Hard cast vs. plated bullets in handguns

How hard is "hard"? I've tried a few hundred plated bullets and found no reason to use them (9mm & 45 ACP). My home cast bullets don't lead excessively, are as accurate as most any commercial bullet, are not "labor intensive", and a joy to make. ("hard cast" is a relatively new term and really means nothing. At first it was used by newer reloaders to differentiate between cast and soft, swaged bullets, but has been morphed into meaning all cast bullets, regardless if they are 11 BHN or 22 BHN, so how hard is hard? There is no standard for a "hard" BHN bullet). Plated bullets were just so-so with not so hot quality control and if I wanted good SD velocities I'd go with jacketed. Gun cleaning is as much a part of shooting as reloading and for me at least, done when I get home from the range. For "cheap" shooting, plain FMJ bullets fits quite well and are used for "potting", plinking, practice, and just plain fun. Plated bullets may have improve since I tried them and I still have about 200, 9mm plated bullets in the back of my bullet cabinet, just in case, but I don't see them being used when I have nearly 1,000 Nukes in the front of the cabinet...

my regular non-hard lead bullets for the 357 magnum can be driven to 1250 fps before they start leading the barrel. my goto load for my 357 blackhawks is a 180 gn lfp with enough blue dot to chrony @ 1200 fps. extremely accurate and no lead to speak of.

murf

Hi Tex Polymer Coated cast bullets. Especially in those calibers. I do not shoot plated bullets.
no vote as it was not an option

mdi said:

How hard is "hard"?

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Exactly. Hard for hunting IF you want to punch through hard muscle and crunch bones. Otherwise, nearly dead-soft works fine. Yes, even in a .44Magnum.

I cast my bullets for everything but the high power rifles so cast would be my choice…

I shoot a lot of the TEC coated bullets in .41 and .357 and like them because I can drive them slowly. I shoot plated bullets in 9 mm because they look good. And shoot good. No use for a groove in 9mm. I did shoot a lot of plated 125 grain in .357 with a taper crimp and they shot well. The coated bulllets seem as cheap as I can buy uncoated lead bullets.

I use the Hi-tek coated cast the most, I use plated in my polygonal rifled bores. I also use plated rifle bullets for light loads.

Smaug said:

These are fairly typical: https://www.midwayusa.com/product/2046539567?pid=267313

Here's what they say about the alloy: "A great bullet for competitive shooting or small and medium-sized game, these high-quality cast bullets are composed of 6% antimony, 2% tin and 92% lead with a Brinell hardness of 15. They are rated to 1600 fps without gas checks. The bullet lube is designed for use with smokeless powder, but it will work with blackpowder firearms that have barrels less than 20" long. The alloy is lab text certified before casting."

↑ It's not like they make the alloy or hardness a mystery.

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That would be a good bullet if it had a flat base. Too hard to obturate and that bevel is an invitation for gas leakage. I like Hunter's Cast bullets but this recent trend towards BB bullets is just idiotic. Only thing I can think of is it's a concession to the progressive loaders who use bullet feeders.

Vendors and commercial casters will give the end user what they want, so overly hard cast bullets once wanted by shooters with little experience/knowledge are common now...

Another vote for HiTek coated.

Unless you are driving for some really high velocities, they will hold up just fine, but in that case you probably should be shooting jacketed anyway. Price is about the same as cast. No leading, no lube, all upside, no downside.

I've done quite a bit of both cast (hard and soft) and plated with 44 mag and 38 spl. Light plinkers lead is fine, but my preference is to go with plated. You aren't limited to any specific powders or speeds. Same bullet is no worry at 600 or 1600, unlike cast where pushing a little too fast or slow ends up leading.

If they're truly "hard" cast then they shouldn't be dirty. And you can usually get a little more speed with them

Maybe not a consideration for you but the 2 ranges I shoot at the most do not allow exposed lead bullets. They have to be coated, plated, or jacketed.

I only shoot a few thousand per year, so when buying handgun bullets they're plated. The reduction in cleanup makes it worth a few additional pennies each for me. I do occasionally cast my own from scrounged lead when trying to save $.

GeoDudeFlorida said:

I like Hunter's Cast bullets but this recent trend towards BB bullets is just idiotic. Only thing I can think of is it's a concession to the progressive loaders who use bullet feeders.

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I heard the "trend" towards BB cast bullets is because BB cast bullets fall out of molds easier than flat based cast bullets - that makes things easier for commercial bullet casters. Whatever the reason, I never buy BB cast bullets. I quit casting my own bullets probably 20 years ago, but I'd go back to it if the only cast bullets I could buy had beveled bases.

I don't much like commercially cast bullets, with few exceptions. They usually are too hard, and they usually have a bevel base. Both are for the convenience of the manufacturer, not the shooter.

As for cleanliness, I generally don't mind the bit of smoke and mess on the gun, but I do have one local indoor range with a lousy air handling system. For that place, I vastly prefer plated, just so I don't have to breathe my own exhaust.

Short version: if I can't cast my own, and especially if I am going to be shooting indoors, I prefer plated.

.308 Norma said:

I heard the "trend" towards BB cast bullets is because BB cast bullets fall out of molds easier than flat based cast bullets - that makes things easier for commercial bullet casters. Whatever the reason, I never buy BB cast bullets. I quit casting my own bullets probably 20 years ago, but I'd go back to it if the only cast bullets I could buy had beveled bases.

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That could be and I have heard that too. But it is a much more recent trend than commercial casting. Whatever the reason, it’s a very bad trend.

I vote coated. Depending on intended velocity I use rmr lead to 1000 ish fps and add a little rotometals superhard for bhn 12 loads up to full mag even out of a carbine. PC leaves nothing behind.

Hi tek coated hardcast. That's what you want. Plating us just adding complication and still leaves fouling.

Voted "hard" cast but generally cast is my opinion.

Whether the current standard for "hard" (15-18 BHN depending on who you ask, or 92/6/2 which is what most commercial cast sell now) or something "softer" (around 12-13 BHN, whatever the make-up alloy wise [which was actually hard to cast shooters of yesteryear]), if the fit is right or barring a bad fit, the velocity is kept lower I prefer them over plated.

And they're usually cheaper.

I voted hard cast. It was the closest to what I use. I generally use something around 12-14BHN. But I prefer hard cast to plated.
Hitec coating covers a lot of sins. But it's still more accurate than my plated bullets.
Lubed cast or jacketed give me best accuracy.