Range Report on cast 45 acp boolits

[Griz44]

Availability (and cost) of bullets had forced me to consider casting, and upon further investigation, decided to take the plunge. I bought a pot, lead from a gun range (under a buck a pound) a couple of molds, a couple of books, flux, wax, cheap Lee sizer, Alox tumble lube, and a few other goodies. Total investment is about 200 bucks. I cast a small batch a couple of weeks ago, went to the range Saturday and tried my field trial box of ammo, (100 rounds, 3 different powders, 3 weight loads per powder.) The boolits are LEE TL 45-230G-RN-2OG. Test pistol was my Colt SS Government 5".
I selected the load that worked best, and Sunday cast 500 new boolits, loaded them up with 5.0gr of HP-38 over a Winchester WLP primer.

Got back from the range today in the full scale trial of the cast bullets. I tortured the poor Colt with all 500 rounds of lead and 300 rounds of other. For comparison, I intermingled targets with Winchester white box, and hand loaded Rainier plated bullets. It was an 800 round day, with a brief respite for gun cleaning and hydration of the shooter. It was HOT here today. I am ecstatic. The best groups were from the casting I did. At 30 yards, I had several 50 shot groups under 4". Yea, I know some of you can shoot better that that, but for me - a really great achievement! And it was FUN! I shot 50 plated rounds through at the end of the session. Initial inspection shows no leading. I will scrub everything down later tonight, and try to get some pictures. All told, a wonderful day, with results that could not have been better! This happy old man will sleep good tonight!

 

[Walkalong]

Bullets look real good.

If I shot 800 rounds in a day, I would have to go back to casting myself.

Nothing more fun that casting bullets and then having them shoot as well, or better, than anything you can buy.

 

[Slamfire]

The best groups were from the casting I did. At 30 yards, I had several 50 shot groups under 4".

I consider that excellent shooting

New shiney lead bullets are just so purty.....

 

[dmftoy1]

Congrats! That's a great feeling. I'm contemplating using my own slugs for deer season this year.

Have a good one,
Dave

 

[moooose102]

yes, the bullets look GREAT! i have been thinking of doing the same thing, and actually, with the same mold! i just wanted to mention what i read in the lee reloading manual about barrel leading. how richard lee tests is weigh the barrel before and after firing. run a dry patch through the barrel to wipe out carbon fouling and then weigh the barrel after it has been shot. compare that to the original barrel weight, and the difference is how much lead is in the barrel! sound simple and scientific. i love it when something simple really works!

 

[ForneyRider]

Awesome!

I went with the Lee 200gr RN. My dad cast a mayonaise jar full from wheel weights. Hoping to load some this week.

W231 powder and WLP primer.

 

[Griz44]

Finally did a detail strip down of the Colt. After removing the barell, I shot a quick burst of REM OIL spray down it to flush any powder/shoot out. I used a bore light and examined the bore. There was no leading. Period. Looks like the cast mix is just right, and the lube is great. It's a little sticky when loading, but works exactly as it should. The LLA is quick and painless to use, rerquires no special lubrisizers or equipment. Sizing is done with a 14.00 die in a 22.00 Lee C press. That's real economy. I am happy as can be with this setup. I will be casting all weekend to get stocks up on boolits. I have enough of the range lead melt down to do 5K or more. I will be ordering more lead. Anyone want to do a group buy?

 

[ForneyRider]

The bullets my dad cast were shiny like yours. I showed them to a buddy that casts and he thought there might be some zinc in them. Are these safe to shoot? Obviously yours worked out. My dad said he used 100% wheel weights from heavy duty truck tire shop.

 

[Griz44]

I understand that zinc in the mix will make them not fill out the mold properly and cast incomplete and misformed bullets. The shiny comes from the tin content. Before I got the brew hot enough, they were coming out a duller color, when it was too hot, they frosted in the mold.

