convince me casting isn't a waste of time

[stephen]

First off hello to all.
I'm new to casting, trying to start on the cheap, ie coleman stove & cast pot, after spending something like 4 hours I've ended up w/ around 100 bullets of terrible quality. Equipment was Lee 2 cav mould & ww lead. I'd flux, pour 2 batches and have to flux again. Gray ash type powder kept raising up. In the end none of the bullets filled out right, and they were real soft. HELP!
Thanks

[bfox]

I am not the most knowledgable caster but I''ll try to help .
Are you sure you got the melt hot enough and the mold ?
If its not they will be wrinkly .

A thermometer would be nice to have .

I like to drop mine in a bucket of water , out of the mold .
Hardens them up some . Don't let any water get in the lead .
I found that out the hard way . Must of had some condensation on an ingot .
No harm but the tinsel fairy paid me a visit .

Keep it up you'll like it .
I am sure some more help than me will be posting soon .

Good Luck , Bill

[osage]

stephen welcome to the group. I hope you stick around for a bit, read and use the search. I know I found many answers to problems I was having via the search.
Was the mold cleaning following Lee's instruction?
Preheating mold, increasing alloy temp may cut the number of casts need before you get good boolits.
You did not say if your alloy is in ingot form. I found that I still get some dirt coming to the top when remelting ww ingots to make my alloys. Your will also find the top of the melt will start to oxidize as soon as it is exposed to the air. The more you scoop it off the more it forms. I just move the dross enough to fill my ladle.
As my snow berms have been melting the last couple of days I have picked up many boolits that when dropped from the molds were not perfect. They worked fine for close work and plinking.
Hang in there, you'll be hooked before you know it.

[jdhenry]

Just my 2 cents but I was doing the math today and for my .357mag, It costs about .05 to load a 200gr bullet. To go buy factory ammo it would be about .40 a bullet. I just ordered 10,000 primers and to shoot all of the primers (as a loaded round) it will cost me $500.00 and to buy 10,000 loaded factory rounds it would cost about $4000.00. Hope that helped:) Also the time away from the real world PRICELESS!!!!!!!!!

[verney]

Did you add any tin to the WW?

[andrew375]

You are just at the start of a learning curve, just the way I, and most of the others here, started. The good thing is that the only thing you are wasting is a bit of time and heat, bad bullets just go back in the pot.

To answer your problems it looks like either your mould, metal or both are not up to temperature. An important lesson we all learn is to abandon the idea of melting metal in a pot on a gas stove and instead go to a thermostat controlled electric pot.

Apart from cost cast bullets make me independent of supply fluctuations. When I'm staggering out of the shed with another hundredweight of 250 gr. SWCs I have a little smile at my none casting shooting friends who are having fits sourcing bullets and end up having to use yet another bullet type, which they didn't want, but have to use as it is the only one available.:castmine:

[jack19512]

I am a long way from being an expert but I do cast some nice bullets. Two of the things I have noticed that would give me trouble in the beginning was the lead temp and new mold prep. Also, did you smoke your mold? I should add I use straight wheel weights for my casting, never had to add anything myself.

[DonH]

I am a long way from being an expert but I do cast some nice bullets. Two of the things I have noticed that would give me trouble in the beginning was the lead temp and new mold prep. Also, did you smoke your mold? I should add I use straight wheel weights for my casting, never had to add anything myself.

I too suspect metal temp is too low. I have no experience with melting on a Coleman stove but do wonder if one can get and maintain high enough temperature. If you are not really sure how serious you want to get about casting, you might try one of the Lee 4 pound electric pots. Capacity is low but the temp issue wiil go away.
Addition of tin to wheel weight metal WILL enhance castability but I have also cast may thousands (tens of thousands?) of bullets from straight WW and never had a problem with mould fill-out.

