Help really can't find a straight up answer...

[wyoduster]

Been using Wheel weights for bullets nothing else... Been working OK, but I hear guys talk about adding tin or other alloy's.. Should I just keep making them the way I am or would it be better to be buying a mixed lead from a company or individual .. I feel like I'm ready to take the next step to better accuracy and as a 52 year old newbie in this Black powder cartridge thing I want to do it right.. So give me some guidance please..........
wyoduster

[bob208]

w-w are good for smokless loads. but for b-p cartage .45-70 .38-55 and many others i like recovered .22 rimfire lead. if using b-p i add a little more pure lead. it is all trial and error. layman used to give formulas for lead mixture in their moulds.

[fryboy]

first off for black powder the softer the better

as for the rest ...eh if it's working for you why change it ? ( ye olde if it aint broke dont fix it type thing ) tin may or may not be helpful , if you're getting good fillout why waste it ? if you're not then a addition of a lil tin can really help ( no more than 2% for an example ) if you're water quenching then the less tin the better IMHO , because i have no idea what you're shooting and casting for straight ww's can work for many calibers , the higher pressure loading can often benefit from a harder alloy ( or water quenched ww's ) and conversely some , like 38 special or 45 acp , mite actually do better with a softer alloy

[Larry Gibson]

Been working OK

Ok? If the bullets are for smokeless loads then adding 2% tin will get you excellent bullets instead of "OK" bullets.

If casting for BP loads I would add 20 - 50% lead to the WWS or go to a lead - tin alloy of 30 -1, 20 - 1 or 16 -1 depending on the bullet weights and how fast you push them.

Larry Gibson

[wyoduster]

Been working OK

Ok? If the bullets are for smokeless loads then adding 2% tin will get you excellent bullets instead of "OK" bullets.

If casting for BP loads I would add 20 - 50% lead to the WWS or go to a lead - tin alloy of 30 -1, 20 - 1 or 16 -1 depending on the bullet weights and how fast you push them.

Larry Gibson

Hmmmm ,,yeaaaaa Not to be ignorant.but I'm a newbie.. so is 20-1 mean 20oz of WW lead and 1 oz tin.

[clintsfolly]

Yes oz,lbs or tons! Just work in the measure that you need to got the your size of batch. Clint

[fryboy]

close enough , you can use any part you wish be it ounces pounds or tons , but it has to be the same measurement of parts ( ie; pound to pound , oz. to oz. )

[Larry Gibson]

The question is answered.

Larry Gibson

[Aaron]

Actually, you question the 20 to 1 which means 20 parts pure lead to one part tin. No WWs are used.

Aaron

[Bob Krack]

I kinda think it is a question easily answered in the man-cave and range.

If the boolits look good and shoot good, then it's all good.

However, if ya wanna experiment, try - in one pot - with adding a small amount of Tin. Tin usually helps fillout and has other effects on the desired final product - namely - boolits.

You will find many many well intentioned answers here, from both near professionals to rank amateurs that read a lot. Perhaps myself included. It just seems SO easy to cast a few from one pot that has had extra Tin included that I think the lessons here are from the best to the nearly ignorant. MOSTLY from the best and near best!

My experience does NOT dictate additional Tin above clip on wheel weight for MOST applications. More to the contrary, adding soft lead to COWWs usually do better for me .

Hope this helps and if I ruffled any feathers, all I can say is you can tell your story also.

Bob