Gone Small Caliber

[Hickory]

Just wondering how many here have switched to shooting/casting a smaller lighter boolits/caliber because lead is getting harder to find and more expensive?

I have, and also reduced the amount of shooting I do too.

[mdi]

Not yet. I still like my 255 gr. .44s and my 225 gr. .45 ACPs. I started casting 125s for my 9mm, but that was just out of curiosity, not lead saving...

[Jim]

Yes Sir, I have. Not so much toward saving lead and/or powder (although that is achieved), but more for the sake of comfort. I can still handle recoil, but I find shooting my 223 bolt gun a lot more relaxing that any of my larger calibers.

Knowing there's going to be recoil at a level that must be dealt with when shooting any of my larger caliber rifles, I tend to tense up a bit in anticipation. Knowing there WON'T be any recoil from my 223, I find I can relax and enjoy shooting it.

Actually, I enjoy shooting my 223 so much, I just sold my brand new pellet rifle to finance my first NOE mold so I can cast for it.

[kenyerian]

Well I certainly have. I thought I had a lifetime supply but the Grandchildren came along and boy do they like to shoot so I've been loading a lot more light loads . Saves on powder also. They really like my 22 Hornets and right now I can load them cheaper than 22's. I also load a lot of 38 specials and hide the 357's. I'm considering buying the 170 grain saeco mold #062 for the 45.

[altheating]

I went to shooting the small cal stuff. Not because the components are hard to find or expensive for the bigger stuff, but because its more fun. Three, 22 K Hornets, a 221 Fireball, four 223's and a 222 Rem. Lots of shooting with only two different molds and two powders. Lots of 38's out of the Ruger 77/357 too. I have 13,000 47 gr boolits cast for the hornets right now. That's a heaping pile of them little buggers. My daughter just said to me last night that she wants to start shooting, but " I don't want to get bruised up". Looks like the hornets will get some more use.

[popper]

Lighter CBs not smaller cal., drop the GC for plinking, pistol powder.

[Case Stuffer]

I went mostly from .45ACP 200 to 230 gr. boolits to 9mm 125-135 gr. boolits partly to save some alloy but mostly to reduce the punishment to the wrist.

[462]

I've stayed with the larger calibers and their nominal-for-caliber boolits, but have eliminated all the stout loads, realizing that it was time to quit beating up the guns.

[WILCO]

actually, i enjoy shooting my 223 so much, i just sold my brand new pellet rifle to finance my first noe mold so i can cast for it.

What????? Just when I started reading and enjoying the air rifle threads. [smilie=s:

[runfiverun]

I haven't changed much.
I went and shot the 357 max and 445 super mag the other day and realized I didn't like shooting them as much as I used.
i'm still fine with the 44 mag and such but i'm really thinking about getting another 357.
it's just holes in paper and a dust cloud on a rock.

[WILCO]

Just wondering how many here have switched to shooting/casting a smaller lighter boolits/caliber because lead is getting harder to find and more expensive?


The whole reason I ventured into the world of cast boolits was to "save money" and we all know how that goes. I've since had an interest in the smaller calibers, but haven't made any moves other than to learn about them and day dream. For the reasons you've stated in your OP, I'm hoping the .256 Winchester Magnum might come back as a popular offering.

[NVScouter]

Nope I always resupply powder primers and brass so neither crunch has really effected me. I also downgraded from 12klbs of on hand lead to 3klbs on hand in my last two moves. I'm back up to 4klbs since then and I never pay a dime for it.

[texassako]

I have sort of, but found the real cost is in the primers. Switched to firearms that I tend to shoot slower, single shots, target rifle, etc. At the extreme end is messing around with my .25 ACP 30gr cast loads, about 225 of those suckers per pound of lead and only uses a pinch of powder. I still need that 2.5-4 cent primer though. Still, it is fun to shoot for an hour or 2 knowing I only burned up a pound of lead and an ounce of powder.