[OldBob]

I started out with the same sort of equipment ( about 40 years ago) and one thing I did was set my melting pot inside of a piece of stovepipe that just slipped onto the pot. It seemed to help concentrate the heat and it also stabilized the pot. From what you describe it is either the mould not cleaned properly or the melt is too cold, just as the guys above said.

[Wayne Smith]

and they were real soft. HELP!
Thanks

WW metal should not be "real soft", even air cooled. Sounds like you got into some soft lead, which is harder to cast. Did you make the ingots? Are you sure they are ww metal? To cast Lead well you need heat - I cast lead up around 750 degrees.

You didn't specify one burner Coleman or two burner Coleman, but I've had my two burner propane Coleman up over 900 degrees with a 20lb Lyman pot full of ww. If you have a two burner you have plenty of heat.

I was casting relatively well before I got a thermometer but improved dramatically when I kept my temps more constant using one.

Read posts on leementing a Lee mold before you give up. Treat that mold gently and it will last, beat on it and it won't.

You don't say where you are. Its possible one of us is close enough to visit, or for you to visit one of us. Hands on instruction is invaluable. It takes longer only using the internet, I kno.

[VTDW]

Stephen,

Welcome bro. Stick around and you will naturally learn whazzup.:mrgreen: Casting is definitely worth your while as it affords you peace, quiet and tranquillity as you perfect your workmanship. Just sit back, take a break and enjoy your newfound hobby/addiction. Those fellas who posted above gave some really good hints. I sometimes write those things down and use them until one day, wallah, it all comes together.

Wayne Smith made a great suggestion. A few weeks back a fellow I had only seen one time asked me if he could watch the casting process. He brought his son along and we all had a great time. He did all the casting and left with a goodly amount of lubed and sized boolits to shoot. That reminds me, I gotta get him to bring me some WW. LOL

Dave

[NVcurmudgeon]

The problem is NOT your Coleman stove, if it is in good working order. I have been casting on a Coleman for forty years with excellent results. I find dribbling, clogging electric furnaces too irritating. If you are starting off with all new equipment make sure you are following Lee's instructions to the letter. Aluminum moulds generally need higher temperature than iron moulds because aluminum dissapates heat faster. If your pot is a small round bottom model that does not cover the entire burner surface you may need to make a simple sheet metal duct to keep all the heat on the pot. The caster who taught me used one of the old tiny Lyman round bottom pots and made such a duct. I once weighed 100 of his cast boolits and found them to be more uniform in weight than 100 Sierras. When casting with a ladle you have to drag the dross to one side before dipping. I usually manage to fill the mould 15-30 times between needing to flux and skim again. What are you fluxing with, and are you stirring the flux thoroughly into the melt?

[Aldeer]

I can almost never get Lee molds to give good bullets until I thoroughly clean them. Even soaking a few hours in acetone is not good enough. What has worked for me, a procedure I got from another on these forums, is as follows:

1) boil the mold for 30 mintues in water with Dawn detergent.
2) rinse mold under running water
3) boil mold in clean water for 30 minutes
4) Repeat 2 and 3.
5) Repeat 2

After this procedure, I get good bullets as soon as the mold is warmed up.

[jonk]

I only started getting good bullets after switching to an electric smelter; I just never could get the lead consistantly hot enough with a torch or coleman stove (though I do still use the coleman sometimes for smelting into ingots)

[stephen]

OK, let's see if I can answer all the questions.
Yes they were ww. Sorted w/o using the sticky types. I made ingots out of a cast pie shaped skillet.
The temp didn't seem to be too low as the metal was flowing quite readily. I do think I'll try the wrap on the bowl stovepipe trick next time though.
I did follow the Lee cleaning instructions, but substituted Unique bullet lube to lube the sides & top of the mould. And I smoked the inside before and again during, when they weren't releasing. It took forever to get the second hole, closer to me, to fill up all the way. Seemed like more than half that dropped from there were rounded on the end.
Flux was w/ a combination of dipping a candle, tossing in sawdust, and even trying a little crisco. Then stirring up real well.
I'm in Las Vegas.
I think that's all of them. Thanks for the help. I wasn't really expecting so many replies...
Stephen

[JIMinPHX]

You say that gray ash keeps coming to the surface. Did you scrape the sides & bottom of the pot when you fluxed? Also, you say that you are using wheel weights. Did you clean & flux them into ingots first or did you just dump them into a pot, flux & start casting? Usually you want to have a grubby pot for cleaning up the raw material & then a clean pot to cast from.

