Leading

[ioon44]

I haven't had any leading problems with my reloads since I started using Hi-Tek coating.

[firefly1957]

In my previous post I was thinking about my cast bullets reading though replies someone hit on store bought bullets leading that took me back to the 1970's
Before I was casting much I was buying Speer & Hornady Swaged bullets in .35 & 45 Calibers both leaded badly even the graphite coated type.

Most of my cast bullets today are powder coated or painted and baked. Early this year I was at a gun show and bought a bag of 150 grain .38 caliber Hollow Base wad cutters I am not sure who made them . I loaded these slow at 700 f/s and they shot terrible from my old S&W target masterpiece and the same from my Taurus model 608 . Catching some in snow banks I found the copper was peeling off in flight I also found copper specks in the bore .
In June I had a thought and sprayed a couple dozen of those plated bullets with enamel paint and baked it on . The same 700 f/s load shot a 1 1/2" 25 yard group from both pistols with the bullets coated !

I went a bit further and loaded some of the now coated bullets backwards in .357 Magnum cases seating them out to the same depth as a 158 grain bullet a load of little gun powder claims 1500 f/s for a 158 grain bullet . The loaded rounds needed to be pushed into the chamber throats' but pressures were good and accuracy to 15 yards was good . Two where fired into gallon jugs filled with water laying on their side the jug was blown up and the bullet did not exit jug bottom. All I found was small bits of lead and of copper plated & coated lead . It is not a load I would carry but a interesting fix for the weak plating and may be an idea for plated bullets in the future . The coating of two layers of spray paint did not make the bullets large enough to resize .

[Tall]

No never. I started reloading maybe 45 years ago. Back then I always used jacketed bullets because I was scared to death of leading. Eventually I started using bullets from a local guy who cast them. I followed his directions and didn't try to get the highest possible velocity. Instead I went for the most accurate reload.

[Bigslug]

Have mostly experienced it in revolvers; the causes being frame crush and cylinder throat issues needed lapped out, or alloy too hard for proper upset.

Also went through the common 9mm drama of insufficiently flared brass sizing the bullets down below nominal diameter on seating.

[firefly1957]

Something often overlooked on revolvers is the size of the cylinder throats if those openings to the barrel forcing cone are smaller then the barrel groove diameter cast boolits are not for that revolver. This is mostly and issue in .45 long colt (old or new revolvers) and older revolvers of other calibers .

One article on a gun made not long ago stated a .45 Long Colt revolver had .451" cylinder throats wild the barrel had a groove depth of .454" leaving the gun best for J-bullets. I forget the revolver make ...

[charlie b]

Yes, but not very much. I've only been casting for 40 years

In the beginning, there was ignorance.... Tried pushing bullets too fast (without gas checks). Not sized correctly. Also did a lot of experimenting with different alloys, wads, lubes, coatings. Some worked. Some didn't. Some pretty spectacular 'failures' resulting in learning how to remove large amounts of leading (not easy ).

The only recent example was shooting in my 9mm. It has no throat in the barrel. The edges of the bore and rifling just kind of peel off a layer of lead and the burning gases seems to deposit it in the barrel. Until I throat it or get a different barrel I just shoot jacketed in it.

[justindad]

I had terrible leading with a Lyman .40 S&W mold cause by eccentric cavities. The sharp edge of the parting line was shaved off by the rifling. Had to send the mold back and the replacement isn’t very good either. We’ll see what happens at the range.

[MT Gianni]

1.0033 is my answer. If you have never had a serious leading problem then you are not much of an experimenter. If the thought of having to clean a gun worries you, you should find another hobby. When starting, I have leaded bbls within 5-6 shots. I have guns now that I have not sent a patch down in over 200 rounds as they tell me it isn't needed yet. If that scares you, recognize that your drill sgnt was as full of it as anyone else.

[firefly1957]

MT Gianni You reminded me of the worst leading loads I have they are factory Remington in the green and white box 158 grain semi wad cutters !
The loads at one time claimed 1500 f/s fired from my Taurus 608 6.5" barrel they were hitting 1250 f/s and just a few shots leaded the bore badly. I am not sure how old they are mid 1970's at least I remember leading the heck out of my S&W model 28 with the same factory ammo back in 1976 and leaving the bore filled with Mercury overnight!
The two boxes I have now were given to me about 20 years ago by a retired officer who had to remove all his guns and all ammo from his own home when his son got out of prison and lived there! It was a wasted effort the then 40 plus year old reoffended and even caught federal charges in just a couple years almost putting his mother in legal jeopardy as well as he was using her computer for counterfeiting and child porn!

[405grain]

When I first started out casting I'd get leading in both pistols and rifles. The more I learned the less leading I experienced, but it was always there to some extent. Once powder coating became a thing all leading has disappeared. I only shoot powder coated bullets today and leading is no longer an issue.