Is my math correct?

[TFin04]

Assuming I pay $1 per lb of lead.

7000 grains in a lb, which means I can make 56 125gr bullets (assuming I can use every bit of lead).

$1 divided by 56 bullets means I paid roughly 1.8 cents per bullet.

Is this right? Trying to figure out if its worth me getting in to casting.

[TFin04]

Oops, this was supposed to go in the general forum. Sorry guys.

[runfiverun]

the lead math is correct but you gotta add lube,time or whatever.
you still get better then you can buy though.
and the boolit is still way cheaper then the primer at 1.00 per lb.

[Tom Herman]

Scrap is running around 35 cents a pound around here. It brings your price down quite a bit.
Quickly crunching the numbers here, I run about 6 cents a round for powder/primers, and up to 3.6 cents a round max for lead, tin, wheel weights, and bullet lube.
My costs are based on casting big bullets in the 240-265 grain range. Tin costs are almost a half a cent apiece, unless I'm lucky enough to score rolls of solder as part of the scrap lead.
My lube is a dead ringer for SPG, and only costs me about $5 a pound. Sure beats $30+....
If I can scrounge lead or wheel weights, my ultimate lead cost per bullet is practically nothing.
A little lube goes a LONG way, and is negligible for me. YMMV.

Happy Shootin'! -Tom

[buck1]

Very much worth it! Scrap lead is your friend!!

[Jaybird62]

The spot price for WW scrap is about .15per pound, as of last Friday, and the market average is .25. You've just got to scrounge a little to find it. If you don't want to go that route, then $1 per pound is still a pretty good buy compared to buying "store bought" bullets.

[Buckshot]

..............You can't figure your time into it. Or you COULD, but why? Its a hobby, sport, creative time spent mentally engaged, right? You don't cost out your time mentally DIS-engaged watching TV, do ya?

Commercial cast is running between 6 and 10 cents each for pistol boolits, so doing it yourself is the smart move. IMHO

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

[hammerhead357]

Here around San Antonio the recyclers are paying 6 to 10 cents per lb. for WW as of last Thursday...... I haven't been out trying to buy any but I intend to try this next week....Wes

[Trapshooter]

Your math is good, but you may want to add something for process energy costs.

Gasoline for procurement, electricity or propane for making ingots (I didn't say smelting , and electricity for casting. At least where I live, the cost of electricity has gotten out of hand.

Trapshooter

[TFin04]

I understand there are other little things to add in. I was looking at it from a strictly cost-per-bullet from $1lb lead perspective. I've never added my time in the mix because it is a hobby I enjoy and it's nice to turn some music on and relax at the bench for a while.

Where are you guys finding scrap? Just search yellowpages for metal scrap businesses?

Thanks!

[shdwlkr]

TFin04

Cost of a lead bullet
Lets say the lead cost $0.75 to get to your house now we have to melt it that will cost around $0.02 for electric now the cost of the mold over say 10,000 bullets and mold cost of $65 or $0.0065 per bullet and your time at $15.00 an hour and you can cast 500 bullets in that hour or $0.03 each
56 bullets to the pound @ $0.75 # is $0.00067 each
cost of electric $ 0.02 each
cost of the mold $0.00065 each
cost of your time $0.03 each
total cost $0.05 each
this is only an example but it is how I keep track of the cost of my bullets

[04heritage]

Its not always about the numbers. You have to look at the satisfaction and relaxation you get from castng to firing YOUR ammo !!

[Dennis Eugene]

I have spent thousands of dollars trying to save hundreds of dollars. But when I feel like going shooting I always have ammo. Dennis

[TC66]

One resource I have found I did not think about before is car scrap and salvage yards. Stopped into one a week ago and the guy happened to be ******** about his computer. Took me 30 minutes work on the computer but got it fixed. He gave me full run of a 24 acre yard with between 1500 and 2000 cars and said I can have all of it I want I just have to go pull them myself. Don't just hit up tire shops. Try anywhere and you may be pleasantly surprised. I am looking at 800 to 1000 lbs free. Well cost me 30 minutes of computer work but that is well worth it in my opinion. Regular metal scrap yards will not sell to us around here. They say they are not allowed and can only sell to smelting facilitys. Tried to convince the guy I was a smelting facility with my turkey burner and lead pot. He didn't buy it. They pay .15 for all lead they get and I offered him .30 and still not interested. Another problem around here is recylcing companies. they are dropping off containers and offer the tire shops 60 cents a lbs once they have 1000 lbs saved up. A lot of shops are going for it.

Tom

[fredj338]

At $1/#, I would cast at todays bullet prices. Much beyond that, & it's hard to justify the time & equip. It's tough to find cheap or free lead for casting. In most cases, the tire shops have already got buyers. Many scrap yards don't even handle lead scrap. Another place to look is stain glass making shops/business, pure lead scrap there.

[Heavy lead]

The same could be said about elk. By the time you figure your time away from work, guide, outfitter, airline ticket, everything else it's some damn expensive meat. Now for all you guys out in elk country, you might have horses, trailer, big diesel truck, wall tents and on and on, it's probably even more expensive.
I was and am a lifelong reloader. I got into casting 4 years ago simply because I had good results with cast out of my pistolivers, but very rarely could find good boolits, so I make them, at least as cheap, probably cheaper than I can buy good boolits.
JFTR I do not consider the super hard bevel base hard cast with a crayon around the middle a boolit, they are not even bullets, they're a waste of time and money.

[Geraldo]

..............You can't figure your time into it. Or you COULD, but why? Its a hobby, sport, creative time spent mentally engaged, right? You don't cost out your time mentally DIS-engaged watching TV, do ya?

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

Or you could take the cost of store bought bullet minus the cost of your cast ones and count the difference as what you're being paid to make boolits. Even if it's not a lot, you're being paid to have fun casting.

[.45Cole]

TFin04-I made up an excel spreadsheet a while ago to see this stuff. Put in some inputs and all the numbers are there (for me, I just had some spare time) it corrects for bullet weight, WW skim off and load price/weight. I'ss send it as an attachment of you PM your email address.

[Rockchucker]

Here is a site I got off another thats for handgun cartridge reloading calculator.Hope it helps.

Ron
http://10xshooters.com/calculators/H...Calculator.htm

[Gerry N.]

Assuming I pay $1 per lb of lead.

7000 grains in a lb, which means I can make 56 125gr bullets (assuming I can use every bit of lead).

$1 divided by 56 bullets means I paid roughly 1.8 cents per bullet.

Is this right? Trying to figure out if its worth me getting in to casting.

Almost everyone starting out tries to justify casting or handloading by figuring the cost per round.

Fuggedaboudit. I started about forty five years ago, loading for my first M94 .30-30. Roughly $25,000 later, I'm still buying tools, components, dies and molds. Don't forget the guns. I've accumulated more than sixty assorted long guns, muzzleloaders, pistols and revolvers. Many here have a great deal more.

Economy is not the reason we do this, although it may have been the reason we began.

It's becasue it's fun. Period. Justify it however you will, you will continue because it's fun. If you don't enjoy it, you will quit.

Gerry N.