You didn’t say if you added any tin. Usually 1-2% of tin helps fill-out a lot. If you throw in about 6” of 1/8” diameter solid plumber’s solder per pound of lead, it should make a big difference.

You may also see better fill out from a slightly higher casting temperature. I usually cast with the pot around 650-700 degrees F. My molds usually need to be over 400 degrees to start working properly. If the boolits start to get a frosty appearance when they come out of the mold, then you are approaching the top end of how hot you want things. The frosty boolits are keepers though. A lot of guys cast that way intentionally.

Just to check, You do know to keep water & moist tools away from the casting pot, Right? If you dip a moist tool into a pot of molten lead, the very hot contents of the pot will be distributed all over the room you are in very quickly. You don’t want that.

[JIMinPHX]

Just saw your last reply. You must have been typing while I was. Those stick-on wheel weights are usually pure lead. When we say wheel weights around here, we usually assume that you mean the clip-on ones that aren’t zinc. The clip-on ones have a little antimony & tin already in them & they cast well. They are harder too. If you are melting your wheel weights & a few of them just don’t want to melt, pull the non-melters out of the mix. If you go a few hundred degrees above the normal melting point of the regular wheel weights, then the zinc ones will melt too & your mix will be trash.

[JIMinPHX]

If your second hole is not filling up well, then there is probably not enough heat in your ladle full of lead by the time that you get to the second hole. Either your pot is not hot enough, your mold is not hot enough, or your ladle does not have enough heat capacity. What type of ladle are you using?

[Springfield]

And sometimes new moulds just don't want to vent properly, causing improper fillout. Raising the temp sometimes helps, but with the 6 cavity moulds in particular, I just have to use them a couple times until they will vent right. Especially is you have lubed the top of the mould, it just helps seal it and keeps it from venting.

[HORNET]

Um, you used bullet lube on the sides and top? That stuff'll get everywhere you don't want it to be and cause all manner of problems. Try cleaning it off ( sometimes takes white gas or gasoline to cut through the burnt beeswax) again, including reboiling, lube the mold by rubbing the bearing and aligning surfaces by graphiting them with a pencil or graphite spray (works better if the mold is warm) or by rubbing them with soapstone. Those'll stay put and not garbage up the cavities and vents. Get the mold warm (to avoid moisture condensation)and smoke it with a butane lighter or matches (candles leave a greasy residue that messes things up), and try it again. I think the mold just got garbaged up by the lube. If you read much on here on the newbie posts, you'll hear a LOT of recommendations for Bullshop's Sprue Plate Lube as the ONLY thing to use for aluminum molds.

[44man]

Hornet has your answer, you garbaged up the mold. Re-clean it and use either Bullplate lube (Very sparingly) or a good mold prep like Rapine.
Molds don't even need any lube on pins, etc if you close them very gently. The top of the mold and underside of the sprue plate will work better with the proper lube and AMOUNT of lube.
Then the proper heat will make good boolits.
If you smoke, watch what you smoke with. No sense adding oils to the cavities.

[corvette8n]

Im fairly new also a couple of years, I learned a lot just reading these forums, then graduated to asking questions. Here is what I learned by lurking and trial and error.

I lucked out and my first pot was a Lee ladle pot I got from a gunstore going out of business cheap. I now have a 10lb Lee bottom pour, but am looking at a 20lb as those multi cavity 45-70 molds really suck up the lead.

