Alloying

[armoredman]

I may have a steady source of pure lead. Now, how do I alloy it to be hard enough to be fired out of a 9mm at a reasonable velocity? What do I need? Thank you guys for all your help.

[SharpsShooter]

I have mixed wheel weights and pure at a 50-50 ratio and it works for pretty much any application. If no wheel weights, run (or drive) down to the hardware store and pick up a couple pounds of "lead free solder" It is 95 percent tin. I mix it 20 pounds pure to 1 pound solder. Works fine unless you want to magnumize your 9mm, then you would need a bit of linotype or some here use shot for the hardening purpose. You can also water quench harden by dropping the boolit straight out of the mould into a water filled bucket to surface harden them.



SS

[MGySgt]

SS - I know that you know this, but you can not harden 20 to 1 with heat treatments. You need some arsnic, hence the hard chilled shot mixed with tin and pure.

Drew

[leftiye]

You need antimony too. 5% antimony, 1/2% tin will heat treat to BHN42.

[Springfield]

Armoredman: If you go with the tin via lead free solder or any other source, don't waste it at 20-1. I run most of my bullets at 40-1 and they work fine for all lower pressure applications. I do my BP bullets at 80-1. Once you know what you are doing casting wise the bullet fillout is fine without all that tin. Tin is expensive.

[armoredman]

OK, so the tin wouldn't really help that much, but water quenching might. I can find a small bucket somewhere. How would I introduce antimony into the mix, and get it mixed/stay mixed in?

[SharpsShooter]

SS - I know that you know this, but you can not harden 20 to 1 with heat treatments. You need some arsnic, hence the hard chilled shot mixed with tin and pure.

Drew

Thats what I get for writing posts at work.[smilie=1: Quenching will change the surface tension or molecular structure of any alloy. However the addition of arsenic and antimony through the use of chilled shot added to the mix will strengthen the entire boolit.

SS

[MGySgt]

What SS just said - Hard Chilled Shot and any lead/Tin ratio will heat treat. Oven Heat Treat will get them harder then Water Dropped, but you normally don't need that extra hardness that Oven Treatment gives you.

Drew

[armoredman]

Well, I suppose I'll star in increments, water quenching first, then alloy/towel, alloy/water, and see where the leading stops at resonable velocity. Not going to be used for hunting/SD, just target shooting.
To reiterate, I find a bag of hard chilled shotgun shot, and mix an amount, (roughly what amount?), with the 40/1 tin, and all will be good. Thanks so much, guys. :)

[ReAX222]

I am so new to casting that I haven't even made ingots yet (project for this Sunday). I am using wheel weights, I am casting for .40sw and need to push them 970-1000fps. I have both stick-on and clip-on weights, is there anything I should do other than melt them down?

[454PB]

I am so new to casting that I haven't even made ingots yet (project for this Sunday). I am using wheel weights, I am casting for .40sw and need to push them 970-1000fps. I have both stick-on and clip-on weights, is there anything I should do other than melt them down?

For those velocities, straight air cooled wheelweights (ACWW) will work just fine. All you need to do is melt, flux, skim off the crud, and start casting. Some of us segregate the stick on WW, since they are nearly pure lead, but if you have a small amount throw them in the same pot.

[Crash_Corrigan]

My mix of ww's and stick ons is about 70-30. I smelt them down using a thermometer to keep the temp of alloy less then 700 degrees. Anything that does not melt at that temp is something I do not want in the mix and out it goes with all the clips, valves, stems or anything else. I then flux it good at least twice and stir it up real good and remove the dross. I then ladle it into my ingot molds and leave about an inch or two in the smelting pot for next time. When I cast I get the temp to about 700 degrees or 750 and get to it. I water quench straight ww's or mix and size and lube a few days later. I load .38, 45 ACP and 45 LC mostly and I have no problem with leading in the barrel and I get good accuracy.

[singleshotbuff]

50/50 WWs and range lead (soft, close to pure lead) water quench to VERY hard. Works great for all boolits for me, plus it's easy to do, just drop em straight outta the mold into a bucket of water. Mine come out so hard, that I have to size them the same day as cast, or the next day at the latest, otherwise they're hard to get through the sizer (Lyman 45).

I shot some 45 Colts this winter, water quenched from this alloy, outta a Lee 255gr RFP mold (actual weight about 260grs). Shot em with a healthy dose of W296 into several gallon milk jugs, filled with water and frozen. The boolits penetrated 3 or 4 jugs and stopped in the solid ice, recoverd boolits were absolutely undamaged except for the rifling. Plenty hard enough for me, and zero leading.

Just my $0.02

SSB

[armoredman]

Now what would I do with a pure lead cast boolit for 38Spl, drive it at very low velocity?