New Guy jumping in

[Big Dipper]

Hello, i have been reading posts on the site for awhile. I am impressed with the knowledge and willingness of people to share information and help others coming along. I have zero bullet casting experience. I do not know how to navigate this site. I am an old guy with limited computer skills. I am a shooter and re loader for shotguns, rifle and some times handguns. I have recently inherited a pile if re loading, casting and gun parts. I have decided to start casting bullets. I am putting together a few things I need to start. I have a lyman melting pot and dipper on back order from Midway. I have most of the rest. I believe I want to cast bullets for my 222 rem mag however i'm thinking i will start with 30 cal for a 308 or maybe bullets for a 357 mag contender. I have cast fishing sinkers and decoy weights. Let me apologize in advance for the mistakes I will make trying learn how to use this site.

Thank you

[Mk42gunner]

Welcome aboard. We were all at zero experience once upon a time.

I am a youngish old guy that still doesn't know much about computers, so don't worry. Do try to read the sticky subjects, I know there are a lot of them, but they will answer a lot of questions. Also read the posts and join in a few conversations.

I will say that the bigger and slower boolits (within reason) are easier to cast and get shooting acceptably; i.e. your .357 will probably be easier than the .308 or .222 Rem Mag to get accuracy and full power loads from.

Remember, be safe and have fun,

Robert

[GaryN]

Welcome to the campfire. If I were you I would start on the 357 as stated above^^^.I guess I got lucky. I started casting just out of high school. I am now 58. Read all you can. Be safe. The more you read the more questions you will have. We like to answer them so ask away.

[Tatume]

I second the recommendation to start with the 357. Larger calibers are easier to cast than smaller.

[OnceFired]

Welcome. You mean at 42, I'm the whippersnapper? Haven't had THAT happen lately. :)

[Shuz]

Big Dipper--Welcome to the site! To ease your entry into casting, I too, suggest that you start with the largest caliber you have and work down in rifle calibers. FWIW the vast majority of folks who shoot cast boolits in competition don't compete using calibers under 30. However, if you are a small bore fan, go for it. I love the .250 Savage cartridge, and have been using it in CBA competition for many years. Good luck as you venture into the land of the silver stream!

[RobS]

A nice site for info:
http://www.lasc.us/castbulletnotes.htm

A must read:
http://www.lasc.us/Fryxell_Book_Contents.htm

A good person to get wheel weight alloy from:
http://castboolits.gunloads.com/member.php?9216-TheCaptain


You mentioned egg sinkers and decoy weights and that may be soft lead or pure so wouldn't be the best unless you added something to it to make it a better boolit alloy.

[RobS]

Rotometals has ladles that are nice quality too:
http://www.rotometals.com/SearchResults.asp?Search=ladle
This one is a good one but others will probably jump in here:
http://www.rotometals.com/product-p/casting_ladle_bottom3.htm

and if you are after a thermometer:
http://www.rotometals.com/SearchResults.asp?Search=Thermometer



rotometals has a castboolit forum discount too.

[Echo]

Welcome to the madness, BD. I second the recommendation for starting with the 357. what molds do you have? If you don't already have one for 38 boolits, the Lyman 358429 is as standard as can be, and doesn't require a gas check. There are many other good designs, too. Tell us what molds you have, and the rest of the casting stuff you got, and we can make further suggestions.
I don't use a ladle - I've bottom-poured nearly my entire casting career, and will not change. You might consider using a bottom-pour furnace, and decide what you like best.

[wvmanchu]

Welcome BigDipper. I too joined recently after lurking for a long time. Been casting for a while but I've learned more here than in my previous 15 yrs. I also recommend starting with the .357, I started with .45 and have been working my way down in size. Plan to start casting some .30 caliber stuff in the near future.

[Big Dipper]

Thank you for the welcome. I am new to website participation and am encouraged by your responses. I have been fortunate to inherit some equipment including 40-50 molds from 22 cal to 50 cal. All are old and have been in storage for nearly thirty years. I am wondering about cleaning. They look good and are not rusted and still in there boxes. For my 10" octagon contender in 357 I am thinks of maybe a long bullet to fill the forcing cone.

