Difference between dropping the casted boolits in water vs a cotton cloth?

[Lavid2002]

Hey guys...
I cant seem to find any literature on this subject. Heres what I have compiled so far...can you guys teach me some more. Also...correct me if my info is wrong please : )
Pro's of water
-Cools off the boolits faster
-Makes the boolits harder
-Prevents deformation

Con's of water
-If you drop a poorly casted bullet into water it must be TOTALLY dried off before it can be put back into the pot, unlike cotton where you can just put it back in
-You have water near the melt, splashing the water with dropped boolits raises the risk...

Pro's of cotton
-Less materials needed, boolits dont have to be dried off later
-Mess ups can be put back into the pot immediately
-Yields softer lead if expanding is desired

Con's of cotton
-More likely to get bullet deformation
-Takes longer to cool off


What say ye?


Thanks fellas
-Dave

[excess650]

Alloy containing lead, antimony, tin and at least a trace of arsenic with precipitate harden when quenched. Not only do the bullets reach a higher hardness level, they also do so at a considerably quicker rate. IIRC, 7 days vs 28 days....

I quench my bullets-drop them from the mould. Bullets heat treated and quenched by baking in the oven may get even harder. It makes no difference to me as I'm not looking to go past 20bhn or so.

I dry mine on a towel, and then in front of a dehumidifier or with a hair dryer depending upon how quickly I'm looking to get them lubed, and possibly gas checked and sized. Generally, by the time that I've cast all that I want in a session, I'm not ready to sort, lube and size.

Corrections or additions?

[Blammer]

how high are you dropping them onto cotton? Unless it's more than a few feet I doubt you'll ever get any bullet deformation.

[MT Gianni]

I have gotten boolit deformnation when I water dropped in 5 gallons of water in a 6 gallon bucket. If they pile against each other they can deform. I find it easier to rotate a towel to let them settle rather than empty a bucket in full cast mode.

[Lavid2002]

Yeah the cotton is no big deal...but the bullets falling onto each other could deform them no? When I water quench I need to take the bullets out every hundred or so to keep them from falling on each other right?

Thanks : D

-Dave

[Bret4207]

I've bent boolits water dropping and on towels. I stick with AC to simplify things and only WD when I see a need for it. I've taken boolits past 30 Bhn and all it did is prove FIT IS KING WITH CAST! IOW- I still got leading because hardness will not make up for poor fit.

[BruceB]

When I water quench I need to take the bullets out every hundred or so to keep them from falling on each other right?

Thanks : D

-Dave

No, there's a solution.

Tape a loose cloth over the top of the bucket, drooping it well down into the water. A slit in the cloth near its lowest point will permit the bullets to fall through to the bottom. Drop the bullets off-center in the bucket, and they should roll down the slope of the cloth to the lowest point.

By the time they reach the slit, they will be well-cooled and able to withstand the drop to the bucket's bottom. Note that minor cosmetic marks on the bullets make no difference whatever to their performance, but dropping through the cloth should minimize even cosmetic dings. I've cast thousands of bullets into a single bucket-full using this method, with no bad effects.

Having such a cloth taped over the bucket leads to some "wicking" of the water, meaning that some of the water absorbed by the cloth will drip down the OUTSIDE of the bucket. Don't do it over your hardwood floors....

[Lavid2002]

Is weight an issue? If I cast enough will the weight of the extra boolits on top of the other boolits cause a problem with deformation??

Thats a great idea with the slit in the towel : D
Thanks buddy

[Barstooler]

I put a soft cotton canvass cloth on top of a 3 inch thick 2 1/2 ft x 2 1/2 ft soft foam rubber pad. That pad is big enough to allow me to drop about 100 bullet's without them falling on each other. The drop distance is about 6 to 8 inches.

I have two pads and two cloths, so I fill one up and then start dropping on the other pad while the bullets on the first pad cool off.

Barstooler

[Echo]

I air-drop onto a folded towel, after knocking off the sprue. Check the fresh boolits, push them into a pile, drop the sprue back in the pot, and press on. When the pile gets big enough, I put into a container and start a new pile. No dents or bends.

[mooman76]

Getting a tiny drop of water to slash on hot lead shouldn't be a problem. It's getting the water below the surface that is the problem. I still don't press my luck and I keep my bucket on a chair almost completely behind me so I have to turn around to drop it in.
I've never had a problem with having deformed bullets dropping on cloth or at least any more than dropping in water and that's just when I drop too soon before the lead has hardened completly.
Also when dropped in water the bullets come out looking a little better, less frosty at times depending on the heat of the melt and such.
I mostly perfer non water dropped bullets but that is because of my shooting. If you need harder bullets, water drop, if not then don't.

[chris in va]

I *must* water drop my 9mm, otherwise it looks like a buckshot pattern. My 45acp's on the other hand prefer air cooling.

[Lavid2002]

So air dropping bullets onto a towel, some will inevitably fall on other boolits. Is there a problem there? They don't deform that much do they? Just slight blemishes that dont effect functionality?

[Bret4207]

Naw man, you drop on a clear spot on the towel. When the spot gets too small you just pull the towel up a bit and the boolits roll out of the way. And no, the weight of the boolits in the water bucket won't deform the lower layers, that'd take a LOT of boolits.

Don't over think this. Been there, done that. None of this is rocket science, just relax and cast and you'll develop your own method that works best for you.

Remember- this is supposed to be FUN!

[Lavid2002]

Lol U got it mayng

Im ordering my casting equipment friday. I smelted 64 lb of ingots already though

Its very cool

[Crash_Corrigan]

I water drop my boolits into a 5 gallon bucket. I save the styrofoarm packing peanuts that have taken over my residence. A nice layer of about 4 inches of peanuts on top of the cold water will soften the blow to the soft lead boolits and also prevent any splashing of water.

There is some damage to the peanuts from the hot boolits but who cares? They are just smaller pieces. The boolits are not deformed. I do not have to worry about them gathering in large groups. My biggest concern is that after a few hours the water level in the bucket rises to the top and I have to either remove some boolits or some water.

I hate making decisions.....so if it gets to that point I usually pull the plug and quit for the day.

[mpmarty]

I pour and cut sprue with gloved right hand, catch the sprue and drop it back in pot. Then open mold and let boolits fall on cloth pad from about an inch high. close mold close sprue and repeat.