big boolit!!!

[NSP64]

WHAT a find! out browsing around area gun store and found on a shelf covered in dust a LEE single cavity mold in .515 450 gr. poured 2 boolits of pure and pushed 1 down the barrel. may need to get a LEE .510 sizer.Think I might go to range tomorrow and try some unsized think I'll start at 70gr pyro.

[NSP64]

I'm new to using a bore size boolit in my muzzleloader, usually use sabot boolit. this new Boolit casts out of pure at .515, I pushed one down the pipe and it came out with groves at .5135. Should I size these boolits and rely on obteration(?) or leave em be and use like a R.E.A.L. boolit? got one of them newfangled inlines with a bolt. it does make it earier to slug the barrel

[Rattus58]

What Muzzleloader are you shooting?

I'd ask first, how hard is it to load. If it is easy to load, then I'd be tempted maybe to load it as cast, but more than likely, I'd have a die made to my bore diameter plus .002, but that is just me.

If you can find a 510 sizing die and have a 5135 bore, that would in my opinion be way better than loading a bullet that will "ring" the bore.

Aloha...

[NSP64]

What do you mean by 'ring' the bore? It loads ok if you use the short starter and then push it down.

[Rattus58]

Any time your bullet is of larger diameter than the barrels groove diameter you are going to a) with sharp bore or muzzle end or like a revolver, will shave lead off the bullet; or b) will size the bullet as you load it. This can have some drawbacks.

Aloha...

[NSP64]

What kind of drawbacks? I cast some more today and used a cool mold to not get complete fillout, checked diameter is .511 Been researching lubes on this site, boolit has 3 deep grooves(.454) and a solid base(bottom pour).

[Rattus58]

Well you can damage the bases by forcing bullets into the bore, you can have your bullets inadvertently canted in the bore as you load, you can smear lead into your grooves which by iteself probably doesn't do do too much damage, but an uneven anything in your bore is not going to perform at its best in MY OPINION, but the worst case is damaging the bases some.

I've shot Hornady Great Plains Bullets that were overbored for one of my rifles and those bullets never shot well till I learnt to size them several years later. I size everything now from REAL to my long range shooters and copper cruisers.

Some bullets just won't work in a particular gun no matter what you do to it, other than rolling them into another bullet that will that is...

For myself, if I was going to force an overbore bullet into my bore, I'd be tempted to make sure I had a wad under the bullet to keep the flames from any curls along the base that might lead to leading as well, although a bullet squeezed into the grooves is probably less likely to lead than one that isn't, its more likely, in MY OPINION, to have some damage to the bullet.

I'd really be tempted to use that .510 sizer, and better yet, one that was just boresized (land to land) or maybe .002 over.

Aloha...

[Buckshot]

.............If your GROOVES are .513" what is the land diameter? The only problem with using a slug much over land diameter is twofold. First is that unless you have a false muzzle, the chance of starting one crooked is good, and that's baaaaad . The other problem could be boolit damage via ramming it the length of the barrel with fouling, or damage to the boolit from the effort required to run it home. Even if fouling isn't an issue getting it started straight will be.

Even if you sized the slug to your bore size the slug should upset into the grooves just fine. I have a P-H 2 band P58 Naval pattern Enfield. It has progresive depth grooves and they're .013" deep at the breech. That's a total of .026" expansion that has to take place. Add to that that there are 5 lands and grooves vs the more common 3. So you have comparatively narrow grooves (harder to upset into) and each groove is .013" deep.

I did not think the Lee REAL solid base had a chance in heck of upsetting. I was very glad to see that it was a nice accurate shooter. I have never recovered one but I find it hard to believe that if it was gas cut that it would shoot as well as it does. I HAVE recovered gas cut Minie' boolits and it's amazing what gas cutting can accomplish in such a short length of time!

If you did want to shoot those groove diameter slugs I see no problem other then those listed. If your barrel is round at the muzzle, having a simple false muzzle made for it is no big deal and shouldn't be very expensive to have done. All it is is a tube with a shoulder inside to set on the muzzle and a hole a thousandth over the boolit diameter. Put a boolit in so it's sitting on the muzzle straight and give it a smack with the starter. Once engraved run it home with the ramrod.

.............Buckshot

[Rattus58]

Hi Buckshot... I's agrees wit you on this completely.... I think he'll be much happier with a bore sized bullet. Lets look at the benefits...
1) Bullet sits true with the bore
2) No Deformation on Loading
3) Easier loading
4) With deep grooves, I'd use a wad to help minimize gas cutting and with a minie I'd fill the grooves.

Aloha...

[Underclocked]

His groove depth is surely at least .003". That would put his land-land at .5075". Knowing that true measure would be helpful in determining sizing requirements but even .510 is going to be a tight squeeze. Obturation with pure lead would even allow you to go a bit undersized with a bullet that heavy.

So my recommend would be to get true land-land measure and then a sizer that would yield a bullet of that diameter - perhaps ± .001".

ps: you'll probably need two sizers for a two-step process to reduce diameters that much.

[NSP64]

Slugged the bore with one of the 'cool' cast boolits and it started easier( I have a False muzzle).Land to land measures .502.

[NSP64]

I have 8 lands and 8 grooves may have to get Buckshot to build 2 sizers since commercial doesn't look promising. maybee take it down to .509 then to .502?

[Rattus58]

As me Uncle Rich would say..... That would be the cat's meow, with warm milk