Resolutions

[TXGunNut]

Hunting with one's own cast boolits is an experience that's hard to describe, one's first kill with boolits you poured yourself is simply awesome. On top of that a cast boolit is hard to beat as a hunting projectile. It truly saddens me when I see a member post something to the effect that he's still looking forward to his first cast boolit kill. I've only killed relatively few with CB's but I'm convinced there's nothing better for my hunting situations.
There's only one solution: resolve now to develop a CB hunting load and start to work now to make it happen. Load development (in Texas, anyway) is best done in the wintertime before it takes 2-3 days for the rifle barrel to cool down between shots. Develop a load you have confidence in and practice with it in offhand and rested positions until you have no question about the load or your ability. Then cast & load up a year or two's worth of good hunting ammo. When it gets too hot to shoot your hunting rifle get your .22's or pistols out and have some fun. When the weather starts cooling off sight in your hunting rifle and remind yourself of just how good this rifle/ammo combo really is. When you finally go hunting; leave those j-words at home or bring them for a backup rifle. You'll never get that first CB critter if your CB's are not in the rifle you're hunting with! Another tip that I need to heed myself is go hunting every chance you get, life's short and getting shorter every day!
When you finally bag your first critter with your own boolit it'll all be worth it and with any luck at all the next one will come soon behind. I've killed dozens of critters with j-words but my last one was just before my first CB kill. I haven't taken a j-word hunting since then. Sure, my bad-weather gun and another fine 30-06 still shoot j-words only but they never get uncased anymore. CB's are simply my first & best choice but they won't work for you until you let them.

[waksupi]

It's been so many years since I shot anything with a jacketed bullet, I don't even trust them anymore. Cast boolits WORK!

[richhodg66]

Thinking back now, I haven't killed a whole lot of deer, about two dozen but of those slightly more than half have been with my own cast. Most of those were with various muzzle loaders which is no real trick. The last three I've shot with breech loaders have been with .30 caliber cast though and as long as I'm using a bore that big, I'll use cast.

I want to use my .250 Savage next season, so I'll most likely use a jacketed bullet, but I have some more .30s and a .35 or two to use as well and they ill surely be with cast.

[35 shooter]

It's been so many years since I shot anything with a jacketed bullet, I don't even trust them anymore. Cast boolits WORK!

Waksupi i had to laugh when i read that........cause it's only been a bit more than a year since i fired my last j bullet and i already feel the same way. All you guys have ruined me!:wink:

[Jal5]

My goal for next year is taking a deer with cast in my ML. Really looking forward to working up this load.

[Wag]

I haven't been hunting since I was a teenager (30+ years) but I've been feeling the urge to get to it again. When I do, it'll probably be with some j------ bullet, just to get me into the field again. Also, since I've just barely started casting, I have to learn more about it before I'll feel truly comfy with slipping a CB into my hunting rifle.

You're helping to get me motivated again, though. Keep posting up!

--Wag--

[bigtee]

I agree it is very rewarding and I've only been casting for 8 or 10 months now. My problem now is that I have more guns with cast bullet loads than I can get deer tags for.

[missionary5155]

Greetings
Happily I can say I have never shot a corn cruncher with anything but a lead boolit. Most have been with the lowly deadly soft round ball but the few white tails I have popped with a centerfire cartridge were also my home cast.
ILLinois is one of those places that does not trust it's law abiding citizens to hunt with center fire rifles so hand held items are required. For me it has been revolvers and home cast is all I use. So I guess in one thing I need to thank the commy dictators of the windbag city... Thanks in forcing me to be resourceful and use the best anyone can have.. home made of course.
Mike in Peru

[DIRT Farmer]

Of all the deer I have taken, I think two were with jacketed, four with cartridge guns. 2 with 30-06 jtx, one with shotgun slug and one with cast in 45-70 trapdoor. My first was with a home cast round ball in a 54 I built, the last 20 + with my flint 50.
To hunt deer with a rifle I built shooting a round ball I cast, sparked with a flint I made, with a patch I cut lubed with tallow I rendered from an animal I killed. Now if I would get to work on making my own black powder.

