Leaded revolver barrels

[softpoint]

Already getting hot here in central Tx. 101 today! So I wouldn't need to cast in the heat, i picked up a 500 count box of Oregon trail 200gr. round nose .45. I may have made a mistake. I wanted to shoot some light loads in .45AR cases. After about 12 rounds, light load of Titegroup, groups started to open badly from my Blackhawk. LEADED! No need for a bullet trap, just scrub the barrel over your furnace with this load to recover most of your lead!:x. Tried this load in both of my 625's. More leading!Bump the charge up to a hefty charge of Longshot. Still leading. Tried Bluedot. Same thing. All three of these revolvers shoot my Lyman 452460 boolits with accuracy and no leading. The guns are properly set up and 2 of them have had the cylinder throats opened up.
I'd still like to salvage this box of boolits, as they were not cheap, but i am at a loss what to do next.
:?

[softpoint]

As an added detail, I just checked the hardness of these on my Cabine Tree tester, they tested 91 and 92, tested twice, that gives about Brinnell 23 to 24 on the chart....

[GabbyM]

Tumble lube with LLA.

[zxcvbob]

I don't use Oregon Trails bullets just because they've gotten so expensive. But I've never had *any* leading from them, loaded hot or mild.

I didn't think .45 AutoRim cases would fit in a Blackhawk (one of them will, but you won't be able to rotate the cylinder)

[softpoint]

I had my Blackhawk cylinder chambers countersunk a bit so it would handle the AR cases as well as the ACP. Works very well as I have 625's to feed also.
I have used Oregon Trail boolits in a .44 magnum years ago, with no problems.

[geargnasher]

Boolits way to hard for the pressures you're using, probably too small, and the lube sucks. You might try GabbyM's tip for building up a layer of tumble lube on them to help them seal the bore, but that's a long shot. If you went to a much higher-pressure load with a slower powder it might help, too.

If you really want to get to the bottom of it, slug your barrel, and slug your chamber throats and see how those measurements compare to a pulled boolit.

Gear

Gear

[softpoint]

Oregon boolits mike .45220-45230. I have shot this diameter out of all these guns before. Yes, the boolits are pretty hard, but I did try fairly stiff loads of Longshot and Bluedot and they still leaded badly. I can try 2400, I used to shoot the old Keith load some, but that was a 250 gr. bullet. I'd have to find some data on the200 grain:???

[MtGun44]

Keith loaded a VERY hot Unique load in 45 AR or revolver .45 ACP, well over current book
max. I have approached it but chickened out. HOWEVER - as I got into the higher
pressure range, accy improved (I had no leading) and the POI moved closer to the
POA, steadily with each increment. My boolits were 452454 a bit small for throats
and AC WWT hardness - not too hard, but 11-12, so half the hardness of yours.

What gear said is probably right - small and hard are not a good combo.

Bill

[softpoint]

One of Elmer's loads was 14grains of 2400 with the 454424. I have used that load. He actually recommended sizing to .451! and he recommended 1-10 alloy or typemetal! I didn't get any leading with that load, but that has more horsepower than I wanted with this boolit. And, this is a 200gr, not a 250. Elmer said he used 6gr.Unique or 5 gr Bullseye for a light load with the .45 revolver.:lovebooli

[geargnasher]

The boolit is probably light enough that it's just getting punted out of the barrel and not offering enough static inertia to expand. Plus, like I said, the lube sucks. Trying to get someone else's alloy and lube to work has never been productive for me. Do what I did in college: Strip down to your skivvies and cast at midnight or later if it's too hot. Wear a leather apron, cover your shins, and wear boots with the tops closed off. A pink Fez also helps, ask Waksupi! :kidding:.

Gear

[Az Rick]

Toss a few at a time into your WW leadpot, won't be enough to change it. Chalk it up to lesson learned. Shoot what you cast, cause it fits the purpose.

Best, Rick

[bhn22]

22 bhn bullets require about 31,000 CUP of pressure to obturate. Most "book" 45 AR loads max out at about 17,000 CUP. The only way this will work is if the bullets start out larger than the throat diameter and swage down slightly to seal the throats, and subsequently, the bore. As mentioned before, you may be able to get a usable seal with bumble loob.

[runfiverun]

ditto.
i bought a box of them to purposely lead up my 41 so i could see if it was possible to shoot leading from the bbl with a soft alloy.
they do make good fluxing material and ww hardeners.

