Are You a Purist?

[Hickory]

Are you a purist?
What I mean is do you use cast boolits for all your shooting endeavors.
Or maybe just use cast for target practice. Or do you just shoot lead in your handguns and jacketed bullets in your rifle
Maybe you use what ever works the best, at the moment.
Myself, I try to use cast all the time, but sometimes they are not my first choice for the job at hand.

[Big Boomer]

Keep mega rounds for a semi-auto military-type rifle caliber with jacketed bullets only in case it hits the fan, as I expect it will. All others get cast boolits only except for carry rounds. Have plenty of bullets for all calibers but just prefer shooting cast boolits. Oh, almost forgot the shotgun ... only use reloads in it, too. Big Boomer

[Scharfschuetze]

Well, this might open up a can of heresy!

Jacketed bullets for my hunting and self-defense needs. FMJs in my military career and JHPs in my career as an LEO other than lead boolits as a member of the department's shooting team.

Now, with that said, I use cast boolits in almost all of my recreational shooting with rifles, pistols and revolvers. I have a small collection of almost pristine WWI and WWII military bolt action rifles. The barrels are serial numbered to the receivers on the European rifles and bore wear is a concern as once those barrels are toast they are irreplaceable. Cast boolits lets me shoot with much reduced wear to them. My old Smith & Wessons as well as Colt handguns also get a steady diet of lead boolits other than in my CCW pistols.

Fired off about 50 cast boolits today in my 1891 Mauser at iron located 200 yards away with better results than my partner shooting a Remington 740 with factory ammo.

"The proper tool for the job" has always been good advice, so I guess I'm not quite a purist.

[mongoose33]

I'm most definitely a purist.

Defined, of course, as someone who loves shooting, loves casting, loves reloading, loves testing out different things.

What else would a purist be? :)

[35 shooter]

Started casting for rifles a bit over 2 years ago and hunting with cast as well.
I haven't fired another jacketed round since.
I've come to prefer cast for everything now....works for me.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

I am becoming a purist.
BUT, I have been told (by those I trust), that's it's a good plan to "break in" a standard off-the-shelf rifle with a box or two of J-words, to smooth out any burrs that might be in the bore, then a thorough cleaning to remove any copper, then it's all boolits baby !

[Butchman205]

I'm converting over to cast as much as possible, but I LOVE Hornady bullets...so partially for now. I shoot a butt load of cast 45 Colts (almost daily), and swapping over to cast boolits as I work up a really great load per caliber.

[Mauser48]

On only shoot cast for revolvers really. Or if I had a 45-70 I'd cast for it. Basically castbullets only for more traditional calibers where cast is kind of the standard. Not opposed to anything else I just don't do it personally.

[tazman]

I am not a purist. I use what ever works best for the task at hand. I shoot cast for practice and jacketed for serious stuff.
That said, I would not hesitate to use the cast I make in a serious situation in my handguns. They are that good.
In some instances jacketed would be better and that is what I would use.

[mac266]

I've been casting for a little over a decade, and only recently started casting for my rifles. I started shooting in SASS, which requires lead boolits for everything. That's what got me into casting to begin with. I also shot USPSA and IDPA, and as I got better casting, I decided to start shooting boolits in those guns and matches, too. Pretty soon, there wasn't a factory bullet, jacketed or otherwise, going through any of my handguns, including guns that I don't use in any of those matches (also cowboy rifles, which shoot pistol cartridges anyway).

Then I bought some round ball moulds for my black powder rifles and pistols. It just seemed natural with the old guns to do it the old way.

In addition to my SASS guns, I have some lever action rifles in traditional rifle calibers, like .30-30 and .35 Remington. I started casting for those because it was fun, was always easy to get ammo for the .35 Remington, and seemed to match the cowboy persona of the guns themselves.

Recently, I've branched out into casting for the more modern guns, like my bolt action rifles. That venture was interrupted, though, by being sent overseas for military duty. I'll return in the spring and actually shoot some of those boolits I've made that are sitting on my bench, anxiously awaiting my return home :)

So it seems the more I cast, the more I become a purist. Eventually there won't be a single factory bullet to my name :) I have yet to hunt with cast, though. The problem is, I have two jobs, so I rarely get out to hunt anymore! Someday...someday...

