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Thread: Why some new members will do better than others here.

  1. #341
    Boolit Mold
    Join Date
    Dec 2008
    Location
    Denver
    Posts
    7
    OK, so I joined a few (OK, several) years ago, when I started amassing beau coup (boo coo) wheel weights. Ended up with about 700-800 lb after I sorted all the trash out. Rounded up some lead from my company's radioactive work several years ago, and had high hopes. Ordered up some Lee tools, a 'turkey fryer'-? gas burner and a deep cast iron skillet. Stuff sat for 2-3 years.
    Finally got my feet wet last weekend. WW's smelted up OK, (didn't check well for Zn, tho'), and made a few 140 gn 357's. Was a fun afternoon. A good share of info came from this site, the Lyman Cast Bullet Handbook, and some metallurgy reading I did. Had some intercourse with Bill Ferguson, when he was still the ANTIMONY MAN, and used some common sense. I've made chemicals for 50 years, so that's helped a bit. First bullets weren't beautiful, but think I got the basic procedure down. Now to refine it and incorporate some of the things I figured out I'm lacking.

    I've figured out:
    pouring is somewhat of an 'art'
    a 140 gn mold is full way before you think it is
    I think I want a 'mold oven'
    I need to super clean my mold(s)
    fluxing is still a mystery...

    There's more, but I just learned I get to go out for takeout tonight, so I'm off to Outback. Maybe more later, -West

  2. #342
    Boolit Master
    Join Date
    Jan 2011
    Location
    NE Kansas
    Posts
    2,421
    Once you have got an idea of the basics, then you can continue to learn to cast and your bullets will turn out better as you develop the pace. There are several threads on "fluxing" and the various materials to use. Some are easier than others, and some like sawdust can leave some dust in the melt of the casting furnace. I use bees wax, paraffin, and even 20 mule team borax powder. The first two smoke and flame, the latter just puffs up like styro foam, and attracts the dross. Mashed against the side of the pot with a spoon, it crushes into a dust to be skimmed and removed. The most important step is getting started. Congratulations on getting started and making a plan for the next session. Dusty

  3. #343
    Boolit Grand Master Tripplebeards's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2017
    Location
    USA
    Posts
    5,513
    Because other members comments.lol

    I've been reloading j words for 18 years now and just got into casting boolits in the last year.

    In the short time I have learned that cast boolits are not forgiving and are very finicky. If my cast boolits don't like the powder im using or the crimp is to light or heavy I can't hit minute of pie plate at a 100 yards. At the same time a load my rifle doesn't like with jackets bullets still group under 2".

    While I was testing loads in my ruger 77/44 and posting i had a comment that I was told i might not be capable of shooting MOA. I own many rifles that I can shoot cloverleaves with along with j words...so the challenge was on!


    To give you a rundown, I just finished testing rifle number two with cast boolits since I started this journey last year. I tried three different alloys in it and I wasn't happy with my groups as I like everyone else was on the quest for MOA or better. The best groups I was getting were 2" at a 100 yards using 23.8gr of w296 along with a Lyman devastator with a 80/20 mix with a lot of pewter added.

    I figured it was was time to go outside the box and look at the rifle and not the boolit. I ended up lightening the trigger, bedding the rifle, and adding a better, more powerful optic.

    I retested my consistent 2" load data that used before tweaking my rifle. It shot a 1.24" group at a hundred yards. Then I tried one of my lighter loads. 21 gr of h110 with a softer alloy. It was a 16:1 mix of pure lead and pewter that tested 7.5 BH. This load shot sub MOA!

    So, long story short, I did well from being razzed/challenged from other members here along with all the helpful advise. I just wanted to thank everyone for all the help along my journey of casting boolits. I have a lot to learn yet...but I think I'm getting there.

    Last edited by Tripplebeards; 07-27-2018 at 03:39 PM.

  4. #344
    Boolit Master
    Tom W.'s Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2005
    Location
    Phenix City, Alabama
    Posts
    3,855
    I've been here for a few years and there's a lot of posts that I'll look at but not answer because someone else ( or two ) has answered it. There are a few people that are ledgends in their own minds and know everything, right or wrong, but they know and all else is wrong or stupid,
    so they get ignored. I'll help when I can, share what I know, and pass on information that I've gleaned through the years. I've been casting and handloading since the middle '70's, and have learned one or two things. I still can't bring myself to powder coat boolits though.
    Tom
    μολὼν λαβέ


    Did I ever mention that I hate to trim brass?

  5. #345
    Boolit Buddy
    Join Date
    Jul 2018
    Posts
    191
    I have been hand loading and casting about 50 years, shooting about 70 yrs. just new to this site in the last 2 weeks& am probably guilty of asking some dumb guestions. I just powder coated my first boolits this week & am very happy with them.

