The case of the clueless bullseye shooter

[Questor]

For bullseye target shooting I am currently using swaged 200 grain SWCs made of relatively soft lead. However, I have read that top shooters prefer very hard cast bullets for bullseye. Some sources imply that the reason for this is reliability in feeding, but that doesn't make sense anymore as most decent bullseye guns will reliably feed the standard bullseye bullet designs.  

That leaves accuracy as a variable.  However, swaged bullets are the favorites for shooters of 38 special and 32 S&W target loads, so I doubt that there's anything inherently inaccurate about swaged bullets. I also notice that cast rifle bullets made of Lyman alloy are relatively soft.

So why is a harder bullet preferred?  The guns are mostly customized 1911s.

My reasons for asking are not entirely academic. I've considered taking up bullet casting again but my lead sources will be for relatively soft metal. I don't want to get into something that won't give me the best results.

[rbwillnj]

Actually, a lot of Bullseye shooters really liked the Star 185 grain swaged Lead HPSWC.  Star just went out of business, so they have been scrambling to find a replacement.  Other Bullseye shooters sware by bullets made from straight linotype.   I never had any luck with swaged bullets for 45ACP compared to Commercial Hard Cast and Cast-My-Own SWCs, but that's me.

I think shooters find something that works really well for them, then they start developing theorys why its better than anything else.  The result is a proliferation of "Old Wives Tales" recipes for the best loads.  The truth is, there are many solutions to the problem and if you find one that works for you, use it.

[Lvl1trauma]

I think that is some bad info about the best shooters shooting hard bullets. You want a relatively soft bullet to obterate at the 775 FPS or so velocities.

I have been shooting bullseye for quite a while.
One of the first things I learned is quit worrying about what everyone else is shooting. You will see a lot of commonalities among the shooters but only use that as a guide.

When I was sharpshooter a few years ago, I was casting my own bullets (and still do) out of wheelweights. Everybody else was shooting what the Army or Marines were shooting. Lots of folks were shooting the Nosler 185 Gr. HP because that is what the Marines were shooting. I was doing a lot of practice and got to where I was really outshooting my class.  A few times I would outshoot the master class shooters if I got lucky and was having a good day. It really pissed them off when I told them I was "shooting old wheel weights I picked up off the street."

I looked at some of the store bought lead bullets they guys were shooting. Mostly Valient. The bases and edges of the bullets were torn to hell. Guess that is what happens when they are shipped everywhere. It gives me a good feeling to know that when I pull the trigger, what that bullet is and does is completely in my control.

Lvl1trauma

[Questor]

That's funny! It's strange how the politics of bullseye works. We have a high master in our league and I honestly believe that if he came in one night and shot an 875 and said his bullets were made of chicken poop, half of the other people in the league would start raising chickens.

Last week I asked one guy what kind of bullets he used and his facial expression told me that he was offended by the question. I can't understand why.  

I tried casting gave it up because of the time involved.  The best bullets I've used have been my wheelweight bullets with moly lube. Very nice, and quite good looking compared to commercial bullets.

We do have a sharpshooter that uses Nosler 185s. I can see using them when you're a high master or close to it, but a sharpshooter has other refinements to make before those bullets help.