What should lead boolits cost?

[Tumtatty]

Thanks guys.

I don't really know this guy so I don't have a problem taking his money

I agree that friends get boolits for free or for nearly so.

I asked for .10 per boolit and have not heard back from him yet. I'll keep you posted.

[Shotgun Luckey]

I cast some up for a close friend....actually the relative that got me into cowboy shooting...He casts his own for the .44-40 boolits he shoots in matches, but wanted some .38's for practice. (he has identical guns in .38/.357 and .44-40) He didn't want to get "set-up" for the .38's and doesn't have a lot of time. I figured it a couple of different ways and came close with each method:

these figures are for 158 grain boolits using wheel weights + 2% tin
calculated using the following assumptions:
cost of ww if purchasing $1/lb
cost of tin $10/lb
1000 boolits = 22.6 lbs

1) $.02 for the alloy + $.02 for casting + $.02 for lube and sizing = $.06 each =$60/1k
2) 2 times cost of materials = $53.10/1k (an easy rule of thumb for craftshow type stuff)

I ended up charging him $60 per thousand and he was happy to pay it.

If you are casting 230 grainers, that's about 33 lbs of alloy. I would ask for at least $80 per 1k.

Just my $.02

[georgewxxx]

Tumtatty
I think you've got what info you need as far as price goes, but heres a different slant on it. Unless you've got a unlimited access to your lead source, drop the final price a bit on the condition that your buddy looks for a replacement of your lead supply. The more eyes we have looking around for a new source of lead the happier we'll all be. He just might see some lead that you overlooked. We all know how hard it is to find with all the new regulations and company policies demanding recycling and removal from our usual sources.....Geo