Glock and Cast Bullets

[JimGun]

I have heard on a youtube video that Glocks cannot handle cast bullets. Has anyone used cast bullets with a Glock? I presently load MBC coated softballs for my Colt Commander and would like to continue those loads with a new pistol.

 

[JohnKSa]

It's not recommended by Glock because leading can be unpredictable and difficult to detect due to the rifling style. It may cause pressure problems in some Glocks.

There's a ton of information on this topic available. Probably the most authoritative is in a book called "The Glock in Competition" which contains a chapter on the subject including the results of pressure measurements conducted by a licensed forensic engineer.

 

[Wreck-n-Crew]

Coated bullets are just fine in Glocks. Concern was with cast bullets that were lubed.

Reports do differ and though many still shoot lead from Glocks regularly others believe its dangerous because of some reports that seems to have merit.

Lucky for you we now live in a world where coated bullets are just fine in Glocks so load up, shoot em and repeat.

Stay safe.

 

[Pete D.]

Lead

The polygonal rifling in Glock barrels is, evidently, not kind to cast bullets and heavy leading occurs rapidly...pressures rise dramatically.
That being said, there are shooters who use cast lead bullets. They keep their guns clean and report no problems.
Pete

 

[Edcnh]

I use a Lone Wolf barrel in my Glock 17 when I shoot lead bullets.

 

[dragon813gt]

The polygonal rifling in Glock barrels is, evidently, not kind to cast bullets and heavy leading occurs rapidly...pressures rise dramatically.

This is caused by improperly sized and lubed bullets. The same thing will happen w/ conventional rifling. I will bet that most of the problems happen w/ commercially cast bullets. Those of us that cast our own, and control all aspects of the bullet, have no issues w/ cast. If you buy your cast bullets you are flipping a coin in regards to leading. There are also cast specific loading techniques. If you don't properly expand the brass you have increased the potential for leading. There are a few more steps when it comes to loading cast.

 

[eldon519]

I shoot cast lead in my G19 and G26. I haven't slugged the barrel to know for sure if I'm shooting undersized bullets or not. I do get leading, but I don't know that it is necessarily worse than in any other gun. I've definitely seen worse in some of my revolvers. I have noticed the polygonal barrel seems to clean up easier than conventional rifling as there are no sharp corners to hide in. I don't know that I would want to shoot 1000 rounds through it without putting a brush through it, but shooting a couple hundred rounds seems to work fine. I also am one of those people who sometimes shoots jacketed bullets to clean out leading, especially on something like a Glock where I am not trying to get match-grade accuracy. I think if you were constantly pushing +P+ loads you might get into pressure problems, but just shooting run of the mill practice loads, I haven't seen any issues.

 

[gilgsn]

I've shot exclusively cast lubed bullets in my Glock 17, many thousands, never had any problems. My barrel did get leaded but I filled it with mercury and let it sit overnight, bingo, clean barrel! Not recommended without the proper safety precautions..

Gil

 

[61Woody]

My reloads will not fit of either my Lone Wolf barrels, they fit in 2 gauges I have just fine as well as the factory barrel.

 

[FL-NC]

According to my friend who works for Glock, shooting non jacketed lead through their guns with their barrel is a big no-no and may cause it to go catastrophic.

 

[Drail]

Cast lead bullets in a Glock barrel is only a problem if you don't stay on top of lead buildup. Which would be most owners. The bore must be kept clean and free of any leading. A Lewis lead remover tool will keep you out of trouble if you stay on top of it.

 

[dragon813gt]

A Lewis lead remover tool will keep you out of trouble if you stay on top of it.

Stop the leading to begin w/ and you won't need that tool. All I shoot is cast, even in rifles. Get everything right and there won't be any leading.

 

[AZAndy]

I don't have a Glock, but I have a couple of CZ-82s with polygonal rifling. Never shot anything in them but lead. I haven't seen any problems. I don't think I've ever done more than a couple hundred rounds in a session, though, so maybe an all-day shoot could bring troubles.

 

[Deanimator]

I've got a Glock 19 and a Glock 22.

I shot quite a few hard cast LSWCs through the Glock 22.

Rather than run into potential problems, when I bought my Glock 19, I bought Storm Lake cut rifling barrels for both guns.

I hate plated bullets and can't afford FMJs for practice, so I switched to cut rifling barrels and continued using hard cast lead.

 

[Drail]

Dragon, you're right - there shouldn't be any leading but if you look down enough other people's barrels you see enough to know it can lead to problems with poor cleaning practices and hot loads.

 

[silicosys4]

I've shot nothing but cast 115gr .356 lead bullets in my G19 since I bought it.
Leading hasn't been an issue for me, I clean every few hundred rounds just to be safe.
As others have said, if you make sure you have a bullet/size/lube combo that works and keep an eye on leading, it's not an issue.
I could probably go at least 1k rounds or more before having any appreciable leading, but I've never had the inclination to verify.

 

[Merle1]

This is a long running discussion. It seems that bullet hardness, plus lube type, plus bullet diameter are VERY important. Some have problems - some don't. Check out the article in the Buffalo Bore website for additional info.

 

[VINTAGE-SLOTCARS]

Has anyone shot gas checks on cast bullets?

 

[dragon813gt]

Dragon, you're right - there shouldn't be any leading but if you look down enough other people's barrels you see enough to know it can lead to problems with poor cleaning practices and hot loads.

I agree but it's people that don't know what they're doing that give cast a bad name. Harder isn't always better. Undersize is always bad. And hard lube is usually the wrong choice. So basically everything the commercial casters do is bad for the end consumer. But it makes shipping easy for then.

Has anyone shot gas checks on cast bullets?

Yes, typically in rifles. I make my own checks. Just like cast bullets I control every aspect of the check. I haven't found a need for them in handguns. Even w/ full bore 357 loads out of a rifle a plain base bullet works fine. People tend to use checks as a band aid. Instead of fixing the main issues they throw on a check. It may stop the leading but the main problem still exists. Nothing wrong w/ stopping the leading so I guess it's not all bad.

 

[PO2Hammer]

Coated cast work fine in my polygonal HK.

 

[palmetto99]

I started using coated cast lead bullets in a G34 last year. I'm about 500 rounds in and haven't seen any issues.

 

[ny32182]

Yep.. if you are using coated bullets, there is no issue. Fire away.