[Win94ae]

I use cast in everything but the 30-06s. If I need to shoot something with a cast bullet in 30cal, the 30-30 does it better.

[Hickory]

I've been casting & shooting cast boolits since the early 1970's it was at a time before anyone ever heard the name "Dirty Harry" I bought my first 44 mag and realized shooting factory was way too expensive. Casting was the logical way to go if I wanted a gun for more than just hanging in the closet.

Jacketed bullets were quite expensive back then, $3-4 per box of 100 bullets for reloading. This was at a time when I could get a 5 gallon bucket of WW for the same price.

Nearly all of my handgun shooting is done with cast boolits, this includes hunting. For varmint shooting, I swage my own .224 caliber bullets and more than 90% of my other rifles are feed a diet of lead.

As far as being a absolute purist, I am not, but I consider myself the next thing to it.
Copper jacketed bullets are superior to cast boolits, but not by very much in a handgun. The same is not true in a rifle. In a rifle, cast will have to take a back seat, but, will always ride in style with its head high.

[Hickok]

"Am I a purist?"

Nope I am a Baptist, but I have a lot of purist friends!:bigsmyl2:

[Larry Gibson]

I'm a purist.....I like shooting (rifles, handguns and shotguns) with cast and jacketed.

I don't golf..........

Larry Gibson

[imashooter2]

I shoot jacketed in .223. I have jacketed bullets in inventory for several other calibers that have been on the shelf for years as I shoot lead in everything else.

[Nowherefound]

Since I found this forum and got hooked on lead I have switched almost everything over to lead. In fact the only non lead I load and shoot on a regular basis is plated 9mm (right now I would rather buy rifle molds) when I need to practice with my Kel Tec. I will admit that my carry Sp101 stays loaded with Rem 125 SJHP in 357 and the Pf9 is loaded with JHPs. I shoot for fun and casting for lead has been a great experience. Not only the fun involved in the hobby but when I go to the range I can bring hundreds of rounds along and stay within my shooting budget. As mentioned by an earlier poster it is also hard to ignore the fact that lead wears less on barrels, especially when you shoot a lot of older guns.

[Sensai]

Certainly not! I enjoy using different tools for different jobs. I have only been casting since 1966, so I'm still learning new (to me) things. I guess that I could, sorta, be considered a purist when it comes to safety. Not that everything has to be done one certain way, but that safety is always the top consideration. My personal philosophy is that purism (is that a word?) and stagnation mean about the same. All change is not good, but all change is not bad either. Life is just too short to waste time resisting new things just because they're "not the way we've always done it". Just think of the lost opportunities to learn!

[Ken in Iowa]

I shoot a lot of CAS now, so everything is cast there.

My milsurps are a mix. We still have a lot of j words on the shelf for those. I started casting for those a year ago and am getting the hang of it.

I have a lifetime supply of j words for my 222 and 22-250, so I have no plans to cast for them.

Overall, 80-90% of what I shoot is cast. I use factory ammo in 9x19, 9 Makorov and shot shells. Everything else is surplus or my reloads.

[dragon813gt]

I shoot cast as much as possible. Still shooting jacketed out of ARs since I don't have time for proper cast bullet load development. I'm completely set up to cast and reload for every firearm I own, except the rimfires of course.

I guess you can call me a purist in a sense. I only use traditional lube. I have no need or desire to try the coatings. I don't need to add anything else to complicate and slow down production.

[Gunslinger1911]

Cast for 99.9% of my shooting. Granted it's mostly handgun and pistol caliber levers and a 45\70 Marlin.
My 308 likes Speer J-word match bullets, and I shoot mostly mil-surp 223 in the AR.
Plinking, hunting, sd - all cast; 22 TCM and Hornet to 500 S&W.

[sigep1764]

Ive yet to cast for rifle. I hve a Model 70 in 270 that id like to try casting for. All the handguns get fex lead, for range and self defense.

[stubert]

Cast for me except my .270, mini 14, and carry ammo.

[chutesnreloads]

Purist?Not hardly,but just how do you define purist?Shoot a lot of powder coated cast.Is that pure?Shoot traditional lubes in others.Prefer cast in all handgun ammo but rifle cartridgers such as .243 and 6.5x55 its all j-words.30-06 gets both.Don't really care if I'm a purist.Every one of them sure seems fun.

