Advice on slugging bore

[trapper9260]

Thank you Outpost75 for going into details on this. It make it easyer for me to understand better on this all and sometime over look of how to do this all.

[tazman]

If you are having issues finding a sinker or other piece of lead the appropriate size for your handgun, here is a trick you can use to get a lead slug only slightly larger than the barrel.
Use an unsized fired case(straight wall or slightly tapered like 9mm) that has been fired in the weapon. Pour it full of your soft lead. Wait for it to cool and use an inertia puller to remove it from the case.
This will be a few thousandths larger than the groove diameter of the barrel and will be easier to get into the barrel due to the size. The end of this slug that was closest to the primer hole will be tapered for easy insertion into the barrel of your pistol.
This will NOT work with bottleneck cases for obvious reasons.

[Carrier]

If you are having issues finding a sinker or other piece of lead the appropriate size for your handgun, here is a trick you can use to get a lead slug only slightly larger than the barrel.
Use an unsized fired case(straight wall or slightly tapered like 9mm) that has been fired in the weapon. Pour it full of your soft lead. Wait for it to cool and use an inertia puller to remove it from the case.
This will be a few thousandths larger than the groove diameter of the barrel and will be easier to get into the barrel due to the size. The end of this slug that was closest to the primer hole will be tapered for easy insertion into the barrel of your pistol.
This will NOT work with bottleneck cases for obvious reasons.

I’ve used that method as well and works really good.

[Taterhead]

If you are having issues finding a sinker or other piece of lead the appropriate size for your handgun, here is a trick you can use to get a lead slug only slightly larger than the barrel.
Use an unsized fired case(straight wall or slightly tapered like 9mm) that has been fired in the weapon. Pour it full of your soft lead. Wait for it to cool and use an inertia puller to remove it from the case.
This will be a few thousandths larger than the groove diameter of the barrel and will be easier to get into the barrel due to the size. The end of this slug that was closest to the primer hole will be tapered for easy insertion into the barrel of your pistol.
This will NOT work with bottleneck cases for obvious reasons.

Yes, this has been my technique too. Make a perfectly sized slug, and as you say has a nice nose taper to get things started.

[MR CHEN]

I understand the slugging process butt...…..
How does one measure a S&W revolver slug with it's oddball 5 groove rifling? I can not get a good reading with the caliper measuring on the edge of the lands.

[44magLeo]

I might try cutting up a case. Cut a section off wider than your caliper jaws. Cut this section in quarters. Measure the thickness of the case section. May have to fold out one section flat to get accurate reading. Place one of the curved sections on the boolit covering the groove. Measure the boolit and case. Subtract thickness of case from the total you measured.
Leo

[Conditor22]

The other day I used a lead dipper, melted some pure/soft lead into it after the boolit mold for the caliber I was going to test had heated up on my hot plate. I then hand poured a couple boolits to slug the barrel with. IF the boolit isn't big enough, set it on end and smack it with a hammer the boolit will be shorter and fatter.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

I understand the slugging process butt...…..
How does one measure a S&W revolver slug with it's oddball 5 groove rifling? I can not get a good reading with the caliper measuring on the edge of the lands.

Well, a V-block is the correct tool to use with a 0-1" Micrometer for measuring a slug from a 5 groove bore (I would also recommend not using a caliper).
If you don't have a V-block, you can cut a strip off of a aluminum beer can, which is about 0.0045 thick, wrap that tightly around your boolit, then measure, then subtract 0.009 from your measurement.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

I might try cutting up a case. Cut a section off wider than your caliper jaws. Cut this section in quarters. Measure the thickness of the case section. May have to fold out one section flat to get accurate reading. Place one of the curved sections on the boolit covering the groove. Measure the boolit and case. Subtract thickness of case from the total you measured.
Leo

Some case walls have a tapered thickness and I would not recommend it for this purpose.

[Dragonheart]

I don't like the idea of driving steel rods down my barrels so fire and water trap all my slugs. I first cast pure lead bullets for a particular caliber and powder coat them. I load a very light load, just enough of a charge to clear the barrel, the primer alone is not enough. I have a large plastic garbage can with a small hole I cut in the center of the lid. I fill the can with water then float a foam rubber floor mat on top; this is to confine the splash. I lock down the lid and fire straight down through the hole in the lid into the can. The 3' column of water stops the bullet and leave it in pristine condition. I use a pickup tool to retrieve the bullets. I now have a bullet that can be labeled & stored in a small zip bag.

[samari46]

I use a 1/4" diameter phosphor bronze brazing rod 2.5 feet long with one end threaded for a aluminum section I use as a striking end. Got a few of these from a welding supply house. Since most of my cast bullet rifles are more or less 30-31 caliber I use a Lyman 314299 cast with wheel weights with 2% tin. Some say that an alloy like I use will allow the slug to spring back when compressed. Such has not happened in my experience. I have a little micrometer stand that will hold a 1" mike graduated in thousandths. Usually do take a few measurements to make sure of the numbers. Two things to remember is write the make, model and serial number down with the land to land and top of the groove measurements, I use a little pad about 3"x3" to store the info. Do not rely on memory. I also use a large dead blow hammer to start the bullet till it's flush with the muzzle. Saves dinging the muzzle end of the barrel. And no wood dowels. Don't know how many times someone does this and now has two problems. Getting the piece of the broken dowel out and the slug used for the barrel. The cheap aluminum three piece cleaning rods always seem to break at one of the threaded joints. And not always while trying to slug a barrel. I've had them break just in normal use. Frank

[MR CHEN]

Well, a V-block is the correct tool to use with a 0-1" Micrometer for measuring a slug from a 5 groove bore (I would also recommend not using a caliper).
If you don't have a V-block, you can cut a strip off of a aluminum beer can, which is about 0.0045 thick, wrap that tightly around your boolit, then measure, then subtract 0.009 from your measurement.

The beer can idea sounds easy enough, thanks.

[Carrier]

The beer can idea sounds easy enough, thanks.

Or you can find either a gunsmith or a gun friendly machine shop who have the right tools to measure odd number. It costs me $10.00 to have them measured with a V micrometer.
I tried using thin strips of copper and aluminum but couldn’t get a accurate measurement compared to machine shop.
Try using the strips and if it works for you awesome.