Lead buildup ?

[bullseye308]

Here is what I loaded... 9mm in assorted brass with CCI 500 primers, 4.0gr Bullseye and a lee 124gr tl tc bullet. Fired out of an Astra A-100 that was clean and had a shiney bore in it. After 150 rds the last 1 1/2" was almost a smoothbore, you could barely see any rifling in it. The bullets were cast from ww's with some tin thrown in to fill out the bullet then water dropped straight from the mold. They drop from the mold at .356 and I have not slugged the bore yet(my bad) and were lubed with LLA. Bullets were cast and lubed over a week ago.
I haven't had the time to get the chrono out and try not to shoot it yet, so I don't know the velocity. The barrel is drowning in a cup of 50/50 H2O2 and white vinegar making something hazardous that I will have to figure out where to dispose of later and lots of lead is coming out. My question, provided I have given all the pertinent info is either, why did it lead so bad or how do I prevent it the next time?

TIA, Mike

 

[bullseye308]

Found this somewhere else on this wonderful forum; "The responsible care of the used chemistry is required as the end result is an aqueous solution of lead acetate, which is highly toxic and must be disposed of through a Hazardous Waste facility." My question is what kind of container can I store this in and what type of place should I look for to dispose of it?

 

[Galil5.56]

Mike,

I have used that exact same load (avg vel 1092 fps), same bullet, but I am surprised that it drops at .356". .356" is going to be undersized for a lot of 9mm pistols, and if this is the case, this particular mold may never work for you. Search the cast boolit forum on ways to enlarge the mold.

Maybe a bit more lube is needed, and this will help until you discover the bore dia. I have used my bullets all the way to .359"-.360" as cast, but almost always size them to .358" with good results. When I go too soft or too small I get a lot of keyholes. Good luck.

 

[bullseye308]

I'll look into opening up the die after I try to slug the barrel.

 

[rcmodel]

Stop dropping them into water and hardening them.

They may be so hard you are getting gas blow-by and gas cutting is causing your leading.

rcmodel

 

[VegasOPM]

What lead mix are you using? What is the Brinnell hardness? One of my friends dropped a whole bunch of bullets using nearly 100% lead and they made a mess similar to what you are describing.

 

[bullseye308]

"Stop dropping them into water and hardening them." I'll try that with the next batch.

"What lead mix are you using? What is the Brinnell hardness?" The mix is about 50 lbs of WW with1 1/2lb pure tin mixed in. As for the hardness, I don't have a tester and no budget for one at this time. I'm saving the pure that I have for my CVA Hawken 54.

"When I go too soft or too small I get a lot of keyholes. " I don't know how they hit, I usually shoot at 12ga hulls at 50'. I guess I'll have to hang some paper.

 

[Snapping Twig]

Been using straight wheel weights for several years now, no water quenching and alox lube with no leading in everything up to .44 magnum.

Size is important, so whatever you slug out to, go .001 over.

 

[243winxb]

Stop dropping bullets into water. While antimony is used to harden the bullet, the mixture of tin is critical, for while antimony mixes with lead in its molten state, it will not remain mixed when it solidifies. If tin were not added, we would have pure antimony crystals surrounded by pure lead. A bullet of this type , while it feels hard , would certainly lead the bore and eliminate all potential for accuracy. In a lead-tin-antimony mixture, the antimony crystals will be present just the same, but they will be imbedded in a lead-tin mixutre. As the bullet cools the tin will form around the antimony-lead keeping your bullets from leading the bore. I have read that this process can take up to 24 hours as the alloy oxidizes. If your going to size a cast bullet, wait 1 day.

 

[243winxb]

Bullet Lube, is it working for you.

Using a soft lube of alox-bees wax (NRA formula type) after shooting 50 or more rounds you should have a ring of lube on your muzzle. You should see this in 38 target load and maximum loaded 44mag and 30-30, 30-06 cast bullets loads. This will let you know if you lube is working. I dont like hard lubes that need a heater because i find to many bullets in the back stop with the red lube still in the grooves.

 

[Galil5.56]

"When I go too soft or too small I get a lot of keyholes. " I don't know how they hit, I usually shoot at 12ga hulls at 50'. I guess I'll have to hang some paper.

Oh they hit, just not where they should/erratically, and in the shape of a keyhole.

It's all relative, and a lot of variables come into play... In my situation, too soft a bullet (read straight WW's) in a certain style that needs a deep seat for proper OAL, will swage down too small by the sharp internal taper of the 9mm case. Make this bullet harder and all is well because the base stays at the proper diameter with a nice tight case bulge. Lee factory crimp dies can do the same thing in certain situations as well.

If only it were as easy as do X, get EXACLY Y when reloading, but that to me would be dull as hell. If your cast bullet loads are hittin shotshells @ 50', keep up the good work!