Old hat to you here, but new fun to me. Thanks for the references folks

[Tallbald]

Today I took the plunge my Daddy and I never did back in the 1960's when he wanted to begin casting boolits for .32 ACP and his Walther PPK. Back then, without Youtube and internet forums like this, casting without someone to teach you was, I guess, a daunting prospect. Some things just reading about isn't enough. This one's for you Daddy. I'm doing what you and I wanted to do so many years ago, I so miss you, and wish beyond the power of words to describe that you were here at my side...
After reading a lot here, taking notes and asking questions (some I'm still seeking answers to) I took out the new iron pot, the vintage Coleman camp stove and a miniature muffin tin my loving wife gave me. Grabbed a few bits of beeswax from my leather crafting stuff, vise grips, leather gloves, NIOSH respirator, safety glasses, metal coffee can, beat up aluminum cake pan and a 4 foot square sheet of chipboard. Fired up the stove and got started. A little hesitant at first, I kept thinking of all the cautions I've read through the years. Smoke and a few sparks from bits of wood I guess came from the pot as the lead melted. I watched with anticipation as the lead slowly turned to a black and silver stew. I enjoyed fluxing it and watching flame flare up some times. Stirring the lead was a different sensation from anything else I'd done before--so thick and heavy a consistency the mix fought the stainless steel spoon's movement. It was fun to skim off the dross and then pour the molten lead into the muffin tins and see it harden and contort as it cooled.
After all the lead scrap had been melted, poured and cooled I loved stacking the ingots and counting them. It felt like I had amassed some sort of treasure for myself.
I ordered a 6 cavity mold this afternoon, along with handles and .358 sizing die. Really looking forward to casting my own, and will undoubtedly be thinking of my Dad while I do it.
Thanks for a great forum folks. Don
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[Mk42gunner]

Don,

Just wait, it gets even better when you are casting boolits instead of making ingots.

Now the search begins for more and more lead....

Robert

[waco]

What a great post. I just lost my dad seven months ago. My uncle was the one who taught me. Lost him in '99. There is a brotherhood here. You will soon see this for yourself. Lots of great folks. Tons of info on this site. Feel free to ask any and ALL questions. I hope you learn and have much success. :)
waco

[Echo]

Welcome, Don; My suggestion - read ALL the stickies - then read them again. Ninety-nine percent of the info you will need, and seek, is the in those stickies. I've been on this forum for several years now, and am still learning.
(An ex-GF once said "I know all I need to know!". That attitude is foreign to me, and her attitude about some other things is why she is an ex-. I found that I was just arm-candy for her...)

[dondiego]

Echo - Arm candy! I'll tell ya...........never mind.

Don- That .358 sizer is going to be a little big for that .32 ACP! Just kidding. Welcome aboard. The fun is just beginning!

[Tallbald]

Grins dondiego! I gave the old but unused .32 die Daddy bought in the 1960's to a casting friend last year to use for his .31 caliber black powder revolver. The .358 sizer, a .358 mold and handles will be for making slugs to fit my Ruger .357's. Ya got me lol! Thanks for looking everyone. Don

[captaint]

Tallbald - you're well on your way. Sounds like you are already hooked. Congrats. One tip, though. When starting to cast with the new 6 cav Lee mold, just fill the 2 cavities nearest the sprue plate hinge bolt. This way, the mold will progressively heat up, making cutting the sprues much easier. As the mold gets hotter, you can fill 3, then 4 and so on. With any luck, you won't break the sprue cutter handle - a very common occurance. Enjoy Mike

[mdi]

Books/manuals/texts are great to gather info., but the only way to learn to cast bullets is to cast bullets. You can learn all about alloying, mold and melt temperatures, fluxing, etc., and having refrence for problems, but makin' boolits is lernt by makin' boolits...

[Boolseye]

Welcome aboard, great post. Smelting, casting and shooting have become a regular occurrence and a source of joy and relaxation in my life. Be safe, and may it bring you happiness.

[Fishman]

Best tip I ever got on this site was to buy a $10 hot plate which I found a Walgrens. Preheating the mould to casting temperature is so much nicer. It also keeps your melt from cooling down from the rejects.

[Cherokee]

Welcome to the journey...been walking that path for 50 years and still learning, especially from here. Practice will bring improvement and fun...

[Moonie]

Run while you still can. This is an addiction, you will not save money, you will shoot more and understand your firearms better. You will begin to covet wheel weights seen on tractor trailer tires. You will begin to collect molds, just wait until you try your first custom mold, bad news for your pocket book at that point. You have come to the right place if you do wish to continue with this insane idea, and we are a bunch of enablers.

[Tallbald]

Finished making ingots today, melting and double fluxing. Latest count is 96 ingots maybe 5-6 ounces each. I need to weigh one for the record, but I calculate that I have now enough clean lead for about 1800 , 125 grain soft lead flat round nose slugs. They'll travel ahead of burning Trail Boss for now, at less than 1000 FPS. I also shall never need to buy another overpriced commercial .457 ball for any of my three Ruger Old Army's. I have a Lee mold for that however the sprue plate hole doesn't line up on center with the cavity. Sadly I just never called to ask Lee for an exchange since I had yet to use it ( I'm not the brightest tool in the shed, nor the sharpest tool in the chandelier) since purchase 4 years ago.. Today for the first time I had troubles with ingots sticking in the low-priced non-stick mini muffinn pan I've been using. At the scrapyard, they had a nifty small cast iron muffin pan I bought for $1.50. May have to switch to that, but would prefer to clean it up and use it for.....muffins. Hated to hear it from the dealer, but when I told him I'd need lead for casting, he said someone recently took a "whole bucketful" of bullet molds someone sold to the yard as scrap. He said "they had the wood handles and everything" and had "sat there forever". He looked to see if any were still around, but alas there weren't. Made me a little sick to my stomach.
Don

[blackthorn]

Quote "I also shall never need to buy another overpriced commercial .457 ball for any of my three Ruger Old Army's. I have a Lee mold for that however the sprue plate hole doesn't line up on center with the cavity."

Since it is a round ball mould---once it is out of the mould, it seems to me there will be no effect! Anyway, I seriously doubt that even on a non-roundball bullet, if the sprue cut is a bit off-centre (as long as it is basically flat) that it will make any difference in performance.

[Wayne Smith]

I have a similar Lee round ball mold. Sent it to them, they sent it back saying it was within specs. It does work.