maybe a hundred casts made in it. My 45/70 doesn't digest lead bullets very well. If anybody is interested maybe we can trade for something...

Hog Buster · March 28, 2011, 08:54 PM

Snuffy

In regards to you using a round ball in your 12 gauge, here’s a fact. Many years ago when I was just a kid I killed ny first deer with a round cast net lead in a high brass 12 gauge shotgun shell. I dumped out the # 6 shot and replaced it with the cast net sinker. It killed that deer with one shot. I was one happy kid. I can’t attest to the accuracy of that ball load and of course had no idea about muzzle velocity back then, but it put meat on the table.

Loading cast net leads was fairly common back then. Most of us were poor folks and made do with whatever.

March 27, 2011, 11:24 PM	#1
Hog Buster Senior Member Join Date: October 26, 2009 Location: Pointe Coupee, Louisana Posts: 772	Cast Ball Weight? I need to know how much a .690 cast lead ball weighs. I searched around and can’t seem to find a weight for it. __________________ Those who beat their guns into plows, will plow for those who don't.-Thomas Jefferson

March 28, 2011, 12:00 AM	#2
Mauser Rat Member Join Date: January 3, 2008 Location: Alaska and parts North Posts: 74	Hog Buster, Calculated weight should be something like 483 grains in pure lead. But I don't have one to weigh to verify that. Brennan, over on lasc, gives the weight of a .693 ball as 500 grains so I guess it checks and please help me if I violated the copyright rule things. Last edited by Mauser Rat; March 28, 2011 at 12:08 AM.

March 28, 2011, 09:37 AM	#5
snuffy Senior Member Join Date: May 20, 2001 Location: Oshkosh wi. Posts: 3,055	HB, your thread caused what few brain cells left functioning to activate! And this early in the morning! One cell said to another we have a lee 690 mold, and I just saw one laying on the bench last night WOW. Then I actually found it, weighed it and viola! 488.5 Now, I know it's not 99.75% pure lead, but some real soft lead I got as scrap lead. So the calculator is right on,(495), the little bit of tin that's probably in that lead causes it to weigh a bit less. Oh, why have a huge ball like that? To try out single ball loads in my 12 ga. shotgun, your plan also? No, I never got around to trying them, it's on my list of things to do this summer NOW THAT I'M RETIRED! And to fire them heavy loads, I got a lead sled that I still have not tried out, had it for most of a year. __________________ The more people I meet, the more I love my dog They're going to get their butts kicked over there this election. How come people can't spell and use words correctly?

March 28, 2011, 12:06 PM	#6
Hog Buster Senior Member Join Date: October 26, 2009 Location: Pointe Coupee, Louisana Posts: 772	Thanks guys for al the information on the round ball weight. I hope that I didn’t cause any of you brain damage in figuring this out. Pythagoras would be proud of you all. I was hoping that someone would just toss one on a scale and give me the weight. I intend to take a Lee round ball mold and make a cast net sinker mold out of it. I’ll drill a hole between the mold halves, insert a removable pin and then cast a round lead ball with a hole thru it. It should give me a sinker weighing about 1 ounce (437.5 grains) or close thereto. At 1.5 pounds per foot of net length I’ll then divide the number of sinkers by the number of stitches in the nets circumference for proper spacing. Plus the round ball will fit between the stitches readily. Why go to all this trouble to make a cast net sinker mold? Because you can’t buy one already made. You can buy egg sinker molds everywhere, but the hole is too small for cast net lead lines and these molds are too hard too modify easily, I know I’ve tried. __________________ Those who beat their guns into plows, will plow for those who don't.-Thomas Jefferson

March 28, 2011, 02:22 PM	#7
snuffy Senior Member Join Date: May 20, 2001 Location: Oshkosh wi. Posts: 3,055	Good luck! I mean that. As to why I say good luck, that pin will have to be tapered, or you'll never get it out of the ball. Not without a lot of force. It wouldn't take a lot of taper, but if straight sided, it would hold onto the ball pretty tight. Interesting though, let us know how it turns out! __________________ The more people I meet, the more I love my dog They're going to get their butts kicked over there this election. How come people can't spell and use words correctly?

March 28, 2011, 12:46 AM	#3
Mauser Rat Member Join Date: January 3, 2008 Location: Alaska and parts North Posts: 74	Sorry for the double post but I thought about it and decided that as a general rule, folks might like to know how to calculate this in general: 1500x(diameter)^3 = weight in grains for a sphere of pure lead, diameter in decimal inches read as "1500 times the diameter in inches cubed" so the .690 inch ball is 1500 times .690 cubed = 482.85 grains or so (the actual multiplier is 1500.18 for anal types like me :barf a .75 inch diameter ball would be about 633 grains for instance

March 28, 2011, 08:39 AM	#4
Rifleman1776 Senior Member Join Date: April 25, 2010 Location: Arkansas Posts: 3,309	I found this calculator: http://www.beartoothbullets.com/resc....600&v2=2876.1

March 28, 2011, 04:17 PM	#8
zippy13 Senior Member Join Date: August 23, 2008 Location: SoCal Posts: 6,442	I suspect snuffy is correct about the difficulty involved. It may take less time to pierce the balls afterwards than to work the pin in a hot mold.

March 28, 2011, 07:55 PM	#9
Hog Buster Senior Member Join Date: October 26, 2009 Location: Pointe Coupee, Louisana Posts: 772	No problem with the pin, make sure it’s brass, 1/8 - 3/16 inch brazing rod, loop on one end, just pass it thru an oily rag before inserting in the mold, the lead won’t stick, hook the loop over a nail in the bench and give it a pull, rod slides out, open mold and drop sinker. I’ve done thousands of egg sinkers with commercial molds over the years, they all work the same way. It’s not much more trouble than casting hollow points. Talking about hollow points, I've got a Lyman 45/70 hollow point mold that's almost new. Maybe a hundred casts made in it. My 45/70 doesn't digest lead bullets very well. If anybody is interested maybe we can trade for something... __________________ Those who beat their guns into plows, will plow for those who don't.-Thomas Jefferson Last edited by Hog Buster; March 28, 2011 at 08:03 PM. Reason: Addendum

March 28, 2011, 08:54 PM	#10
Hog Buster Senior Member Join Date: October 26, 2009 Location: Pointe Coupee, Louisana Posts: 772	Snuffy In regards to you using a round ball in your 12 gauge, here’s a fact. Many years ago when I was just a kid I killed ny first deer with a round cast net lead in a high brass 12 gauge shotgun shell. I dumped out the # 6 shot and replaced it with the cast net sinker. It killed that deer with one shot. I was one happy kid. I can’t attest to the accuracy of that ball load and of course had no idea about muzzle velocity back then, but it put meat on the table. Loading cast net leads was fairly common back then. Most of us were poor folks and made do with whatever. __________________ Those who beat their guns into plows, will plow for those who don't.-Thomas Jefferson