I only use Lee molds cause they are the only ones I own, but thay need to be clean and run fairly hot, my bullets come out best when they are slightly frosted.

Even though the Lee dribbles a little, once I get a rythem going I find I can cast fairly quickly. I am looking forward to my first 6-cavity Lee mold from Ranch Dog

I only tumble lube cause thats all I got. I haven't had any problems with leading yet. My alloy mix is whatever I scrounge, WW lead pipe lino etc. I smelt it all in a big cast iron pot over propane, make ignots and save for when I am ready to cast. I use Bull plate lube on my molds( great product and it only takes a little.)
I tried graphite spray but I found smoking works better. I stir both my smelting pot and the Lee pot with a wood dowel.
The biggest thing is it must be fun for you or you won't stick to it. I get a satisfaction from shooting what I smelted then cast. Hope this helps.

[softpoint]

Now, smoking MOLD, It's prolly going to be hard to roll, being all powdery and fine, However, if you ALLOY it with some tobacco, you'll get better results. And it just might make yer boolits look lots better.........:mrgreen::mrgreen:

[jhalcott]

Welome to the group Stephen. I think the guys hit it when you said you lubed the mold. I use straight WW for LOTS of bullets. I also warm up the molds by dipping a corner into the melt. When the mix no longer sticks to the mold I'm ready to cast. I use a tooth brush to help clean the molds. You will not forget the feeling when YOUR first bullet goes in the ten ring. Or brings down a deer. Is it WORTH IT? YES, emphatically!

[cbrick]

Sure sounds like hornet and 44man nailed it. Clean the mould again very, very thoroughly and don't let ANYTHING except melted alloy get into the cavities. Anything waxy or oily when melted will migrate. Even a very small amount in the cavity and an acceptable boolit is impossible even for the most experienced caster.

You also mentioned bullets not releasing well. It’s not uncommon for Lee aluminum moulds to have very small burs around the cavity from the machining process; these burs grab and hang onto the bullet. Using a pencil erasure gently go around the cavity edges and smooth things up, should go a long way in releasing bullets.

Is bullet casting worth it? Before ya know it you to will be worshiping the shiny goddess and passing on your experiences helping other newbie’s get started.

Welcome to the forum and remember the only dumb question is the one NOT asked. Every single caster here also started out as a complete beginner.

Rick

[Sprue]

convince me casting isn't a waste of time

Here's a couple reasons.

Factory ammo prices at Midway:
Lists Remington 44mag 240g jacketed at $1.35 each
Llists Remington 45 ACP 230g jacketed $ 1.20 each

And thats with no tax or shipping added:coffee:

Another factor would include how much you actually shoot

Casting- don't get discouraged with casting. Various molds are very temper mental. If you have issues its either a heat, mold- contamination, too much lubrication, too much fluxing or inadequate tools.

I know it would be hard to start up all on your own (not having a local buddy) but you're in good co here. Ask away!

[AZ-Stew]

When 44man told you to put lube on the top of the mould and bottom of the sprue plate, I'm sure he meant "only in the vicinity of the hinge screw". As others have said, any lube that can melt and flow into the mould cavities, will. Therefore, you must use only a small amount and keep it as far from the cavities as possible. When the cavities are contaminated with lube, you can't cast good boolits. They will ALWAYS be wrinkled.

Just because the metal flowed nicely when you poured it doesn't mean it's hot enough. It must not only be hot enough to pour, but also be hot enough to remain molten for a few seconds inside the mould as you continue to fill the cavity. Wrinkles occur when the metal enters the mould and solidifies in one spot, while melted metal is poured in around it. It must stay molten until the cavity is filled. In the case of aluminum moulds, as others have noted, they dissipate heat very quickly. Therefore, your casting alloy must put enough heat into the mould on each cast to replace that which has been lost to the air between casts. There are two components to this: 1) casting temperature and 2) length of time between casts. The less time between casts, the less heat is lost. If you take too much time between casts, you will start getting wrinkled boolits, unless you increase the alloy temperature. Conversely, shorter times between casts will allow you to run a cooler pot.

