Thinking of getting into casting?

[erickrschaefer]

I have a couple of handguns that I would like to shoot about 100 rounds through a week. Will casting my own be worth it and just how hard is it to get good results?  Buying them all ready made is becoming cost prohibitive. I would also like to here from you more experienced guys on the basic gear I would need to get started. The 2 guns I would be loading for would be a 44 mag and a 475 Linebaugh.

Thanks,
Erick

[Lloyd Smale]

a good way to get started would be a lyman expert kit it comes with a dipper pot and a lube sizer and some other need things. Youd still need a .430 and a .476 sizer die and a couple molds. The lee .476 400 rf is a real good design and cheap. I never had much luck with there .44 molds though. Id look for a good lyman 421429 mold on ebay. You can go alot cheaper with tumble lubed bullets and i use some of them but if i were to recomend a set up thats what id start with. With what i told you and a bucket of wheelweights you can make enough bullets to pay for the whole setup.

[kevin]

and it's fun and relaxing too,the lee lube size kits are really resonable and really a way to see if casting is for you, then if you like it a lymn kit is the way to gohope you enjoy and have fun my whole fammily helps in the casting and reloading dept, helps mine in  the bonding dept.
 kevin

[jgalar]

I think the 1st step before buying any casting equipment is to find a source of cheap lead. Wheel weights work great for most applications, but most tire stores have contracts so they won't sell them to you. Find and start gathering lead - then when you have a supply of otherwise useless  lead junk hanging around the garage, then get the casting stuff.

[Dusty Miller]

Its not hard to get a good estimate of what it would cost you to get into casting.  Just divide that amount by the savings per bullet and see how may bullets you'd have to fire to get to the cut even point.

[JPH45]

Saving money? What is that? :roll:

Actually, I couldn't do anywhere near the amount of shooting I do if I weren't casting. Sounds like we shoot about the same, 100 rounds a week or so. Last night I cast 13 pounds of the Lee 357-158-RF. Took about an hour once the pot was hot. By the numbers that 575 bullets, between this and a couple of other guns, thats a couple months of shooting. I also spent another hour slaving over the furnace and cranked out another 200 bullets for my 38-55. Shooting 20-50 a weekend, thats anywhere from a month to two of shooting. My lead is WW, I paid 3 cents a pound for this batch of 570 pounds (a whopping 17 dollars all told) that will keep me busy for a couple of years and that doesn't count the amount I will recover and shoot again. I'm shooting some pretty soft loads from my 44 Mag rifle, I've been using the same 100 cases for the last 2 years. I fired them at least 45 times now, some of them even more, primers are getting to be the biggest single expense, by using miltary surplus powders, it is costing me less than 6 cents to pull the trigger. I think you can save some money. If you are not shooting for 10 cents or less a pop you are doing a lot wrong. And if you can't save money by casting your own, you can't save money at all.

[howdy doody]

Howdy,
I got into casting a couple of years ago. I shoot cowboy action and with BP.
I lost my source of bullets ( Mid Kansas ) and decided to get some of the big lube bullet molds. I started out getting my supplies from Midway. I got a Lee pot and the molds are Lee too. I haven't had any problems. I asked a lot of questions right here on Greybeards Outdoors and the folks on this forum helped me along and it turns out that I love casting. I like the fact i can cast bullets I can't buy and I use cheap wheelweights and for balls for my C&B pistols I found a source of pure lead.
I encourage you to get into it. It is a lot of fun.  :grin:

[LAH]

Go for it.

[Dusty Miller]

Hey, even if you never saved a nickle, it's be a ton of fun.

[R.M.]

I belong to a club with indoor facilities, 10 firing points, with mostly bullseye shooting. We would love for somebody to help themselves to all of the range lead they want. I'm probably the only caster of the 100 or so members, so I don't put a very big dent in the lead supply. I use straight range lead for most of my bullets, (they're coming out at about 12 on the hardness scale).
If there's a range close by, check it out, you might be able to get all the lead you want for free.

R.M.

[Don Fischer]

Dusty Miller said:

[/quote]Posted: Thu Mar 31, 2005 7:08 am    Post subject:    

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
Hey, even if you never saved a nickle, it's be a ton of fun.

I think a better word is obsession. I've done a lot of it but not real good or knowledgeable. The beauty of it is you don't have to be. It drive's everybody I know crazy when I pick up wheel weight's on the street. I drag home lead in any form I find it. Even got some lead out of old septic line's a few time's; boy does that smell good melting down. When I'm at the tire store, I walk around the building looking for wheel weight's. I have even tried to get the lead out of old battery's, don't do that!

The end result is that I get to shoot a lot. Now I'm going to do it with a 30-06, first time with centerfire rifle other than a Hornet years ago. I'm gonna hunt deer with it too.

Go for it!!!!!!!!!

[Don Fischer]

Huh!!! Look's like I'm not real good at this posting quote's either!