Hey all,
What is the general consensus on cast bullets getting harder or softer over a period of time.
I usually knock out about 100 bullets at a time per mold, cast from ingots that I have made previosly. Those ingots are made up of Lead / Tin which I test with a Lee hardness tester and could be 6 months old. Every once in a while I notice the bullets seem to be harder, ( I breach seat with a hand push seater) and when I re test them, they are actually harder. Not much, (30:1 goes to 25:1) but enough to make the seating difficult even with Tapered and Base band designs. Why is it so. When I test the ingots during manufacture, obviously the alloy is new and still warm, does it change over the next 24 hrs, 48 hrs, 2 weeks ??.
I buy used Plumbers flashing and lead pipe from the Recyclers which tests very very close to pure, as far as the Lee Tester is concerned.
I buy old Pewter mugs etc for my tin. Do either of these ingrediants have the ability to change over time ? If they do, then I should have had this problem every time I've cast, for 20 years, because I have never bought new pure lead or tin. I don't use Range lead, linotype or wheel wieghts. I don't use a themometer. Any thoughts ??
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