Author Topic: Casting for Cowboys (Read 666 times)

Cheyenne Ranger · « **on:** June 11, 2003, 09:52:30 AM »

Just got down casting 34 lbs of lead into 200 and 250 gr .45LC bullets. Works out to around 1000 bullets. When one mold got hot would switch to the other. Kept it up until I ran the pot dry (and this will adding lead as I went along). Did it in two casting sessions and then proceded to the sizing and lubing. About 3 hours of actual casting and 1 1/2 hours of sizing/lubing. Should be good until the end of the year.
(Now if my brother does sign on in CAS I'll be doing it sooner but this wouldn't be a problem.) This would be the first thing we have done together in.....well, ever!)
We'll see how it goes.
CR

Lone Yankee · « **Reply #1 on:** June 11, 2003, 10:56:28 AM »

I've been casting my own bullets since 1957. Wouldn't do it any other way. I use my mould altrnately and that prevents them from getting too hot.

Lone

Cheyenne Ranger · « **Reply #2 on:** June 11, 2003, 11:42:24 AM »

Started a bit after you--best we can figure is 1963. Dad taught me the basics and have gone on from there. Not that there is too much more to know. Getting ready to cast another batch. Figure that I can do this while everything is on the quiet side.
CR

Pigeonroost Slim · « **Reply #3 on:** June 12, 2003, 06:38:12 AM »

Hey Ho Ranger!

I cast some yesterday 'cause it was storming and my boolit supply was running low. Not bragg'n, but I cast out about 50# of 250gr boolits in jest a short while -- maybe less than an hour in one session -- not counting how long it takes the pots to come up to temp. I did not rush! I used two Lee 6 cavity molds in PRS 454-250-RF. I use two Lee 20# bottom pour pots. I cast with both molds alternately from one pot at a time. I use clay granules to cover the melt so I can safely drop spru waste back into the pot without need of re-fluxing. When one pot is near empty, I stock it with ingots and go to the other pot, hardly missing a beat.

For lubing, I have my lubesizer mounted just to the left of my press and I take a boolit, lube it, and place it on the case mouth, load it and grab another boolit. Sort of slows the progressive press down a mite, but figuring the steps seperately; I may be saving time in the long run.

Now I gotta go scrounge up a couple of hundred pounds of wheel weights as I am near out of alloy.

Enjoy working with yer brother!

prs

Cheyenne Ranger · « **Reply #4 on:** June 14, 2003, 10:08:31 AM »

Getting back at it again. Figure I'm casting for 3 CAS shooters and 3 USPSA shooters so I stay busy. Still like the casting just for itself. Lubing is another matter but all in all, I enjoy it.
CR

Pigeonroost Slim · « **Reply #5 on:** June 17, 2003, 06:49:54 AM »

Sounds like you really should consider the Starr lube machine -- you cast a lot!

howdy doody · « **Reply #6 on:** June 17, 2003, 08:37:14 AM »

I just recently started in casting and started by casting balls for my rems and my ROAs. Well the casting went pretty good and I got the hang of it. I used pure lead and I was real proud of the way they turned out. The first shoot I tried them at I noticed they rammed easier than the speers I had been using and I got a nice even shaving of lead that I look for in a proper sized ball. Then it happened. I am loaded up and start shooting the stage and whammo, the counters give me three misses. I knew I couldn't have had more than one, but shrugged it off. All day long I got bad calls. Next shoot same thing different folks. I am frustrated because I have a bunch of folks that will give you a miss if they don't hear a clang. Now I am thinking I need to harden up the mix just so I can get rid of the splat sound and make the steel ring. I am not about to instruct a whole posse about watching instead of listening. If there were more C&B shooters we could watch for each others, but in my parts I am usually the only one. I'll tell you how lonely I am. I shot an annual match a month ago and was the only frontiersman out of 200 shooters. I just shot a biggy last week and there was only two of us. I am getting so frustrated I may go back to cartridge and maybe smokeless. Naw, I won't go that far, but it ticks me off about soft lead and bad calls.
So, how much tin should I add? Anybody else feel my pain?

Cheyenne Ranger · « **Reply #7 on:** June 17, 2003, 09:51:50 AM »

Might want to look at some 20-1 alloy. This is 20 parts lead and 1 part tin. Not sure but guessing by weight. Another way to say it is 95% Pb and 5% Sn (guess I remember some of my chemistry.) Tin actually helps in filling out the molds, Antimony is the primary ingredient that adds hardness. Somewhere around 5-6%.
Wheel weights make pretty good casting alloy used straight. Don't know how WW do as a BP bullet.
CR

howdy doody · « **Reply #8 on:** June 17, 2003, 10:09:09 AM »

Hey ho there Cheyenne, so you are saying I should try a 5% tin and hold off on the antimony? I don't want so hard I can't ram 'em down the cylinders. I would like to duplicate speers. I wish I had a hardness tester, maybe I should buy one. Eventually, I will get into bullet casting. I can cast up them for my rifle. It is the danged balls that are driving me wild. I could go up in powder charge, especially on the ROAs, but the extra recoil in my rems would kill my knuckle which gets right into the round part on the bottom of the trigger guard and actually swells my knuckles up. So, I have been using a 30gr (1.9cc) charge and it has been fine for CAS. Smokes good and recoil is tame and accurate at CAS distances. Actually my only complaint is silly really, everthing is fine except I get spotters that are not familiar with BP or C&B shooters different chunks of lead. It takes close watching and not listening to do a good job of counting.

