Sabots--inlines & cast bullets ?

[Willyp]

I would like to cast some 44 and maybe 45 caliper soft lead bullets to use with sabots.
I feel that the bullet should have a long bearing surface so i've figured on a Lee mould. The ones that are for tumble lubing,so as to pinch the bullet in the sabots!
Am i thinking right or would a regular lead bullet,with big lube grooves, work also? I want to cast these from very soft lead and use Harvester sabots.

[Elkins45]

I cast the big Lee 45 caliber bullet (300 or 310 grain, I forget) out of pure lead and I don't do anything to them except shove them into the sabot and ram them down the bore. I don't know why you would need to tumble lube them unless you are trying to "glue" them into the sabots for handling.

[Willyp]

I was not going to lube them. I just wanted the almost solid lube area[small ridges] to hold onto the sabot unlike the other bullets,having the bigger lube grooves and less area to squeeze onto the sabot.
Elkins45,do you cast them from soft lead?

[btroj]

I use a Lyman 457122 HP cast from pure lead then sized to .452 in mine. At 1500 fps or so it is like using a can opener on deer.

[Screwbolts]

I have 2 molds both smooth sided for use in 50 cal sabots. An LBT 2 cavity that drops 333 gr 452 LFN boolits and a 4 cavity from BRP that was originally a 300 gr BBFN. ( NOE has run this mold before and might have it in stock, you will have to look if interested) Your choice of alloy is up to you, I do not cast them of pure! I cast the LBTs of WDWWs. Most of my projectiles are shot in smokeless MLs at 1750 FPS+, mild charges by smokeless standards. Load that chronographs the same as 100 gr. of BH209. My BRP mold was sent back to Bruce for most of the BB removal. with smokeless loads the sabot would blow because of BB. It now drops 288 gr +- depending on alloy. Both of these boolitz perform awesome on all game tested. My longest harvest with the BRP out of a custom 700ML with the BRP is 253 yards.

Several thousand of both projectiles have been shot by family and friends of mine, all in Havrester SB sabots, we buy them buy the case from Graf and Sons.

If you want to try smooth sided cast I recommend the Harvester package of to 330 gr HC with sabots. 80 gr equivelent of whatever BP or substitute you like and have fun. Verel Smith of LBT cut the molds for Harvester and it is the same as mine from LBT.

I have recovered many pounds of fired cast boolits from wniter snow bank backstops. It has been my findings that all boolits with lube groves will obterate greater than a smooth sided boolit, kind of self evident. The first saboted bullets I harvested game with, I shot ahead of 80 gr BH209 were 25 yr old Hornady 240 gr swaged .430 SWCs, in Harvester green sabots, they started me down the smooth sided rd. I have never looked back.

Just remembered, I have a single cavity mold that I cut in the lathe, using an old set of Lee blocks to make, a Clone in profile of the Hornady .452 250gr XTP. it cast 265 gr. with WWs. Yes I ground a bit to match the XTP tip. Never harvested anything with it but it shot great. But, I wanted a longer smooth side for increased load pressure, or atleast 50 pounds needed to seat Boolit and sabot on top of my choice of one of the original BP substitutes. That led me to calling Veral and a bouble Cavity from his shop.

Ken

[DanWalker]

I cast 454424 swc's out of ACWW and my buddy loads them in sabots in his inline. He has shot several deer with them and loves them. I sent him 300 of them a few years ago and it's all he shoots now.

[Elkins45]

Elkins45,do you cast them from soft lead?

As close to pure as I can get. My muzzleloading alloy is made almost exclusively from plumbing vent pipe collars. If they aren't pure lead they are darned close.

The killing power of a 300 grain 45 caliber cylinder of pure lead at 2000 fps is something to behold.

[C. Latch]

I shot some cast .45s the other day while shooting my smokeless savage at 120 yards. They actually grouped slightly better than my hornady SSTs.

I *think* this may have been because they weren't really .452, but more like .4524 or so, and they were TIGHT loading. Very hard to load. Bet they'd smack something hard, though...a .34xx" meplat cruising at 2100' ought to make a hole.

[rsrocket1]

No problem with accuracy when using 45ACP bullets in sabots.
These are Lee TL452-230-TC with Thompson Center 45/50cal sabots.
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