Looks Like I'm Getting Into Bullet Casting

[Chief351]

How do you get those roundballs so shiny? Polish them somehow? Cast bullets always are dull looking. The ones you made........look like they are chrome plated!!!

I can see you taking the photo.......in EACH one of them!! LOL!!!

I wish I knew! Maybe I should offer to cast some .45 Colts for the Lone Ranger, huh?

I suppose it's the lead I'm using. It's old roof vent flashing from a roofer that lives in the neighborhood that comes off of roofs he's replacing. It's very soft. But I did absolutely nothing to clean it or remove any of the impurities before it went into the pot. When I melt it it's covered with old paint, tar, bird poop, old spider nests. and who knows what else. Once it melts all of that stuff either vaporizes, or it floats to the top as slag and gets skimmed off with an old spoon. Every once in a while, as I add more lead to the pot, I toss in a pinch of paraffin candle wax - it smokes for a few seconds then the smoke bursts into flame. Pretty cool to watch - impressed the heck out of the grandkids that were just coming home from school while I was casting my first batch.

But yeah, I noted how shiny those balls were compared with the Hornady ones that I have. At least I can tell them apart.

[PlowboysGhost]

I have a bunch from soft lead that are still shiny, but seems like with time and handling they get dull.

I melted down about 400 Hornady .454 roundballs that are dead soft and they were dull before they melted. The bullets and balls I cast with them are shiny as they can be right out of the mould, and kept in an airtight container they still are after awhile.

[Led]

How do you get those roundballs so shiny? Polish them somehow? Cast bullets always are dull looking. The ones you made........look like they are chrome plated!!!

I can see you taking the photo.......in EACH one of them!! LOL!!!

[PlowboysGhost]

Looks like you're out of the gate running just fine. Those bullets look good from here.

I cast with my Lee pro 4-20 bottom pour on a table that's tall enough that I have to make an effort to see the entire bottom of the pot...and I'm 6'2". That seems to keep me from stooping over any to make sure I'm lined up with the spout.

I usually start my pot out with cold lead on setting 9 or 10, but then back it down to about 7 once the lead starts melting (for small .38 -.45 cal bullets and .530 roundballs), and then just watch the bullets for signs of being too cool or too hot. When I cast 580-grain Minies, I have to run the pot hotter.

I never did buy a thermometer, though I intended to. I'm really surprised yours was running that hot on settings that would make me think it would be cooler, but as long as you have a thermometer and know what it's doing, you're good.

My (roofer) brother gets me some of that lead vent flashing and I find it plenty soft enough for blackpowder. I cut mine into small pieces with an old pair of scissors.

I hope you realize that you have started something that will likely turn into an addiction...and additional moulds have a way of just appearing on your shelves...

[Chief351]

Finally was able to block out a couple of hours to do my first run at bullet casting. I decided I would start with .454 round ball for my 1860 Army clones. Actually, everything went well. The hardest thing was cutting up the scrap lead - old plumbing roof vents - with my tin snips. The Lee Production Pot IV, which is a 10 pound bottom pour pot, ran a LOT hotter than I expected. Never having plugged the thing in before, I had no idea where to set the dial, so I just set it on the low side of middle range. After I got some lead in there and melted, and stuck my thermometer in, it went to 1000 degrees plus! I kept turning it down, and finally had it all the way on its lowest setting, and it was maintaining 800 degrees.

I used candle making paraffin to flux it with, which worked pretty good. Just a pinch every so often as I added more lead seemed to be about right. I got a lot of slag out of it, but considering these vent stacks were covered in paint and tar and who knows what else, I was pleased with how it cleaned up.

I smoked the bullet mold - a Lee two-cavity mold - then left in sit on the pot with a corner in the molten lead for a couple of minutes, then started casting. The first two balls to drop out of the mold were gorgeous! I never had a single scrap ball. I dropped them on to a folded 100% cotton hand towel in an aluminum baking pan, which worked out great, and I knocked the sprue plate open right over the pot so that the sprue dropped right back in to be recycled.

Here's a pic of my setup as it stands right now:



I clamped the pot on the left side of the cart with a big c-clamp. I plan on bolting it down, but am thinking of raising it up on a shelf or something, as I had to keep bending over to fill the mold cavities which was killing my back! In the middle is the aluminum cake pan that i dropped the balls in, with another pan to the right to collect the slag.

I also used a mini-muffin pan to mold a few ingots. These are the perfect size to drop into the pot for melting.

