Bullet Casting Temperature
- Thread starter rlphvac
- Start date
To start you should just run the heat up on the casting alloy in the pot and test cast a few dozen bullets to heat the mold,
the lead will be in about the 780f-850f range, until the bullets you cast have an obviously FROSTED exterior,
when you pour the mold over fill it so a glob of excess lead forms on the moveable , shear plate ,part of the mold, watch it change temps BEFORE you open the mold every time,
and fully fill the molds, this will take awhile for the hot lead and the mold to semi stabilize then
keep slowly reducing the temperature just until, the cast projectiles still fully fill the mold,
and still have a just marginally frosted appearance, this temperature will vary some-what with the antimony, tin, and lead content
but if the mold lubricant grooves are crisp and there's ZERO wrinkles and the projectile maintain a mild frosted appearance the molds filling to the max volume and weight, and the projectiles will be the most consistent in diameter, weight and consistency.
keep in mind the rate at whicH you CAST AFFECTS THE MOLD TEMP, if you generally cast like I do and drop bullets in a 7 gallon pail that's got about 6 gallons of water and a few drops of dawn dish was soap to break the water surface temp you'll get good results, don't worry about bullets being damaged they harden completely and the water in the pail reduces the impact speed with the bottom of the pail
read the LINKED THREADS
scholar.google.com
ID suppose I should point out that lead bullet alloy has a huge effect on the projectiles performance, it affects the projectiles ability to grab and hold the weapons bore ,walls rifling to maximize and maintain accuracy, it effects the projectiles penetration and expansion characteristics and velocity limits. harger bullet alloys expand slower and penetrate deeper and generally have better...
THESE 260-270 grain bullet molds produce a great compromise providing good accuracy and penetration but a bit lower recoil than the 300-310 grain bullet designs that provide a bit deeper penetration in the 44 mag and 445 DWSM revolver
you'll generally want to buy a couple wooden replacement hammer handles and use one to CAREFULLY tap open and close the mold sheer plate as wood used carefully won't damage a mold, I usually screw in an screw eye in the handle end the hammer head fits on to allow it to be hung up in plain sight when not in use,
here's a tip, leave the last fill of hot lead in the mold when you put it away.(but before it fully cools spray it with wd40 and after it cools place the oil soaked mold in a 2 gallon zip lock bag and store it sealed in a dry place
once its cooled I spray mine with WD40 (it will burn off at next use after about 10 test fills to get it fully warmed)
when you get a new mold use dawn dish wash liquid and a tooth brush to get the mold free of preservation grease,
before use, spray the mold with mold release
the lead will be in about the 780f-850f range, until the bullets you cast have an obviously FROSTED exterior,
when you pour the mold over fill it so a glob of excess lead forms on the moveable , shear plate ,part of the mold, watch it change temps BEFORE you open the mold every time,
and fully fill the molds, this will take awhile for the hot lead and the mold to semi stabilize then
keep slowly reducing the temperature just until, the cast projectiles still fully fill the mold,
and still have a just marginally frosted appearance, this temperature will vary some-what with the antimony, tin, and lead content
but if the mold lubricant grooves are crisp and there's ZERO wrinkles and the projectile maintain a mild frosted appearance the molds filling to the max volume and weight, and the projectiles will be the most consistent in diameter, weight and consistency.
keep in mind the rate at whicH you CAST AFFECTS THE MOLD TEMP, if you generally cast like I do and drop bullets in a 7 gallon pail that's got about 6 gallons of water and a few drops of dawn dish was soap to break the water surface temp you'll get good results, don't worry about bullets being damaged they harden completely and the water in the pail reduces the impact speed with the bottom of the pail
read the LINKED THREADS
Google Scholar
ID suppose I should point out that lead bullet alloy has a huge effect on the projectiles performance, it affects the projectiles ability to grab and hold the weapons bore ,walls rifling to maximize and maintain accuracy, it effects the projectiles penetration and expansion characteristics and velocity limits. harger bullet alloys expand slower and penetrate deeper and generally have better...
THESE 260-270 grain bullet molds produce a great compromise providing good accuracy and penetration but a bit lower recoil than the 300-310 grain bullet designs that provide a bit deeper penetration in the 44 mag and 445 DWSM revolver
you'll generally want to buy a couple wooden replacement hammer handles and use one to CAREFULLY tap open and close the mold sheer plate as wood used carefully won't damage a mold, I usually screw in an screw eye in the handle end the hammer head fits on to allow it to be hung up in plain sight when not in use,
here's a tip, leave the last fill of hot lead in the mold when you put it away.(but before it fully cools spray it with wd40 and after it cools place the oil soaked mold in a 2 gallon zip lock bag and store it sealed in a dry place
once its cooled I spray mine with WD40 (it will burn off at next use after about 10 test fills to get it fully warmed)
when you get a new mold use dawn dish wash liquid and a tooth brush to get the mold free of preservation grease,
before use, spray the mold with mold release
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that's simply because its done correctly by judging appearance, not a specific temperature,
as the alloy in the pot is constantly having minor changes, as you add alloy and thus are required to get the correct appearance.
