Has anyone ever poured pure copper bullets

[wildchild2010]

I wonder if you could pour pure copper bullets for shooting out of your rifles and handguns for hunting. Has anyone ever tried it.

[Idz]

You would need a high temperature furnace, special molds, and probably have to swage them afterwards.

[Grendl]

Swaging would be the ticket, but would require a great deal of pressure. Turning them on a lathe would be an option also

[runfiverun]

which would mean a ceramic mold.
I don't wanna be the one cutting the sprue.

your best bet is to CNC them at home.

[wildchild2010]

Sounds like too much of a hassle for trying to pour them sawge them.

[wildchild2010]

which would mean a ceramic mold.
I don't wanna be the one cutting the sprue.

your best bet is to CNC them at home. Some pure copper and pure Bronze the Miyano Percision collet lathe sounds like the ticket. 100 times faster than pouring them and all the other BS involved.

[newmexicocrawler]

I have thought about this but the boolits would be super heavy...

[USAFrox]

I have thought about this but the boolits would be super heavy...

Actually, size for size, copper bullets are lighter than lead bullets, since lead is a heavier element.

[dudel]

I have thought about this but the boolits would be super heavy...

You may be thinking of Tungsten; but I don't think you want to try casting that either.

[mdi]

As an aside and FWIW (I don't want to get chided for going off topic :(). I made some bronze "bullets" many years ago on a Davenport multi spindle screw machine. Not really bullets, but small (approx. 25 caliber x 3/8" long) pieces for firing mechanism in an artillery round. The machine spit out 7-9 thousand pieces per shift...

[user55645]

The OP's Q was, "Has anyone ever tried it."

So......

I take that as a no.

Theres a video on youtube of a guy melting copper tubing with an oxy-acetlyene torch in a silica bowl and pouring it into a graphite mold.

It seems like it is quite doable. Practical and reasonable, not to sure.

[deltaenterprizes]

Barnes has been making solid copper bullets for a long time, I think A Square does too, but I am not sure of their process

[257]

I have solid copper turned commercial bullits for my 700 rem quite accurate

[olafhardt]

I have a friend that makes brass and sterling silver costume jewelery in his factory by the ton and some gold too. He uses a lost wax process. He said there is no known process to cast copper. Brass would certianly be possible. When I casually review the economics, I think brass boolits (?) could be cast cheaper than the price of premium ballistic ejaculates.

[user55645]

I have a friend that makes brass and sterling silver costume jewelery in his factory by the ton and some gold too. He uses a lost wax process. He said there is no known process to cast copper. Brass would certianly be possible. When I casually review the economics, I think brass boolits (?) could be cast cheaper than the price of premium ballistic ejaculates.

Im sorry, I have to disagree with "your friend". Copper has been cast since ancient times. Many relics have been found of cast copper.

Would brass boolits be dense enough to be feasible?

[Jr.]

Yes I believe brass would be dense enough and a jewelry furnace would work to provide evough heat but comes the question of a mold brass could work in a steel mold but copper would have to be ceramic? I don't know but would be interested in seeing any results from this... maybe find a use for all that 22 or brass laying around...

[olafhardt]

Im sorry, I have to disagree with "your friend". Copper has been cast since ancient times. Many relics have been found of cast copper.

Would brass boolits be dense enough to be feasible?

That is why I said "known" process. How the ancients did it we don't know. However I wonder about the purity of their copper, they did not have the processes to purify copper that we have. Those old castings may be more bronze like. A few percent of a contaminent can make a big difference in metal properties. Steel is iron with a controlled small percentage of other elements. A few per cent of tin, antimony, arsenic etc. makes the difference between boolits and musket balls. Alloying copper with things like zinc, tin, lead could change melting temperature, hardness and other properties. I would not be surprized to see casting alloys developed that could cast at temperatures close to those of the lead alloys we currently use.

[rhead]

That is why I said "known" process. How the ancients did it we don't know. However I wonder about the purity of their copper, they did not have the processes to purify copper that we have. Those old castings may be more bronze like. A few percent of a contaminent can make a big difference in metal properties. Steel is iron with a controlled small percentage of other elements. A few per cent of tin, antimony, arsenic etc. makes the difference between boolits and musket balls. Alloying copper with things like zinc, tin, lead could change melting temperature, hardness and other properties. I would not be surprized to see casting alloys developed that could cast at temperatures close to those of the lead alloys we currently use.


There were some tests run on the "Ice Man's" ax head back in the 90s a quick look failed to find the results there was low levels of tin, Antimony, and Arsenic.
Is there any reason that you want to use pure copper?

[Walter Laich]

If I were interested in this I would probably try to do it just for the fun of trying something new. Some folks just like to experiment

[Toymaker]

Not copper, but brass. They were turned from an extruded rod. They were very consistent and highly effective.

[Old Dawg]

The ancients could do it because they did not require the dimensional precision necessary for bullets.