Here's a pic of my first production run:

[Chief351]

Well, life got in the way again. I found out that my older brother had called the paramedics, and they took him in to the ER. Doctor said that there's maybe something going on in the back of his brain, but they won't know for sure until they do a CAT Scan and MRI, and not to come back until tomorrow as they'll be running tests. He's diabetic and lost his right leg a few years ago to loss of circulation, but when the doctor was asking him questions about what was bothering him, he told the doctor that he couldn't wiggle his toes on his right foot any more! So at least has his sense of humor.

I did finally make it to WalMart and got the last few items I needed, but then it started to rain. I forgot that my scrap lead was on my , so about all I did was move it inside the garage to dry it off. Maybe tomorrow or Friday now.

[PlowboysGhost]

I expect your maiden voyage into casting to go a little smoother with 140-grain roundballs than mine did with 500+ grain Minies. Once the mould heats up to operating temperature, the useless wrinkled bullets will go away quicker with the smaller ones.


Best of luck and let me know how it goes.

[Chief351]

Thanks for the info. I'm not so much worried about tipping the pot over myself as I am concerned with it getting bumped off of the cart while it's just sitting in the garage between uses. My pot, by the way, is the Lee Pro Pot IV, which has a 10 pound capacity. I may finally get a chance to try it out today - I just want to make sure it heats OK before I drill any holes in it to bolt it down, just in case I would have to send it back for a refund. If it makes it through its maiden voyage, then I'll mount it permanently.

[PlowboysGhost]

I don't believe I've ever paid much attention to how warm the base of my furnace gets. If yours is like mine, the pot sets up off the base with plenty of room beneath it. Mine sits directly on top of ceramic floor tiles I have on a table made from 2x4s and OSB with no issues, and it has sat directly on the OSB with no problem. This table is in my carport with one of those metal carport tops on it that is open on both ends and open on the sides for 5 feet up, so it gets plenty of airflow....but limits my casting during wet weather.

I don't see any problem with bolting your pot down, but I've never felt like mine was unstable in the least. If you have a full pot (mine's a 20 lb pot), it ain't going anywhere unless you try picking it up or something substantial hits it...hard. Even toward the end of the casting session when the lead is low, mine's never felt like it would tip easily....but there's nothing wrong with clamping it down if you want to be 110% sure.

I use a thermal underwear shirt folded up to drop muzzleloader balls (from dead soft pure lead) and bullets onto. When they first drop out, they will still be (extremely hot) just a little soft and prone to deformation, so the material of the shirt will cushion them and the material thermals are made from don't seem to stick to the hot lead like some towel material can.

With my cartridge bullets (from harder wheel weight/range lead/diving weights), I've been dropping them into a bucket of water on the floor to harden them. I'm still experimenting with the right lead hardness for .45 Colt and .38 Special. I may be making them too hard, which can also cause excessive leading if they're too hard to fully obturate.


I'm using regular size muffins for my ingots. I just cut the pans so that there are only two muffins to a pan and they fit under the pot/spout easier. Fill one, carefully set it aside to cool and harden (which doesn't happen quickly) while I'm filling another one. I flip them over when they look firm enough (5 mins or more) and scratch either and "S" or an "H" on them with a nail so I'll know what to use them for.

Leather welding-type gloves are your friend.

[Chief351]

PlowboysGhost,

I don't have a place to permanently set up my casting rig, so I went to Harbor Freight and picked up one of those sheet metal carts, like you see maintenance people use in factories, to set up on. That way I can work outside on nice days, or I can set up in my detached garage and leave the door open with a fan running for ventilation. When I put the cart together I turned the top tray upside down, so instead of a shelf with a tall lip around it I have a flat surface with the lip turned downwards. I plan to bolt the casting pot to the top on the left end and leave most of the top of the cart for a pan to catch the bullets. First, though, I want to make sure the casting pot works, so for safety sake I'll probably just clamp it down with a large c-clamp at first so that I don't do something klutzy and nock the stupid thing with a few pounds of molten lead in it over.

Do you see an issue with drilling the bottom plate of the casting pot with a couple of bolt holes and bolting it directly to the top of this metal cart? How hot does that bottom plate get? Do I need to insulate it from the metal cart?

My wife had (Note the past tense there!) a mini-muffin pan that should cast "ingots" about 1-1/2" in diameter and about 3/4" deep. Once I pick a few more things up at WalMart Tactical, like a baking pan to catch the bullets in when I drop them from the mold, and a pair of safety goggles to go with my welding gloves, I'll be ready to cast my first ingots from the scrap roofing lead I have.

