Yesterday, I fired up the lead pot and started casting out some 230 grain .452 TC bullets. I've been casting hard 00 buck for several weeks now so working with bullets was a bit of an exciting thing to do. I also mixed some range lead and soft sheet with my linotype lead to get something a bit softer. I know that I need to test the hardness but that will come in time.
To start with, I cleaned the mold really well and smoked the cavities as instructed and the bullets dropped right out.
I allowed the mold to come up to temperature before starting but the first few sets of bullets came out looking like shiny brains. Not unexpected. As the mold heated up, the bullets started coming out in a much more uniform manner. They were shiny at first but as things progressed, they came out with a frosted look.
I have no idea of the temperatures that I was running. To rectify that, I have an IR temp gun on the way.
After everything had well cooled, I ran the bullets through my new Lee .452 sizing die with a bit of Alox applied to the contact area. They all went through easily enough with some having great looking rings and some not so great. The not so great or deformed ones went into the melt pile.
I had about a 33% success rate for what I would consider usable. Perhaps not the best but I was pleased to be able to say that I made my own bullets.
Question time....
When you drop your bullets, what do you use to catch them? The linotype lead that I use for my 00 buck is very hard so I drop them into an old baking pan. These .452 bullets are softer lead and carry more heat with them so some have dented a bit. Wood? damp carpet? Something else?
What is the preferred texture? Shiny or frosted?
Many thanks for all of the other advice that I have gleaned from this site!