  6. #346
    Moderator Emeritus


    JonB_in_Glencoe's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2010
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    Land of 10,000 Lakes
    Posts
    15,832
    some days, I need to re-read this post...today is one of those days.
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    “If someone has a gun and is trying to kill you, it would be reasonable to shoot back with your own gun.”
    ― The Dalai Lama, Seattle Times, May 2001

  7. #347
    Boolit Master



    Dieselhorses's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2017
    Location
    Southeast Louisiana
    Posts
    1,313
    I admire this thread for several reasons; Anybody whose been reloading for as long as most of you-I salute you! It is a perishable skill as with anything that parallels it. Personally I've only been casting and reloading for about 2 years now (gotta start somewhere!). I went very slow at first. I make notes, do several searches, never assume anything and have quite a few manuals. One thing that my regular job reminds me of every single day is to NOT become complacent. Doesn't matter how long you do something, we don't have an "auto-pilot".

  8. #348
    Boolit Grand Master


    GregLaROCHE's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2018
    Location
    Southern France by way of Interior Bush Alaska
    Posts
    5,286
    The more you learn about cast boolits, the more you know there’s so much more to learn.

  9. #349
    Boolit Master
    Join Date
    Dec 2017
    Location
    Farmerville,Louisiana
    Posts
    1,357
    Started reloading when i got married, next 40 years still reloading on single stage, @ 65 got a Dillon 650 started really reloading 223 and 9mm large quantity. 2 years ago started melting lead ww and stick ons to get my own alloy right. The more I learn the more I learn I need to learn more. The internet helps for info, u tube helps for looking at, but some times you just to have to get up and do it. Been powder coat ing a while too. Have 81 yo friend in town that’s helped figure out what not to do or try, been a fun ride.

  10. #350
    Boolit Master
    Join Date
    Jun 2012
    Posts
    760
    Happy New Year and God bless all here !
    I love this forum and anything resembling it.

  11. #351
    Banned


    Join Date
    Mar 2015
    Location
    West Central Illinois
    Posts
    742
    Well I've been a member here a little while. As for my level of reloading/casting, after several years of reloading and casting I consider myself a beginner. However, in anything new I get interested in I like to do a lot of research before getting started. I have, occasionally, given advice to newbies. But I always remember a quote on a large plaque on a grade school I went to. " Who dares to teach, must never cease to learn". So when I'm curious research, research, research, and when I want to know more go to those who practice it and ask. And I have already found immense knowledge here and I know from reading posts like this, I haven't scratched the surface. So thanks to the OP and to all of you who continue to share your knowledge and please continue.

  12. #352
    Boolit Grand Master tazman's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2014
    Location
    west central Illinois
    Posts
    7,699
    I have done a lot of different things over the years. Some of them I have been very good at.
    I have been casting boolits for 44 years now. I have learned a lot. At first, it was very slow. After the internet became available, the speed picked up.
    I have never tried to know everything about what I am doing at any given point. I have tried to be a little better than adequate since that seems to be my level of expertise in most things.
    Every time I start to get complacent about what I am doing at the moment, I try to find a place where I can teach what I know.
    I have found that I learn more trying to teach than I did trying to learn it. When someone asks you why, you then need to come up with an answer. Then you have to actually think about why you do something and not just do it. Figure out why it works.
    This has happened to me in almost everything I have done over the years. Never be afraid to try to teach. Even if you find out you were wrong about something, you have learned something new and made progress.
    I have learned to never fear looking misinformed about something. Someone will always provide the correct information and you can build on that. Just don't get stuck on defending a bad position because you don't like being told you are wrong about something.
    If you have never found out you have been wrong sometimes, you have never really learned anything.
    Even Einstein wasn't born with his knowledge. He had to learn it and figure out how it worked. Sometimes he was wrong.

  13. #353
    Boolit Master
    Join Date
    Jan 2007
    Posts
    595
    Quote Originally Posted by Recluse View Post
    In reading various posts the past few days about a perceived "generation gap" regarding the instant-gratification individual versus the research & learn individual, it seems some new members (and old ones alike) wonder why their questions don't receive the attention that some other new members' questions do.

    To answer that, let me ask this: How much work or study or research have you put into the questions you are asking?

    We have a literal lead-mine of information on boolit-casting and reloading here, with much of it being exclusive to this site because many members here pioneered techniques and methods in regards to lead projectiles that are used by cast bullet shooters all over the world.

    But you have to take the effort to read and study those "stickies" in order to glean the information. When you want instant answers to basic questions, it is indicative that you haven't done any research or made any effort into finding the answer or solution yourself.

    This doesn't pertain simply to boolit-casting or reloading. It is pretty much universally applicable across all disciplines of interest.

    I'm a pilot and aircraft owner. Prior to my medical setbacks, I was giving out some free time to a couple of aspiring pilots, both recently out of college and working at good jobs. Both had around 20 to 25 hours in their log book. I am not a CFII, so while I can fly from either seat (right or left), the students cannot log PIC time and the time spent with me and my airplane is simply to help them gain experience and knowledge.