[dtknowles]

I use cast boolits except when I don't. Sometimes the jacketed stuff goes into much smaller groups. I have only shot a couple sub MOA groups with cast.

Tim

[Elkins45]

I am definitely not a purist by your definition, although I am moving in that direction for more and more of my shooting. I do own more than one rifle that has never seen a jacketed bullet, and a whole slew of handguns.

There are other guns I own that have never seen cast. I have a 257 Weatherby that I run up to nearly 3700 fps---that's jacketed territory for everyone except liars.

[DAVIDMAGNUM]

I would venture to say I am a purist.
I have at least seven guns that have never seen copper.
Hell, I have one lever action rifle that doesn't know what smokeless powder is.

[quilbilly]

I use jacketed for my hot loads in my 222 and 223 but have other rifles in both calibers with CB's. My 204 uses jacketed (can't even imagine working with those tiny bullets any other way with my fat fingers.

[Tom W.]

I use my cast boolits for all of my handguns and my 30/30. For hunting with my #1 I like 180 grain Sierra GameKings, but beings it's a 30/06 A.I. I use cast boolits to fire form my cartridges.

[tg32-20]

I cast and shoot boolits for just about everything these days. With the exception of 223, which I happen to have thousands of jacketed bullets for.

tg32-20

[cajun shooter]

For those who posted that they shoot lead in all the handguns but rifles were meant to use copper, wonder how all those game animals and men were killed from 1900 and before. They also had one poster that said lead bullets in a rifle was fine for close range but they had to have copper for long distance. Guess he never read about the Indian raid on Billy Dixon and the other Buffalo hunters. Later David

[osteodoc08]

Cast in my handguns for target and practice and big bore hunting (45/70).

Jacketed for SD and hunting higher velocity rifle.

Cast for plinking rifle.

[Hick]

Not a purist (at least not yet). I stopped shooting my Model 94 in 32 WS because of the crummy selection of bullets for reloading until I discovered this forum-- now I'm shooting exclusively CB in it. However, I don't yet have a good place to cast, so I'm buying. The next rifle I switch will probably be my Model 94 30-30, but I haven't made the switch yet (and I have lots of bullets on the shelf). The Rifle I'm uncertain about is my Garand. It's not yet clear to me how to balance the velocity aspects of CB against the narrow pressure range that cycles the bolt best. I still have lots to learn from you all on this.

[reloader28]

100% cast boolits for handguns.
My rifles are 95% cast. Over 300 yds in 30-06 is jacketed and the 243's get loaded with jacketed for deer hunting.
I occasionally shoot a 223WSSM, a 270, and a 257 Rob and dont have cast loads for them.
Everything else is cast.

[Mytmousemalibu]

I'm trying to stick to cast for the most part for everything. I do have some jacketed bullets but most are sitting on the shelf in reserve, same for a stash of factory ammo but for the most part, cast is the way to go for me. I do carry Lehigh's copper solids in my EDC just because I am impressed by the XD bullet's performance and its from a small American company so I don't feel bad. I would not be opposed at all to running my own cast loads for SD if they show good performance. I have plenty of lead and a private range to shoot it on, Cast is the flavor for me! I don't own any guns that by nature require jacketed ammo. That may change but for the time being I can run cast in everything.

[Blackwater]

Nope. I've never been a purist in anything. I've always thought that the Good Lord gave us a brain and options, and that each option has its place and raison d'etre. And in these days, especially, where we can't know for sure what lies around the corner, we NEED to be as versatile and informed and experienced as we can get ourselves to be. Just seems to be, as GHW Bush used to say, "prudent." The fact that casting is interesting and very effective in and of its own self is a really neat and appreciated facet of its makeup, and there are few of us here who couldn't broaden our horizons in it. That's a GOOD thing, and just reading about the successes and techniques of others is, at minimum, edifying, and gives us a bigger base to draw upon should we ever need it, which many of don't currently.

As to J-bullets, they've proven their mettle way too many times and way too well for particular uses. Cast really, except for the few who've really explored them well, are largely neglecting many real possibilities and benefits. Now that my hunting rarely includes long range possibilities these days, cast could well provide me with all I really need. I don't and can't get out like I once did, but when I do, all I want or really need is a bullet that'll perform at a maximum of about 200 yds., and cast can do that very well, as quite a few here have more than ably demonstrated.

