Range Report: Laser-Cast Bullets

[Dave R]

Thanks to feedback from this forum, I bought some Laser-Cast bullets for low-cost plinking loads. Bought 500ea. for 9mm and .380acp. Cost was about $18-19ea per 500, at local gun store. Much less than the cost of FMJ bullets by the 100.

Laser-Cast's marketing info says "many shooters report the smallest groups ever."

In all honesty, I'm one of them.

I have shot them on 3 occasions, now, and every time I get groups smaller than I have got with any other load. Yes, I did some workup to find the loads with tightest groups.

With both .380acp (an FEG PPK Clone) and with 9mm (FEG PJK-9HP Hi-Power Clone) I get groups of 5 with all holes touching at 15 yards. Call it an inch to 1.5 inches. This is bench rested. Not every group is that small, but probably every other bench-rested group is.

Another thing they claim is no barrel leading. I dunno about NO leading, but there is no more fouling than the copper fouling I get when I shoot jacketed bullets. And it comes out just as easily. So there is no real cleaning penalty for using them.

The only downside is you do get a bit of parrafin smell when you shoot them, from the lube I presume. For the cost and performance, I can live with that.

Now I have to try these at 50 yards and see what they'll do...

 

[tc300mag1]

Ive tried them in 38SP loads that i got good groups with before and they made the groups even smaller. So i cant complaine and leading isnt as bad. Good they worked out so well for you also

 

[Corey ACP]

I have some .44 200 gr RNFP slugs that I got cheap. They shoot fantastic out of my 6" S&W 629. I have hot loads and some mild plinking, small game type reloads and they both will cluster the shots in a small ragged hole at 25 yds. There is a small amount of lead in the barrel after a shooting session that is removed easily by my normal cleaning methods.

 

[Peter M. Eick]

Lasercast is the only lead I now shoot out of my revolvers. Great stuff.

I could never get the 380's to work out of my guns. I finally gave up on them. Maybe I should make another run at it.....

 

[Dave R]

Peter, FWIW, in my .380, the loads got more accurate the closer they got to max load. Makes no sense, but that's how its working for me. So I run a little below max, just to be kind to the pistol. I'm using 4.0gr of Unique under the 95gr. Laser-Cast.

 

[Peter M. Eick]

That is the exact load I was using. My problem was I had a buildup of bullet lube on the leading edge of each round so it would not chamber. Must have been that my flare on the case was not enough. Anyway, having to smack the back of the slide to close it 1000 times was enough to convince me not to "do" lasercast in 380 anymore.

 

[Bernmart]

Sorry for jumping on this thread; while I wait for my first reloading press to arrive, I'm trying to decide between cast bullets and fmj or plated. My goal is to load accurate ammo for my 45 acp, with bullets and powder that I can handle as a beginner. Are the lasercast bullets the ones offered by Oregon Trail Bullets, and by them only? their prices are reasonable enough. For a beginner, though, would it be better to start loaded with jacketed or plated?

 

[Peter M. Eick]

If it were me, I would start with straight normal jacketed bullets as a new loader. Get the process down before you broaden your horizons. Jacketeds are just so easy to load with and very forgiving to loading errors (ie: sticking them in the flared cases at an angle type thing).

Lasercasts are very good and I like them a lot, but get the process down before you do lead.

 

[Bernmart]

Peter, thanks so much for the prompt, honest reply. I'll follow your advice.

Bernie

 

[Dave R]

LOL, Peter, I had the same problem with lube build-up and difficult chambering on the 9mm. Yes, more case flare when seating the bullets solved that problem for me. You should give it another try.

Also, I over-crimped one batch and accuracy suffered. I crimped the next batch a little lighter and accuracy returned. Light crimp seems to work best for me.

Bernmart, that's one example why FMJ are easier and more forgiving to start with. But its not a huge jump in difficulty. Just remember to get the case flare and the crimp right.