Author Topic: alloy testing  (Read 524 times)

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Offline Lloyd Smale

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alloy testing
« on: September 16, 2006, 03:46:17 PM »


buddy AL has been doing some testing with some bullets i casted. Both of us in are experience have never seen where the theroy of needing soft bullets to bumb up ever flew. I casted him some 45acps that he shot out of a couple 1911s and a couple 625s. I casted out of ww/pure 5050 straing ww #2 and 5050 ww/lyno. I also did the same for some 44 bullets that were shot out of 44 mags and specials. Some at high velocitys some at low and without exception the best shooting alloy was 5050 ww/lyno in everything. I was just telling him the other day that i had an exception to the rule with my sti trojan 9mm it shot ww/pure better then #2. Well i havent up till today tried 5050 ww/lyno in that gun because i shoot it alot and didnt want to waste the remaining lyno i have on it cause finding it is about impossible around here anymore. Today i casted up some of the bullet it likes the best and low and behold groups went from consistant 1.5 at 25 to 1 inch or less. I know some of you will argue against this but Al has about the most extensive reloading records of anyone in the country and he said looking through them theres very few exceptions to the fact that the best accuarcy comes from harder bullets even at low velocitys. Ill still shoot the softer ones in the 9s and 45acps to save my lead but for matches i know what my bullets will be casted out of. maybe if Al gets feeling better i can talk him into publishing the data he has to back this up.
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Offline Dusty Miller

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Re: alloy testing
« Reply #1 on: September 18, 2006, 01:23:00 PM »
Do you have any BHN figures you can give us?
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Offline WL44

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Re: alloy testing
« Reply #2 on: September 19, 2006, 10:00:23 PM »
Lloyd,

That's very cool info. I'd also like an idea as to BHN. This is great stuff for us casting newbies...

Wim

Offline Lloyd Smale

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Re: alloy testing
« Reply #3 on: September 20, 2006, 12:24:15 AM »
been a while since i tested any but the 5050 wwlyno should go 17-18 #2 about 14 straight ww about 11 and 5050 ww/pure goes about 8. Thats on my cabintree tester. Problem is that i own 3 testers and they will all vary in there readings. I use my tester more for comparing batches of alloys or testing scrap yard lead to get an idea of what it is then to quote exact alloy hardness.
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Offline Mikey

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Re: alloy testing
« Reply #4 on: September 20, 2006, 01:19:21 AM »
Lloyd - interesting findings you have there.  Buncha years ago when I was working up my homebrewed 40 caliber I found that dropping slugs from a RCBS 40170 mold (170 gn 40 caliber swc) that with straight wheelweights the slugs dropped at 185 and over 4.3 of WW231 were the most accurate load/slug I have ever shot from a Gold Cup - even more accurate than the 45.  When I mixed a 'proper' #2 alloy they would drop at 180 gns, but when I sweetened the mixture with 10% Linotype they dropped at 170 gns exactly - and they were extremely accurate over the heaviest charges I could shoot through the piece - used them for both silhouette and hunting and they would easily take the ram at 200 yds and shoot through a whitetail at about 75 yds.  Mikey.