I won't ever give up my j-bullets for long range work, but for everything else? Hmmm. I've been doing a lot of thinking. Have a decent supply of bullets in the calibers I generally use, but cast won't wear barrels out. Not many of us will ever live long enough to wear a barrel out with cast, even if we shot daily! That's not an inconsiderable benefit! And if they can do the job needed, why shoot j's? As Bob Dylan said, "Th' Times They Are A'Changin'!"

[MBTcustom]

Nope. I've never been a purist in anything. I've always thought that the Good Lord gave us a brain and options, and that each option has its place and raison d'etre. And in these days, especially, where we can't know for sure what lies around the corner, we NEED to be as versatile and informed and experienced as we can get ourselves to be. Just seems to be, as GHW Bush used to say, "prudent." The fact that casting is interesting and very effective in and of its own self is a really neat and appreciated facet of its makeup, and there are few of us here who couldn't broaden our horizons in it. That's a GOOD thing, and just reading about the successes and techniques of others is, at minimum, edifying, and gives us a bigger base to draw upon should we ever need it, which many of don't currently.

As to J-bullets, they've proven their mettle way too many times and way too well for particular uses. Cast really, except for the few who've really explored them well, are largely neglecting many real possibilities and benefits. Now that my hunting rarely includes long range possibilities these days, cast could well provide me with all I really need. I don't and can't get out like I once did, but when I do, all I want or really need is a bullet that'll perform at a maximum of about 200 yds., and cast can do that very well, as quite a few here have more than ably demonstrated.

I won't ever give up my j-bullets for long range work, but for everything else? Hmmm. I've been doing a lot of thinking. Have a decent supply of bullets in the calibers I generally use, but cast won't wear barrels out. Not many of us will ever live long enough to wear a barrel out with cast, even if we shot daily! That's not an inconsiderable benefit! And if they can do the job needed, why shoot j's? As Bob Dylan said, "Th' Times They Are A'Changin'!"

Great reply.
I use cast where it makes sense to use it.

The one comment I take issue with is this one: "cast won't wear barrels out". Neither will jacketed sir. The projectile has nothing to do with throat erosion. What causes it is heat and pressure, and if you find a way to shoot cast at 3000FPS as I have, following the advice of Larry Gibson, you certainly will see accelerated throat wear (although it will never be as aggressive as jacketed bullets simply because the bullets are so soft that pressure behind them is reduced).
Just wanted to point that out.

Personally, I use cast in everything I own except two rifles. The M1A and my long range 300WM tactical rifle. Now, I have shot cast in the M1A with excellent results, but the bullets are just too easily damaged by the action and accuracy suffers. I use Hornady 168 Amax instead, and I can hold less than 1.5MOA out to 400 meters with that setup, and it always works which is the most important consideration with that rifle. BruceB was the one who taught me how to get it running, but after I had successfully managed to make it shoot well, he added that in spite of the cool factor of shooting cast in the M1A, he recommended that I stick to jacketed loads and make a lot of them. I thought that was good advice, so I followed it.
The 300WM has a 23" barrel and a 1-10 twist, so cast is out of the question, and I use Hornady 178 grain Amax in that rifle.
Other than that, I guess you could say I'm a purist, because I have made cast bullets shoot as well or better than jacketed in all of my other rifles and pistols, although I intend to try jacketed in my 45-70 just to compare to my cast loads.

[FISH4BUGS]

Purist? Not really. The right tool for the right job is my motto.
I shoot machine guns so all of my submachinegun calibers are cast. 380, 9mm, 45acp. I can shoot a machinegun almost cheaper than most people can shoot a .22 these days.
When I shoot supressed, it is jacketed only. NO LEAD THROUGH THE CAN! That was a lesson hard learned. My Bowers CAC9 supressor was rebuilt because of the lead buildup in the baffles, and the resultant baffle strike.
Rifle caliber is all jacketed. I have not yet started with cast in rifles. Somehow I can't seem to think that cast through an M16 on full auto would work, and the gas port might get crudded up with lube.
Handguns? Jacketed for hunting, cast for shooting.
Works for me.