[Sensai]

Welcome Big Dipper !! 40-50 molds MAY be enough to get you started (HeHe). I'm not trying to talk down to you, but not knowing how familiar you are with molds, I'd just like to say a couple of things that might help. As far as cleaning them, if they have lasted that long without rust they were probably prepped well for storage. Don't clean the ones that you don't intend to use soon, leave them preserved until you need them. As far as identification, Lyman has a number on the mold that has the first two or three numbers designating the size that the boolit is intended to be used, the rest of the numbers are just reference to that particular boolit design and don't refer to anything in particular. For instance the 358429 is a boolit designed to be sized and used at .358, the 429 is just the designation given to that particular design. Unlike what a lot of people think, the 358 doesn't mean that it will drop from the mold at .358" diameter. It normally drops a little larger. A lot of mold producers have adopted this numbering system. Lee just has a designation number and you have to look up what the boolit actually is. Some Lee molds have the size and weight on the mold, but not all. By the way, Ideal is the same line as Lyman. Lyman bought the Ideal trademark many years ago and continued the line. This is just the tip of the iceburg, but maybe it will keep you from having to look at the cavity of each mold to find out what you have. Welcome again, and best wishes, Gary

[searcher4851]

Welcome to the group.

I concur with Sensai. The molds that have been in storage and have not rusted should be left alone until you plan to use them. They were apparently stored correctly. Also, bigger bullets are easier to start on. Even reloading bigger bullets is easier.

[Cherokee]

Welcome to the group.

I concur with Sensai. The molds that have been in storage and have not rusted should be left alone until you plan to use them. They were apparently stored correctly. Also, bigger bullets are easier to start on. Even reloading bigger bullets is easier.

What he said - and welcome !! I'm 71, been casting for 50+ years, still learn things from here. Lots of knowledge and help available.

[Maplefytr]

For many years I've used the RCBS-357-180-SIL in my 10" Contender for metallic silhouette competition. This is a great gas check bullet, which will produce sub-1" 10 shot groups at 25 yds with appropriate charges of 2400 or IMR 4227 and maintain this level of accuracy out to 200 meters. I also use this bullet in my Ruger Blackhawk...either using a 38 special case crimped in the crimping groove, or a 357 Mag case crimped over the shoulder. Good luck!!

[Taylor]

Welcome Big Dipper.Good people here,and yes there is a bunch of valuable info. 22's are surely hard to cast for,tiny bullets they are. I know first hand,I cast for .223.

[leeggen]

https://www.google.com/cse/home?cx=001951264366462437169:ggn3vg-bjum

To make finding a search easier use this google sight it was set up by one of the members to help all of us find things.
As they say" mizery loves company" welcone aboard.It would be interesting to know the total number of years of experiance on this sight. Suspect several thousands. Ask your questions and they will be answered, sometimes by giving you an address to go to sometimes right on the tread you asked. It isn't hard to get into this casting but it IS hard to get out.
CD in TN

[jlchucker]

Welcome, Big Dipper. As a new caster, you can't go wrong with the info that most of the guys here will offer. I've cast many of my own for couple of decades before I found this site--and quickly realized that when it came to casting I was still a rookie-novice! Two things that I found out after joining: The guys here are knowledgeable, friendly, and willing to share info, and I had been wasting money reading what I found in most gun magazines when it comes to casting. Oh yeah--a third thing--you never stop learning something new when you log on here. Good luck.

[Walter Laich]

Howdy BD,

Glad to say this is NOT rocket science--melt lead, pour in mold, wait a few seconds, cut sprue, open and drop bullet on soft surface and repeat. Sizing and lubing is about as simple.
Nice thing about casting is the bad ones go back in the pot, plus it's amazing how many 'bad' ones can be shot with good results.
Read and listen but get out there and try it. I learned most without help and experimenting as I went along. CB will help you fine tune your skills.

walt