Also, be sure to pre-heat the mould as described in Lee's instructions before casting.

Welcome aboard!

Regards,

Stew

[44man]

AZ, no, you can lube the whole thing. I use Rapine mold prep and it dries to leave a fine graphite film. Bull Plate is also just rubbed on until the metal shows a color change. You don't want any to get into the cavities. I use a "Q" tip with just a little on it and then rub off excess with my finger. The stuff is great and won't gas up to contaminate the mold.
By the way, mold and mould is interchangeable for a form or matrix that gives a particular shape to anything in a fluid or plastic condition.
Mold also refers to the stuff that grows so mould will not interchange in that case.
So if you say mold, or mould, you are correct unless you are refering to the stuff growing between your toes! :mrgreen:

[Shiloh]

Have you checked the price of components lately? I shoot .30 cal cast boolits with surplus powder for about $8 a hundred. Jacketed bulk bullets are $20 per hundred plus shipping.

Figure a MINIMUM of $35 per hundred of jacketed reloads and $25 for TWENTY round of factory ammo. Less the enjoyment one gets from casting your own.

This seasons shooting, now till it's too cold, will cost me around $200 maybe a little more

Shiloh

[cbrick]

44man, someone else posted earlier about lubing the mould and you posted the following, I think this is where as a new caster the confusion came from because stephen posted the following in his second post.


AZ, no, you can lube the whole thing. I use Rapine mold prep and it dries to leave a fine graphite film.


I did follow the Lee cleaning instructions, but substituted Unique bullet lube to lube the sides & top of the mould. Stephen

hhmmm . . . I'll bet that's a lesson that won't be soon forgotten but we all started at the beginning didn't we. Bullet lube all over the mould? No wonder he was wondering if bullet casting is worth it. [smilie=1:

stephen, completely clean the mold again, in fact after you think you have it clean just for giggles clean it over again. If it's not 100% clean a good bullet will never fall from it.

Rick

[stephen]

Just to clear up a few misconceptions. I didn't lube the inside cavity. Just a slight, very slight, wipe on the inside bearing surfaces and top near the hinge with a q-tip. I will definately clean it all up again via the soapy boil method though. Nothing to lose. I'll also try the pencil eraser on the edges. Perhaps the temp of the mould wasn't hot enough though as when I did dip the mould to warm it up lead did stick a little, and then plopped off. Perhaps the stovepipe method mentioned earlier will help here as well.
I understand the cost benefit of casting your own, as I've been reloading for quite a while, but in all honesty if I could find someone who offered a .32 swc I don't know that I'd be going though all this trouble. Then again I never thought that I'd enjoy reloading as much as I do...
Thanks again for all the great advice.

[cbrick]

stephen,

That lube is still probably a big part of the problem. You'll learn how very little of it can be there and still migrate into the cavities. LBT sells a lube stick made of bullet lube that's kinda like a pencil lead. I tried using one for a long time and finally gave it up, I just couldn't get little enough of it on even the sprue hinge to keep it out of the cavities.

Temp could be part of the problem also so clean really well and don't lube it, just treat it gently and get it well heated. I think you'll be a happy camper.

Rick

[kodiak1]

stephen I hope you don't give up that easy on everything in life.................................

You came here and you will get help but it is like anything else you will only get out of it what you put into it.

Look at all the advice you have gotten so far take it and run with it.

Ken.

[stephen]

Kodiak. I never said I was giving up. Its just that I wouldn't have tried had I found a company offering a 32 swc. I think you missed the whole part about trying it again, and how I didn't think I'd enjoy reloading like I do. Hell, I understand there is a learning curve w/ anything and I'm at the absolute bottom. You know what they say, nowhere to go but up.