[MostlyLeverGuns]

Cast for handgun, rifle practice at 100 yards and under, sometimes to 200 yards in all calibers but mostly .308, .300 Savage, .32 Special, .218 Bee, .35 Rem, .444. Jacketed for almost all hunting, due to distance and wind. Yeah, I know about the buffalo/bison. Elk and antelope seasons are limited. Savage 99 - .358 Win 225 Partition or Marlin .45-70 300 grain Barnes Original for elk. Savage 99 .300 or .308 with 150 or 165 Hornady/Sierra/Speer/Nosler for antelope.Flat nose bullets really get pushed by wind, also velocities under 2000 fps are affected by wind and distance much more. Cast bullets are interesting, low recoil makes for pleasant shooting BUT tinkering on live critters that provide genuine free-range grass-fed red meat can be done by other folks, sitting in trees shooting at whitetails under 100 yards.

[MBTcustom]

Purist? Not really. The right tool for the right job is my motto.
I shoot machine guns so all of my submachinegun calibers are cast. 380, 9mm, 45acp. I can shoot a machinegun almost cheaper than most people can shoot a .22 these days.
When I shoot supressed, it is jacketed only. NO LEAD THROUGH THE CAN! That was a lesson hard learned. My Bowers CAC9 supressor was rebuilt because of the lead buildup in the baffles, and the resultant baffle strike.
Rifle caliber is all jacketed. I have not yet started with cast in rifles. Somehow I can't seem to think that cast through an M16 on full auto would work, and the gas port might get crudded up with lube.
Handguns? Jacketed for hunting, cast for shooting.
Works for me.

You should look into powder coating. PC does a lot to get the bullets through the cans cleanly. Amother gunsmith across town, and a good friend of mine has tested this quite a bit, and he has shot thousands of PC bullets through his cans to no ill effect.

[SteveS]

For my revolvers I am 100% handloaded cast. I don't handload for shotgun so that ammo is retail. Rim fire is of course retail too.

[carbine]

I have been shooting cast exclusively for the last 35 years, with the exception of rimfire

[bruce drake]

I'm a ~95% Purist. I am prepared to shoot cast in every caliber of rifle and pistol except my 7x57 chambered M1 Garand which I've got setup for NRA Highpower Matches.

[ShooterAZ]

I'm not a purist either...I still shoot j-words in my rifles, as well as with some cast when I feel inclined. Just about all of my handgun shooting is with cast though.

[Digital Dan]

Never considered it until now. I use cross strip paper patch to shoot the bench guns, cloth patch on the flinter. Copper patch on the truck gun as paper patch is not reliable in stopping trucks. The latest acquisition for bird hunting has two damascus barrels with 2.5" chambers.

My wildcat has a rimmed case.

You tell me.

[Artful]

No, I use pretty much anything.
I cast for Handguns, Rifles, and buck for shotgun.
Use both lube and powder coated - and had tried moly coating,
I even have a couple of molds that take copper tubing in .375
I swage for Handguns and 22 & 30 cal rifles.
I have paper patched and black powder

That said some guns I don't cast for like .243 win - It doesn't suit the use I put
the rifle too.

[Blackwater]

Thanks to GS for setting me straight on the barrel wear issue, and point very well taken. I've never done the HV thing like you and a few others here, so wasn't even thinking of that, but it's good to know. Makes sense totally. Many don't realize just how "soft" steels get under heat and pressure, so it's easy to miss how much effect that can have on barrel wear. As soon as you corrected me, I had the thought "I should have known that!" That's the great benefit of this board. There's always somebody who can and will keep us stright, and keep newbies from assuming things they really sholdn't. I like that. Life's too short and too complex to keep making the same old mistakes time and again, or thinking or saying stuff that's just not quite right. Thanks!

[runfiverun]

I use what gets the job done.
I do cast the cores for the bullets I swage in a copper wrapper so I guess that makes it more closer to a purist than not.
but I pretty much go on a gun to gun basis.
our deer this year were shot with a combination of store-bought, cast, and home swaged.
they all died without complaint.
we shot a total of 6 store bought bullets this year, the rest [couple/few maybe 10 thousand] were either home made or cast.

[Victor N TN]

I cast for about 6 different calibers. Others I use store bought jacketed. And when I go to pay for them it almost makes me sick.

[iraiam]

I got into casting more heavily during the worst of the ammo shortage, which I fully expect to get bad again. I learned quite a bit about making quality and effective ammunition without having components available.

