Author Topic: shot making ?? (Read 1169 times)

bob allen · « **on:** February 18, 2005, 04:04:08 PM »

I had no idea you could make your own shot.Never saw one word of it till now.can anyone send sources of these shot makers?
Thanks in advance

jeager106 · « **Reply #1 on:** February 18, 2005, 08:11:50 PM »

It's a mystery to me WHY and one would want to.
Given what your time is worth, the eletricity used to melt the lead and so forth I doubt one penny would be saved over what you can buy the stuff for.
From what I've read you sure can't home brew shot better than what you buy.
Still if it melts your butter then go for it.
A 25 pound bag of shot costs between 16 and 18 bucks around here.
Even if you get free lead I doubt you could beat the cost even if your time is figured at 2 bucks an hour.
I figure if I work one hours overtime I can buy 2 and 1/2 bags of shot.
As a matter of fact I only reload ammo that I can make better than the factories sell.
And that ain't much.

.45 COLT · « **Reply #2 on:** February 19, 2005, 04:20:30 AM »

Shotmaker

Or

Shotmaker, 2nd source

I've thought about trying it, but these shotmakers won't produce the larger sizes that I tend to favor.

mrlizzzard · « **Reply #3 on:** February 19, 2005, 01:45:53 PM »

Jusr build a shot tower,I think they are 90' and you drop the lead thru screens it cools and there ya go.Shouldn't cost more than 100,000.BTW don't pour the molten lead on the cat.
lizzzard

bob allen · « **Reply #4 on:** February 19, 2005, 03:52:19 PM »

thanks .45Colt for the sources.I was at the Magma site the other day and never even noticed it.I'm with you on shot size,I use 4s and larger.And not all that much.Jeager's got a point there,,,,,,,,,
Interesting idea though could be good for some.................
Bob

rickyp · « **Reply #5 on:** February 19, 2005, 03:54:32 PM »

Quote from: mrlizzzard

Jusr build a shot tower,I think they are 90' and you drop the lead thru screens it cools and there ya go.Shouldn't cost more than 100,000.BTW don't pour the molten lead on the cat.
lizzzard

Maybe I could use my stations tower ( firetruck with a ladder and what looks like a bucket on the tip) it is 100 ft tall and has a plug so I could plug in the lead pot and the bucket has enough room for a small table.

Hey chief, I will be out back using the tower for a few hours :-D

the rifleman · « **Reply #6 on:** March 02, 2005, 10:01:06 PM »

Quote from: bob allen

I had no idea you could make your own shot.Never saw one word of it till now.can anyone send sources of these shot makers?
Thanks in advance

There is an excellent thread all about shotmaking at shotgunworld.com in the reloading topic area. It may be back a page or two, or you could do a "search".

It can save you a lot of money if you get the lead for free. Tire wheel weights are the most common source, and they produce a good, hard shot. It takes a bit of setup, but once you are rolling, and have your system set correct, you can produce 100-200 lbs of shot a day. Many makers sell shot to other reloaders, to help offset some of their costs.

dakotashooter2 · « **Reply #7 on:** March 09, 2005, 05:37:03 AM »

Just a note (in case you didn't know): home made shot may not have the uniformity of commercial shot and will often be mishaped not unlike heavyshot. The reason for this the short drop into the cooling solution which is or at least used to be diesel fuel. The longer the drop (to a point) the more uniform the shape. This, I understand, is why comercial makers use towers.