Brand new to casting.......

[saz]

Well this is my first post to this site but I have been poking around for a few days and I like what I see. Anyways, I just took a plunge into another hobby that fuels my interests in blackpowder shooting. I recently bought a new muzzleloader and found out that .570" round balls didnt work very well, and couldnt get any .562's locally- anyways I knew where there was a double cavity Lee mold that was still new in the box ($10). So out I went and came back with a RCBS pot, a used ladel, some flux and 23lbs of pure lead. Sunday afternoon I went ahead after reading the bullet casting chapter in the lee manual about 5 more times and what a lot of fun! It took a few tries to get some decent looking round balls but what a lot of fun! Out of the 120 or so that I cast, I only kept about 75 of them. Oh well, I can always melt them back down and try again. I can tell that I have started a very addictive hobby- it is just too bad I cant enjoy it for very long because I am deploying AGAIN in a few weeks. Oh well, gives me more time to do some more research. Great forum- Keep up the good work!!!!!

[Tn_River_Ratt]

Welcome and enjoy. More info here that I can get my head around. A great bunch of folks.



Ratt

[docone31]

Get roofing lead. It is pure.

[Tom Herman]

Thanks for your service to our Country, and Welcome Aboard!
Casting is very adductive. The folks here are real helpful, and got me through my learning curve just fine.
It sounds like you have the right attitude! I made a lot of ugly bullets when I started out, but they all melted nicely.
Like anything, this is more of an art than a science, and the more you work on it and perfect it, the better your bullets will come out.

Happy Shootin'! -Tom

[Marshal Kane]

Unlike primers which can only be used once, the best part about casting is that you can always remelt your "rejects" and recast them.:mrgreen:

[be603]

Yeah, I've been (mostly) lurking here for over a year. Really enjoy the topic and have good memories of some crazy attempts at making 20 ga slugs as a teen. We jury rigged some homemade hard wood molds with c-clamps and a brace&bit, then melted and poured using a sauce pan and a campfire. We succeeded but more importantly lived to tell.

Anyhoo, casting boolitts (and shot) hhas been on my wish list of potential diversions for a couple years now. I'm getting closer to actually doing the deed.

What I've lacked til now is a supply of scrap lead -- in particular used wheel weights. Looks like I found a small but regular free source of wheel weights yesterday.

I have the minimum set of equipment for smelting scrap lead into suitable size ingots (camp stove, old plumbers pot, rusty muffin tins, cast iron ladle).

more ruminations&pic at my blog (http://blackeagle603.blogspot.com/2009/02/lead-poisoning.html)