[MT Gianni]

I believe you are describing an elitist rather than a purist. I do not have a gun I have not shot cast in but have over 1000 jacketed bullets I will use up at some time or another. There is a time and a place for everything.

[JeffG]

Probably purist. I shoot cast in everything, rifle and handgun. I do cop to buying Hornady XTP's to load a couple magazines full of SD rounds but that is it, they don't get shot after the initial workup.

[robg]

95% of my shooting is with my cast boolits but when i get a mold for my .223 <christmas present> then it will be higher other than jacketed for hunting .rules over here.

[220]

Handguns live entirely on cast, rifles it depends, 45/70 has seen 5 J-words down the barrel in its life. It was purchased as a cast hunting rifle, 357 now sees very few J-words both have been used hunting on everything up to deer with cast. 375H&H sees more cast than J, 30/30 probably more J than cast, I really like hornadys gummy tips for the accuracy and increased range. Things like the 240wby and 220swift have never seen a cast, cant see the point in owning them unless you are going to run them flat and when your talking 4000fps or more then cast is not an option. If I wanted to shoot cast in these cals then there are far better cases to do it with, 222 does see some cast.

[rbuck351]

Nope, I'm not a purist in much of anything. There's almost always another way of doing something.
I shoot cast in most of my guns but I shoot some jacketed in most of my rifles and jacketed in a couple of my handguns.

[dudel]

Not really. What's next I have to make my own primers and powder to be a true purist?

Some of my guns prefer FMJ, so that's what I feed them. Plated also works well. With WW becoming harder and harder to find, and foundry metals costing what they do (in the quantities I buy); I'm not so sure casting is the great deal it once was.

Still a deal; just not as great a deal as it was. I don't count my time; but I'd rather be shooting than casting.

[Messy bear]

This got me to thinking, I guess I haven't taken a deer or antelope with anything but cast in more years than I can remember. Hmm. So maybe purist in hunting with revolvers but not for rifles as I use jacketed in some of them.

[mart]

A purist when it comes to revolvers. I won't pollute my revolvers with jackets bullets. s far as revolvers go I've never seen any jacketed bullet that offered anything over cast. I do shoot plated Berry's in my only semi auto, a Glock 22, primarily because it serves one purpose. It's a defensive handgun and when I shoot it, whether for off duty practice or for on duty training, I go through a lot of ammo. I reload for it but don't want to waste my lead inventory on it so I shoot the plated bullets. I shoot cast in some of my rifles and am looking at powder coating so I can shoot cast in my Ruger 44 carbine.

[Harter66]

I have a shelf full of jackets . Over the years I have paper patched and fed 1,000s of cast through every pistol around . Just recently I found that gas checks really speed up the load development for rifles .

As a purist , not yet. I am getting closer as my skills and knowledge grow . Shooting and hunting are at the cusp I haven't shot a jacketed proficiency load except in a brand new gun in about 7 yr . This spring will mark the final transition to an all cast hunting drive . About the only store bought ammo I have around is SD for the nightstand and traveling companions and a small stash of FMJ for the end of the world .

Shot shells are a toss up. It costs me $6/box lead or steel so I buy if it's under $10/box . Several manufacturers are using exactly the same loads I am so the time I gain is worth it, especially when the game loads are $40-50 a case. Last summer I bought steel at 79/case .

[michiganmike]

I have 200 plus jacked bullets for my 7mm-08, the same for my 338 Federal. It's been at least a couple years since I fired a jacked bullet through the 7mm-08. I bought some jacked bullets for the 338 and have experimented with them this year. Everything else that has gone down these two barrels has been cast WW.

My son has an AR and I reload jacked bullets in it for him.

My goal is to bring down a deer with cast. If I can make the plan come together I intend to hunt elk in Wyoming in the 2016. I would love to bring down one of those big fellas with cast bullet.

MichiganMike

[str8shot426]

I cast for everything, with the exception of my sons .243 deer hunting loads.