with practice its a simple temperature range to maintain the proper adjustment to maintain consistency and appearance.
it's only going to vary a few degrees with a bigger pot size (20 lbs or so,) as content varies only a bit and the alloys constantly changed a bit
www.midsouthshooterssupply.com
this is a bargain, at this price, check regularly as they go in and out of stock rapidly
www.midsouthshooterssupply.com
www.midsouthshooterssupply.com
www.midsouthshooterssupply.com
as the alloy in the pot is constantly having minor changes, as you add alloy and thus are required to get the correct appearance.
with practice its a simple temperature range to maintain the proper adjustment to maintain consistency and appearance.
it's only going to vary a few degrees with a bigger pot size (20 lbs or so,) as content varies only a bit and the alloys constantly changed a bit
Pro-Melt -2 120 V
Easy Melt 120 V by RCBS Midsouth now offers the Pro-Melt -2 120 V. RCBS has improved Pro-Melt 2 lead furnace making it easier to use and more economical. The Pro-Melt -2 pot can hold up to 25 lbs of lead. Having a large capacity ensures that you can produce hundreds of bullets with each pot...
this is a bargain, at this price, check regularly as they go in and out of stock rapidly
Pro-Melt -2 120 V
Easy Melt 120 V by RCBS Midsouth now offers the Pro-Melt -2 120 V. RCBS has improved Pro-Melt 2 lead furnace making it easier to use and more economical. The Pro-Melt -2 pot can hold up to 25 lbs of lead. Having a large capacity ensures that you can produce hundreds of bullets with each pot...
www.midsouthshooterssupply.com
Mag 25 Digital Melting Furnace 115 Volt
Mag 25 Digital Melting Furnace 115 Volt by LYMAN Designed for the high volume bullet caster, the Mag 25 offers an array of features not found on any other furnace. With 850 watts of power, the furnace is quick to heat up, even with the increased capacity. The digital display on the front panel...
www.midsouthshooterssupply.com
Production Pot IV 110v
Production Pot IV 110v by LEE PRECISION Product Overview: The Lee Production Pot IV holds approximately 10 pounds of lead. Melt time is less than 20 minutes. Pour spout up front where it belongs so you can see what you're doing. Infinite heat control. Uses only 500 watts of power during...
www.midsouthshooterssupply.com
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I did cast a bunch of bullets as a test run and some sinkers but tomorrow I'm going to spend the day casting I spent most of today organizing and sorting my reloading stuff after the move so now I can start loading I have about 15,000 mixed primers and 68 pounds of mixed powders and no idea how much brass I do know I have 2- 5 gallon buckets of cleaned and primed brass and almost a full bucket of 45 ACP primed brass and god knows what else I'm sure glad I stocked up when things were good
yeah, prices NOW sure make prices (BACK WHEN) sure look GREAT
scholar.google.com
ID suppose I should point out that lead bullet alloy has a huge effect on the projectiles performance, it affects the projectiles ability to grab and hold the weapons bore ,walls rifling to maximize and maintain accuracy, it effects the projectiles penetration and expansion characteristics and velocity limits. harger bullet alloys expand slower and penetrate deeper and generally have better...
Google Scholar
ID suppose I should point out that lead bullet alloy has a huge effect on the projectiles performance, it affects the projectiles ability to grab and hold the weapons bore ,walls rifling to maximize and maintain accuracy, it effects the projectiles penetration and expansion characteristics and velocity limits. harger bullet alloys expand slower and penetrate deeper and generally have better...
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lately most of the molds I use are from these sources
http://www.leeprecision.com/html/catalog/bullmol1.html
http://www.lymanproducts.com/lyman/bullet-casting/
https://www.accuratemolds.com/catalog.php
I used to buy NEI but they went out of business
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Amazon.com : SEACO Lead Hardness Tester : Gunsmithing Tools And Accessories : Sports & Outdoors
Amazon.com : SEACO Lead Hardness Tester : Gunsmithing Tools And Accessories : Sports & Outdoors
www.amazon.com
for good cast bullet results
mix wheel weights with 5% pure tin by weight, drop hot bullets into a 7 gallon plastic bucket to quench,
and size and lube to .001 over bore diameter
from my personal experience i've found the 25 lb rated bottom pour bullet melting furnaces t0 be a good option
while expensive thhey do work reasonably well.
gun control is rarely about guns its almost always ABOUT TOTAL CONTROL OF PEOPLE!
www.midwayusa.com
...
while expensive thhey do work reasonably well.
gun control is rarely about guns its almost always ABOUT TOTAL CONTROL OF PEOPLE!
RCBS Pro Melt 2 Furnace Lead Melting Pot
The improved RCBS Pro-Melt-2 furnace is a necessity for those who love to cast lead bullets. The 25-pound capacity can mould hundreds of projectiles....
www.midwayusa.com
...
Google Scholar
ID suppose I should point out that lead bullet alloy has a huge effect on the projectiles performance, it affects the projectiles ability to grab and hold the weapons bore ,walls rifling to maximize and maintain accuracy, it effects the projectiles penetration and expansion characteristics and velocity limits. harger bullet alloys expand slower and penetrate deeper and generally have better...
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