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lead hardness
- Thread starter michael mcghee
- Start date
Help Support Muzzleloading Forum:
Tin will make them harder
michael mcghee
40 Cal
thanks i order some pure lead from midwayusa..
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Pure lead is pure lead; soft enough to score with a fingernail. Adding tin would harden, I believe. Lets' see what others say, but I've always been told, pure lead! You can buy at plumbing supply houses, not the big box types. Last time I paid about $2./lb. several years ago. Curious what it is now. Good luck!
I do a lot of garage sales and am always looking for lead. Some estate sales have been very good too, like 140 lbs of hospital lead, 42 lbs of linotype, and 4 1/2 lbs of cerrosafe all for 50 bucks. Look for old sinkers, lead dive weights and such. If I can scratch it with a thumbnail, it's good enough to shoot. If you happen upon a stash of old wheel weights they're good trading material for pure lead from the CBA shooters.
jager43478
36 Cl.
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Tin will make it harder.
A little bit of tin, one part tin to forty parts of pure lead, will be a little harder than pure lead, but the molten metal will flow into the mold better. That mix will still be soft enough to load even when engraving on the lands.
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Good advice!
michael mcghee
40 Cal
the ones shot never expand. shot 6 found 2.. hope pure lead will expand
Why do you need them to expand? They aren't designed to expand. Try putting an over powder wad in to improve accuracy.
michael mcghee
40 Cal
if they dont expand what good are they. the hole will be the same size going in and out. round balls expand. my hornady great plains expand..
Sorry, I thought you meant expand as in obturate. Yes for hunting expanding is a good thing.
Yes, and that hole hole is bigger than most other bullets that do expand. Trying for expansion in muzzle loading hunting is not really needed. By the time you get the velocity for expansion, accuracy on target is lost. In hunting with a muzzle loading firearm, accuracy is paramount to expansion.
Idaho Ron
58 Cal.
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Actually muzzleloader bullets do expand even one's with alloy in them.
This bullet is a RCBS 11 mm rifle bullet that I shoot paper patched out of my 45. This lead is 8.5 BHN hard, Pure is 5. This bullet was taken out of a deer. The bullet went in at the flank and angled forward. It was found in the neck. Speed is 1410 at the muzzle. Alloy bullet will expand, but like Grenadier1758 said they don't really need to.
This bullet is a RCBS 11 mm rifle bullet that I shoot paper patched out of my 45. This lead is 8.5 BHN hard, Pure is 5. This bullet was taken out of a deer. The bullet went in at the flank and angled forward. It was found in the neck. Speed is 1410 at the muzzle. Alloy bullet will expand, but like Grenadier1758 said they don't really need to.
