Phobia about cast bullets in my Semi Autos?

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dtalley

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Why do I have a phobia about shooting lead in my Semi Autos? I don't have a problem wtih shooting them in revolvers but for some reason I can't make myself load them for my Semi's... I would like to be able to save some money on my shooting addictions by reloading lead. I shoot Berry's Plated with out any concerns. I'm talking about 9mm and 45acp.

Please tell me it's ok or it isn't so I will quit worring about it....

Thanks,
DT
 
I shoot lead out of all my semi-auto pistols that aren't gas operated. Can't see any reason not to.
 
After burnin' up close to a half-million cast bullets in various 1911s and revolvers over nearly 50 years...I'd say they're fine. They do tend to get the guns dirty like right now, though...and not just the barrel and slide areas. It gets everywhere.

Not in gas-operated systems, please.
 
This sounds good.. I have an order filled out for some lead 9mm and 45acp. I will hit the send button now. Thanks for the replies. Since I have been shooting them out of Revolvers for many years now I thought it was probably ok but needed reassuring..
 
I have shot thousands of cast bullets from .380 to .45 w/ no ill effects. Using cast bullets can really save you some real $$$ over the years.
 
Please tell me it's ok or it isn't so I will quit worring about it....
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It's OK. Quit worrying about it.;)

You might have to fiddle with loads for a bit to avoid leading, but follow published data & it shouldn't be a problem.

I scrub my bores after every range session, too.

Glock barrels are said to not like cast bullets, tho. St. Gaston's rifling supposedly likes to collect lead.
 
Even use them in my (gasp!) Glock 22 with stock barrel.

Never had a problem.

Don't expect to.

Have saved a lot of money using lead over jacketed.

All the Best,
D. White
 
I love cast bullets in my 1911!

I learned real quick that I'll leave SWC and WC rounds to those dirty revolverinos and stick with RN, but besides being slightly dirtier they have never given me problems. As much as people say that one shouldn't shoot jacketed rounds to clean a barrel, today I took out some factory ammo and it did clean out the barrel quite a bit, removed a lot of the little residue ... so yeah ... I wouldn't worry.
 
Even use them in my (gasp!) Glock 22 with stock barrel.
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Same here, except in my G21.

I was all set to buy an aftermarket barrel but decided to put a mag through the stocker. Hmm...that's odd, no leading at all. Another mag...nothing.

Now I use my lead reloads exclusively. Ironically my CZ with regular rifling will smear it something fierce.

I tried the FMJ thing in the CZ and it also cleaned out the barrel nicely. Go figure.
 
I love cast bullets in my 1911!

I learned real quick that I'll leave SWC and WC rounds to those dirty revolverinos and stick with RN
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My shooter 1911 eats SWC's like candy...just sayin'.
 
Cast can be quite accurate and fun. Of course, with the Accurate Arms data change loads are different...this was within specs when I started using it.

Phantomcastload.jpg

That load is NOW a full 1.1 grains OVER max. Dang. Trying out a new cast bullet,

824112.jpg

Showing some promise, but the fun part is the load tweaking to see how good we can get it. :D Further testing perhaps as early as tomorrow morning. ;)

Give it a shot, and do remember, best stuff to remove lead fouling, (which I rarely if ever run into), is a Chore Boy, all copper, not copper washed steel, scrub pad. Use a piece like a patch. Make sure it's all copper, copper washed steel can scratch the barrel.
 
I worried about using lead bullets at first. Didnt like the smoke, the leading, or the extra TLC when loading. I soon got over it and started loading them to save more money. Now I prefer cast bullets over plated and jacketed. One thing you need to do is slug your bore to find what your barrel's groove diameter is. Depending on what caliber you are wanting to use, the diameters can vary. Once you have your groove diameter, you will want to order the bullets 0.001" to 0.002" larger than your groove diameter. Doing this will save you a lot of headache.

Like Armoredman, I cast my own and love it. There is a wealth of information on the Cast boolits forum. I highly recommend you check them out.
 
Plenty of guys at the local IDPA use lead. Just go for it.


I shoot a lot of 38 Super, otherwise I'd use a lot more lead myself.
 
I cast my own bullets, and shoot them by the thousands in 1911s, glocks, and revolvers too. Lead won't hurt your pistol, and they're lots cheaper. (I use a lone wolf barrel in the glock)
 
I only use jacketed/plated bullets for function testing (low round count) and self-defense/hunting handloads (low round count). Every one of my pistols and revolvers has lots of lead bullets through them. Even my Super Redhawk chambered for .454 Casull eats lead bullets. I refuse to spend twice or three times as much money on a bullet that's only punching paper or knocking down a steel plate.
 
I shoot a lot of lead, but never in a pistol/ barrel that the manufacture specifically states "No Lead". The type of rifling is the determining factor, Cut rifling = yes, polygonal = no. It has to do with an unsafe lead build-up. If you have a Glock, buy a different barrel or as suggested shot gilded or jacketed bullets. Safety First.
 
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