[Jim]

..... I still need that 2.5-4 cent primer though.....

I was thinkin' about that the other day. That's a 'nonvariable', no matter what you do to economize. From 22 Hornet to .600 Nitro Express, ya' can't reduce the cost of that primer.

[Love Life]

Not yet, but then I haven't really been shooting since the end of March. My long range thumper is being neglected. I have not finished load developement for a SAA clone either, even though I have all the different boolit weights to try. I've been busy though, and hopefully there is no end in sight...

[ghh3rd]

Still casting 425 gr boolits for my Guide Gun .... reminds me, I haven't shot it lately. Once you shoot 25 or 30 full house loads of those in a session, everything else seems like a .22 short :-)

[JeffinNZ]

That's exactly why I shoot a pair of .40cal MLers. I run them on 30gr of 3Fg and 90-130gr projectiles while everyone else is is burning 60-70gr of powder and throwing three times as much lead.

[dverna]

I have never enjoyed recoil and have loaded lighter target loads for most of my range time. The more powerful loads are for game, competition, or self-defence but how many of those do we use? Cost has never been my prime motivator for lower power loads.

My current plan is to set up a system to reclaim the majority of my bullets so I doubt I will be buying/scrouning much alloy in the future - so bullet weight will be of little impact on cost.

[shredder]

Nope! In fact I just had a look at my stash in the garage and decided maybe I need a 45/70 to help reduce the pile!!

[Von Gruff]

I have backed off from shooting my 404 Jeffery with the 350gn CB over 74gn Varget as often as I had been doing but the same bullet over 21gn Red dot still runs at 1500fps and is a fun adition to a days shooting.
Most of my plinking loads now are just 11gn of Blue Dot behind the 123gn CB in my 6.5 GM or 19gn under a 160gn CB in my 7x57, and with these running at 1750 and 1900fps respectively are more tha enough to satisfy the shooting needs. They both have good 200 yd hunting loads that are still very cost and results effective.

[telebasher]

Makes me wonder how many 225438s can be cast from a 5-gallon bucket of wheelweights. Oh well, for me its not about how many times I shot today but how much fun it was.

[longbow]

I haven't gone small caliber or at least no smaller than .303 British but I have gone light for caliber boolits for much the same reasons as others ~ less lead being used up for plinking and informal target shooting and less recoil.

I have the NOE 0.314" x 129 gr. lapped to 0.316" for my .303's and I have the Mihec 316410 (130 gr.) on its way. I also got Accurate moulds to scale down a lightweight .45 cal TC design to .44 for my Marlin. It casts 0.433" at 165 grs. and shoots great over 8 to 10 grs. of fastish powders. Last time out I used 10 grs. 700X and it was much peppier than I anticipated but shot well with virtually no recoil and still leaves big holes in targets. Could be a good small game getter too loaded a little lighter.

Less lead, less powder, less recoil, what's not to like for fun shooting?

Longbow

[MaineJim]

Due to carpal tunnel ive given up on the 45-70,454s and big boomers in general.
I find .45 auto,9mm,357,308 and 30-30 a lot more enjoyable along with air rifles/pistols.

[Olevern]

One word with regards to scarce/expensive lead; recycle!

[longbow]

Yup! I mine the berm all the time and often, I take more lead home than I shoot.

[Harter66]

As of now I'm not to worried about using up my stash. I'm hovering around a ton w/access to 500# lots monthly.

What I have done is started using the 124s for the 9s in 38/357 for general shooting. Now that I have heavy hunting loads worked out for the 30 cals I can settle back down to the 120-30gr plinkers. As far as lighter cartridges go the newest is a 7RWH (7x6.8 Rem straight neck up all .007 of it). 7mm moulds are like hens teeth as are 270s but w/100-130gr boolits it like the 30s costs about the same as 9/38spc $12/100. I've put in for the 150gr 40 cal GB and 135gr 38/9mm GB for utility of the mould.

Yes I guess I have downsized some but still shooting as much as ever.