Do top shooters cast their own boolits?

[OBXPilgrim]

Hmmmmm.....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PSgQ82Kqhzo

The man - himself

[MT Chambers]

All the CBA Benchrest shooters that I am aware of use their own cast bullets, most purchased cast bullets are designed to drop from molds easily and not superior accuracy.

[Thumbcocker]

I think most BP silly wet shooters do.

[Tar Heel]

I do.....

[runfiverun]

yep...

[dragon813gt]

Did you hear that? Lee makes a good pot. That's going to strike a nerve w/ some people :laugh:

[454PB]

Waiting for the "flux police" to jump in........

[Blammer]

interesting that he just lets the pin and bullet drop out of the mould together and then picks up the HP pin and puts it back in....

[bobthenailer]

I beleive that any one intrested in the best accuracy with cast boolets just about has to make them ! no price point bullet company can take the time to produce that level of quality. and if they do then the cast boolets. might cost as much as jacketed bullets..
Perhaps swaged lead bullets in handguns ? but i have never used them .

[1Shirt]

Yep!
1Shirt!

[snuffy]

JM did a fantastic job of basic smelting and then casting boolits. He said many important things like "I got this scrap lead from my bullet trap, so I know there's no unfired rounds or primers in there".

As for the use of paraffin for fluxing, he wasn't worried about reducing the lead oxide back to solution, he even said so. He may know that paraffin is not the best. If he were going to be making rifle boolits, THEN he might use sawdust as well as paraffin to flux with.

My admiration of him as a top shooter just grew a bunch after seeing this video. I already had him on the top of the list as it was.!:bigsmyl2:

[prs]

Well, its good t' know that I have something in common with Jerry, even if it isn't talent level in quick accurate shooting.

prs

[imashooter2]

I sincerely doubt that JM uses his own castings in any significant part of his competitive shooting. The only sponsored GMs I know personally do not even load their own ammo. (Dave Olhasso and Josh Lentz)

[BruceB]

Back in our Bullseye/ISU days, my ex-wife became the Canadian Ladies' Pistol Champion and I was also very successful..... all of the center-fire events on my cast bullets.

A few years back I toted up the loading records.... over 200,000 .38 wadcutters, cast and loaded by Yours Truly.

[Forgetful]

JM did a fantastic job of basic smelting and then casting boolits. He said many important things like "I got this scrap lead from my bullet trap, so I know there's no unfired rounds or primers in there".

omg Can you imagine dropping an unfired round into a 50lb pot of molten lead? What a mess!!!

[R.M.]

Yes it is.

[Harter66]

I Donna whatcha mean

120372
120373

[OBXPilgrim]

I Donna whatcha mean

120372
120373

Oh My Gosh - bet that came with a bad case of shorts changes

[OBXPilgrim]

Back in our Bullseye/ISU days, my ex-wife became the Canadian Ladies' Pistol Champion and I was also very successful..... all of the center-fire events on my cast bullets.

A few years back I toted up the loading records.... over 200,000 .38 wadcutters, cast and loaded by Yours Truly.

Geez, that's some serious support. Have you shared your 'go to' load (probably several times, I'd bet)

[michiganmike]

I am not a top shooter and do not play one on TV. I cast my own bullets for several reasons.

1. There is a cost savings over buying commercial ammunition, and even commercially made jacketed bullets and reloading them.
2. Bullet casting is a hobby in itself and can be engaged in regardless of weather. It enhances and extends the fun of shooting.
3. Since I began casting my own bullets I do shoot more often. This pleases me.
4. There is something magical about taking something as nasty and useless as dirty salvaged wheel weights and turning them into near perfect
bullets that give me consistently good groups and take game.

MichiganMike

[dragon813gt]

I cast, therefore I am top shooter??????

[Beerd]

I shot a top once, but I didn't inhale.
..

[Dave C.]

Yes, I cast for matches.

[9.3X62AL]

Michigan Mike summed up the whole Cast Boolits rationale pretty succinctly. I am not a match shooter of any sort, and even a week in a Howard Johnson's Extended Stay lodging wouldn't improve that condition. I'm a hunter, though I can get a little particular about the bullets I hunt with and prep for hunting with.

[BruceB]

All I would add to Mike's well-expressed opinion is this:

Casting gives a handloader INDEPENDENCE to a very large degree. With a reasonable supply of bullet metal on hand, he can load and fire without resorting to the uncertain lines of supply that plague us so frequently.

[Blackwater]

Many top shooters don't cast their own for a good reason - TIME! To reach the very top levels of shooting, one must practice, and practice a LOT! Do that, and take care of all the other business a top shooter will have to handle, and there just isn't much time left for casting. However, those that really know shooting and ballistics, and aren't just trained performers, WILL likely cast their own, or get someone with more time to do so, because you just can't buy some of the very best bullets. As was already mentioned, most commercial cast bullets are designed to drop from the mould reliably, and have beveled bases for that reason. The very BEST bullets have flat bases, especially for any high pressure loadings. It's hard to get a machine to tap the blocks to get the bullet to fall out, and it holds up production. We all know and must appreciate the value of production ability in a Wal Mart oriented economy, right? Anyway, for shooting masses of ammo, I think one MUST use commercial cast, and some of them ARE very, very good. However, for the very BEST, I think having control over alloy, harndess, heat treat (if any), diameter, fit to throat, and general bullet design and consistency, ya' gotta' cast yer own if ya' wanna' shoot for CLASS vs. masses. Just MHO, but based on a lot of shooting over a lot of years.

[quasi]

All I would add to Mike's well-expressed opinion is this:

Casting gives a handloader INDEPENDENCE to a very large degree. With a reasonable supply of bullet metal on hand, he can load and fire without resorting to the uncertain lines of supply that plague us so frequently.

Right on!

[Forgetful]

This independence also helps stabilize the price of factory ammo. When there's a supply problem, more people get into loading, lessening the demand of factory ammo.

[Shiloh]

Did you hear that? Lee makes a good pot. That's going to strike a nerve w/ some people :laugh:

I like mine.

Shiloh

[dragon813gt]

I like mine.

Shiloh

I like mine as well. But we know how some people are :(

[cbrick]

I like mine as well. But we know how some people are :(

I resemble that remark. :mrgreen:

It's extremely doubtful he either casts or reloads for anything except a hobby. He gets his guns & ammo from sponsors, all he can shoot. He also gives such credit in his videos such as this one even though it is a casting video. The S&W shirt he was wearing wasn't an accident.

Rick

[slughammer]

Jerry is just like us except he has a gift! I've smelted many a bucket and casted many pots with wax as my flux. Jerry seems like an experienced smelter and caster (20-30yrs). He says in the video he is casting shotgun slugs. I imagine he is justifying it the same as we do vs buying commercial. He doesn't mention pistol bullets, but I imagine he has done it in the past. Looks like his biggest payback is the shotgun slugs and he gets to enjoy the same hobby as the rest of us.