    The female student had finished her ground school, taken the FAA written test (and passed it) and had her Airman's Third Class Medical which served as her student pilot license. The male student had his logbook and a Bose ANR headset and this Airman's Third Class Medical which served as his student pilot license.

    Both had decent stick and rudder abilities, but the female was by far the smarter pilot and asked far better questions and was far more serious about becoming an airman rather than just an airplane driver. The male asked the same questions over and over, or asked basic questions that he should've learned in ground school, but for which he was "too busy at the moment" to deal with.

    After three flights, I told the male student to find someone else to mentor him, that I was done. He was literally flabbergasted that I would show him the door to our hangar simply because "all he wanted to do was get his license and be able to rent a plane now and then to fly his girlfriend and buddies around." I--and the other pilots along our stretch hangars--explained that there was a helluva lot more to it than that, but he just didn't get it then and I doubt he ever will.

    One of my neighbors is not only still taking the female student up, but was present when she solo'd and caught the whole thing on video for her. She's serious and she's putting in the work and study necessary to be a good pilot, and more importantly, a safe pilot.

    At this site, Cast Boolits, most everyone here has been casting and reloading for at least two or more decades, with most of the older members having double that. The lessons learned have come from a variety of means and methods, no shortage of which has been reading, researching, studying, and trial and error.

    We stress safety here above anything else. Knowledge equals safety. Old-timers know what happens when water gets under molten alloy. We can laugh about the Tinsel Fairy, but the reality is, she can hurt and maim you bad and do it so quick you won't realize what's happened until the ER docs explain it to you.

    A couple of years ago, I put a forefinger digit and a middle finger digit in a ziploc bag for the paramedics to take to the ER in hopes that they could be reattached to the shooter who'd blown them off--the result of not bothering to read or research or study anything when it came to reloading. As I'm putting a tourniquet on his arm below the elbow, another shooter asked him where he got his load data from. He told us (and later in court during a civil lawsuit trial that he lost) that he had never read a reloading manual, didn't see the need when he could go to any one of a hundred gun forums on the internet and get all the answers he needed.

    In the shooting world, you kind of have a hierarchy and it goes something like this:

    --Gun owners. They own a gun for whatever reason, but rarely if ever bother to shoot or practice with it. But it makes them feel better/safer for having it.

    --Casual gun owner & shooter. They own more than one gun, usually, and make a point to shoot at least once a year, often times more. They're generally safe and careful with their firearm, but have extremely limited knowledge as to how it functions, how ammo functions, etc. A lot of hunters fall into this category as well as suburbanites who keep a firearm in the house for protection, but who realize the need to stay reasonably proficient with it.

    --The serious gun owner. This person owns a number of guns, takes pride in his or her collection, knows the brand and make of each gun in their possession, keeps adequate ammunition for their firearms and enjoys shooting and is generally quite competent and proficient.

    --The reloader. This is the Serious Gun Owner who shoots very often or with great enough frequency that the economics and supply/demand qualities of reloading make it a no-brainer. Lots of competition shooters fall into this category and most prefer progressive presses that can churn out lots of ammo in a short period of time. Once they find a good load, they (usually) stop there and crank out ammo by the hundreds, if not the thousands. Very knowledgeable, very safe, very competent and proficient shooters and gun-owners.

    --The Handloader. The Handloader is often the Serious Gun Owner who has graduated at the reloading bench from a basic undergrad degree in assembling his or her own ammunition and is now embarked on a graduate-level quest for creating customized ammunition for each firearm they own. Sometimes they develop ammo for specific situations for each firearm, such as cold-weather loads, high-altitude loads, strong wind/crosswind loads, large specimen (or small specimen) of the same game animal loads. The Handloader lives at the apex of the shooting world.

    --The Bullet Caster. The Bullet Caster shares the apex of the shooting world with the Handloader and the benchrest shooter. All are looking for optimum performance and results after each pull of the trigger. To these people, it is a whole and complete package--the gun, the ammo, the shooting. Some cast their own bullets thinking that it will save them money--when in reality, it allows them to shoot MORE for the same amount of money. Some have thousands of dollars invested in molds and furnaces and lubesizers; others have less than a dead Ben Franklin. But all view themselves as craftsmen, as artists of a sort because we are creating our own projectiles to go in our own seemingly unrelated array of components of brass and primers and powders. In this world micrometers and calipers and neck-turning and annealing and chamfering and case-trimming are but a drop in the proverbial water-quenching bucket in terms of tools and techniques used to create the ultimate cartridge.

    What we've learned over the years has been acquired through endless hours of reading and study as well as discussion and finally thousands upon thousands of rounds loaded and fired at gun ranges all over the globe.

    No one here minds lending a hand or mentoring new reloaders or boolit-casters. New members are urged to read the "stickies" for a simple reason: **** near any and every question someone new to reloading or casting could ask or think of has already been addressed, in depth, in one of the stickies.