Cheyenne Ranger · « **Reply #9 on:** June 17, 2003, 11:20:40 AM »

Here is a poor-man's hardness tester:
Cast some flat pieces of lead, one from a known hardness (or from a batch you want to copy) and from the unknown batch. They need to be the same size/shape; something like the size of a quarter. Maybe cast in to a metal soda bottle top.
Now get a ball bearing--one will do. Place the lead inside a C-clamp with the ball bearing on top of it--a bit of grease will hold the ball bearnin in place. Tighten the C-clamp until the clamp JUST touches the ball bearing on one side and the lead on the other. Now tighten it 1 or 2 full turns--your choice. Do this with the other lead sample. Now carefully measure the diameter of the depression that the ball bearing made in the lead; do this with a dial caliper. Softer lead=deeper impression.
You can vary the components of the alloy to change the hardness and, in turn, the depth of the lead.
Or check out this site for a lead tester--I have one and love it (about 3/4 of the way down the page:
http://www.castingstuff.com/welcome_to_our_new_site.htm

howdy doody · « **Reply #10 on:** June 18, 2003, 07:32:32 PM »

Wow, what a great tip Cheyenne and I have a c clamp too. I can easily pour out a cap full and try it. Thanks pard.
I should be able to customize if I can duplicate the speer hardness.

Cuts Crooked · « **Reply #11 on:** June 19, 2003, 11:26:49 AM »

Interesting!

I couldn't figger out what Howdy's problem was at first. I've always used pure, or nearly pure lead for casting balls/bullets fer BP. Never really paid much attention to hardness, especially where commercial balls were concerned because I didn't use them. After reading this I recalled that I had loaned a muzzleloader to a Pard for deer season last year and he returned it to me along with most of a box of Speer balls that he had purchased. I just went down and hauled that box out and examined them. Surprize, surprize!!! They are indeed harder than my home cast stuff!!!! I had some balls that I had cast handy and did the "thumbnail" test on both those and the Speer balls. (not very scientific I know) and while both passed my nail test (if it's soft enuff to make a distinct mark with yer thumbnail, it's soft enuff fer BP) the Speer balls took a noticably greater amount of force to mark!

Oh well, as I've noted before..."It don' halfta be pure, jist soft!" :lol:

Howdy, try weighin' yer pure lead afor ya melt 'n add 10 - 15 % hobby solder by weight to the melt, for a harder, but still soft enuff, ball for them Rooogers

howdy doody · « **Reply #12 on:** June 19, 2003, 12:06:28 PM »

Here is a good one. Mohave Gambler came over to the house this morning. He wanted to take some Marlin Pics of a slick up job for his gunsmithing newsletter. It went well. Then he wanted to see how I cast the balls for the rems and ROAs. I got the pot out and heated it up. I made up about a hundred balls for him for the ROA he has coming from 4EyedBill. Here is the funny part

He has the pure lead ones with all the bad calls built right into them. Before I cast any more I am going to use either the solder or get some tin to throw in the pot as suggested.
Good thing Mohave Gambler doesn't frequent this board. Hahaahaha.
I just feel rotten about tricking him like that. Not :-)

John Traveler · « **Reply #13 on:** June 19, 2003, 12:12:42 PM »

Howdy, Howdy!

Oh, TOTALLY ROTTEN PERSON, you!

Grin. Gee, who would ever think of doing something like that?

Get some 50/50 common solder. Cutting off lengths of wire makes it easy to track how much tin you are adding to the pot.

I wish I was closer to you in Sacto area, I'd give you a few rolls of that common solder. A bit of tin goes a long way to making your molds fill out better and boolits shoot better!

John

howdy doody · « **Reply #14 on:** June 19, 2003, 12:59:43 PM »

Hey there J.T. I can get solder cheap enough at home depot or lowes. I am getting some the next time I roll by there.
I am going to use the old C clamp harness testing trick too. I like casting my own. It is fun, but I need to get a ring out of the steel to combat counters that don't watch for a C&B shooter and go by sound or obvious movement. I don't mind a bad call once in a while, but 2 or three on a stage is too much. I am not about to educate everyone that ends up on my posse, so I will make it easier for them to count my misses :-)

I didn't catch where you were from.