Dang, I thought it was just me...
I have stopped at traffic light, jumped out of vehicle to pickup a wheel weight.
Newbie Caster. Guidance Needed
- Thread starter Raddoc
- Start date
Dang, I thought it was just me...
I have stopped at traffic light, jumped out of vehicle to pickup a wheel weight.
max503
Member
It works well in my 357 rifle.
gwpercle
Member
Make sure to base your mould / bullet choices on those that are appropriate for your round ... You want "Revolver" designs for revolver cartridges and "Semi-Auto" designed bullets for semi-auto pistols .
When you are just starting out you don't need the extra headaches of getting a 9mm Luger bullet loaded into a 357 Magnum case ... it can be done but sizing and crimping "tricks" with two sets of dies is required ... not for the beginner .
Stating what "Cartridges" you want moulds for would be more helpful than ...what .358 mould should I buy ... my favorite 38 special mould is not my favorite 357 Magnum mould ...
Details are pesky but get better answers .
I pressure cast with a Lyman Casting Ladle and the best bang for your buck pot is the 20# Lee Magnum Melter in 120volt .
Do not get a casting pot less than 20 pound capacity ... I wish someone had told me this 45 years ago ! Small pots waste your time . Lee Magnum Melter is a great value and doesn't leak !
Gary
When you are just starting out you don't need the extra headaches of getting a 9mm Luger bullet loaded into a 357 Magnum case ... it can be done but sizing and crimping "tricks" with two sets of dies is required ... not for the beginner .
Stating what "Cartridges" you want moulds for would be more helpful than ...what .358 mould should I buy ... my favorite 38 special mould is not my favorite 357 Magnum mould ...
Details are pesky but get better answers .
I pressure cast with a Lyman Casting Ladle and the best bang for your buck pot is the 20# Lee Magnum Melter in 120volt .
Do not get a casting pot less than 20 pound capacity ... I wish someone had told me this 45 years ago ! Small pots waste your time . Lee Magnum Melter is a great value and doesn't leak !
Gary
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Mod 29 Shooter
Member
I resemble that remark. I started casting about 6 years ago. Have over 40 molds now. Everything from .380 to 45 Colt and 223 to 45-70. It's a sickness...
I cast lots of pistol bullets. 22 to 45. I just started casting for my 45-70 and 500 That is a bit different. Longer to fill mold cavities and you have to be much more careful dropping bullets out. A hot 400 to 500gr bullet will wreck itself if you don't pad your drop area or drop on other bullets.
I personally size everything in a sizer. But, how necessary that is, I am not sure.
I personally size everything in a sizer. But, how necessary that is, I am not sure.
I water drop everything and put an old sock in the bowl.
twodog max
Member
Start simple and inexpensive. Lee moulds and a Lee lead pot will get you started as inexpensively as possible. If you don't take to it then not much loss. If you stick to it you can get more deeply involved later. I wish i knew how many moulds I have of many makes but I still use my Lee moulds at times.
Get the latest copy of the Lyman cast bullet handbook. A very good source of information.
good luck
Get the latest copy of the Lyman cast bullet handbook. A very good source of information.
good luck
GypsmJim
Member
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I am anal about consistency. I use a hardness tester to be sure the alloy is consistent.
I find that wheel weights ARE consistent. I often mine the lead from my own private range because I know that every bullet in there was one I cast myself.
Not confident to use public range boolits because the alloy is unknown.
Just my opinion.
LoboGunLeather
US Veteran
Where to start?
First, Lyman Handbooks offer excellent step-by-step and trouble-shooting information. If you can find a copy of the NRA publication "Cast Bullets" by Col. E.H. Harrison you will have an excellent reference source.
Second, safety is the first and last concern. Always outdoors or in an area with good ventilation and air flow. Eye protection (I prefer a face shield like industrial workers use), heavy gloves (think welding use), no nylon or synthetic clothing (only cotton or wool, which won't melt to the skin). No possible sources of moisture in the working area (water introduced to molten lead creates an explosion as it vaporized into steam). NO DISTRACTIONS! No children, no pets, nothing going on but the business at hand.