[Down South]

Are you a purist?
What I mean is do you use cast boolits for all your shooting endeavors.
Or maybe just use cast for target practice. Or do you just shoot lead in your handguns and jacketed bullets in your rifle
Maybe you use what ever works the best, at the moment.
Myself, I try to use cast all the time, but sometimes they are not my first choice for the job at hand.
I guess that I'm not a purist. I don't shoot a rifle all that much anymore, hardly ever. If I do, I anticipate having to make what I consider a long range shot, 300 yds plus and I want to put the bullet where I want it to go. I have thousands of jacketed rounds for several calibers that have been collected over 40 years stashed back.
On the other hand, I guess that I could be considered a purist when it comes to handgun or short range rifles. I cast for all of my handguns, 380, 9mm, 38 Special, 357 Mag, 40 S&W, 44 Mag, 45 acp, 45 Colt. I cast for several rifles that I consider short range, 30-30, 375 Win & 45-70.

I do have moulds for some of the longer range rifles, never used them but I have moulds for the 5.56/223 and 30 Cal.

[scottfire1957]

Are you a purist?
What I mean is do you use cast boolits for all your shooting endeavors.
Or maybe just use cast for target practice. Or do you just shoot lead in your handguns and jacketed bullets in your rifle
Maybe you use what ever works the best, at the moment.
Myself, I try to use cast all the time, but sometimes they are not my first choice for the job at hand.

A"purist," in the Pb/alloy/jacketed bullet reloading sense, limits him/herself in the usefulness of their ammunition, firearm and skillset. Why do that?

[John Boy]

Are you a purist?
What I mean is do you use cast boolits for all your shooting endeavors.
Believe I fit within this definition ....
* Cast - reload - shoot for 30 calibers of firearms: 22LR black powder to 577/450 ... handguns & rifles
* Estimated cast bullets in inventory ... approx 7000 plus ... less than 500 Pb's purchased
* Estimated annual cast reloads on hand ... approx 1000
* Estimated cast rounds expended annually ... approx 3000 plus

[scottfire1957]

Believe I fit within this definition ....
* Cast - reload - shoot for 30 calibers of firearms: 22LR black powder to 577/450 ... handguns & rifles
* Estimated cast bullets in inventory ... approx 7000 plus ... less than 500 Pb's purchased
* Estimated annual cast reloads on hand ... approx 1000
* Estimated cast rounds expended annually ... approx 3000 plus

Could you, with your avaiable resources, load jacketed bullets? If not, why not?

[6622729]

I can thank Obama for getting me really into guns. I can thank him for pushing me into the NRA as well. I was given an AK74 to play with a couple years ago, not long after they banned 7N6 ammo for it. I had fun with it on an outdoor range and put away a supply of 7N6 so I can keep shooting. When they temporarily banned M855 ammo, that was a push too far. I bought some factory M855 ammo and a quantity of the SS109 projectiles. I learned how to assemble an AR from a kit. I learned to reload in case they take away factory ammo. I have now taken the last step and have learned casting to save the factory made projectiles or factory made ammo in case it's ever banned and I run out of lead (that's unlikely!). I have quantities of lead, powder, primers and brass to address about any shortage from here forward. I'm strictly a paper target shooter and don't consider myself a prepper. I shoot cast for 9mm and soon for 300AAC. I reload FMJ for .223.





Are you a purist?
What I mean is do you use cast boolits for all your shooting endeavors.
Or maybe just use cast for target practice. Or do you just shoot lead in your handguns and jacketed bullets in your rifle
Maybe you use what ever works the best, at the moment.
Myself, I try to use cast all the time, but sometimes they are not my first choice for the job at hand.

[TXGunNut]

Purist? I use the best ammo for the job at hand. The hunting rifles going on my next trip haven't seen a j-word in quite awhile, come to think of it two haven't chambered a factory round or j-word since I've owned/built them. The rifles that I take hunting or to the range have one thing in common; boolits. My carry guns have j-words in them as a rule but my 45's generally see cast boolits at the range. As soon as NOE's RD 380 group buy comes together my 380's will be shooting mostly lead. ;-) My 45 Colt revolvers shoot lead only and most shoot Holy Black. All my 30-06's are still j-word rifles and they don't get out much. If I had a MSR it would probably shoot factory j-words. My shotguns shoot factory loads only, life's too short to squander my loading room time stuffing plastic when I could be messing with brass & lead.

[Boolseye]

I cast for all my pistols and rifles, with the exception of the 17 HMR. That may tax my patience. I don't golf either.