[454PB]

I'm with Hornet. Lee should give better instructions for lubing. Most newbie casters figure more is better.....and immediately polute the mould cavities. I quit lubing my Lee moulds long ago, it causes far more problems than it cures. The only reason for lubing is to ensure that the block halves engage squarely, and that is easily done using your sprue knocker. Position it under the block halves as they are gently closed and guide them together. It becomes second nature after a while, and the cavities stay shiney and clean. I suggest you reclean the mould and try again with more heat and NO lube.

[runfiverun]

stephen
that gun club west of town holds cow boy shoots
id find out when they have one and ask a bunch of those guys
i bet a few of them cast ond would show ya whats up
i come down and shot with them they are a good bundh

[Onlymenotu]

convince me casting isn't a waste of time :roll:[smilie=1:

Stephen, Acctualy I'm more than sure the guy's have covered it in the above replys * dirty mold/dirty alloy/low alloy temp/ inproper venting * it's one of these for sure!!

you'll get it worked out soon....:drinks:

it's not a waste of time, i think most here will say it's quite enjoyable one you git the hang of it
i started casting for my inline muzzle loader...... i soon found out liked to cast,,,,,, more than i could shoot out of the inline.... so i bought a cartridge gun so i could cast the boolit's...... for it .... still like to cast..... but don't seem like i get to shoot enuff to keep the me casting as mutch as i'd like to......h3ll i've cast up some boolits and gave them a way to a couple members here * all i ask was they pay shipping* i told them they weren't perfect... possably a ding here a dent there... slightly rounded edge ect ect,,,,,,, when the member recieved the boolits in the mail.... i got a pm.......telling how happy they were with the boolits....... they said... I thought you said you were sending me reject's/ cull's i said no but they are not perfect.........they're reply was I've payed better money for commercialy cast boolits with not near the quailty that you've sent me

i cast with a turkey cooker,ladle & lee molds...... you can do it to * and still find it fun/enjoyable*

you'll soon be dropping good boolits.... with every opening of the mold and wondering what your going to do with the mountian of lead boolits your producing

[44man]

Maybe it was confusing, I mean't the whole sprue plate, even the top. However I do put Rapine mold prep all over the mold, helps prevent rust. I don't see what harm it would do to put a thin film of Bull Plate on the outside of steel molds either. A touch on the locating pins is good too, just keep it away from the cavities.

[AZ-Stew]

44man,

OK. I've never used Bull Plate Lube, so I don't know its characteristics. I use a moly impregnated grease and only lube at the sprue plate hinge. I've never had a need to lube the entire sprue plate.

I always spell it "mould" when talking about a casting form. Mold grows on bread and cheese.

Regards,

Stew

[PatMarlin]

After you re-clean why not just color inside the cavities and top surface as well as the spruce plate, alignment pins, all with your pencil? Can't miss that way.

There's your cheap and effective mold prep... :drinks:

[44man]

AZ, Bull Plate is great stuff. A lot of guys use it because they cut when the lead is still soft and it keeps it from sticking to the plate. It holds up to very high heat. You have to be carefull that too much isn't used and gets wiped into the cavities. More can be used on the hinge pin. If you use it on the Lee locating pins and angles, it won't turn to ash or build up.

[nvbirdman]

Just a thought on being at the bottom of the learning curve, there are many, many of us here that started before there was an internet. We got a mould, a pot, a heat source, read an article or two in the American Rifleman, and started pouring bullets. If we were lucky we knew one other person that cast (I didn't) and we could ask him questions, otherwise we made mistakes and learned from them.
I have been casting for thirty-five years and it adds immensely to my shooting enjoyment.

[stephen]

Wow! I never thought I'd get the amount of responses received so far. I'll be trying my hand at it again and hopefully have some better results to post. This started as a quick post at the peak of frustration to hopefully gain some insight. Thanks for such encouragement.