I have always used Lee aluminum molds with complete satisfaction. Inexpensive and easy to use with a little practice. Several of my Lee molds are over 40 years old and still performing.
I have two 10-lb. Lee bottom-pour pots. This allows me to work with one while the other is coming to temp, then recharge that one and work the other pot while the first is coming up to temp.
Lots of sources for bullet metal, but becoming harder to find in many areas. The old automobile wheel weights were great, but the new versions are unusable (wrong metals). Old plumbing lead pipe is history. Typesetting metal is history. Range salvage is still possible, but a lot of work (smelting, cleaning, fluxing, etc). Today I would probably order alloys from reputable suppliers for the intended uses.
My preference for revolvers has always been semi-wadcutter style. For semi-auto pistol I prefer truncated cone flat point. In rifle calibers I lean toward round-nose flat points. I have a few hollow-point molds, but the added time in the casting process is significant (and the differences in performance are minimal in most applications).
With the two Lee Production Pots and two or three molds I can regularly turn out a couple thousand bullets in a morning or afternoon session. Fill one mold, set it aside to harden, fill another mold, set it aside, cut sprues, drop new bullets on a padded surface, refill molds. Work until one pot is about 80% empty, then refill with ingots and start on the other pot while the first gets up to temp, stirred, skimmed, fluxed as needed.
Started out with the old Lee lube & size kits, shallow pans for melting the lube, cookie-cutter style tool for removing the bullets from the lube pan. Quickly learned that sizing was not much of an issue for most applications. Picked up a RCBS bench-mount lubricator-sizer press years ago and never looked back.
Fifty years now, and every time I add a new caliber the first thing I do is order dies and bullet molds.
Lots of reference sources available, plenty to read and learn from, many mistakes are easily avoided with a little bit of experience from others.
First, Lyman Handbooks offer excellent step-by-step and trouble-shooting information. If you can find a copy of the NRA publication "Cast Bullets" by Col. E.H. Harrison you will have an excellent reference source.
Second, safety is the first and last concern. Always outdoors or in an area with good ventilation and air flow. Eye protection (I prefer a face shield like industrial workers use), heavy gloves (think welding use), no nylon or synthetic clothing (only cotton or wool, which won't melt to the skin). No possible sources of moisture in the working area (water introduced to molten lead creates an explosion as it vaporized into steam). NO DISTRACTIONS! No children, no pets, nothing going on but the business at hand.
I have always used Lee aluminum molds with complete satisfaction. Inexpensive and easy to use with a little practice. Several of my Lee molds are over 40 years old and still performing.
I have two 10-lb. Lee bottom-pour pots. This allows me to work with one while the other is coming to temp, then recharge that one and work the other pot while the first is coming up to temp.
Lots of sources for bullet metal, but becoming harder to find in many areas. The old automobile wheel weights were great, but the new versions are unusable (wrong metals). Old plumbing lead pipe is history. Typesetting metal is history. Range salvage is still possible, but a lot of work (smelting, cleaning, fluxing, etc). Today I would probably order alloys from reputable suppliers for the intended uses.
My preference for revolvers has always been semi-wadcutter style. For semi-auto pistol I prefer truncated cone flat point. In rifle calibers I lean toward round-nose flat points. I have a few hollow-point molds, but the added time in the casting process is significant (and the differences in performance are minimal in most applications).
With the two Lee Production Pots and two or three molds I can regularly turn out a couple thousand bullets in a morning or afternoon session. Fill one mold, set it aside to harden, fill another mold, set it aside, cut sprues, drop new bullets on a padded surface, refill molds. Work until one pot is about 80% empty, then refill with ingots and start on the other pot while the first gets up to temp, stirred, skimmed, fluxed as needed.
Started out with the old Lee lube & size kits, shallow pans for melting the lube, cookie-cutter style tool for removing the bullets from the lube pan. Quickly learned that sizing was not much of an issue for most applications. Picked up a RCBS bench-mount lubricator-sizer press years ago and never looked back.
