Originally Posted by
yeahbub
I've noticed that different batches of "pure" lead will vary somewhat in how well the mold fills out. For a pot-full of reclaimed plumbing lead that didn't want to cast, adding a bit of tin almost always helped. For good fill-out purposes, 2% tin is the max that will make a difference. More than that won't improve castability, but some people prefer binary alloys for how they expand without fracturing in tough targets, unlike lead/tin/antimony alloys tend to when they exceed about 12 BHN. I have used WW alloy in C&B revolvers and still got good obturation with conicals before they age hardened too much. WW RB's are tougher to make that happen with because they don't have the mass/inertia and get moving more easily. But in the ROA, the chambers are already (properly) larger than groove diameter and obturation isn't needed to get a good seal in the bore. WW's or soft lead will work fine there. It's the repro revolvers with the undersize chambers that benefit from soft alloys. One of my favorite designs for the ROA and the NMA is the Lee 200gr REAL. I can size and lube the grooves in a Lyman 4500, .455 for the ROA and .451 for the NMA. To "heel" the conicals of whatever description, I remove the collet/decapping stem from a Lee .308, .30-06 or 8x57 full-length die and push the boolits into the die with the stem from a Lee push-through sizer far enough for the taper to reduce the heel band diameter to what I need for the revolver, .451 for the ROA and .445 for my NMA's .447 chambers. A long 5/16" punch through the top of the die and a whack with a dead-blow will pop them loose. Presto, bullets which drop into the chambers to the middle driving band, will rotate under the rammer and are positioned and centered for seating.