Need a little help please

[Tatu]

No Thank you,

Tatu

[mehavey]

at last count, he had 62 in his collection... [ ! ! ! ! :guntootsmiley:]

That said, a scoped 44Mag as a gun, is good to ~ 100 yards on those sized targets -- depending on barrel rest and shooter.
I would suggest [for cast] either of these Keith designs for general/effective purpose
https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1010282679
https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1010223433

[Winger Ed.]

Any of the 245 or 250 grain Keith style semi-wad cutters are well proven designs for cast in the .44Mag.

The .44Mag has been around long enough, and is so popular, there really isn't any bad bullets out there for them.
The market has flushed out things that don't work well many, many years ago.

As far as power, it'll work for what he wants to do with it.
As I recall, it was originally marketed for hunting black bear at relatively close ranges.

[fredj338]

A Lee 20# bottom pour pot & a Lee 2cav 250gr swc mold, Lee sizing die kit. Pretty cheap, about $125. From there better molds are available for more $$ but it would get him a good start.

[Thumbcocker]

If he just wants to try some boolits you might be able to get a few from a member here. In my experience. 44's with properly sized boolits are VERY accurate. Hogs would not be a problem.

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[Rcmaveric]

Yes cast bullets are accurate and deadly. They can cleanly and easily take down game.

Unfortunately its best to measure the revolver cylinder throats before buying sizer dies.

In a nut shell for some cheap easy casting to get his feet wet and see if likes it:

1)A melting pot. Lee makes and inexpensive ones. Top pour will require a label and I recommend the bottom pour pots.

2)A bullet mold. I dont have experiences with 44 Mag but the previous one mentioned is a good style and would do the job for hunting. If RCBs is too expensive look for a similar Lee mold. Not the best but will definitely get his feet wet. You can always get molds latter.

3) a sizer die. Lee makes cheap ones. Best to measure the cylinders first. So maybe a gift card for that one to like Midway.

4) some lead. You find it for sale here on this site clean and ready to use. Shipping bites but atleast its a flat rate and you can fill a box and 60 lbs of lead is a lot of bullets. Otherwise he needs a scrap lead source, heat source (turkey fryer or camping grill....fire), scrap pot to melt the lead in, scrap spoon to scrap crude, and old muffin tin to cast ingots.

4) he needs a flux for the molten lead. Scrap candles work well. I steal my wife's smell good candles but you can donate some so he can a pleasant aroma to remind him of his thoughtful spouse.

5)Bullet lube. Any of the soft commercial lube would serve well. I hear great things about White Label lubes but the old Lyman formulas should work well.

7) an old cake pan to pan lube with. Its easy. Specially with those 44 cal bullets. He just needs to stand them up in the pan. Spaced about .25 inch apart. Then melt the lube with a double boiler and fill the pan. Let the set the bullets in the freezer for a few hours until frozen. Makes the lube hard and shrink so it falls out of the pan. Then you just nock the bullets out the lube block. You can also fashion a "Kake Cutter" from a once fired case. Drill a hole in the bottom and then put a dowel though it. Then just cookie cutter the bullets out and push then out with the dowel.

Thats about all the basic tools and cheap methods from which he can upgrade from. If he has shown an interest in PC you can get a cheap oven from Walmart or maybe find a Prize in the Good will. Then get a cheap sample pack of powders from Smoke on here. That will save you on the above lube needs as the PC replaces that.

I think when I started it was about 100 ish bucks initial investment but not including lead. About 180 including lead. This can expensive quickly with tools.

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[44magLeo]

Casting boolit is a very good use of that sheet lead.
It may take blending to harden it up for heavy loads.
Lets do a bit of math. 1 lb. is 7000 grs. A boolit at 250 grs lets you cast 28 boolits per lb.
A ton of lead is 2000 lbs, 2000 times 28 is 56,000 boolits.
Except for the expence of the molds, leadpot and associated stuff you will get 56,000 free boolits.
If your hubby is much l;ike the rest of us he will onjoy the rewards of boolit casting.
At handgun velocities a cast bullet can do most anything a j-word bullet can. With some more intense casting techniques they can even do more.
Along with those two molds there are a variety of other weights and nose shapes that work very well also. The heavier round nose flat point boolits work very well. They penetrate very well and if cast soft the expand very well.
I like the Lee 4-20 pot. Can't beat it for the price. There are other pots that are build heavier and have hold more but these things drive the price up.
Shopping on Ebay or other such sites you may find the molds you want to try.
As mentioned others on here may give or sell you some boolits to try. Won't hurt to ask.
Leo

[mehavey]

Both of those molds were out of stock, so that does me no good.This see this SAECO#430 (https://www.grafs.com/retail/catalog/product/productId/16956) at Grafs
Midway does have the Handles (https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1010342578)

as far as sizing and lube goes, I'd suggest a Lee sizer (https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1018523537) at 0.430" to start (Each revolver will have a preference, but 430's in the middle)
I'd also suggest LEE Liquid ALOX (https://www.midwayusa.com/product/101020682?pid=466811) to start -- greasy finger to apply is only equip needed

[ryanmattes]

This is awesome, more wives should do stuff like this. Just know, you're giving him a whole new expensive and time consuming hobby.

My (inflation adjusted) two cents...

Agree with the 429421 Keith-style mold, that's a great all-around bullet shape and has taken down a lot of game. I like the old Lyman/Ideal molds, but they're a bit harder to find, so you might looks for newer manufacturer's copies of the old molds, like NOE. Just search any mold manufacturer's site for 429421 and they should match up that bullet shape to their mold. A 2 cavity is great for starting out, and may cast plenty fast enough even in the long run.

You can also get the original molds on ebay, often in good shape. Check here. (https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2334524.m570.l1313&_nkw=lyman+4294212+2+cavity&_sacat=0&LH_TitleDesc=0&_osacat=0&_odkw=lyman+4294212+2+cav)

He'll need a lead pot, and you'll hear a lot of opinions about that. In my opinion, if he's new to this and not sure he'll stick with it, I'd get him a cheap Lee 10lb pot, here's one for $34:
https://fsreloading.com/lee-precision-melter-110-v.html

Here's a ladle you can put in the same shopping cart: https://fsreloading.com/lee-precision-lead-ladle.html

I cast several thousand slugs with those exact items, and got some great rounds out of them.

Old candles and sawdust make good flux, but he'll eventually need to come up with some tin to mix with that lead sheeting. You can get 50/50 bar solder on Amazon for relatively cheap, and others here probably have some other sources. But he can certainly start out casting pure lead as long as he doesn't push the powder charge too much.

They'll need to be sized, and the cheap way into that is with one of these: https://www.amazon.com/Lee-Precision-90062-SIZING-430/dp/B00162TISG

As has been mentioned, he may need .429 or .431 instead, depending on the barrel. If you're loading for 60+ revolvers, I'd just buy all 3 sizes.

He can pan lube his first sets and decide later if he wants to coat or buy a lubrisizer. You only need some baking pans to pan lube, and he can either buy commercial lube or make his own out of beeswax, there are a number of good recipes on this forum.

For me, I like to start with the "old-school" way: use scrap lead and sawdust/candle nubs, ladle pour, pan lube with homemade lube from beeswax and vasoline. It's about as cheap and basic and old-school as it gets. And from there, I figure out where I want to modernize the process.

That's enough to cast his first bullets.

I think you said he doesn't load his own cartridges either, and if so, that's a whole different shopping list, which might be difficult to find these days.

You'll get lots of opinions on loading equipment too, and everyone has their own preference. But the Lee challenger press is an entirely usable single-stage press, I've loaded tens of thousands of rounds on one over the past decade, and it's a good, low-cost way to get started without spending thousands, only to find out you prefer a different style or brand of press. But first you need to know how to load, so you know why you might want a different style or brand.

Assuming you can find it in stock anywhere, this is a great way to get get started: Lee Challenger Anniversary Kit (https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1013011111)

Then your problem becomes finding primers and powder in stock anywhere.

Ignore all that if he already handloads.

Ryan

And good luck

[Thumbcocker]

P.m. sent

[Super Sneaky Steve]

Wow, a wife that wants to get her husband some shooting stuff. That's awesome. My wife just yells at me and tells me to get my stuff out of the house.

[Texas by God]

I will add;
Welcome to the forum, neighbor!

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[DHDeal]

This thread is both awesome and scary. My bride doesn't really know how many handguns I have (I don't keep count either), but that you do know how many you have probably means you might enjoy firing a round or two.

If he enjoys casting, there are custom mold makers that produce a superior product. The real problem is him not really knowing what he wants yet. The advice given so far is a great start then the sky is the limit. I personally never feel that jacketed bullets are better than quality self cast bullets.

[AndyC]

And to the two guys that sent me a pm and an email, letting me know how stupid I am for not finding my own information on the forum, I don't appreciate that one bit!
Just... wow. Unbelievable that we have folks like that here - I've found everyone to be helpful because we're aware we were new to this hobby at some point too. I'm sorry you had that experience.

I can second what the other fellas have said - Lee 10 lb bottom-pour pot, a few Lee sizing kits around .430 - .432 in size, a Keith-style semi-wadcutter (SWC) mold around 240 grains (make sure you either get handles with it or order them) in at least 2-cavity but 4-cavity and up would be really nice. He can pan-lube to start with melted wax lube inexpensively.

[onelight]

Both of those molds were out of stock, so that does me no good.

"62" is not very many revolvers. I know several guys that have well over 100, but a lot of them are what they call "wall hangers" that are cap and ball like the Colt 1851 Navy, Colt 1860 Army, Colt 1861 Navy, and so on. Then they have what I refer to as the "baby guns" that have 2" or shorter barrels on them.

We shoot what we have, but bullets are scarce and are getting more and more expensive all the time, which is why I was thinking about cast bullets. We have over a ton of lead sheet rolls in the barn that is in the way, but if casting proves to be worthwhile, we at least have the lead part covered.

Thank you,

Tatu
Hey you got to be careful , this bunch hears you have a ton of lead in the barn a bunch of us may show up offering advice and asking where exactly that lead might be stored :grin:

[donerightsigns]

from day one i have relied on Lee Precision for all my reloading and bullet making molds. They are of the highest quality and the lowest cost anywhere in the market. I have been reloading and in some cases making my own bullets for 20 years. Never have had any problems from lee products.

[GregLaROCHE]

Depending on what your budget is, you can start really basic and inexpensively. A mold and handles and a lead ladle. He can probably find an old pot to melt lead in (not aluminum) and a heat source. He should be able to find a bit of lead to give it a try. If he is going to like it, he’ll be off and running and buying all sorts of accessories and you won’t be able to stop him.

[littlejack]

Welcome Tatu.
Back in the day, I started out casting with one of the smaller cast iron pots. Maybe 1 1/2 quart, a long ice tea spoon for skimming, a rawhide hammer, but a hammer handle will do or a stick of wood to thump the sprue plate. Some wheel weights and a Coleman camp stove for heat. Very basic but very functional. If you don't want to pay the price for 50/50 solder, you can get tin in the form of pewter items at the thrift stores, i.e. Good Will, Saint Vinnies etc. Most of it is right at 97% tin. You can also purchase good moulds on ebay, but make sure there are plenty of pics, so to check the condition.
Regards

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

I have seen my husband on this forum quite a bit, and since he does not cast or make his own bullets, what would be a good for him to get into that does not cost a lot of money, just in case he decides this is not his thing to do.

His favorite guns are revolvers in 44 magnum, and at last count, he had 62 in his collection and he shoots everyone of them.

What bullets would be accurate in the average 44 magnum, and since most of the guns have scopes on them, can you effectively kill hogs and deer with cast bullets, and at what ranges?

I'm sure I'll have other questions along the way, so please bare with me.

Thank you,

Tatu
Tatu,
Welcome to the forum.
My suggestion is that your husband...and maybe you as well?...read this book, it's online and you can read it for free. Reading this book is a great way to fully understand what you are getting into. Casting boolits is a hobby all onto itself, for anyone who likes creating something. While you are working with hot, molten metal, if you take the proper precautions it is completely safe.

From Ingot to Target: A Cast Bullet Guide for Handgunners ©
http://www.lasc.us/Fryxell_Book_Contents.htm

[farmer66]

PM sent.

Farmer66

[Rcmaveric]

Some of use tin. Some of us don't. Its ungodly expensive. A pound will do about 10.5 pots.

https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1010251753?pid=724445

https://www.rotometals.com/tin-cut-wire-pieces-99-9-pure-1-pound-made-in-usa/

Its normally scrounged and upcycled from salvaged pewter, but there's a few links for commercial sources.

Add to the pot at 1% to 2%. You got him the 10lb pot so thats 1.5 to 3 ozs per a full pot. Its highly recommended for beginners to use tin to help them get good bullets easier. I personally rarely add tin now unless I have stubborn alloy.

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[Thumbcocker]

To start out you might want to get some ready to cast ingots from one of the vendors here or rotometals on line. Just till your husband gets his feet wet.

[robg]

my wife got me started by buying me a mold.that was 20+ years ago.best present ever.

[quilbilly]

Welcome Tatu.
Back in the day, I started out casting with one of the smaller cast iron pots. Maybe 1 1/2 quart, a long ice tea spoon for skimming, a rawhide hammer, but a hammer handle will do or a stick of wood to thump the sprue plate. Some wheel weights and a Coleman camp stove for heat. Very basic but very functional. If you don't want to pay the price for 50/50 solder, you can get tin in the form of pewter items at the thrift stores, i.e. Good Will, Saint Vinnies etc. Most of it is right at 97% tin. You can also purchase good moulds on ebay, but make sure there are plenty of pics, so to check the condition.

Regards
You can make the project even simpler and cheaper. Several fishing lure making outfits (one is Barlows in the Dallas area) sell a small 2# hand held pot for making lead fishing jigs in a small way for about$40( I think the brand is Do-It). Since your lead supply is already at hand (lucky you and it is likely even pure lead) you only need tin to add. I recommend wandering down to the local Walmart fishing tackle section and see if they have some "environmentally sensitive" tin fishing sinker splitshot. Two size 7 tin splitshot is enough for the 2# of lead in the little hot pot melter. All you need is a Lee sizer die for .430, some Lee Alox lube (Lee usually puts a free tube of it in with the new sizer die), and one of the Lee molds for a 240 gr 429 boolit of the style your husband prefers. Total cost should be in the vicinity of $80 to take that dip into our very friendly pool of knowledge. That free tube of Alox that comes with the sizer should last 500+ rounds.

[Dusty Bannister]

No longer comes with the Lee Liquid Alox.

Product Overview

The Lee Lube and Size Kit is one of the fastest and easiest ways to lubricate and size cast bullets. The sizing die that comes with the kit fits in any press that accepts standard 7/8"-14 threaded dies. Bullets are pushed through the sizing die nose first, so no special top punches are needed. Gas checks are automatically seated and crimped in place. Sized bullets are captured in the special container which is included and doubles as a storage case for the die.

Notes:

Comes in red plastic case
Lee recommends bullets be relubed after sizing to be sure the sized portion is coated.
All lead bullets must be lubricated, but it is not absolutely necessary to size all cast bullets. Bullets must be sized if they are so large that they expand the case too much to freely enter the gun's chamber. Sizing sometimes helps accuracy by making the bullet uniform in diameter. Sizing helps ensure uniform start pressure and better accuracy. Gas checks can be installed with this tool. Simply place the gas check on the base of the bullet before sizing.
Lee recommends the use of Alox bullet lube, not included.

[Rcmaveric]

Off topic. Tatu was the name of one of my favorite bands as a teenager.

