Casting Pistol Bullets

[MMH]

How difficult is it to cast bullets? Would be looking at 147 gr. 9mm & 230 gr. .45. How much time (i.e. how labor intensive) is it to cast, size, and lube. How much do the molds cost & what else is required.

[tl_3237]

Casting in itself is not difficult but there is some semblance of ‘art’ to it to get really good bullets. Quality is affected by such things as the condition of the mold (rust, contamination, etc), base metal (cleanliness and hardness), pouring temperature (not too hot/ not too cold), properly centered sprue plate cutting, resizing, gas-checking (if required - not needed for 45/9mm), and lubing.

Its one of those things that you learn as you do. The nice thing is that any goofs are simply returned to the melting pot for reuse.

Yes the whole process can be somewhat labor intensive. There’s the actual casting process (pouring, removal from mold), inspection process, resize/lube process but you shouldn’t use the $/hr as a driving factor. In the long run its much cheaper (ignoring labor) for materiels and can produce very serviceable results.

You require:
1. a mean of melting the base metal from a lead furnace made for that purpose to just an old cast iron skillet on an electric or gas burner.
2. a source of metal. You can buy from such place as e-bay or scrounge your own from wheel weights or range pickup. If you really want precision you may want to consider a hardness testing system because, unless you buy a known metal amalgam (expensive), your mix will vary between batches. If you are just plinking, this is not required.
3. a good piece of wood (I use pressure treated 2x2 from Home Depot) to hit the sprue plate and maneuver the plate back for the next casting.
3. molds can be had in single and multiple cavity depending on the output rate that you desire. They can be had for $20 and up. Check out midwayusa.com to get ideas of all the equipment/ accessories, and pricing availablde. Some molds come with handles, other have separate handles that are needed.
4. a sizing/lube system. I personally use a separate Lyman press and stick lube that is compressed into the groves while the bullet is in the resizing die. The sizing die is based on diameter and the top punch varies with the shape of the nose. There are some simple press through systems but I have no experience with them.

Bottom line, if you do it for a hobby that’s fine and you definitely can save $$$. But, as any hobby, it does take time and effort that you must dedicate to it.

[Tim Ault]

How difficult is it to cast bullets? Would be looking at 147 gr. 9mm & 230 gr. .45. How much time (i.e. how labor intensive) is it to cast, size, and lube. How much do the molds cost & what else is required.

This is a pretty broad question, In a nut shell casting is fairly easy,Its not rocket science but there are some little tricks and knowledge that must be learned which comes with practice.

As for time consuming ???? all depends or how you define it. If you have a six cavity mould you can make alot of bullets in a evening, Lee Six cav. moulds are around 50 bucks give or take. As for the lubing theres the cheap and easy way of using Lee liquid Alox or the more expensive and slower(IMO)of a lubersizer.

will you save money? if you shoot alot and have access to free or really cheap alloy .Yes . The bare basics you need are : Alloy, heat source to melt the alloy, Mould,Laddle,Lee sizer(might not even need to size if your lucky) and lube,again Lee alox works fine at non magnum speeds.

[Flash]

As to lead alloy supply, range pick-up is quite alright to use - it was bullets once, and will do just fine again. As tl said, if you really get into it, you will become more concerned with alloy composition, but a good rule of thumb is if you cannot depely scratch it with your thumbnail, it is hard enough for the toughest magnums. For regular loads under 1200 fps, most any alloy will suffice, even pure lead with the right lube is good up to 1000, but leading may begin above that.

I vote with Tim: "shoot a lot, save a lot." It ain't rocket science. There are a number of good books out that cover the process in more-than-you-ever-wanted-to-know fashion. The Lyman Cast Bullet Handbook is 415 pages, and will keep you interested and amazed for hours/days. http://www.midwayusa.com/viewProduct...tNumber=796528

And the good folks on this forum will be more than happy to guide your adventures. There are other forums on the web which are centtered directly on the cast bullet world, and they go into a lot greater depth, and they are some real specialists there. http://castboolits.gunloads.com/

Flash

[hornady]

Casting is a lot Like reloading in that you can put as much or little money into it as you want. My number one suggestion to anyone thinking about casting. Step one. Buy the Lyman cast bullet Manual. It will explain everything from Barrel slugging to Mixing alloys. They push their products like everyone else. But it will explain what you need . Plus it is loaded with multiple cast loads.

[Grumpa72]

Casting can easily be learned by viewing online resources and reading various books. Be wary of those YouTube casters who ignore basic safety rules like not safety glasses, plunking cold lead ingots into melted lead pots without pre-heating, etc. Over at m1911.org there is a great sticky on casting. Fwiw, I learned online and taught myself and now cast for .45 acp and 9mm. I have my pistol loading down to less than $70/1000 completed rounds. Now that is inexpensive. They all go bang, they all hit where I want them to and it also fun to turn wheel weights and old range lead into new bullets.

For reloading, get yourself a couple of good books, be very wary of online load data that isn't verified by one of the powder makers.

Just my two cents.

[Pizza Bob]

The #1 thing you need for bullet casting is a well ventilated place to perform the task. Can't make use of your bullets if you're dead.

[hornady]

Lead poisoning is a real concern. However there are plenty of guys that Cast in side. I have heard of Guys casting on there kitchen stove. Not a good idea, but lead is a heavy metal. Most guys that get poisoning . Is threw hand to mouth contact . If you use common sense casting is Safe.

[Tim Ault]

Lead poisoning is a real concern. However there are plenty of guys that Cast in side. I have heard of Guys casting on there kitchen stove. Not a good idea, but lead is a heavy metal. Most guys that get poisoning . Is threw hand to mouth contact . If you use common sense casting is Safe.

Very true. I cast inside in the basement in the winter with just a fan set on low. Lead vaporizes at temps well above normal casting levels. Its not like handling radioactive material as alot of people think.
Dont cast or smelt in a 3x3 closet ,wear gloves and dont eat or drink(or chew on ingots) and you'll be just fine.

[imashooter2]

The main thing to have is a source of inexpensive alloy. Without that, buying the rest of the equipment is pointless. This is the twilight of hobby casting. The humble lead wheel weight is being phased out and when it's gone, so will be the vast majority of bullet casters.