 

[CBS220]

Zinc affects the castability of the alloy adversely, but you could load up zinc bullets and shoot them with no damage to your firearm (although if they were made in a lead bullet mold they would be very light for their size).

As the mold gets hotter, particularly with the lee molds, you will see "frosting" on the bullets... this does not seem to affect the shootability of the bullets at all, or at least not to a degree I am able to discern!

Mr. Lee himself theorizes that the frosted surface may actually hold tumble lubricants better, anyway.

 

[rickomatic]

Great report! My order from Natchez comes tomorrow, and it includes that very same mold.
I too am just getting into "boolit" casting, and shot my first ones this weekend as well. The one's I shot were Lee TL 158 SWC. I was amazed at the accuracy out of my S&W snubbie.
What was the hardness of your lead? The one's I cast up were wheel weights "seasoned" with a little pewter. My Lee hardness tester showed them at around 14.3 BHN.

 

[Griz44]

I tested a couple of the 1 pound bricks with a LEE tester borrowed from a friend. The bricks came in from 12-14. For 45ACP, that should be just right. The lead came from range recovered lead and melted down in 200 pound lots. If it was good for bullets the first time, stands to reason it would be good recycled!

 

[lee n. field]

The bullets my dad cast were shiny like yours. I showed them to a buddy that casts and he thought there might be some zinc in them.

Everything I've read says that if you get zinc melted in with your lead (zinc has a higher melting point), you'll have an unusable mess.

Mine, from straight wheelweight lead, look shiny like that when new.

 

[TexasSkyhawk]

The LLA is quick and painless to use, rerquires no special lubrisizers or equipment. Sizing is done with a 14.00 die in a 22.00 Lee C press. That's real economy. I am happy as can be with this setup. I will be casting all weekend to get stocks up on boolits. I have enough of the range lead melt down to do 5K or more. I will be ordering more lead. Anyone want to do a group buy?

I've got that same boolit mould and am happy with it.

Also like the LLA--but I like it even better now that I've started mixing in some Johnson's Paste Wax. I melt a dab of JPW and mix it in with the LLA--probably about a 3:1 ratio of LLA to JPW. Then I add just a very small amount of mineral spirits to help it all mix up together.

Not only do I not get any leading after shooting, but I get a real shiny bore to boot.

Where in Texas are you?

Jeff

 

[Griz44]

I am in North Arlington Skyhawk. Near the Fort Worth border.

 

[cracked butt]

The very best load that works in my Springfield is Lee 200gr SWC treated with LLA,and WW231 powder. I haven't hand any store bought ammo that will shoot nearly as well.

 

[TexasSkyhawk]

I am in North Arlington Skyhawk. Near the Fort Worth border.

I'm north of DFW airport.

As far as the "stickiness" with the LLA goes, several things you can do to lessen or eliminate that:

1. Lot of folks dilute the LLA by up to 50% with odorless mineral spirits, then just give it double lube. It dries faster and leaves more like a varnish finish that isn't sticky or tacky to the touch.

2. Other folks (myself included) mix a little Johnson's Paste Wax in with the LLA. I use about a 1:1 ratio of the alox to JPW, then shoot a small spritz of odorless mineral spirits in my bottle just to help it all mix together. Works best if you melt the paste wax to get rid of the solvent agent that's in the JPW.

3. Some folks put their tumble-lubed boolits in a ziploc bag once the alox/lube has dried, and toss in a pinch of mica powder, then shake the bag up. It ONLY takes a pinch, but the mica adheres to the lube and eliminates the sticky, tacky condition--which makes loading a whole lot easier and keeps your seating die clean. I do this myself and actually prefer it--it keeps everything a bit cleaner. I've been told that cornstarch works equally as well, but haven't tried it yet.

Sounds like you got a good source of lead. The scrap yards are selling wheel weights for around a dollar per pound--probably the best wholesale price anyone will find from a distributor.

Grab it while you can--nice thing about lead is that it doesn't go bad in storage.

Jeff