    What most folks here do mind, however, is the attitude of Entitlement--as in, "You already know the answer so what's the big deal about just telling me instead of telling me to go read the archives?"

    If you were to ask one of our resident psychologists here, who happen to be extremely experienced reloaders and casters themselves, what traits of the typical member here might be, they would tell you that either at or near the top of the list would be "Self Sufficiency."

    We cast and we reload because we can and we do not want to have to rely on anyone or anything else in order for us to manufacture our own ammunition.

    Another trait would be "Generosity." I myself have lost count of the number of members and new casters this site has helped with everything from finances to hunting to equipment lost in fires and burglaries to getting new casters set up with equipment.

    So to any new member that may think we're grumpy or selfish or cantankerous (we are cantankerous) because you may get a chilly response to "Can I tumble-lube regular boolits that don't have tumble lube grooves" or "Can I load and fire gas check boolits without the gas checks" or "I just got a new Taurus .357--what's a good load" or "I'm thinking of getting into casting. What stuff will I need" and other such questions addressed not just in the archives and stickies, but that is available with even the simplest of a Google search, then so be it.

    But for those who have a true passion and who at least take the effort to read and research in order to ask quality questions beyond the scope of what has been assembled in the "stickies," you'll be hard-pressed to find a better place to be than here.

    Can I tumble lube with no lube grooves?? Ok... kidding... quite a succinct treatise. Thank you. I even have a gun called a recluse... I'm of the opinion that you get questions like this from people like me for a number of reasons... Lazy, or in my case often, the extreme volume of resources... not to mention jargon. GC, BT, some likely to raise eyebrows and all, to the fact that as was eloquently laid out beforehand here, but take trail boss for example... right... so where would you go? Right, you come to places like this where you have this brain trust of information... and frankly, though I'm anything but grizzled with experience, you mentioned aircraft instruction... I instructed for almost 50 years and if posed a "novice question" about something avion related... I like questions like that... It refreshes me, triggers new thoughts or new information I've recently received about something that I wanted to explore... all sorts of reasons to be lazy...

  14. #354
    Banned
    Join Date
    Jan 2018
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    Down under
    Posts
    183
    On subjects I am experienced in( and casting bullets is not one) I don't mind explaining at length or offering long lecture style explanations for new guys. For me that was big game hunting and rifles over .400cal in the day. Its something I enjoy talking about and summarising for a new guy. Rather than just post a one liner or give one hurried example I don't mind trying to figure out why a guy is asking for 'the biggest gun', or "the fastest gun" .

    I also dont understand those who get unduly upset by it, or refer people to searches. A forum by definition is a meeting place of discussion, if it was a place of silent referencing , it would be a librarium, or library. One factor I think is when the internet started up it was mostly hardcore enthusiasts and experts finding each other on the first forums. The debate and discussion was direct , progressive and of a different level. Then the average guy turned up in his droves, which is not a bad thing, but like townsfolk turning up to settle a frontier it does change the timbre of the interaction. A little more impatience between the experienced folks and the new guys, and in turn a little more intolerance from townies when even newer guys turn up.

    One thing I really dislike on some forums, and this is certainly not one where this example occurs, is where you ask your first question and you firstly get the 'why did you ask the question" guy. He seems to be always waiting these days, he doesn't care what the question is, he just can't understand why you are asking something.

    The second guy is the one trying to convince you that if you are asking for steak, what you really want is a chicken dinner. You want to get a 308 for hogs, he's tell you the advantages of a 243 for small game.

    Then there is the guy with the one line reply basically intimating you are stupid or new to all firearms just because you are new to his forum.

    To me this didn't occur as much in the early days. I would have say 5000 posts on accuratereloading for example and quickly jump across to say 24campfire and you would fit right into the discussions. Now it seems on a lot of forums almost like you have to pass some form of initiation or trail for the first 10 or 20 posts letting the local town toughguys you know your stuff and aren't going to be bullied.

    Anyway, back to the point, its more my style to take time with new guys when I am familiar ground, when I have moderated sub forus in the past I am a bigger fan of dicussion than stickying, and another thing I am also happy to explain the downsides of the hobby to give new guys a 'feel' for it. For example one thing brushed over is how **** technical casting can be. Its not like baking a cake or learning to reload metallic which you can do to a basically learn to do in some form or another in a single afternoon.

    Most of this doesn't apply to this forum. Very welcoming, classy atmosphere, I could tell right away.

