Introduction

[jjamna]

Hello Everyone. I signed up to this board 4 days ago and want to say Thank you. to all who have answered my post. I posted the same things on another forum (one named after an old man with a beard) and got only a few to no responses. I have had many responses to them here and they are all good. No smart a$$ comments which is very good. I have been reloading for about 20 years but just started casting about 3 months ago. I am from western Ky, Our Deer season opens tomorrow (good Luck to ALL hunters) I am sure I will be asking some dumb questions but like someone once said The only dumb question is the one that is not asked. I will start out with What is water Dropping? Casting then dropping bullets in water or cooling mold with water. I hope it is the first because the second is not very safe to pore in a mold that has been in water (learnd the hard way) If iI understand correctly it will make the bulets harder????????
I have got some pretty good shooters after several attempts by teaching my self but I have learned a lot more just reading thru the post here. I am confused on the water drop though. Right now casting for 30-30 357, 35 Rem and 45 Auto.
I will shut up now. Thanks for the Great website.
Jeff McBride

[mooman76]

Thanks for the good comment. The only problem here about asking a question is you may get so many answers that you get overwelmed.

In answer to you questions water droping is dropping the fresh moulded bullets while still hot into water. It helps temper them and make them harder. Also you can heat them in an oven just below melting and drop them in all at once. In the second part of your question some people set their molds or maybe just run it across a damp towel to cool it of abit so that they can mould bullets faster. That is for steel moulds mostly because they retain they heat better!

[fishhawk]

as the term implys it's just opening the mold and letting the boolit drop into cold water some put a cloth with a slit in it to slow the drop to the bottom of the water and yes it make WW boolits harder (don't bother with it myself) fishhawk

[Bent Ramrod]

Welcome to the Board, JJamna. Water dropping is allowing the freshly-cast boolit to fall from the mould into a container of water. If there is antimony or arsenic in the lead alloy, this rapid quenching will harden the boolit somewhat.

This is much more convenient, but theoretically at least less consistent and effective than heating a wire basket of the castings in an oven to slightly below melting temperature, and then quenching them in water all at once. On the other hand, the mould dropping will allow variations in temperature by the time the boolit hits the water, since some boolits are sometimes hard to tap out of the mould, the casting temperature can vary with the lead level in the pot and changes in casting speed, etc. This should vary the hardness somewhat as well.

I put a large pretzel can full of water with a cloth loosely fastened across the top of the can on the ground well away from the lead pot. I cut a small hole in the cloth and drop the boolits onto the cloth, which is generally an inch or two under water. The cloth keeps the boolits from hitting the bottom of the can and each other hard enough to cause dents. It's too far below to splash water into the lead pot, so no problem there. Hope this helps. I don't shoot hi-velocity cast boolits so I'm less concerned with absolute consistency or maximum hardness than some.

[jjamna]

Thanks for the info guy,s. I may try it but I am not having any leading problems yet so it may not be a big deal. I am using wheel weights, melting them in a seperate pot to clean up the best I can. Then i use a Lee pot and Flux with Marvalux. Tumble lube with Lee alox and Wax lube with a Lyman Base mix I make up. Like I said I havn't had any leading problems yet but I don't push em very fast either. I think 1200 fps is about max.

[jjamna]

Just checked all my post's In the reloading forum under case tumbler had 21 replies
In Shooters.com (this forum) under Trailboss had 18 replies and in Single shot Rifles under Armi San Marcus had 6 replies this is great. Thanks

[Buckshot]

Just checked all my post's In the reloading forum under case tumbler had 21 replies
In Shooters.com (this forum) under Trailboss had 18 replies and in Single shot Rifles under Armi San Marcus had 6 replies this is great. Thanks

............Well don't worry. When you've been here as long as I have they'll begin to ignore you too. Just give'em a chance :-)

.............Buckshot

[dromia]

Just checked all my post's In the reloading forum under case tumbler had 21 replies
In Shooters.com (this forum) under Trailboss had 18 replies and in Single shot Rifles under Armi San Marcus had 6 replies this is great. Thanks


Aye, we are a right gobby bunch here. :-D

[Rick N Bama]

Hey JJamna, welcome to the madness! What part of WK are you in? My son lives in Leitchfield in Grayson County. Ever make it to Whittaker's in Owensboro, or for that matter, ever make it to Moonlite BQ?

Rick

[Char-Gar]

JJama.. Welcome and best of luck on your hunt. I lived in the Lexington area of Kentucky back in he early 70s and have very fond memories of the Bluegrass State.

Water droping has been well explained. I am not a big fan of the notion. It is very peopular with some handgun bullet caster who feel that harder is always better, which is far from the truth. When it comes to rifle bullets if I need a harder bullet, I will use a harder alloy or over temper air cooled wheel wieght bullets. I feel get more consistant results and better accuracy this way... But opinions will differ.

Welcome again..this is THE place for the bullet casters on the net. I have been a part of this board since 1998 when it started on the old Shooters.com and have followed it through it various drifting until it found a home here at Gunloads. There is something here for anybody interested in bullet casting, from the beginner to the total cast bullet nut.

[Taylor]

Welcome,jjamna..Harlan Countian myself...I found this board right after I started reloading and casting a while back.Would have been lost without it.(Thanks to all who have given me guidance.) These folks know a lot and are willing to share.

[Single Shot]

WELCOME jjamna

You will find this an interesting read. It is a four page article on casting.

http://www.realguns.com/archives/055.htm

In addition here are some articles I saved.

5278

[jjamna]

Rick N Bama I am in Webster county. Leitchfield is 2 hours east of me. Yes to Whittakers go all the time. Need to go now for primers and powder. Been to Moonlite many times as well. Good BBQ

[jjamna]

Single shot yes very interesting. I have the Lyman book on casting. Best money spent so far.

[Jon K]

jjamna,

Welcome aboard. Lots of good people here with a lot of good info, and also a lot of opinions.
It sounds like you are enjoying casting your own. Now you're hooked! Water dropping, alloy mixes, loading technics........Experiment, Experiment, Experiment. The method that works best for you and the gun is the best for you. Just like Fords & Chevy.......half the fun of it is the development.

Have Fun Shooting,
Jon [smilie=s::cbpour: