pure lead boolit

[HVACscott]

would a pure lead cast and powder coated bullet work?...what would be the down side?

[BK7saum]

What caliber? Yes and No.

[nhyrum]

I've used PC soft lead for 9mm. It works. I wouldn't use them in my 454 casull, but that's a whole different ball game, and probably not in my 300 blackout unless I gas check it. With a gas check you could probably get away with softer lead

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[HVACscott]

i cast 9mm no gas check...usually use WW but running low I a have a line on free lead water piping, and don't want to deal with alloying

[johnsonian09]

What cartridge? Is it a firearm, blackpowder something, airgun?

I've tried powdercoating my cast blackpowder boolits and airgun slugs. Marginal speed advantage over unlubed. But bp and pneumatics are anemic compared to modern smokeless stuff.

I pc lead for safe handling purposes mostly. And to color code different loads for different things. Red for hot hunting loads, blue for target, yellow/orange for load development.

There's a little less smoke compared to lube.. unless your pure lead boolit is for bp or an airgun use a harder lead. I think there is such a thing as too much projectile obturation. And if your using smokeless and pure lead, or anything with a hollow base like some wadcutters you may just blow out the end and leave a hollow skirt in your breach.


Any autoloader may be more prone to malfunctions depending on nose design..
My sig sauer hates my 9mm hp rn mold with 14bhr. And glocks aren't supposed to shoot lead boolits according to their books

Just my 2 cents. Let us know if it works for ya!

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[Sam Sackett]

I cast with straight lead for 38 / 357 for cowboy action shooting. They are real light loads and I have never had leading. But, I tried the same Bullets (sized 357) in my 9mm and I had severe leading, even with starting loads.
I have read, on various forums, that after powder coating, folks have had some luck with light loads in 9mm. I would suggest that you try it. If you do get leading, try mixing your WW stash half and half with the straight lead. That should give you about an 8 or 9 brinnel, which if powder coated should work OK in your 9mm.

Another option would be to get some plain base gas checks from Sages. Install them on straight lead Bullets and then powder coat.

Casting is a game. Enjoy it!

Good luck.
Sam Sackett

[reddog81]

Pure lead is going to be hard to get good fill out of the mold. The bullets will still be useable but they might not look pretty.

For light .38 special loads pure lead would work.

For 9mm I would mix 50/50 with WWs and your WW stash will last that much longer. I would expect pure lead to perform poorly in 9mm. It’ll shoot but I wouldn’t waste my time with it. The mix doesn’t have to be exactly 50/50. Anything reasonably close will work.

[Petander]

... I have read, on various forums, that after powder coating, folks have had some luck with light loads in 9mm. I would suggest that you try it. If you do get leading, try mixing your WW stash half and half with the straight lead. That should give you about an 8 or 9 brinnel, which if powder coated should work OK in your 9mm.

Good luck.
Sam Sackett

Yes, I started PC out of curiosity after a few years of successful Hi Tek coating. With PC I quickly found that one can use a softer alloy than the "old rules" dictate. I mix pure & WW 50/50 and after PC it shoots good and clean out of my Tanfoglio P90. BHN is only 8-9. Great for 45 ACP and even 357 light loads, or even 44. Size does matter, slug your barrel.

Loading for 9 mm is not really economical here where I live. But after I discovered the PC:s ability to shoot softer alloy than before, I even bought a Dillon Square Deal for the 9 mm. Works a treat with a Mihec bevel base bullet. The times being what they are... also, pure lead seems to be easier to find.

I both Hi Tek and PC now. It's great to have all these options.

Good luck!

[HVACscott]

I started reloading when i could not find factory ammo...started casting when i could not find bullets...now my stock of components is decreasing and im looking for alternatives....

[mehavey]

No problem w/ fill-out.*
No problem w/ leading.
No problem w/ performance.
https://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?409893-Pure-Lead-amp-PC&p=5001471&viewfull=1#post5001471
https://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?411499-severe-leading-on-first-cast-boolits&p=5099015&viewfull=1#post5099015
(Note on the 45 ACP: the SWC on right put 5 bullets under an inch at 25yrds off a rest. Amazed the bejeezes out of me at the time)

Try it.



* Run about 780-790 degr

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

would a pure lead cast and powder coated bullet work?...what would be the down side?


i cast 9mm no gas check...usually use WW but running low I a have a line on free lead water piping, and don't want to deal with alloying

It will work.
Poor accuracy beyond 50 feet will be the downside.
I see lots of folks at my range shooting auto-pistols at 7 yds, so if that's what you do, you'll be fine.

[Silvercreek Farmer]

Several years ago, I cast and powdercoated some pure for light SWC 38 special loads. Probably one in a dozen or so would tumble. Don't remember what they sized at but pure casts small and is easily swagged down by underexpanded brass. A larger expander and/or a slightly higher charge to bump up the pressure might have fixed the problem but I came into some wheel weights to blend so I never messed with it any further.

[fredj338]

PC is not a substitute for alloy. As you push the bullet harder pressure wise, the alloy can still fail. So I treat my PC bullets as I did when they were lubed. never cast pure lead but I do a lot of range scrap. They will work fine PC to 30K psi. I shoot them all the time in 9mm/40/10mm, midrange magnums.

[Winger Ed.]

The store bought swaged boolits are pure Lead.
As soft as they are, they do OK under about 1,000 fps.
Powder coating may get you a little more potential speed, but probably not much before you started having issues.

I shoot a lot of cast in .45ACP under 1,000 fps, but I use a little alloy goodies, just to make the casting easier.

[Hanzy4200]

I wouldn't waste pure PB on regular bullets. WW alloy and reclaimed bullets are far more common. Pure is best saved for black powder and slugs.

[MT Gianni]

I used a lot of pure lead when casting hollow based wadcutters. My eyes no longer see well enough that they are an improvement over standard wc's.
Alloying is no big deal, decide on your alloy and get a sweetener from Roto metals. You can make a lb of sweetener work for a 20 lb pot of pure.