[softpoint]

I'd been down this road before, but with auto pistols. without the cylinder gap, forcing cone, etc. It was easier to get them to behave. I did coat some with LLA and it did fix the issue with the auto pistols, but I'm not so sure it will with these revolver loads. I am going to try that, though ,and if it doesn't work they will get tossed in the pot. :violin:

[softpoint]

The boolit is probably light enough that it's just getting punted out of the barrel and not offering enough static inertia to expand. Plus, like I said, the lube sucks. Trying to get someone else's alloy and lube to work has never been productive for me. Do what I did in college: Strip down to your skivvies and cast at midnight or later if it's too hot. Wear a leather apron, cover your shins, and wear boots with the tops closed off. A pink Fez also helps, ask Waksupi! :kidding:.

Gear
LOL:bigsmyl2:

[Casting Timmy]

I would start comparing what you have now versus what used to work. You have a different hardness bullet, and can't change that without casting. I would also suggest boiling a few bullets to clean off the existing lube and relube with your own lube.

Or see if you can borrow some swaging equipment and see if you can bump them up if needed.

Hopefully you can find something easy to make it work. I bought some wad cutters once that probably only half the bullet made it to the target with the other half staying in the gun.

Good luck

[44man]

I got a sample of the boolits long ago and they all leaded my bores. It is not the hardness because my cast are the same and never lead.
It is either the alloy used or the sizes of the boolits. Some are undersize for what you might need.
Lube does suck too.
It is a boolit that only works in a few guns. These things are pushed in gun rags but I will never spend my money on them.
I tried a lot of bulk boolits over the years too and none made me happy. Weird designs and bevel bases, etc.
I will stick with LBT designs from good boolit makers if I need to buy anything.
Cast Performance, Buffalo Bore, Double Tap and so on.

[44man]

LOL:bigsmyl2:
A PINK FEZ??? Now come clean, what is that all about?

[HDS]

As an added detail, I just checked the hardness of these on my Cabine Tree tester, they tested 91 and 92, tested twice, that gives about Brinnell 23 to 24 on the chart....

Maybe you need softer bullets? 23-24 seems a bit excessive to me, can the bullet really obturate as it should with light loads?

Tumbling them in liquid alox as someone suggested seems like a possible solution. Something I plan to try as well with some bullets I got.

edit: yeah I see I bring nothing new to the conversation....

[waksupi]

A PINK FEZ??? Now come clean, what is that all about?

I was wondering that, myself.

[softpoint]

A PINK FEZ??? Now come clean, what is that all about?
A fez is a somewhat unusual looking middle eastern hat, Someone wearing one of those in pink while sitting around in his drawers casting bullets invoked an equally unusual image....:drinks:

[geargnasher]

:groner:

Ok, so my memory sucks. Wrong Ric(k) and it wasn't pink. Mine, by golly, IS pink, but doesn't have a propeller. It was almost two years ago, and (Sorry Waksupi, I hope your reputation remains pure in spite of this:oops:) the discourse went something like this:

"
.............That's the Voo-Doo part of casting and it seemed that mo-tif worked for me. I think 9.3x62Al wears a Fez with a propeller on top and Bullwinkle the Moose antlers, and a camo tank top that says, "The Tinsel Fairy Sucks", when he gets serious.

..............Buckshot
__________________
Father Grand Caster watches over you my brother. Go now and pour yourself a hot one. May the Sacred Silver Stream be with you always

Proud former Shooters.Com Cast Bullet alumnus and plank owner.

"The Republic can survive a Barack Obama, who is, after all, merely a fool. It is less likely to survive a multitude of fools such as those who made him their president.""

That make more sense?

Gear

[geargnasher]

A fez is a somewhat unusual looking middle eastern hat, Someone wearing one of those in pink while sitting around in his drawers casting bullets invoked an equally unusual image....:drinks:

Actually, back then, I stood to cast. Otherwise sitting would require wearing a cup instead of regular skivvies, unless one had a leather apron that would go a considerable distance below the knees....

How's that image working for you?:kidding::drinks:

Nuthin' like casting boolits in the middle of the night on the gas stove in a travel trailer with your cheeks hangin' out 'cuz there's no AC and it's still about 90 degrees outside at two a.m. Ya gotta do whatcha gotta do...glad that was almost 20 years ago and now I have a REAL place to cast boolits :bigsmyl2:

Gear

[Recluse]

Rather than tumble-lubing them with straight LLA, I'd try tumble-lubing them in some melted beeswax or carnauba--in other words, something harder and thicker.

:coffee:

[softpoint]

I've tumbled them in Alox-Jpw mix. they are drying now, and I'll shoot some of them this weekend. :coffee:

[44man]

Glad I was done with my coffee! [smilie=s:
I get tired of washing out the keyboard and those pictures you fellas paint are just too much. [smilie=w: