Lee REAL or Minie ball moulds

[mac266]

Have any of you ever used these? My state requires a round ball and patch for hunting, or a Minie ball style conical. In other words, I cannot use sabots, which I have grown accustomed to for accuracy. My accuracy with a patch and round ball isn't good enough for me to go to the field with and be happy that I'll put the animal down with one shot.

I looked at some Thompson Center conicals which come pre-lubed in the box, but they were over $1 per round! AND THAT'S JUST FOR A CHUNK OF LEAD!!! I figured for $25 I can make a heckuva lot more than 25 of these things and keep the ol' frontstuffer belching lead.

But, I would like to hear from someone who has used them first. Which of the two do you recommend and why? Are they more accurate than a patch and roundball? Can you lubricate the grooves like the Thompson Center version and how do you do it?

[idahoron]

Have you searched the old posts? What is the rate of twist on your gun? What is your gun??
I have shot both of the bullets your talking about and they were both accurate with a 1-28 twist. If you have a 1-28 twist you really should do your self a favor and read the sticky of mine above about paper patching. The lee REAL is a accurate bullet if it works in your gun. The Minie is ok but if you push them too hard the skirt can break and cause problems with accuracy. The Lee 500 S&W bullet paper patched and pushed with 80 gr of Pyrodex P will shoot through a Mule deer from any angle at 117 yards. I know I have done it and seen it. They will punch through a shoulder of an elk and be found in the hip, I know I have done it.
As far as accuracy goes with the Lee 500 S&W my son and I had a shooting contest out to 250 yards with them yesterday, he won.
Ron

[bubba.50]

Lee reals have shot well for me in my T/C's with 1 in 48 twist & my Lyman Great Plains with 1 in 60 twist. plenty accurate enough for deer at any range i'd care to shoot at one. each caliber of them up to .54cal come in two weights. I use the shorter/lighter weights in the roundball twist gun.

luck & have a good'en, bubba.

[mac266]

I use a Lyman Deerstalker which has a 1 in 48" twist.

[koger]

Go with a Maxi type bullet, 50 use 90-95 grains, 2ffg, might put a veg. fiber wad or piece of hornets nest between powder and bullet for best accuracy, but don't have to. Using the Hornady great plains and TC maxi Hunters, I have accounted for 46 whitetails, my wife for another 6 using them! The TC maxi or maxi hunter works great, as well as the Hornady great plains, 385 grain, I have a buddy who has killed a slew of deer with this bullet and his Lyman deerstalker. The Lee real works good also, but the Lymans bore is generally just a tad bigger, might not seal off well. Get a few off folks here and try them, then find you a mold and cast your own, not a big deal!

[swamp]

What size REAL are you looking for? I cast 50( I will have to check) , 54 and 58. I also have a Lyman 54 Plains mold.

Are you close to Denver?

swamp

[aspangler]

The Lee REAL works well in my TC Renegade, and TC Fire Hawk. 1-48 and 1-28 respectively. Also works in my Traditions Side lock with 1-20. As stated above they work best if a wad is put between bullet and powder. Work up your load from a starting load and adjust for best accuracy.

[mac266]

What size REAL are you looking for? I cast 50( I will have to check) , 54 and 58. I also have a Lyman 54 Plains mold.

Are you close to Denver?

swamp

.50 caliber. I live in rural Elbert, about 10 miles east of Monument.

[swamp]

I will make sure I have the 59 REAL. If you get to Denver once in a while you can cast some up. I don't think I have any ocast up .

Checked and I have the 250gr. 50 REAL mould.
swamp

[tomme boy]

The Lee REAL shoot really good as long as you don't try to hot rod them. Not much bearing surface to grip the rifling. I have shot the 250 and the 350 for the 50 cal. and they shoot great. I have also shot the T/C Maxi-Ball. That shoots really well too. I cast all of mine and use a felt wad below the slug. The wad is lubed with T/C bore butter. I cut my own wads and melt the BB in a plastic bag with the wads in the Microwave. Then a lube the bottom grove of the slugs with BB and 70-90grs of 3F real black powder depending on which one I am using. This is out of 2 T/C New Englanders and a CVA Hawken.

I would not be affraid to use the 350 REAL or the T/C Maxi to take anything on this side of the world.

[triggerhappy243]

amen to what tomme boy says. I can attest for everything he says. I cast the 250 gr. real, and the 370 gr. maxi-ball. both shoot great. I use bore butter in the lower lube grooves. and use that aweful stuff called pyrodex. but i can hit what I aim at.

[johnson1942]

if you cast them and as kroger said your bore is slightly larger than the one you cast can handle their is a way to get around that. roll them between two sharp clean large flat files. this knarls them up to the size you need. also the knarling works great with lee alox lube as the alox lube can really cling to the knarled up bullet. it will grip the lands better also being knarled and lubed with lee alox. any slightly undersized bullet cast or paperpatched bullet can be brought up to size by knarling. i have a knarling machine but two good large clean flat files work just as good.

[fouronesix]

So everyone's on the same page.

Left to Right-
Lee REAL solid base conical, TC Maxiball solid base conical, RCBS hollow base Minié

[rodwha]

I have a .50 cal Lyman Deerstalker (blued version with deeper grooves), and I bought some cast 320 grn REALs to try out.

My first shot was about a foot left and a few inches low at 50 yds. I happened to have some .50 cal felt wads made up, and my next two shots were nearly touching and slightly low. These promise to be quite accurate in my rifle, though I haven't shot it since then, and so haven't worked up a load. I used 70 grns of 3F Olde Eynsford or Triple 7. I also used Gatofeo's #1 lube.

If you have the blued model make sure you have some felt wads on hand, but try with and without them.

If you can't find anyone with the 320 grn version let me know and I'll hook you up with the fellow who cast mine. Very reasonable price.

[triggerhappy243]

I have been hearing alot of talk about felt wads under bullet. where do I go to find this felt? I am curious as a cat now.

[rodwha]

I bought mine in a short roll from Durofelt. I bought a custom punch made to desired diameter from a retired machinist for $10 + shipping.

http://www.durofelt.com/image_26.html

Hard felt is best, though I've been considering thinner and softer felt (cheaper) for use as filler.

[rodwha]

I like the idea of REALs as I've heard other types of conicals can move off of the charge if the barrel is ever drooped a bit, which can create a tremendous problem. I know Minies are generally undersized, but I'm not sure about all of them or other types of conicals.

I do know that the REAL is groove sized and so you force it to conform to the riflings. It will stay put. A paper patched bullet will sit tight as well.

[triggerhappy243]

ok, I got a wild question... and I hope I get more than one knowledgeable reply. toilet bowl wax ring..... what is it made of? and can it be used for bullet lube or lube for these felt wads?

[rodwha]

It used to be made from beeswax. Now it has some sort of petroleum product in it making it unsuitable for use in BP weapons.

I bought my beeswax and mutton tallow from Dixie Gun Works.

[rodwha]

I found this in the description for a toilet bowl wax on HomeDepot's site:



Urethane wax material

[rodwha]

Gatofeo's #1 lube is a very old outside bullet lube recipe. It's 1 part mutton tallow, 1 part paraffin wax, and 1/2 part beeswax by weight. I use it on my wads and my bullets.