  15. #355
    Boolit Bub
    Join Date
    Sep 2011
    Posts
    51
    Good thread with lots of valuable information. I'm in my 70th year and have been casting bullets for over 40yrs for mostly .45-70, .45-90, .44mag/special and even an original .69cal 1842 Springfield musket, using primarily a dogs breakfast mixture of salvaged lead, wheel weights and babbit material of unknown content. Somehow I generally figure out how to get well filled out bullets with whatever mixture I throw together. I use my cast boolits for my moose, deer and caribou hunting here in Alaska and have had good luck with them. They don't cause near the meat damage that smaller fast bullets do, which I really like. I don't look a this forum often but generally learn something valuable every time I do. The older I get the more I realize how little I know about pretty much everything in life, bullet casting included. This is one of the best firearms-related forums around and I thank everyone who contributes for that.

  16. #356
    Boolit Bub
    Join Date
    Mar 2020
    Location
    The land down under.
    Posts
    33
    Quote Originally Posted by Recluse View Post
    In reading various posts the past few days about a perceived "generation gap" regarding the instant-gratification individual versus the research & learn individual, it seems some new members (and old ones alike) wonder why their questions don't receive the attention that some other new members' questions do.

    To answer that, let me ask this: How much work or study or research have you put into the questions you are asking?

    We have a literal lead-mine of information on boolit-casting and reloading here, with much of it being exclusive to this site because many members here pioneered techniques and methods in regards to lead projectiles that are used by cast bullet shooters all over the world.

    But you have to take the effort to read and study those "stickies" in order to glean the information. When you want instant answers to basic questions, it is indicative that you haven't done any research or made any effort into finding the answer or solution yourself.

    This doesn't pertain simply to boolit-casting or reloading. It is pretty much universally applicable across all disciplines of interest.

    I'm a pilot and aircraft owner. Prior to my medical setbacks, I was giving out some free time to a couple of aspiring pilots, both recently out of college and working at good jobs. Both had around 20 to 25 hours in their log book. I am not a CFII, so while I can fly from either seat (right or left), the students cannot log PIC time and the time spent with me and my airplane is simply to help them gain experience and knowledge.

    The female student had finished her ground school, taken the FAA written test (and passed it) and had her Airman's Third Class Medical which served as her student pilot license. The male student had his logbook and a Bose ANR headset and this Airman's Third Class Medical which served as his student pilot license.

    Both had decent stick and rudder abilities, but the female was by far the smarter pilot and asked far better questions and was far more serious about becoming an airman rather than just an airplane driver. The male asked the same questions over and over, or asked basic questions that he should've learned in ground school, but for which he was "too busy at the moment" to deal with.

    After three flights, I told the male student to find someone else to mentor him, that I was done. He was literally flabbergasted that I would show him the door to our hangar simply because "all he wanted to do was get his license and be able to rent a plane now and then to fly his girlfriend and buddies around." I--and the other pilots along our stretch hangars--explained that there was a helluva lot more to it than that, but he just didn't get it then and I doubt he ever will.

    One of my neighbors is not only still taking the female student up, but was present when she solo'd and caught the whole thing on video for her. She's serious and she's putting in the work and study necessary to be a good pilot, and more importantly, a safe pilot.

    At this site, Cast Boolits, most everyone here has been casting and reloading for at least two or more decades, with most of the older members having double that. The lessons learned have come from a variety of means and methods, no shortage of which has been reading, researching, studying, and trial and error.

    We stress safety here above anything else. Knowledge equals safety. Old-timers know what happens when water gets under molten alloy. We can laugh about the Tinsel Fairy, but the reality is, she can hurt and maim you bad and do it so quick you won't realize what's happened until the ER docs explain it to you.

    A couple of years ago, I put a forefinger digit and a middle finger digit in a ziploc bag for the paramedics to take to the ER in hopes that they could be reattached to the shooter who'd blown them off--the result of not bothering to read or research or study anything when it came to reloading. As I'm putting a tourniquet on his arm below the elbow, another shooter asked him where he got his load data from. He told us (and later in court during a civil lawsuit trial that he lost) that he had never read a reloading manual, didn't see the need when he could go to any one of a hundred gun forums on the internet and get all the answers he needed.

    In the shooting world, you kind of have a hierarchy and it goes something like this:

    --Gun owners. They own a gun for whatever reason, but rarely if ever bother to shoot or practice with it. But it makes them feel better/safer for having it.

    --Casual gun owner & shooter. They own more than one gun, usually, and make a point to shoot at least once a year, often times more. They're generally safe and careful with their firearm, but have extremely limited knowledge as to how it functions, how ammo functions, etc. A lot of hunters fall into this category as well as suburbanites who keep a firearm in the house for protection, but who realize the need to stay reasonably proficient with it.

    --The serious gun owner. This person owns a number of guns, takes pride in his or her collection, knows the brand and make of each gun in their possession, keeps adequate ammunition for their firearms and enjoys shooting and is generally quite competent and proficient.

    --The reloader. This is the Serious Gun Owner who shoots very often or with great enough frequency that the economics and supply/demand qualities of reloading make it a no-brainer. Lots of competition shooters fall into this category and most prefer progressive presses that can churn out lots of ammo in a short period of time. Once they find a good load, they (usually) stop there and crank out ammo by the hundreds, if not the thousands. Very knowledgeable, very safe, very competent and proficient shooters and gun-owners.

