limit to plain base boolits

[Oklahoma Rebel]

is 1900fps too much for a boolit cast with lyman's #2 ? would heat treating be necessary? I may be wrong but I think #2 heat treated goes to somewhere around 25bhn's. correct me if I am wrong. thanks a lot!

[dtknowles]

What do you worry about, reduced accuracy, leading??? I don't think I have push any plain base that fast but I have never had leading to speak of. I think my accuracy was falling off at 1800 or so, I did not go higher. It was with a BHN of 14, not heat treated.

Tim

[Grmps]

Several questions first: what are you shooting it in, are you hi-tek coating, pc coating, tl or ? I have seen where people have run hi-tek coated bullets over 2000fps without a gas check. Maybe with a little more information someone can give you a more definitive answer.

[17nut]

In my 17HH the limit is @1900fps due to twist and rpm passing 140000. That is with a plain base bullet cast no harder than @BHN12 (94+3+3) i tumbled them with hBN for lube.

I never bothered with heat treating as it fades in weeks and bullets return to natural BHN for alloy.
http://www.lasc.us/Fryxell_Book_Chapter_3_alloySelectionMetallurgy.ht m
No free lunch here either.

[Yodogsandman]

In my 17HH the limit is @1900fps due to twist and rpm passing 140000. That is with a plain base bullet cast no harder than @BHN12 (94+3+3) i tumbled them with hBN for lube.

I never bothered with heat treating as it fades in weeks and bullets return to natural BHN for alloy.
http://www.lasc.us/Fryxell_Book_Chapter_3_alloySelectionMetallurgy.ht m
No free lunch here either.

Heat treated, antimonial alloy boolits are harder for years and years! You might be confused by the alloys made of just lead and tin.

http://www.lasc.us/HeatTreat.htm

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/archive/index.php/t-194719.html

[dubber123]

It probably depends more on rate of twist, bore condition and lube than anything. I have run well over 1,900 fps. with excellent accuracy and zero leading in a 50-90. I have other guns that quit at 1,600. The 50-90 has an exceptionally smooth bore, the other, a 32-20, not so much.

[buckshotshoey]

For what its worth.... the RCBS 325 gr .458 boolit is recommended to be cast with Linotype. And the recommendations that came with the mould say to limit to 1500 fps or less. That is for a 45-70. I use a softer alloy then Linotype, and am finding that advice to be sound. The reason given (after calling and talking to an RCBS tech) is Linotype and other high antimony lead will cast bigger, and indecently a little lighter. But they grab the rifling better. My accuracy did go up (with softer alloy) when I slowed them down substantially. Never really had a leading problem even at 1750fps. But recovered boolits had perfect impressions of the powder kernels pressed into the base. It was pretty neat really.

[GhostHawk]

I have seen posted it here again and again, over 1400 fps plan on a gas check.

Which also matches my experience. Low to mid 1300's bare base is fine. Above 1400 it is easier to put on a gas check than it is to scrub the lead out. YMMV

Alloy does make a difference. But IMO it can only do so much.
The good news is 1350 will kill just as dead as 1900, just not as far or as flat.

[JSH]

You leave out a lot of needed info in your question.
Size is king. Then all the rest falls in. No particular order, twist,barrel and condition,caliber, bullet design, alloy, load, brass prep, etc will contribute to high velocity with good end results. Some want to make a big deal over the coatings and speed. I have tried them and am not sold on the process as of yet.
I have shot some plain base in several guns and gotten them up around 2200. No leading, but accuracy was nothing to write home about. As mentioned 1800-1900 is USUALLY max with any kind of useable accuracy.