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[Bashby]

I’m not sure if anyone recommended powder coating your boolits, but When I started casting a couple years ago, I went wit PC and never even tried any of the messy lube methods. I’m not sure if it will work out with the gas checked mold you ordered though. With PC, you can use a softer alloy and load for higher velocities without needing a gas check. A lot of The veteran casters reason for not using PC is they already have invested in lubri-sizers and all the stuff involved. Starting from scratch it makes sense to set up to PC... $25 toaster oven from goodwill is about the biggest investment.

[mehavey]

Go with the Lee sizer and the Liquid ALOX as first foot in the game.
The fewer the variables the better at this point.
http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?121524-Apply-Liquid-Alox-by-dipping&p=5013771&viewfull=1#post5013771





*
Yes, I powder coat now
But ALOX is still my simplest failsafe

[robg]

lee sizer and lube ,simple and works well.now you have a new pastime,hunting lead !

[GhostHawk]

Tatu, what a breath of fresh air you are. It is a pleasure to read your posts. Welcome, to both you and your husband.

If you run into a problem remember the stickie posts are full of answers.

And if that does not solve it, just ask. Someone will know the answer.

[Wayne Smith]

Tatu welcome to the craziness and I hope you enjoy shooting those revolvers too, or have your own! Once you have your basic casting equipment in place it is easy to add another caliber, just as adding another caliber to reloading is easy.

BTW - something to think about concerning black powder. Do you have a gallon of gas in the garage, shed or barn? That gallon of gas has much more explosive power than a couple pounds of black powder. I live in Virginia Beach, VA and keep my Black in an old refrigerator in the garage. My wife (LOML) knows all about it and she is a geologist, as well. She is cautious but knows it is safe.

[MostlyLeverGuns]

In 1964 at the age of 14 I started casting bullets, without any adult mentor, just voraciously reading available information( NO INTERNET - 1964!). I too started with a Coleman stove, a Lyman cast lead pot, a Lyman dipper and a Lyman Mold (no Lee then). I pan lubed and got good results without sizing. I am a great supporter of Lee equipment and my reloading presses and many of my bullet molds and sizers are Lee. The liquid alox from Lee or White Label lubes is a simple and good way to start. You can make casting and reloading very technical and off-putting, but it can be quite simple, getting excellent results either way. You can also spend incredible amounts of money, once you get really sucked in to all the possiblities, don't ask me how I know.

[Rcmaveric]

My personal favorite alloy is ranges scraps or 50/50 pure lead to clip on wheel weights (COWW). Bot of which have the same hardness (BHN). I use that in everything from 9mm, 357 Mag to 270 Winchester.

Only thing I use pure lead for are 12G slugs and muzzle loader.

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[Rcmaveric]

Welcome to the family. Youre all hooked now. I love a good story.

Its awesome you found a hands on mentor for learning. It will make the learning process quicker.

If the white coating is a hard plastic like coating. Then that's a Powder Coat (PC). Its a popular alternative lube. Basically its a polymer jacket applied as a powder and sticks by electro static. Its then baked where it melts and polermizes. You can find more information about it in the coatings and alternatives section

Glad the boys had a great time. Post pics of the hunt.

I wouldn't be able to shoot as much as I do without casting and reloading.

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[Thumbcocker]

"When they got back to the house, Dean had a big grin on his face and said he wasn't going to be wasting any more money on store bought bullets, and that he was going to make his own!"

Another convert. Would love to see pics of the big hog with the shield. Glad things worked out so well.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

SNIP...

With tusks popping, it came close enough to put a 3 1/2" cut in his coveralls, and at the same time, Dean grabbed him by the coat and threw him over to the side.
Wholly crap, what a time they had.
thanks for sharing that great story.

[Thumbcocker]

Some folks used motor mica on boolits to keep them from being sticky.

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[oley55]

Wow, a wife that wants to get her husband some shooting stuff. That's awesome. My wife just yells at me and tells me to get my stuff out of the house.

yea, pretty close to my thoughts as well.

[AndyC]

Wonderful story! Thanks for sharing - it sounds like the two families are a perfect match :)

[44magLeo]

I really enjoyed reading your story.
I guess all your questions in your first few posts got answered.
Casting isn't expensive. You found it can be fun, and you found out one of the most important facts, they work.
Welcome to the club.
Leo

[ASSASSIN]

Ms. Tatu,

forgive me if I am out of line for asking, but do you allow hog hunting on your property? If you do, could you please tell me a little bit about it. PM is fine as well.