    --The Handloader. The Handloader is often the Serious Gun Owner who has graduated at the reloading bench from a basic undergrad degree in assembling his or her own ammunition and is now embarked on a graduate-level quest for creating customized ammunition for each firearm they own. Sometimes they develop ammo for specific situations for each firearm, such as cold-weather loads, high-altitude loads, strong wind/crosswind loads, large specimen (or small specimen) of the same game animal loads. The Handloader lives at the apex of the shooting world.

    --The Bullet Caster. The Bullet Caster shares the apex of the shooting world with the Handloader and the benchrest shooter. All are looking for optimum performance and results after each pull of the trigger. To these people, it is a whole and complete package--the gun, the ammo, the shooting. Some cast their own bullets thinking that it will save them money--when in reality, it allows them to shoot MORE for the same amount of money. Some have thousands of dollars invested in molds and furnaces and lubesizers; others have less than a dead Ben Franklin. But all view themselves as craftsmen, as artists of a sort because we are creating our own projectiles to go in our own seemingly unrelated array of components of brass and primers and powders. In this world micrometers and calipers and neck-turning and annealing and chamfering and case-trimming are but a drop in the proverbial water-quenching bucket in terms of tools and techniques used to create the ultimate cartridge.

    What we've learned over the years has been acquired through endless hours of reading and study as well as discussion and finally thousands upon thousands of rounds loaded and fired at gun ranges all over the globe.

    No one here minds lending a hand or mentoring new reloaders or boolit-casters. New members are urged to read the "stickies" for a simple reason: Damn near any and every question someone new to reloading or casting could ask or think of has already been addressed, in depth, in one of the stickies.

    What most folks here do mind, however, is the attitude of Entitlement--as in, "You already know the answer so what's the big deal about just telling me instead of telling me to go read the archives?"

    If you were to ask one of our resident psychologists here, who happen to be extremely experienced reloaders and casters themselves, what traits of the typical member here might be, they would tell you that either at or near the top of the list would be "Self Sufficiency."

    We cast and we reload because we can and we do not want to have to rely on anyone or anything else in order for us to manufacture our own ammunition.

    Another trait would be "Generosity." I myself have lost count of the number of members and new casters this site has helped with everything from finances to hunting to equipment lost in fires and burglaries to getting new casters set up with equipment.

    So to any new member that may think we're grumpy or selfish or cantankerous (we are cantankerous) because you may get a chilly response to "Can I tumble-lube regular boolits that don't have tumble lube grooves" or "Can I load and fire gas check boolits without the gas checks" or "I just got a new Taurus .357--what's a good load" or "I'm thinking of getting into casting. What stuff will I need" and other such questions addressed not just in the archives and stickies, but that is available with even the simplest of a Google search, then so be it.

    But for those who have a true passion and who at least take the effort to read and research in order to ask quality questions beyond the scope of what has been assembled in the "stickies," you'll be hard-pressed to find a better place to be than here.

    I so need to post this in one of the reloading groups I am a major contributor in. I am constantly telling people this. Don’t use someone else’s loads! Work up your own loads from safe data. What works in joe blogs rifle is potentially dangerous in your rifle.

    I often load for and teach people how to load for their rifles, and express to them safety and accuracy first, velocity is secondary and often unnecessary for their purpose.

    Do it right folks work from low to high and stop when you see issues.

  17. #357
    Boolit Bub
    Join Date
    Mar 2020
    Location
    The land down under.
    Posts
    33
    Oh and I shoot 10000+ rounds a year.

  18. #358
    Boolit Bub
    Join Date
    Mar 2020
    Location
    The land down under.
    Posts
    33
    Quote Originally Posted by WestDivide View Post
    OK, so I joined a few (OK, several) years ago, when I started amassing beau coup (boo coo) wheel weights. Ended up with about 700-800 lb after I sorted all the trash out. Rounded up some lead from my company's radioactive work several years ago, and had high hopes. Ordered up some Lee tools, a 'turkey fryer'-? gas burner and a deep cast iron skillet. Stuff sat for 2-3 years.
    Finally got my feet wet last weekend. WW's smelted up OK, (didn't check well for Zn, tho'), and made a few 140 gn 357's. Was a fun afternoon. A good share of info came from this site, the Lyman Cast Bullet Handbook, and some metallurgy reading I did. Had some intercourse with Bill Ferguson, when he was still the ANTIMONY MAN, and used some common sense. I've made chemicals for 50 years, so that's helped a bit. First bullets weren't beautiful, but think I got the basic procedure down. Now to refine it and incorporate some of the things I figured out I'm lacking.

    I've figured out:
    pouring is somewhat of an 'art'
    a 140 gn mold is full way before you think it is
    I think I want a 'mold oven'
    I need to super clean my mold(s)
    fluxing is still a mystery...

