new to casting

[WNC]

Hello all, I am new here and new to casting except for round ball ml. I have reloaded for a long time, not cast bullets. So I am probably going to ask a lot of stupid questions here. I have a 30-30, a 35 rem. , and a new 45-70 all Marlins. I also have the casting itch so I got to scratch it. First question, is #2 alloy suitable for all three of these rifles?

[carpetman]

WNC---I think way too much is made over getting an exact alloy and BHN etc. To begin with you read the Lyman manual for #2 and you get exact precise things to add to an unknown (wheelweights) and you come up with an exact?????? 95% of the mixture is the unknown (wheelweights). This made no sense to me when I first read it in the 60's, nor does it now. So I started using ww's,adding nothing and if I were missing something, I was unaware. Nothing new there, I'm usually clueless. Then everyone started telling me to cast .22 cal bullets, I needed to add tin for fill out. So I bought some solder for the tin---the only alloy I have ever bought. The only fill out I was aware of was the place that sold the solder experienced fill out in their cash register and you know those opposite reactions---it was in my wallet. Other than that, I noticed no difference. So take whatever you have and make bullets and you should be fine.

[Down South]

First question, is #2 alloy suitable for all three of these rifles? Yes, Plain old WW will be fine too.

[docone31]

I use water quenched wheel weight in all my casting.
I have no complaints so far.
A lot of my mixes are mystery alloy. They work also. Just crank up the heat.
Sizing is what matters.

[softpoint]

I just use water quenched wheelweights, I have added a little linotype when I have it, And I can't really tell any difference.:Fire:

[JSnover]

When I first got interested in casting I was convinced there had to be a 'perfect' alloy for each purpose; hunting, target, high-velocity vs. low, etc. I asked Bill Ferguson a few questions and he wrote back to say he's sold a number of custom alloys developed by himself or his customers depending on what they thought they wanted. Then he told me he knew a number of competitive shooters who were winning matches with everything from top-secret proprietary alloys to recycled range scrap (which could have been recycled from almost any other kind of scrap). As long as you can avoid leading the barrel, find a recipe you like and tweak it.
For game animals or defense you'll want to balance penetration and expansion. For paper targets neither of those will be a concern.