[Buzz Krumhunger]

Curious to know what county in Texas you are in. I want to avoid visiting a place where 1000lb russian boars live. ;)

[ASSASSIN]

Ms. Tatu,

I just sent you a PM.

Thank you for taking the time to provide so much information, and we really look forward to the possibility of a wild hog hunt.

I posted a picture of a 500 pound boar here on the forum that my wife killed a couple of years ago, and it was a BIG animal. A week later, we went back to the same place and I shot a small 240 pound hog, and while we were dragging it out, we saw one of those 1,000 "black volkswagens" that you mentioned, and I tell you what, that was a huge animal! I could not believe how quiet it was able to run through the woods, considering it's massive size.

[Wayne Smith]

Tatu, after reading all that you have written I'm sorry I live all the way across the country from you folks. You are salt of the earth people.

[Mr_Sheesh]

Tatu, you're neat for helping your 'other half' get casting, so are Victor & his wife plus so many of the good members on here :)

I did want to mention one safety item, mark the spoon(s) you use in casting with "lead" on the handle or the like, I know someone who got their skimming spoon accidentally run through the dishwasher & it could have been used to eat with if they hadn't recognized it; They re-ran that dishwasher load. Just plain a bad idea to use a skimming tool to eat with :)

And using protective gear is a good idea (As a kid I didn't have or use much PPE, but I am a very meticulous, almost OCD but very conscious of what I'm doing, careful person.) Burns from splashed lead would be no fun!

Good to see you up to good things here :)

[Thumbcocker]

An alloy with more lead will weigh more than another alloy so it is not unusual that your boolits are a bit heavier especially lubed and checked. Those numbers are very good for such a heavy boolit, it looks like Dean is an experienced loader who knows his stuff. I'm very happy that things worked out so well for him. No more store bought projectiles wooohooo.

[Mr_Sheesh]

Great to support one another, that's THE way to make life work well :)

500 is a good start, and those kids will remember and learn :)

I am guessing that coating is maybe motor mica or Molybdenum Disulphide, there are other coatings though. It sounds like it is working very well, quarter or so size groups at 60 yards will put dinner on the table etc.!

The bullet alloy used will change the bullet's weight, with the results he's getting I'd say "All is well!" For plinking a lot of folks don't even weight sort, for higher accuracy loads weight sorting is a good idea.

Only 3 feet/sec variance in 6 rounds sounds like he has things set up right, that's a good stout load for 300 grain cast bullets but I imagine he's making sure the cases eject easily without having to use a hammer etc. and I imagine they hit game like a bolt of lightning. Looks like a good plan to me, he's been reloading jacketed bullet before, so he's getting a great start on cast :)

[Kylongrifle32]

Tatum
I just stumbled onto this thread and would like to thank you for your stories and the great support you and Your family has extended to the people of the Cast Boolits site. You and hubby has a very special relationship there. My wife will plink 22's with me once a year but other than that she does not get involve with any thing else. She does not complain about the quantity of items I purchased because she knows how deeply rooted into hunting and shooting that I am.

Great service with providing the hog hunts. Not having any hogs in my state I have been trying for the last couple of years to go on a good down to earth hog hunt. Not some place where you pay big money to have a hog released from a cage and run it down.

Thanks very much
Mike

[mehavey]

I shoot a Remington 1100 more than any other shotgunI just gotsta ask... < Big Grin >
Do you break it down and clean the magazine tube/gas rings after an afternoon at the Skeet/Trap range ?
(Now that's true love)
:bigsmyl2:

[mehavey]

I don't know if you are serious or making fun....
It was a BIG Smile Tatu.