    There's more, but I just learned I get to go out for takeout tonight, so I'm off to Outback. Maybe more later, -West
    When you think that mould is full keep pouring!

  19. #359
    Boolit Bub
    Join Date
    Mar 2020
    Location
    The land down under.
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    33
    Quote Originally Posted by Tom W. View Post
    I've been here for a few years and there's a lot of posts that I'll look at but not answer because someone else ( or two ) has answered it. There are a few people that are ledgends in their own minds and know everything, right or wrong, but they know and all else is wrong or stupid,
    so they get ignored. I'll help when I can, share what I know, and pass on information that I've gleaned through the years. I've been casting and handloading since the middle '70's, and have learned one or two things. I still can't bring myself to powder coat boolits though.
    I am not sold on powder coating myself. Hesitant to run it, but probably shouldn’t be, I shoot j bullets by the thousands.

  20. #360
    Boolit Mold Rigsby's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2017
    Location
    Denmark
    Posts
    9
    Quote Originally Posted by Recluse View Post
    In reading various posts the past few days about a perceived "generation gap" regarding the instant-gratification individual versus the research & learn individual, it seems some new members (and old ones alike) wonder why their questions don't receive the attention that some other new members' questions do.

    To answer that, let me ask this: How much work or study or research have you put into the questions you are asking?

    We have a literal lead-mine of information on boolit-casting and reloading here, with much of it being exclusive to this site because many members here pioneered techniques and methods in regards to lead projectiles that are used by cast bullet shooters all over the world.

    But you have to take the effort to read and study those "stickies" in order to glean the information. When you want instant answers to basic questions, it is indicative that you haven't done any research or made any effort into finding the answer or solution yourself.

    This doesn't pertain simply to boolit-casting or reloading. It is pretty much universally applicable across all disciplines of interest.

    I'm a pilot and aircraft owner. Prior to my medical setbacks, I was giving out some free time to a couple of aspiring pilots, both recently out of college and working at good jobs. Both had around 20 to 25 hours in their log book. I am not a CFII, so while I can fly from either seat (right or left), the students cannot log PIC time and the time spent with me and my airplane is simply to help them gain experience and knowledge.

    The female student had finished her ground school, taken the FAA written test (and passed it) and had her Airman's Third Class Medical which served as her student pilot license. The male student had his logbook and a Bose ANR headset and this Airman's Third Class Medical which served as his student pilot license.

    Both had decent stick and rudder abilities, but the female was by far the smarter pilot and asked far better questions and was far more serious about becoming an airman rather than just an airplane driver. The male asked the same questions over and over, or asked basic questions that he should've learned in ground school, but for which he was "too busy at the moment" to deal with.

    After three flights, I told the male student to find someone else to mentor him, that I was done. He was literally flabbergasted that I would show him the door to our hangar simply because "all he wanted to do was get his license and be able to rent a plane now and then to fly his girlfriend and buddies around." I--and the other pilots along our stretch hangars--explained that there was a helluva lot more to it than that, but he just didn't get it then and I doubt he ever will.

    One of my neighbors is not only still taking the female student up, but was present when she solo'd and caught the whole thing on video for her. She's serious and she's putting in the work and study necessary to be a good pilot, and more importantly, a safe pilot.

    At this site, Cast Boolits, most everyone here has been casting and reloading for at least two or more decades, with most of the older members having double that. The lessons learned have come from a variety of means and methods, no shortage of which has been reading, researching, studying, and trial and error.

    We stress safety here above anything else. Knowledge equals safety. Old-timers know what happens when water gets under molten alloy. We can laugh about the Tinsel Fairy, but the reality is, she can hurt and maim you bad and do it so quick you won't realize what's happened until the ER docs explain it to you.

    A couple of years ago, I put a forefinger digit and a middle finger digit in a ziploc bag for the paramedics to take to the ER in hopes that they could be reattached to the shooter who'd blown them off--the result of not bothering to read or research or study anything when it came to reloading. As I'm putting a tourniquet on his arm below the elbow, another shooter asked him where he got his load data from. He told us (and later in court during a civil lawsuit trial that he lost) that he had never read a reloading manual, didn't see the need when he could go to any one of a hundred gun forums on the internet and get all the answers he needed.

    In the shooting world, you kind of have a hierarchy and it goes something like this:

    --Gun owners. They own a gun for whatever reason, but rarely if ever bother to shoot or practice with it. But it makes them feel better/safer for having it.

    --Casual gun owner & shooter. They own more than one gun, usually, and make a point to shoot at least once a year, often times more. They're generally safe and careful with their firearm, but have extremely limited knowledge as to how it functions, how ammo functions, etc. A lot of hunters fall into this category as well as suburbanites who keep a firearm in the house for protection, but who realize the need to stay reasonably proficient with it.

