Brinnel hardness Q's

[DeanWinchester]

Okay, so this good ole fellar I know tossed me a Lee hardness tester. I have never tested anything before. I've been casting and shooting handguns for many moons, with few issues and those were easily solved with little effort. Now I find myself on the path of casting for my 308. Greater velocity = more variables to consider. SO, I tested several samples of my hodge podge WW mix. Air cooled samples I cast several months ago came to an average of 14.3 Water quenched bullets I cast last year came to 20!

Now I have been water quenching my 230g RN for 45acp from the get go, and I always thought they performed like a FMJ. No wonder.

My pistols DO NOT lead, are accurate and loaded to very modest velocities, so right or wrong, I'll keep doing the same thing.

My main question is, If I can get 20 brinnel from water quenching and 14 from air cooling; Which would be the better choice for a 200g .308 Under 2000 FPS. I already have my first 50 loaded with incremental increases of powder and they are air cooled.
Using AA 5744 I have the lot loaded as (10) @20g and (5) each in 1/2 grain increments up to 24g. I'm just fishing for something that jives right now. Watching for accuracy and signs of leading.

Any other relevant comments welcome. And yes I did do a search, but limited patience is my curse.

[white eagle]

i would try the w/q boolits
you have had very good results with them before in your pistols
I guess it all depends on what you are looking for in your boolit
being able to drive them hard without leading the definitely w/q
but if you want expansion on game well that may drive you to something different
like 50/50

[HARRYMPOPE]

water dropped w/w mix in the 308 at 20 BHN is a good choice.i wouldn't draw many conclusions from just one 5 shot group with each the 1/2g increments though.Sometimes the barrel takes bit of time to warm up and "foul" (evenly coat with lube) and your later groups might better due to this and not the higher charge.Lots of variables! i find shooting two 10 shot groups with each charge a better deal.I have shot 18- 20g of 5744 in the 308 with 185-200g bullets and have been happy right there.Tell us how you do!

HMP

[pls1911]

I've shot babbit material, linotype, and ww for years with great results.
With the demise of ready access to wheel weights, linotype or babbit at reasonable cost (or free) I looked for alternatives.
The answer is LOW antimony alloys made from pure lead with 10-30% other alloy added, then heat treating. Your water quench may be fine too.
This alloy as cast measure 9-11 Brynell, harder if water dropped.
Oven treated low antimony alloy heat treats to 20-25 Brynnel.
These can be driven as hard as linotype, with the added benefit of plasticity in place of the brittleness of high antimony alloy. They flow and penetrate when game is hit instead of shattering.
Scrap flashing lead from a friendly roofing contractor is free.
Shower pans from occasional replacement from your friendly plumber are free.
So, along with a good stash of gas checks, with a ton of linotype, ww, and babbit, and about the same of smelted pure lead and more on the way, you'd be set for the forseeable future.

[badbob454]

air cooled for up to @ 1500 fps and water quenched with higher velocitys is my reccomendation for accuracy as the bullet may plasticise (deform at higher velocitys ) my opinion ...