RepackboxRotoMetals2Reloading EverythingInline Fabrication
Titan ReloadingLee PrecisionMidSouth Shooters SupplyWideners
Load Data
Results 1 to 9 of 9

Thread: 16:1 alloy hardness questions...again

  1. #1
    Boolit Grand Master Tripplebeards's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2017
    Location
    USA
    Posts
    5,514

    16:1 alloy hardness questions...again

    If you members remember my rant from when I first started casting back in 2017 and "tried" to mix 16:1 using pewter and pure lead. My BH ended up 7.5BH. I remember buying a lee tester and testing my "pewter" which was only 7.5 BH to begin with. Obviously it had ALOT pure SN mixed in with the pewter items I used. I casted up 10mm with the rest of that alloy mix the other day and even sized 2,000th over and PC that passed the smash test I got leading. We'll today was the day!!! After that mishap I only bought and used dinnerware pewter in my 50/50 mixes and just to add 2% to help with mold fill outs.

    Today I grabbed some of my current pewter ignots that I WQ and had sitting around for a few months. The BH was 21. Way different reading than my first batch of 2017 pewter.lol. I used my some of the same orignal flooring with a BH of 4.7. I mixed 8 pounds of the flooring with 8 oz of 21BH pewter. Fluxed and dropped into ignots for testing. I dropped a few ignots in cold water. Let them sit for 10min till cold and tested. It got a reading of 10.4BH with my lee tester! I did it!lol. Now my question is should I let the alloy sit a few days and check again ? With pewter you really don't know what's in it I'm guessing. I would assume a true 16:1 alloy should be around 11BH and I'm just a little softer. I want to use this in my 10mm at full bore velocities. Is it going to be hard enough? I will PC it. P.S. thanks for the help Larry. He helped me realize the first batch from 5 years ago is basically 40:1. Still works great with GCs to 2100fps and no leading in my 35 rem and 1600 fps in my 77/44 with GC devastators.

  2. #2
    Boolit Master 243winxb's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2005
    Location
    USA
    Posts
    2,837
    Bullets containing 2% antimony, oven heat treaded, dropped in cool water, take 2 weeks to fully harden.

    Should be some in pewter, per the google search.

  3. #3
    Boolit Grand Master Tripplebeards's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2017
    Location
    USA
    Posts
    5,514
    Thanks, saw that when I googled. Looks like modern pewter has up to 7% in it. Figured with water quenching a few samples I might have sped up the process of the air cooling samples. Guess only time will tell.

  4. #4
    Boolit Master 243winxb's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2005
    Location
    USA
    Posts
    2,837
    7% antimony water dropped should harden fully in 1 hour or less.

  5. #5
    Boolit Grand Master Tripplebeards's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2017
    Location
    USA
    Posts
    5,514
    So my max is what it is …10.4BH. A true 16:1 is around a 11BH if I remember correctly? If so the magic question is how much more pewter to do need to add to bump it to 11BH? I used 8oz for 8 pounds to make my 10.4BH. It’s to early to do math in my head but I’m guessing another ounce or two?

  6. #6
    Boolit Buddy
    Join Date
    Jun 2013
    Posts
    462
    Your pewter is probably between 88-93% tin, not pure. This means you probably added 7.2 oz of tin, .3 oz of antimony, .3 oz copper and a few trace elements. There likely isn't enough antimony to affect your alloy.

    7.2 oz of tin divided by 136 oz total is 5.3% tin by weight. 16:1 alloy is 5.88% tin by weight. You are a little low on tin, that's why your hardness isn't quite up where you expect it.

    If you have .3 oz antimony in 136 oz that is 0.2% antimony by weight, not enough to water harden.

  7. #7
    Boolit Grand Master Tripplebeards's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2017
    Location
    USA
    Posts
    5,514
    So I need to add approx one ounce of the same pewter alloy I used back into my original mix and I should be pretty close, or right on, to 11BH which is what it’s seems what 16:1 alloy should be. Thanks

    I’ll melt everything back down, add an ounce, pour a test ignot, water quench to cool it down quickly and test. If it’s to hard or soft I’ll add or subtract a little more to my mix I left in the pot all heated up and ready to got… and cast with it.
    Last edited by Tripplebeards; 09-19-2022 at 10:11 AM.

  8. #8
    Boolit Grand Master Tripplebeards's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2017
    Location
    USA
    Posts
    5,514
    Just tested my WQ 16:1 vs AC. They both tested EXACTLY the same hardness of 10.4 again. The smallest piece of pewter I had was 2oz I threw it into my mix and will know shortly if it took to 11BH...stay tooned!

  9. #9
    Boolit Grand Master Tripplebeards's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2017
    Location
    USA
    Posts
    5,514
    Tried 2 more oz and fluxed. Still at 10.4 BH. Next smallest piece of pewter ignot I had was 4oz. Added, fluxed, and tested...11BH! Took 14 oz of my 21BH pewter along with 8 pounds of 4.7 BH lead to get 11BH. Mold is warming up and ill drop a few.

    Thanks for the help!!!!!

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  
Abbreviations used in Reloading

BP Bronze Point IMR Improved Military Rifle PTD Pointed
BR Bench Rest M Magnum RN Round Nose
BT Boat Tail PL Power-Lokt SP Soft Point
C Compressed Charge PR Primer SPCL Soft Point "Core-Lokt"
HP Hollow Point PSPCL Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" C.O.L. Cartridge Overall Length
PSP Pointed Soft Point Spz Spitzer Point SBT Spitzer Boat Tail
LRN Lead Round Nose LWC Lead Wad Cutter LSWC Lead Semi Wad Cutter
GC Gas Check