[VTDW]

Stephen...Dude!!! I never saw anyone wake up the congregation as fast as your post.:mrgreen: Everyone could just feel your frustration and jumped in to give a hand. don't you just love this place?

Dave

[218bee]

Stephan, I am new at this like you and let me tell you....CASTING IS HELL!!!!!
I will try to save you from this addiction if you would send me whatever gear and lead you've accumulated so far and you won't have to worry about it no more... [smilie=1:

[looseprojectile]

Stephen;
I have been casting since 1953. I think I have always had a copy of Lymans Cast Bullet Handbook, a large soft cover manual that covers all things related to casting and loading boolits. This is the company that sells moulds and loading tools. The guys here have given you good advice.
Many times I see the new people here ask questions that are answered clearly in this book. We all learn what we know from many sources and this forum is the best place to get specific answers to our questions.
Only recently have we had the internet, where we can come to pool our ignorance.
In 1953 I was fourteen years old and could easily find an oldtimer to ask questions about casting and loading. Now I am the OLDTIMER.
Bring on the questions.
You could do yourself a favor and get a copy of this manual and fill yourself in on all the ins and outs of boolit casting and loading.
I would look for one where they sell used books, though a new one is worth its weight in Silver for the information you can glean from it! Welcome to the forum.
Life is good

[KCSO]

If you are rich or If you don't like to shoot a lot, casting is a waste of time, otherwise...
I cast and shoot anywhere from 5-10 thousand rounds a year. I cast for and shoot guns that other folk have to leave on the wall because there is no factory ammo available. I can cast a bullet and tune a load to get the best accuracy and the cheapest shooting from each of my guns. I can take scrap lead and turn it into something usefull to me and my friends. After the initial start up cost almost everything I use to cast bullets is free...
I am still using moulds that my grandfather used and I will pass them on from here. Lead is swapped from the local gas station in trade for bullets and sinkers. Lube is either bear oil and bees wax or sheeps or deer tallow all obtained when butchering game. If I have to buy lube for a special load I buy from here and $8 will last me for a couple of years.

Now to why your bullets look like s#!t. You are just getting started they are suppose to be bad. There is no endevour in human experience that is worthwhile and works perfect the first time around. Did you ever fall off your bike when learning? Well just stick aroound here a month or two and read the old posts and soon yo will have gleaming perfection falling from the mould every cast. Your shootng will improve and the gals will fall all over you... well maybe not the last, but you will learn to make a good bullet and the most important thingis you will have the pride of accomplishment.

[twoworms]

My first try at boolit casting didn't go so hot. I cast about 50 440gr 50cal boolits for my 500 S&W. I loaded them over 11.3 grains of Unique. At 25 yards they key holed and I could not hit a 24"x24" paper with every shot. At home that night cleaning the hand gun I found lots of lead fouling. I had cast them with very soft lead.

Then I got a 5 gallon bucket of WW gave to me, the guy said they work great for cast boolits. I'm thinking sure they do... I cast about 50 boolits with the WW, lubed them with LLA loaded them over 11.3 grains of Unique and off to the range I go.

They shot very well on paper at 25yards. A guy asked if he could shoot it, I said sure. He shot a 5shot group that would go around 1.75" ctc. He asked where I got the cast boolits, with a big grin I said I cast them.

To date I have fired over 1300 rounds in the S&W, and near 500 in my Encore barrel.

Don't give up on cast boolits.

Tim

[HORNET]

Stephen, Recheck some of the stickies and Newbie video links and try again. You can do this. Like any worthwhile vice, it just requires practice to get good. Once you start getting useably good results, it'll start to grow on you (that's why it's sometimes called 'molding'...[smilie=1::groner:)

[mooman76]

Stephen,
I saw you are from LV. I live here too and have been casting a long time. If you continue to have problems I can see what I can do to help you out. Just let me know if you want help!

[stephen]

mooman76 I appreciate the offer, I've sent an email your way.
Thanks