Dead soft bullets

[MtJerry]

If I use a GC bullet and a good lube, how soft can I make bullets before leading or accuracy will be an issue?

My reason for asking is just out of curiosity. Obviously there will be expansion with a soft bullet .... that and I have just come into a fair amount of pure lead.

I know most people here have talked about mixing 50/50 ww's and soft lead to do the job. But, out of curiosity I want to know. Can you shoot soft lead at 1500 to 1800 fps accurately and without leading if you use a GC and a good lube?

[felix]

The answer is yes, provided a perfect boolit fit, and launched (initialized) with ease as to not deform anything. The odds, however, are slim with the typical guns we enjoy. Best to harden up to at least 50-50 WW and pure lead. ... felix

[45 2.1]

If I use a GC bullet and a good lube, how soft can I make bullets before leading or accuracy will be an issue?

My reason for asking is just out of curiosity. Obviously there will be expansion with a soft bullet .... that and I have just come into a fair amount of pure lead.

I know most people here have talked about mixing 50/50 ww's and soft lead to do the job. But, out of curiosity I want to know. Can you shoot soft lead at 1500 to 1800 fps accurately and without leading if you use a GC and a good lube?

The 50/50 alloy air cooled with a good lube AND gas checks works pretty well with accuracy and little leading, dependent on cartridge and pressure levels, to 1800 fps. With hollow pointed molds, it is a great killer in the lower pressure handgun rounds.

[Bullshop]

I have been making pure lead boolits for the fellas over at DWB's for thier Whites ML. They are running up to about 1500 fps with plain base and doing some respectable shooting.
I got up to 1570 with pure lead plain base from my new Marlin 45/70 this fall with excellent accuracy.
With a gas check you would certanly raise the potencial.
BIC/BS

[MtJerry]

The answer is yes, provided a perfect boolit fit, and launched (initialized) with ease as to not deform anything. The odds, however, are slim with the typical guns we enjoy. Best to harden up to at least 50-50 WW and pure lead. ... felix

So a low pressure powder like say 5744 would work.


I got up to 1570 with pure lead plain base from my new Marlin 45/70 this fall with excellent accuracy.

I am thinking about this for my NEF 45-70 so your information is helpful. THANKS!

[Bass Ackward]

If I use a GC bullet and a good lube, how soft can I make bullets before leading or accuracy will be an issue?

Can you shoot soft lead at 1500 to 1800 fps accurately and without leading if you use a GC and a good lube?


Jerry,

There are three correct answers. Yes under certain conditions. No if you are inflexible and won't try new things. Maybe, because the launching system and bore condition really set the limits.

I would say that you will have a better chance of reaching your objectives in solid and even longer barrel configurations. Meaning a rifle over a handgun. And there may be options for different techniques too.

Try shooting it and see.

[357maximum]

I have run pure lead in gas checked form up over 2K in my 357 max...but it only stays highly accurate for about 30 to 40 rounds...no signs of much leading,,,so the why it goes south eludes me. I have tried all the commerciasl lubes and recipes out there and it still does this...why...Idunno......If I back down to 1500 to 1700 or so it remains accurate till I run out of boolits....

[edit] I have tried most of the suitable powders and this phenomenon still occurs..


With the 50/50 air or water cooled I can run the same 2K+ forever and a day with no issues...

YMMV...

Michael

[Poygan]

I was having a miserable time to get the WW boolits to drop from a duel cavity Lyman 429303 so I ran some using pure lead (which did drop better). I loaded 25 with 11 grains Unique and gas checked them. Used FWFL. According to the Lyman Cast Bullet Handbook, this load should be 1104fps @ 22,100cup.

I had no visible leading with a good group at 25 yards. In sand, the boolit had a perfect mushroom and about the same recovered in dry paper, about .75" in diameter. I was quite surprised at the lack of leading and accuracy.

[Ricochet]

With water dropping, a lot less than 50% WW in soft lead works well. They get pretty hard with 20-25% WW, harder than air cooled WW.

[BruceB]

Last year I ran a dozen or so rounds of pure-lead RCBS 416-350 through my "Ruger Rigby". The load was 54 grains of 5744, a dacron filler tuft, and Hornady gascheck.

Velocity, as I recall, was 2080 average, and there was NO visible leading. The rounds repeatedly grouped three in the 2.5"-3" area from 100 yards. This was a good bit looser than my water-quenched wheelweight boolits, which typically will put three in 1.5" at the same distance.

This was simply an experiment at one extreme of the "softness scale", and not intended as a serious proposition for my hunting load. From that point, I continued developing methods of making good, cohesive softpoints that would reliably expand with their pure-lead noses, and still retain their structural integrity following impact and expansion on game.

[Wayne Smith]

Of course, your other option is to load with BP and very soft, say 20/1 lead tin mix! It's pretty standard, and I've used pure lead successfully in my 40-70BN.

[piwo]

I have been making pure lead boolits for the fellas over at DWB's...

I guess I didn't do the secret handshake correctly, because I got an email from DWB saying they opted to deny my account...

So I guess I'll opt to not buy anything from them. Life is so simple...:drinks: