Bullet ID ?

[oldfrank]

I bought these at a yard sale years ago. Young man told me his late father used to be into casting.

They weigh 305-307 on a scale and were unlubed.Flat based.

I always guessed maybe a REAL bullet or something.

Anyone know for sure.

I know it is a crappy picture :wink:

 

[BrownBear]

Yup, REAL.

 

[oldfrank]

Thanks!

This would be what they list as the 310 grain?

I have some Alox from another project, I may try to lube them and shoot them.

 

[BrownBear]

Oughta be dandy. While you're at it, try a lubed felt wad between them and the powder as one of your variables. That improves accuracy in most of my guns.

 

[oldfrank]

I thought about the wads but have never used them.

Do I buy them or make them myself?

 

[Adui]

Do I buy them or make them myself?

In short: YES

Long: you can do either depends on your preference and capabilities

 

[BrownBear]

I thought about the wads but have never used them.

Do I buy them or make them myself?

I'd buy a pack of 100 to try them. If they work out for you, then you can think about making your own to hold costs down. I like to go up one caliber size when using them, i.e., 54 cal for a 50 and 58 cal for a 54.

 

[Idaho Ron]

Maybe I missed it but did you say what the caliber is on these bullets? If they are a 50 cal then your bullet weight at 305 is way too light. This mould would be for 320 gr. If this is the case there could be a couple problems. First these might be poured out of HARD lead. Hard lead will pour light for the the mould. Or they could have not filled out properly. I am betting on hard lead. If that is the case your going to play hell getting them down the tube. You will have to stomp them down.

Now if this is a 54 this would be a 300 gr mould. If that is the case your bullets are heavy for that mould indicating good fill out and VERY soft lead.

Ron

 

[oldfrank]

Yes, they are .50 caliber and I wondered about the light weight.

I only cast some round balls before and do not know the ins and outs of the process.

They may be too light because they are too hard.

Thanks for the information. I will play around with them and see what happens.

 

[Idaho Ron]

They are going to be very hard to get down. Ron

 

[zimmerstutzen]

Don't use alox
Crisco, bees wax, etc

 

[majg1234]

If you have calipers measure them @ the bearing surface and it'll help you decide if they are alloy or pure lead,since they are light bet they are Wheel weight lead as this is commonly used as is scrap range lead like others said may be a bear to load

 

[oldfrank]

What should I look for in measurements? I assume different lead mixtures fill the mold differently?

 

[mooman76]

Aproximately .502 bottom band and .517 at the top band. Try and scratch it with your finger nail. Pure lead scratches easy and WWs you can still scratch with more effort. You can still shoot them if they are WWs but it will be quite a bit harder to get down the bore. Other alloys reduce the surface tension so it helps the mould fill out but also are lighter.