[TXGunNut]

Of all the deer I have taken, I think two were with jacketed, four with cartridge guns. 2 with 30-06 jtx, one with shotgun slug and one with cast in 45-70 trapdoor. My first was with a home cast round ball in a 54 I built, the last 20 + with my flint 50.
To hunt deer with a rifle I built shooting a round ball I cast, sparked with a flint I made, with a patch I cut lubed with tallow I rendered from an animal I killed. Now if I would get to work on making my own black powder.

You're my hero, DIRT Farmer! I can only imagine the satisfaction gained from that level of involvement. You start growing your own stock blanks and forging gun parts you're a shoe-in for CB sainthood.

[daniel lawecki]

All my shooting has been with cast boolits for 15yrs my only gun that shoots j-words is 22k hornet. If it bleeds cast boolits will kill it.

[TXGunNut]

Waksupi i had to laugh when i read that........cause it's only been a bit more than a year since i fired my last j bullet and i already feel the same way. All you guys have ruined me!:wink:


Actually, I suspect he's quite serious. I came to this party a bit late but I've already begun to feel that way.

[DIRT Farmer]

I have spent a lot of time onthe back porch of Gun Makers Hall at Friendship when they have the rifling benches out and have spent some time working with them. I would love to go to the Gun Makers Seminier and forge and rifle a barrel to build a rifle. I guess the ultimate dream. I have forged trigger guards and other small parts.
There are several cherry and walnut trees here on the farm that I have let grow. I want to cut one and split out some stock blanks. The old dead guys diden't have saw mills and you can see if the grain runs true if you split them instead of saw.
I'm working on it Tex

[TXGunNut]

I planted some walnut trees awhile back. I hope someone makes a rifle stock out of one of them a hundred years from now. I simply don't have the patience for a rifle project but I'm trying to develop it by making a knife now and then.

[pls1911]

I assume my boxes of j-bullets will be inherited sometime down the road.
Istanbul rated cast .30 cal for silhouette with a TC30-30 for economic reasons. And never shot another jbullet... In fact, after the first season, I took critters with the silhouette loads in a Marlin, and no bolt guns have seen the light of day since.
Critters big and small have fallen to compact and handy little levers and cast bullets... Ever barked a squirrel with a 45/70???. Hey,,,It's what I had when I needed it!
TXGNUT HIT IT RIGHT... It's hard to describe the grin from success with your own boolit.

[DIRT Farmer]

I envy you guys that have scusfully barked a squrriel, the last on I tried was with my 28 ga trade gun, 60 grns of powder and a 530 patched ball. The squrriel went flying off the side of the tree, sailing end over end, hit the ground and ran up another tree and hid.

[waksupi]

I envy you guys that have scusfully barked a squrriel, the last on I tried was with my 28 ga trade gun, 60 grns of powder and a 530 patched ball. The squrriel went flying off the side of the tree, sailing end over end, hit the ground and ran up another tree and hid.

You have to put the ball somewhere in his neighborhood! You probably got powder in his eyes and up his nose, and he did a somersault off the tree, just showing off!

[DIRT Farmer]

Could be Waksupi, so far my attempts at barking a squrriel have been more humerous than meat getting. One hung on to the chunk of bark that was shot off for a few feet, then after running up another tree sat in a fork barking at me while I reloaded. He left while I was priming.

[Changeling]

Short storry: In my early teens I hunted squirrels with a Bow. One of my first was one flattened out on the side of a big tree! I shot him through the middle, pinning him/her to the tree, the squirrel then comenced to totally distroy my "Best Arrow" by spinning on the shaft and biting through it before I could get there and introduce him/her to a big stick to the head!!

Best part is it didn't taste like Chicken, just fried squirrel.Ummmmm, so Goooood!

[taco650]

Tx,

Thanks for the inspiring words. I'm a newby caster too although my 44 mag has shot car loads of commercial cast over the years. I've been out of hunting for about 15 years too and am slowly working my way into it. Definitely want to use CB's in my rifles on deer. Also want to tag one with the revolver & a CB.