    --The serious gun owner. This person owns a number of guns, takes pride in his or her collection, knows the brand and make of each gun in their possession, keeps adequate ammunition for their firearms and enjoys shooting and is generally quite competent and proficient.

    --The reloader. This is the Serious Gun Owner who shoots very often or with great enough frequency that the economics and supply/demand qualities of reloading make it a no-brainer. Lots of competition shooters fall into this category and most prefer progressive presses that can churn out lots of ammo in a short period of time. Once they find a good load, they (usually) stop there and crank out ammo by the hundreds, if not the thousands. Very knowledgeable, very safe, very competent and proficient shooters and gun-owners.

    --The Handloader. The Handloader is often the Serious Gun Owner who has graduated at the reloading bench from a basic undergrad degree in assembling his or her own ammunition and is now embarked on a graduate-level quest for creating customized ammunition for each firearm they own. Sometimes they develop ammo for specific situations for each firearm, such as cold-weather loads, high-altitude loads, strong wind/crosswind loads, large specimen (or small specimen) of the same game animal loads. The Handloader lives at the apex of the shooting world.

    --The Bullet Caster. The Bullet Caster shares the apex of the shooting world with the Handloader and the benchrest shooter. All are looking for optimum performance and results after each pull of the trigger. To these people, it is a whole and complete package--the gun, the ammo, the shooting. Some cast their own bullets thinking that it will save them money--when in reality, it allows them to shoot MORE for the same amount of money. Some have thousands of dollars invested in molds and furnaces and lubesizers; others have less than a dead Ben Franklin. But all view themselves as craftsmen, as artists of a sort because we are creating our own projectiles to go in our own seemingly unrelated array of components of brass and primers and powders. In this world micrometers and calipers and neck-turning and annealing and chamfering and case-trimming are but a drop in the proverbial water-quenching bucket in terms of tools and techniques used to create the ultimate cartridge.

    What we've learned over the years has been acquired through endless hours of reading and study as well as discussion and finally thousands upon thousands of rounds loaded and fired at gun ranges all over the globe.

    No one here minds lending a hand or mentoring new reloaders or boolit-casters. New members are urged to read the "stickies" for a simple reason: Damn near any and every question someone new to reloading or casting could ask or think of has already been addressed, in depth, in one of the stickies.

    What most folks here do mind, however, is the attitude of Entitlement--as in, "You already know the answer so what's the big deal about just telling me instead of telling me to go read the archives?"

    If you were to ask one of our resident psychologists here, who happen to be extremely experienced reloaders and casters themselves, what traits of the typical member here might be, they would tell you that either at or near the top of the list would be "Self Sufficiency."

    We cast and we reload because we can and we do not want to have to rely on anyone or anything else in order for us to manufacture our own ammunition.

    Another trait would be "Generosity." I myself have lost count of the number of members and new casters this site has helped with everything from finances to hunting to equipment lost in fires and burglaries to getting new casters set up with equipment.

    So to any new member that may think we're grumpy or selfish or cantankerous (we are cantankerous) because you may get a chilly response to "Can I tumble-lube regular boolits that don't have tumble lube grooves" or "Can I load and fire gas check boolits without the gas checks" or "I just got a new Taurus .357--what's a good load" or "I'm thinking of getting into casting. What stuff will I need" and other such questions addressed not just in the archives and stickies, but that is available with even the simplest of a Google search, then so be it.

    But for those who have a true passion and who at least take the effort to read and research in order to ask quality questions beyond the scope of what has been assembled in the "stickies," you'll be hard-pressed to find a better place to be than here.

    Darn,

    I just stumbled across this post, and I simply couldn't agree more.

    Got my first gun from my late father at the age of 6, started reloading at the age of 14, and kept going on reloading for 46 years now (only sporadically interrupted when the opposite gender got more interesting than guns and reloading) and aren't going to stop any of it any day soon.

    Still shoots in excess of 30K rounds 9mm and 45acp per year plus an additional 1500 .223's and 308's so if I didn't reload I would never have been able to do this kinda shooting.

    Anyway, this is the formula for good results: Teach less, learn more!

    BTW, I'm on the lookout for a Master Caster so should anyone know where a thing like that is sitting doing nothing but collecting dust, give me a holler and I'll take it!
    It will be going to San Diego CA. (just want to mention this before someone asks.....)

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Abbreviations used in Reloading

BP Bronze Point IMR Improved Military Rifle PTD Pointed
BR Bench Rest M Magnum RN Round Nose
BT Boat Tail PL Power-Lokt SP Soft Point
C Compressed Charge PR Primer SPCL Soft Point "Core-Lokt"
HP Hollow Point PSPCL Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" C.O.L. Cartridge Overall Length
PSP Pointed Soft Point Spz Spitzer Point SBT Spitzer Boat Tail
LRN Lead Round Nose LWC Lead Wad Cutter LSWC Lead Semi Wad Cutter
GC Gas Check