Tin bullets in 22 rimfire

[leadman]

I was looking through Natchez catalog yesterday and noticed that Winchester is now offering a 22 long rifle with a bullet made out of tin. They offer a 30 gr. in round nose or hollow point.

A new source for tin to alloy with our lead! Might take alot of "mining" though.

[dualsport]

Probably meant for shooting condors in Cal. lead free zone.

[Cactus Farmer]

Or spotted owls....

[dale2242]

Like all things "environmentally friendly", the new tin 22 rf ammo is going to cost the shooting public more money. ...dale

[JSnover]

Great.
Let this thread officially kickoff the Great .22 RFF (Rim Fire Famine).
Got get em, folks! Fire up the truck and head for town before everybody else and FILL that sucker with every kind of RF you can get.

[mroliver77]

Great.
Let this thread officially kickoff the Great .22 RFF (Rim Fire Famine).
Got get em, folks! Fire up the truck and head for town before everybody else and FILL that sucker with every kind of RF you can get.

Been there, Done that many moons ago. Got mine put back before the "hoarders" got them all.
Jay

[bruce drake]

www.odcmp.org/1101/can.pdf

Now, I guess we get to look forward to tin-fouling in the future as well.

I hope the new "Tin" bullets aren't cupro-nickel!

Bruce

[yondering]

A new source for tin to alloy with our lead! Might take alot of "mining" though.

Nah, just figure out how many you need, and shoot them right into the pot.

[rob45]

Considering the expense of tin, it will be interesting to find out the exact content of one of these "tin" bullets; I simply do not understand how one can manufacture such an expensive projectile and keep costs down to a level that would allow shooters to buy that product.

Assuming our average "scrap" costs (which is always up and down), let's assume what we may currently be willing to pay just for the material before turning it into a finished projectile:

tin @ $8.00/lb 1 pound makes 233 bullets (30 grains ea.) = 3.5 cents per bullet

lead @ $1.00/lb 1 pound makes 175 bullets (40 grains ea.) = .6 cents per bullet

In this scenario, it is almost six times more expensive to use tin instead of lead! Undoubtedly the actual costs are going to be different for a large manufacturer, but the difference itself will always be large. Tin will always be considerably higher because there is less of it in the earth, and also because it is more expensive to refine once it is mined.

Were I to manufacture such a lead-free projectile, rather than make them all tin I would make them out of zinc with a "tin" coating. But who knows? Maybe the manufacturers really do have it figured out One thing is for sure, if they truly are pure tin, expect your rimfire shooting costs to go up considerably. Perhaps not so much at first, but once "all the lead is out", the manufacturers pretty much have free reign on their pricing.

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?t=67288
As I mentioned in the thread about this same subject earlier this month, I have very mixed feelings on "green ammunition". The people operating indoor ranges prefer lead-free ammunition so as not to have to deal with the environmental issues; although I do not agree with them, I sympathize with the expense of dealing with whatever regulations with which they must contend.

With that said, I truly believe it is a bad business decision for the ammunition manufacturers to attempt to standardize the new "green" ammunition. The end result is a considerably smaller customer base. Eventually such ammunition will not only be considerably more expensive, it also will make it more difficult for reloaders and casters to comply with ever-increasing component restrictions. Manufacturers vs. reloaders/casters. Sounds great for the manufacturer until they consider that those who reload/cast their own are the serious shooters (like us) who form the core of nearly all shooting sports.

We are the ones who introduce others to our hobbies and encourage involvement. We are the ones who pass our knowledge to generations beneath us. We are the current customer base, and we directly impact how large the future customer base will be. To succeed in business, one first has to have a product for which the customers are willing (and able) to pay, and then sell that product in volume.

To the ammunition manufacturers:
If you're developing a lead-free primer for indoor use, I understand. But please get the compatible powders developed so reloaders can purchase those primers (and the powders that work with them). Keep producing your "lead-free" bullets for those indoor ranges, but please remember to keep fighting the environmentalists who seem to have more opinion than fact. Above all, do not try to force me, an avid shooter/reloader/caster, into diminishing my shooting hobbies because I cannot afford your products. If I can no longer afford the shooting sports, it is highly unlikely that I will teach others. For every person I do not teach, well, that's yet another lost customer.


Rant over (for now).

[jleneave]

Been there, Done that many moons ago. Got mine put back before the "hoarders" got them all.
Jay

Me too!! I have enough .22lr, .22short, .22mag, and .17HMR to last the rest of my life, the life of my children, and probably my grandchildren too. I still pick up the occasional bulk pack when they are in stock, which isn't often around here, just in case I need to help out friends that didn't see the shortage coming and to replace stock that we have been shooting. I have already had to help out a couple friends.

Jody

[Bret4207]

Way, way back they used to make 22 bullets for gallery shooting out of a bismuth alloy. "Splatterpruf" was once brand name I think.

Just a little trivia.

[leadman]

The price for the Tin bulleted rounds is $7.19 per one hundred, same ball park as the lead, with the plated lead being $7.74 per 100.

I see no need to stock pile if this is the actual cost. Sometimes manufacturers will offer a new product at a lower price to get it into the market place, then raise the price later.

[dualsport]

I stockpiled mine before the hoarders got 'em all? This is a joke, right?

[trk]

The price for the Tin bulleted rounds is $7.19 per one hundred, same ball park as the lead, with the plated lead being $7.74 per 100.

I see no need to stock pile if this is the actual cost. Sometimes manufacturers will offer a new product at a lower price to get it into the market place, then raise the price later.

GONE are the days when Shorts were 14c, Longs 18c and Long rifles 21c a box of 50 !