There is a classic scene/line in the 1958 movie "The Big Country" w/ Gregory Peck and Jean Simmons
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bEA-o4IJAic
Watch/Listen to what is said at 0:53 sec

My hat is off, Ma'am. ;)

[nelsonted1]

Tatum
I just stumbled onto this thread and would like to thank you for your stories and the great support you and Your family has extended to the people of the Cast Boolits site. You and hubby has a very special relationship there. My wife will plink 22's with me once a year but other than that she does not get involve with any thing else. She does not complain about the quantity of items I purchased because she knows how deeply rooted into hunting and shooting that I am.

Great service with providing the hog hunts. Not having any hogs in my state I have been trying for the last couple of years to go on a good down to earth hog hunt. Not some place where you pay big money to have a hog released from a cage and run it down.

Thanks very much
Mike

I apologize for hijacking this thread for a moment.
I lived in KY for twenty years- Georgetown- and I hunted hogs in state. There is a hog population being developed in Mcreary county KY. I hunted twice at big south fork and then was disabled. I talked to the federal game warden on the KY side of land between the lakes. He said, 20 years ago, landowners would beg me to shoot hogs. I'm sure the hog population has probably exploded since
. Once they get their snout in the tent one is in big trouble.

=========

I grew up with hogs and dairy am fascinated with them. We borrowed a boar from my friend named Snorky. He had to have been 500 lbs and stood to my waist. Was the tamest pig you ever saw but you could tell he could be a menace if one got sideways with him. I never understood why my friend kept him so long to get so big but he was part of the family. I joked with my brother he'd probably drive the two gilts feet in the ground like fence posts but they had no problem. Dad wasn't laughing since he thought we'd eat the two babies but he got home to Snorky standing around stupid looking and kind of ruined his hope for fresh bacon.

[toallmy]

Tatu - I thank you for a wonderful story .

[Mr_Sheesh]

Danzac, Tungsten Disulfide, news to me but it's Moly Disulfide-like with higher temperature capability, nice! He's getting the results he wants, and sounds like you two have the life you want, that's great! Enjoy :)

[nelsonted1]

There are many YouTube videos of dogs running hogs. They often have scent hounds run the hogs and have fighting dogs that stabilize the hogs by holding the hogs front legs and ears. They usually have heavy safety collars and sometimes jackets. Then, a knife wielder comes up with a knife.and cuts the hogs throat. I love hogs and have a difficult.time watching these videos. ......... I watch videos from Spanish and Portuguese bullfighting farms where they video daily handling of the bulls. The cattle have been bred for hundreds of years for raw violence and hatred of people. I watch these avidly, there are at least 50 videos by two videagraphers. But I can't stand the thought of seeing a bull fight. I guess I am badly twisted

[murf205]

Tatu, you have indeed mesmerized this bunch-myself included- with your charm and candor. Your family sounds like a blessing to each other and that is something that more people need to strive for. Welcome and thank you for sharing your experiences with us. Remember that there is no question that needs to go unanswered here because this bunch has a LOT of casting and shooting knowledge that they will gladly share. You and your husband sound like 2 very quick studies for boolit casting. Using the "search" box will answer a lot of questions as will the "sticky's". The one thing that I would caution you about is molds on Ebay. A LOT of those molds have issues and that's why they are there. Once you buy an ebay mold, you can pull your hair out trying to get the thing to drop usable boolits. As you have a lot of 44's, you might want to look at the custom mold makers mentioned on this site. Their products are a few more $ than a generic makers molds but you can get exactly what you want. I just had Accurate Molds make one for me and got it in 10 days from the time I ordered it. Plus, if you have a 44 with large cylinder throats, you can order the mold to fit the big throats and still size the boolits down to match the other 44's with smaller cylinders. I am certainly not badmouthing Lee molds like the 310 you have (my SRH loves that one), but in today's climate of shortages and un-obtainable casting tools, it might be a great place to look. Best of luck and thanks for sharing the great stories, keep 'em coming.

[Thumbcocker]

If it ain't broke.....

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[murf205]

How is the penetration of that 310 Lee on those big hogs. I am curious to see if they get complete penetration on that shoulder plate. There is a lot of armor on a 300 pounder!

[murf205]

Good work! I don't think you guys need anything now but a sharp knife!