Just Joined the Forum

[Texas Shooter]

Greetings to everyone from Fort Worth, TX.

I am getting back into reloading after a considerable absence. After I am up and running may try my hand at casting some 38 HBWCs with your help and recommendations. In the meantime I hope to learn more about the hobby (addiction) of reloading and boolit casting.

My favorite pastime is informal target shooting at our local gun club - both pistol and rifle. Current favorite pistols include 22LR, 38 Special, 45 ACP and favorite rifles include 17HMR, 22LR, 223 Rem, 30-06.

Thanks in advance for sharing your experiences and lessons learned.

Texas Shooter

[badgeredd]

Welcome aboard,

The 38 and 45 are going to be relatively easy to cast boolits for. One can easily use a plain based boolit and be running boolits pretty darn quickly. The ought six won't be bad either, but you'likely want a gas checked boolit eventually to get higher velocities. That adds another thing to the mix. . You might want to wait a while on casting for the 223. Those little boolits take some getting used to before you'll get the rhythm and technique perfected. It IS an addiction though once you get going. If you watch and shop wisely, it won't cost you much to get started and it will over time save you money...depending on just how much you become addicted.

Edd

[Texas Shooter]

Thanks for the input Edd. I doubt that I will ever try anything as small as the 223, but never say never... I don't think I'll rush into anything just yet so your advice on watching and shopping wisely is good to follow.

Texas Shooter

[KY_Camper]

Welcome aboard Texas Shooter! I have learned a lot since I found this site and I am sure you will too. This is a great group of people with a lot to offer.

I can't say I save any money by casting and reloading, but I can shoot a whole lot more for the same amount!

[HeavyMetal]

Welcome to the forum!

Always glad to see someone getting back in the "hobby". As mentioned 38 and 45 are the most cast for rounds and you should be able to hit the entry level stuff pretty cheap with a little shopping.

You mentioned casting 38 HBWC's. Do you have a mold for this? This is nothing more than casting backward HP's and can be a bit frustrating so, of course, I'm interested in your plans and gear.

[Texas Shooter]

Sorry for the late reply - took a break and went out to the range for a while and enjoyed some beautiful weather (72 and very little wind which is rather unusual for us since the winds have been gusting to 30 mph lately). At this point I am just re-establishing my reloading bench and do not have any molds. Guess it will be sometime before I actually get into boolit casting so I'll have plenty of time to search the forum for info.

[dromia]

Welcome aboard TS.

One thing your certain of here are lots of opinions and advice.

[runfiveswife]

welcome to the forum. lots of good advive and a great bunch of guys

[Wicky]

+1 with #1wife.
Enjoy your stay here.
I didn't realise how much I didn't know til I joined the forum. Some of the friendliest and knowledgable people out there live here.

[crabo]

Which range are you shooting at in Ft. Worth?

[JIMinPHX]

Welcome to the board Texas Shooter.

You might want to wait on casting those HB wadcutters until after you have developed the feel for casting some plain base boolits first. The hollow bases can be a bit tricky sometimes. Your first mold should probably be a 2-cavity plain-base .38 or .45. There are lots to choose from. Get an aluminum Lee mold to start with if cost is a big issue. You can get a Iron mold from someone like Lyman or RCBS if you have a little more money to spend. The Lee molds come with handles. The others do not. Try not to make the same mistake that I did with my first mold. Get some good hi-temp lube & lube the sprue plate well. Galled up mold block tops are an ugly thing.

For now, while you're just in the getting ready stage, start looking around to see if you can scrounge up some wheel weights to use for casting material. You can always hit your local hardware store & buy a roll of solder to get the small amount of tin that you need, but semi-hard lead is the thing that you are going to need the most of. Grab that wherever & whenever you can. As little as 10 pounds can get you started, but it will disappear fast. It is not unreasonable to pick up several hundred pounds, even when you are just starting out.

[Echo]

Welcome to the forum, TS, from a Native Texan transplanted to Arizona. Be prepared to become addicted (fast or slow, either way, IT HAPPENS!). Good folks here.

I cast and reload for the .38 and .45, among others, and I agree they are very easy to cast and load, and get good results. My experience with the .38 Special suggests that .38's like heavy boolits, so I would suggest staying above 150 grains, except for the WC's, They are inherently inaccurate beyond 50 yards, but bang-on inside 50 yards. And I agree with JinPhx - stay away from the HB molds for a LONG time until you get REALLY comfortable with the Silver Stream. The Lyman 358495, or H&G 50, are two WC's that have been used for YEARS by BE shooters, and matches have been, and are still being, won with those boolits.

As for the .45, I use the Lyman 452460 boolit (PBSWC) and can think of no reason to switch. Two-hundred grain SWC's work just fine in a .45 IF your magazines are up to it. GC's not needed on either .38 or .45.

[Dale53]

I shoot the H&G #251 double ended wadcutter in my .38's and .357's and they shoot extremely well. They require a bit more powder than the HBWC's but cast MUCH easier.

There is NO WAY I would try casting HBWC as much as I shoot. Since they (the HBWC's) give me no accuracy advantage, it is NO problem for me to shoot solid base wadcutters.

Dale53

[Texas Shooter]

Thanks everyone for the warm welcome and good advice. Looking forward to learning more about the art of casting.

Cabo, I normally shoot at the Haltom City Rifle & Pistol Club.

Texas Shooter

[crabo]

Texas Shooter, do you ever shoot any of the matches on Saturdays? I sometimes shoot the 22 fun match and the lever gin match. I know there are several casters there. I live in Garland, but haven't been out there since Christmas.

[Slow Elk 45/70]

Hullo and Welcome Texas Shooter, this is a great bunch of fellows here and everyone is very helpful, if you have questions, just ask. Good shooting/casting

[captaint]

Welcome Texas Shooter - If you're like me, you're going to be spending a lot of time here now. Make it a point to read most or all of the "stickies". You can spend hours reading & learning - some really interesting stuff. Enjoy, Mike