Cast first bullet

  • 2.7K Views
  • Last Post 10 September 2008
jimkim posted this 26 August 2008

Heres the story. Years ago I hung out with old-timers. I was in my mid twenties when I met them. When it came to casting they really knew what they were doing. Well I  never got around to casting my own bullets. I always watched them. They slowly passed on one by one.  I finally bought my first mould. Today I cast my first bullet. I used an old wheel-weight and a 44cal hardcast Keith bullet from midway for lead. I put them in my ladle and melted them with my torch and poured a thirty caliber Ranch Dog bullet. It filled out pretty good it was a little frosty and looked like h*ll, but it was a bullet.  Now I need to buy a hotplate or build/ buy a campstove. Any tips?

Attached Files

Order By: Standard | Newest | Votes
bfrshooter posted this 28 August 2008

By melting a WW in a dipper and pouring it in the mold, you carried in all the crud with the lead.

Buy a Lee 20# production pot and a Lyman ladle. But do not smelt your lead in the casting pot. Use an old cast iron pot on a stove outside to melt WW's in, skim the clips and crud off, flux and pour into ingot molds. Only put clean lead in the casting pot. You can use wax, oil, a wood stick, even sawdust to flux with. It smokes! Stir it in with an old stainless spoon with a wood handle rivited on for length. The skim clean.

Do not put any WW's that are damp or wet into molten lead or you will get an explosion. If they are wet, put them in the pot before turning on the fire.

WW's cast good from 750 to 800. You must pre-heat the mold. I find 500 is ideal. You can use a cheap hotplate with a piece of metal on the coils, lay the mold on the metal.

You can also dip the corner of the mold in the molten lead until lead will not stick to it.

Maybe the first few boolits will not look right but when the mold is up to temperature, nice ones will start dropping. Keep a steady pace.

Get a Lyman cast bullet book and read it.

You want to put the ladle in the sprue plate hole with the mold sideways, tip the mold and ladle up to vertical and hold it there about 5 seconds. Then tip the ladle off, leaving a nice puddle on the plate. Wait until the puddle hardens and cut the sprue.

If you watch carefully when the mold is tipped up, you will see the lead in the ladle go down, stop a second, then go down some more as the boolit starts to shrink. That is the point to remove the ladle. Just use about the same time for every casting.

You can drop the boolits on a cloth, cotton pad for soft boolits or drop them from the mold into 4 gallons of water in a 5 gallon bucket for hard boolits. Don't get ANY water near the molten lead, keep the bucket off to your side and don't get the mold wet either.

That should get you a good start. Don't be afraid to ask anything, there are no stupid questions!

Attached Files

jimkim posted this 28 August 2008

I made the first one because I got tired of waiting to get into my shed. I have Wheel weights and a cast iron pot there. Since the other day I have been using my pot and a fish cooker. I still don't have anything fancy but it will work. The bullets look better too. By the way I melted my lead in a ladle first then I threw in some wax and skimmed the top before transferring it to the LEE dipper. I think I did that part right the lead was very very clean. Thanks for the advice.

Attached Files

bfrshooter posted this 28 August 2008

To know the truth, I hate casting, lubing and reloading in general. I would rather just shoot but doing the work is the only way I can. So my life revolves around making my own molds for the perfect boolits, casting perfect boolits for my revolvers and shooting small targets at long range, getting groups most don't know can be had and then killing deer with them.

I shoot beer cans at 200 yd's with cast revolver boolits and shoot them to 500 meters for fun. I recently made a mold for a 330 gr boolit for my .44 SBH and did a drop test at 200 yd's. I shot 3 shots. Here is what I got.

Attached Files

jimkim posted this 28 August 2008

Ok? Did I say something wrong? I didn't mean to say anything offensive. I might just be confused by your response. I really did appreciate the advice I wasn't being sarcastic. If I offended you I apologize. Jim

Attached Files

bfrshooter posted this 28 August 2008

Oh no way. I was just explaining that I really get tired of the work it takes to get what I want but would not have it any other way either. It is a work of love.

I have spent a week milling scrap aluminum for mold blocks. Whew! I wonder why I do it sometimes. :D But the results are what I was trying to show you. They are more then worth all the trouble.

I just want you to join me in shooting the boolits you make yourself rather then buying those that will not make you happy.

I can answer many, but maybe not all of any questions you might have. Feel free to E mail me at [email protected].

I REALLY think you took me the wrong way! :D 

Attached Files

jimkim posted this 28 August 2008

Thanks. For me there is still a level of excitement. It kinda reminds me of being a kid on Christmas morning.

Attached Files

hunterspistol posted this 29 August 2008

:coffee  I've been trying to lose that feeling for 5 years now, it just doesn't go away. I like casting, use a Lyman Mini-mag for ladle casting. I pour wheelweight into .22 Hornet and .32-20 WCF for my pistols. Both shoot an inch and a half circle at 100 meters, at least, maybe better after the brass gets shot once and neck sized.

 If I'm not working brass, I'm casting or seating bullets. It makes the conversation,"What do you do on Friday and Saturday nights?” useless.  I'm in the back room making ammo (doesn't everybody?).

Oh yes, this week I'm hunting the skunks that keep walking through my backyard!

Attached Files

CB posted this 29 August 2008

I dont know if it gives me the excitement of christmas morning, but I do get the satisfaction from nicely cast bullets, still shiny silver as I fanastize of the accuracy and small groups they will shoot.

Sends shivers down my spine:)

Attached Files

bfrshooter posted this 29 August 2008

Hee, hee, been doing it for 53 years! :fireIt's only been the last 21 that I really got serious about cast accuracy. Thats when I started to drop out of IHMSA because of the expense and distances. Moving here from Ohio to follow my job at Dulles.

I started deer hunting with the revolvers, something I couldn't do in Ohio. Then the year I left, they made it legal. :X

I had to sell off a bunch of silhouette guns to get better hunting guns. I still have the SBH with over 58,000 rounds out of it. I bought several BFR's and found they are the perfect cast boolit shooters.

And now, another year is almost gone and hunting season is flying at me again. That means I have to start casting more because I shot up almost everything.

I have more boolit ideas to try but it looks like it will be a winter job. I want to get my blocks ready though, it takes forever to saw and mill them out of the scap I have.

I am not a machinist but started with the Smithy CB 1220 and just found a used Granite lathe/mill. Much easier. I wanted to save money on molds but I seem to be spending a lot on tools! .>

There is nothing more satisfying then shooting deer with a home made boolit or just seeing a pile of them on the bench.

Can I wet your appetites again?   Here are average 5 shot, 50 yd groups shot with a variety of my boolits. The large one in the center was 200 yd's and I shot the can twice at 100 yd's. .475 Linebaugh, BFR. Ultra Dot.  

Attached Files

hunterspistol posted this 09 September 2008

:coffee Wet my appetite? Okay, that weren't fair!

Attached Files

jimkim posted this 10 September 2008

That is nice, REAL nice indeed.

Attached Files

BruceV posted this 10 September 2008

I am impressed with your results.  Given the distances at which I typically encounter in hunting deer as well as the limited distance available at my range, I am seriously considering going to a good revolver in a significant caliber.  I hope you will continue to post specifics of your guns and techniques in casting and loading.  I appreciate the information you have shared.  Sincerely.  Bruce.

Attached Files

Close