having a problem with my castings leading barrel

[mdgyro]

heres what I have got
45acp
wheel weights
slugged and sized
230gr tumble lube

My first couple hundred casts did fine no leading then I started getting leading really bad. I tried putting on more lube and shot 10 rounds and had leading. I tried different powders and lowered the load and still the same result. I really like casting and want to continue but I shoot alot and can't take time to clean the barrel every 10 shots. I know this is not normal because all you guys wouldn't be doing it if it were. It's something I am doing wrong but, as new as I am to casting I can't figure it out on my on , so I plea for help. Thanks

[TC66]

What is hardness of your lead? Are you water dropping them?

[mdgyro]

dont have a hardnes tester
you may have hit on the problem though thinking back my first casts were dropped into water but the later ones were not. thanks I will cast some more and quench them and do another test.

[largom]

Are you shooting your WW "fresh" from the mold? WW are fairly sofe from the mold. If you are not water dropping they should age for several weeks to allow hardening, even if water dropped they will continue to harden for a few days. Do you know your alloy hardness? Do you know your velocity? What powder and charge are you loading? Need lots more info to really help.
Larry

[GrizzLeeBear]

You said "slugged and sized". Slugged and sized what? If you have slugged your barrel, what did it measure? What are you sizing the boolits to?
I don't think you need hard boolits for the 45acp, it doesn't run at a high pressure. Size your boolits .001 to .002 over groove dia.
Have you shot any jacketed bullets since your last cast shooting session? Copper fouling, even a small amount, can start barrel leading as the lead will stick to the copper fouling, especially if the bore is a little rough.

[Bret4207]

To me it sounds like you found the problem. Your first loads were with quenched boolits, the later ones that leaded weren't. Problem solved.

Now, if you want to get away from quenching you'll need to start experimenting. Maybe a sightly fatter boolit would help and you can do that with alloy or beagling. Maybe a different lube or powder charge. Sometimes a little more heat or faster casting rhythm will get you a frosty boolit and they will shoot better because they fill out more some folks think they hold a little more lube too.

You have the basics down- you can make a shootable boolit. Now the learning starts. You make minute changes, test and observe. And don't forget to WRITE IT DOWN!!! If there's anything that helps in this hobby it's remembering to write down what you do and observe.

[WHITETAIL]

mdgyro, I second the motion.
Try water dropping the boolets.
Then give them the JPW treatment.
You should come away with a clean
barrel when done.:Fire:

[Tom Herman]

I really like casting and want to continue but I shoot alot and can't take time to clean the barrel every 10 shots.

Welcome aboard! Casting IS fun! Sometimes the learning curve can drive you nuts... Don't give up just because you've had a hiccup... The guys have given you all good advice.
I use a 50/50 wheel weight to lead alloy, and it's all water dropped. It works fine for me in all the handgun rounds I've used so far (.38 SPL, .44 SPL, .45 LC, .455 Webley). Little to no leading in any of my guns.
I had severe leading problems when I went to 2 :1 lead to ww... You just have to discover what works well for you on a gun to gun basis.
Hang in, there! You'll figure it out and do well.

Happy Shootin'! -Tom

[lead Foot]

I had the same problem in my 357 Dan Wesson. I have two barrels one 6" and the other 10" I use the same boolit in both the 10"+6". The 10" started to lead and the 6"was fine. Things were fine for a few months and the 10" started to lead. The lead was easy to remove and found when I pushed a tight patch through I had a bump just head of the throat. I used a lot of lead out cloth to remove it. Works fine now. I think the cause was using cooper jackets and not cleaning it properly.
lead Foot;

[mdgyro]

I have to test the water drop boolits but I think that is most likely the problem with the info I have now. It was the only thing that was changed. I always clean the barrel extremely well after every shooting session ,sometimes during a session if it is a long one with a lot of rounds burned or accuracy starts to drift. I will test it later in the week when I can do more casting. I do love the learning and want to experiment with different things but I want a good working base first then make it better. Thanks for all the advice. Look for me to ask more questions in the future and maybe one day I'll be the one giving advice.

[jdgabbard]

Your boolits should age harden at least two weeks before you go to shoot them. Or water drop them. Either way make sure you're sizing to .001-.002 over and letting them harden enough to prevent the leading. I don't water drop, so after I tumble lube size, and re-tumble lube I box them up and let them sit for about two months. They harden sufficiently to prevent leading.