Fifty years now, and every time I add a new caliber the first thing I do is order dies and bullet molds.
Lots of reference sources available, plenty to read and learn from, many mistakes are easily avoided with a little bit of experience from others.
Tex1001
Member
Steel molds can make great bullets.
Aluminum molds can make great bullets.
Steel molds and aluminum molds each have a "Manual of arms"
that is VERY DIFFERENT!!
Beginner casters should get used to/proficient at using one before trying the other.
I use a Lee Production Pot Four Furnace or dip from a cast iron pot on a Coleman stove.
I would start with a 1 or 2 cavity mold and get used to a set of simple, repeatable procedures before moving to a many cavity mold.
U-Tube can be your friend.
Aluminum molds can make great bullets.
Steel molds and aluminum molds each have a "Manual of arms"
that is VERY DIFFERENT!!
Beginner casters should get used to/proficient at using one before trying the other.
I use a Lee Production Pot Four Furnace or dip from a cast iron pot on a Coleman stove.
I would start with a 1 or 2 cavity mold and get used to a set of simple, repeatable procedures before moving to a many cavity mold.
U-Tube can be your friend.
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AJ
US Veteran
Picked up two six-cavity molds (Lee) for $30.00 a piece and a two cavity mold for $20.00 at a gun show this weekend, used of course.
Lead is getting to be a problem to find. I just paid $1.00 a pound for 120 pounds of good clean lead.
I too, started out with the old Lee Luber/Sizer kits. In fact still have them in a drawer. Then I got the RCBS Luber/Sizer (have two). Now I am powder coating and use the RCBS as just a sizer for some calibers, For other calibers I use a Lee press mounted Sizer.
Read books, read what is offered here and then pick out what will work for you.
Good Luck!
Lead is getting to be a problem to find. I just paid $1.00 a pound for 120 pounds of good clean lead.
I too, started out with the old Lee Luber/Sizer kits. In fact still have them in a drawer. Then I got the RCBS Luber/Sizer (have two). Now I am powder coating and use the RCBS as just a sizer for some calibers, For other calibers I use a Lee press mounted Sizer.
Read books, read what is offered here and then pick out what will work for you.
Good Luck!
I have found lots of pawn shops now have XRF machines that can scan a sample and tell you what % of elements are in the sample. Will likely do it for free. Then you can calculate how much of what to add to it to get the alloy you want. They have the XRF to test gold jewelry and the like.
Rosewood
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GypsmJim
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Good scientific method. In one of my past lives I had access to XRD and XRF machines and was even authorized to use them for my job. To me it was much too much hassle.
In my area there was basically a single wheel weight supplier for all the tire shops. So it was pretty consistent.
A pizza for the guys would get me a 5 gallon pail. (actually 2 much lighter 1/2 pails). When lead was outlawed I made an extra effort to get a lifetime supply. Boy that was a lot of pepperoni....LOL.
Sickness is what it is. While out at the range getting ready for Pronghorn I was putting up a target at the 200yrd. I started looking at the dirt berm behind the target. All I could see was gold, um er lead. Well, that started me thinking, what do they do with all of the lead in the berm.
After my sub moa on my new 270, I went back to the office and asked about the gold, um er sorry lead. The manager came out and said they were having a problem with getting a good company to come out and mine the lead. He told me I was welcome to go out there when no one was on the range and take what I wanted. The clouds parted and I could have sworn there was an angel smiling at me.
All I could think about was how to make a sifting screen. Buckets, gotta get lots of buckets. What had I done to be so fortunate.
Man I am an addict.
After my sub moa on my new 270, I went back to the office and asked about the gold, um er sorry lead. The manager came out and said they were having a problem with getting a good company to come out and mine the lead. He told me I was welcome to go out there when no one was on the range and take what I wanted. The clouds parted and I could have sworn there was an angel smiling at me.
All I could think about was how to make a sifting screen. Buckets, gotta get lots of buckets. What had I done to be so fortunate.
Man I am an addict.
