New guy from Ohio.

[45 Shooter]

Well I didn't see an introductory section to your forums so I figured i'd say hello here. I have just started casting my own boolits this past weekend and there's way more to it than i'd have ever thought, but it's fun and keeps me out of the wifes hair.

I've lurked here for around a month trying to learn before I took the plunge into casting. Here are a couple of pictures to show you my progression. I must admit, the majority of my boolits go right back into the pot for do-overs.

The bottom picture is of pure lead ingots that I found in my crawl space while fixing my laundry room floor. They are around 6 to 7 pounds apiece and I found 8 of them! :-D

Oh, by the way. These are .45 ACP 230 Grain.


73177
73178

[Dale53]

45 Shooter;
I live in SW, Ohio. Where are you located?

It appears that you have a good handle on casting if that last bullet is any indication. Incidentally, that is a GOOD bullet for the .45 ACP/Auto Rim. I have the normal lube groove design from Lee and it works quite well from my 625's as well as my 1911's.

I use WW's+2% tin in my .45's sized at .452".

Dale53

[45 Shooter]

45 Shooter;
I live in SW, Ohio. Where are you located?

It appears that you have a good handle on casting if that last bullet is any indication. Incidentally, that is a GOOD bullet for the .45 ACP/Auto Rim. I have the normal lube groove design from Lee and it works quite well from my 625's as well as my 1911's.

I use WW's+2% tin in my .45's sized at .452".

Dale53

Dale im also in SW Ohio. Just a little north of Englewood.

[300winmag]

Dale im also in SW Ohio. Just a little north of Englewood.
I am northwest of Englewood in Brookville, are you my neighbor:coffeecom

[45 Shooter]

I am north of Englewood in Brookville, are you my neighbor:coffeecom

Brookville would be westish of Englewood (considering your driving on I-70 ;-)) But i'm close, maybe 15 minutes from ya. ;)

[45 Shooter]

Dale. I'm using up that pure lead I found in my crawl space. I can't see NOT using it. I am however adding tin to it. I stopped at a recycler in Dayton this afternoon and got a 20 pound chunk of already melted down ww. Only problem is it's way to big to put into my 10 Lee production IV pot.

I need to come up with a largish pot just to melt down the scrap and cast it into a small muffin tin or something.

[300winmag]

Brookville would be westish of Englewood (considering your driving on I-70 ;-)) But i'm close, maybe 15 minutes from ya. ;)
90 sec off exit 21 coffee is on in the mornings swing in.

[Jim..47]

I need to come up with a largish pot just to melt down the scrap and cast it into a small muffin tin or something.

Almost any old pot or pan will work. Cast iron is best but pretty hard to find a cast iron pot, at least I wouldn't know where to look for a new one. I've used stainless steel fry pans and different pots that were no longer used for cooking. The trick is getting one with 2 handles and a spout.

You can get by without the spout, but unless you have limbs like iron its hard to handle and not safe to try and pour from. If its heavy enough metal you can attach some kind of 2nd handle, or just use a big ladle.

If you're lucky enough to have your own shooten range you can build some kind of sand trap and recycle your old bullets, even after a few years. The lead won't melt in normal weather. :-D

Good luck and be safe.

Edit: Do you know about fluxing your pot and skimming off the junk? And also flux your mold with wax, will fill out better and release better.

[TMSCU]

Welcome to the board. You will enjoy the forum very much and learn alot.

[45 Shooter]

Thanks for the pointers Jim. Yes, I flux my pot every time I add new metal to it. Thanks for the welcome TMSCU, i'm learning alot every day but sometimes it seems overwhelming, kind of like you need to be a metalurgist or something but i'm catching on slowly.

300winmag, I've been to Brookville many times. Whenever i'm through there I usually grab my coffee at the Speedway there on the corner. Might just have to take you up on that cup of joe sometime.

[country gent]

Welcome 45 shooter Ask questions and be ready to learn alot I have. Also enjoy the friendship and comradery. From another Ohio shooter here but Northwest Ohio

[Cherokee]

Welcome from another Ohio caster. Good start with a good boolit for the 45 ACP.

[Dale53]

45 Shooter;
I live just north of Cincinnati, Ohio. I use a turkey/fish fryer with a Harbor Freight 6 quart cast iron dutch oven. I holds well over 100 lbs. of bullet metal. I've melted as much as 650 lbs. in one afternoon with this rig. It's a good setup for smelting and not horribly expensive.

Dale53

[MrWolf]

Hi and welcome. I am still in the learning stages and trying to absorb as much as possible. Looks like you made some nice progress already.

[Bisbee]

Welcome to the board. Miamisburg, here.

[gareth96]

Hello from Ceasar Creek...

[dondiego]

Don't "flux" your mold with wax as previously stated. Keep it very clean! You might need to lubricate some locating pins and hinges but don't let any lube wander into your cavities.

[45 Shooter]

Don't "flux" your mold with wax as previously stated. Keep it very clean! You might need to lubricate some locating pins and hinges but don't let any lube wander into your cavities.

I lube the locating pins, hinges and bottom side of the sprew plate with bees wax (a little goes along way). I already learnt the foes of letting it into the mold cavity.

On a side note I melted down 51 pounds of ww lead into nice manageable size ingots using one of the wifes small muffin tins this afternoon. Now that all my lead is a consistant mixture i'll be casting alot of boolits this weekend.

[smithgar3840]

I'm in Germantown which just north of Middletown. Casting has been my hobby for close to 40 years. ****! That makes me old! I have an FFL and have just started a gunsmithing business. I'll be retiring hopefully in the not too distant future and need something to do to keep me out of the bars at night. If you ever need anything just PM me.