It's not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years (Abe Lincoln)
"A free people ought not only to be armed and disciplined, but they should have sufficient arms and ammunition to maintain a status of independence from any who might attempt to abuse them, which would include their own government.” George Washington
Lead isn't worth the trouble or the effort to go and buy a Brinell hardness tester. It's primary use is checking hardness after heat treat in steel or fabing a replacement part, e.g making sure that you don't substitute 1018 for 4140. Lead, you can pick up a Lee hardness tester or a Redding, both a designed for lead alloys. I've had a Redding for years, and haven't used it for about as long. I use my fingernail and as long as I don't cut them to short they work pretty good for verifying my bullet hardness.
“Let us endeavor so to live that when we come to die even the undertaker will be sorry.”
― Mark Twain
W8SOB
Well, I've NEVER worried about hardness for my casting. Bought almost all my lead here, and none has given me leading, especially after powder coating. EMP shouldn't really be of any concern. REAL nuclear explosions might be, but really, if it were a large scale attack by the ruskies or the chinese, I'm not worried in the least about a magnetic pulse that won't come.
If you know the approximate BNH of the lead your buying it will remain fairly constant. If your planning on gathering up lead and starting up casting after an EMP attack you'll have a really steep learning curve.
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 |