[PlowboysGhost]

I make cartridges for my .36 cap and ball Griswold, but I'm still using the same (5) boxes of Hornady .375 roundballs I bough a couple years ago. When they're gone, I'll pick up a mould for it, too. I converted my .44 cap and ball to .45 Colt cartridges and I melted down all my .454 Hornady balls to cast .530 roundballs and .566 Pritchetts.

Paper catridges are absolutely the way to go for cap and ball and military longarms...both rifled and smoothbore.

[Chief351]

Well, I ordered my gear today. I bought a Lee bottom pour furnace, a Lyman thermometer, and a set of bullet molds for .454 balls. I think I will start casting for my 1860 revolvers. Probably make up some paper cartridges.

If I want to try something from the 20th century, I have a set of Lee molds for .38 Special wadcutters that I was using for fooling around with primer powered .38s using bullets cast with hot melt glue. Got old pretty fast though - like shooting a kid's toy cap gun. But the concept worked.

[PlowboysGhost]

By the way, I really love reloading for .38 Special. I do it really old-school way with a "Tong Tool" - they call it a Lyman 310 these days. I can't think of a more pleasant way to spend a cool fall afternoon than shooting up a few cylinders-full of .38s, then sitting down at a picnic table and running the empties through the ol' tong tool.

I use a Lee Powder Dipper that I modified so that I can adjust the load that it throws. I drilled a hole for a #8 or #10 brass screw in the bottom of the dipper, then epoxied a brass nut. I then added another brass nut to the screw to act as a jam nut to lock it down when I have the throw weight set. Works perfectly. You would be amazed at how accurate the charges are that this setup throws.

On days like that I feel like old Skeeter Skelton is looking over my shoulder.

I'm familiar with the Lyman 310. I studied up on buying one for .44-40, then traded off the 1860 Henry.

Having a big ole bucket of home cast 158-gr .38(.358 actually) slugs with a big, flat metplat will make you feel even better....when you get to that point, you'll see what I mean

I shoot mine through this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K6A2L-ZgpGw&t=1s

Cool idea on the adjustable dippers.


Better to have Skeeter looking on over your shoulder than to have Elmer Keith wondering what the hell you're doing...like he would if he could see me...lol. I'm easing up to his famous .44 Magnum load for my Super Blackhawk. Got deer season on my mind.

[Chief351]

Well, my bullet casting project has been put on hold for a little while pending saving up some more funds. I had to put a new alternator and a fuel pump controller in my 2004 Mustang, as well as purge my brake fluid, so I spent around $500 that I hadn't budgeted for. Did all the work myself except for the fuel pump controller - due to the fact that I didn't know how to troubleshoot it! Darned new (-er) cars! Had to have it towed to a repair shop for that one.

I expect to be able to buy a melting pot and a thermometer next month.

By the way, I really love reloading for .38 Special. I do it really old-school way with a "Tong Tool" - they call it a Lyman 310 these days. I can't think of a more pleasant way to spend a cool fall afternoon than shooting up a few cylinders-full of .38s, then sitting down at a picnic table and running the empties through the ol' tong tool.

I use a Lee Powder Dipper that I modified so that I can adjust the load that it throws. I drilled a hole for a #8 or #10 brass screw in the bottom of the dipper, then epoxied a brass nut. I then added another brass nut to the screw to act as a jam nut to lock it down when I have the throw weight set. Works perfectly. You would be amazed at how accurate the charges are that this setup throws.

On days like that I feel like old Skeeter Skelton is looking over my shoulder.

[PlowboysGhost]

To me, casting is well worth the investment and the effort spent doing it. There's also the "shoot what I, myself made", aspect, too. You'll have to decide if it's worth the savings to you.

I started out buying cast bullets for .45 Colt and .38 Long Colt/.38 Special and then realized how much cheaper it was to cast those. Bear in mind that I had already bought a Lee Pro-420 bottom pour pot , flux, etc... for casting hollow base Minies for my .577 P53 Enfield rifle-musket and my J.P. Murray Confederate carbine because it is MUCH cheaper to do so than to buy cast 500+ grain Minies from any outlet.

I changed my projectile over to a NOE .566-580-grain smooth sided Pritchett bullet that I'm not sure anyone sells pre-cast.

Now...I keep a large Pancho's white cheese dip container full of .358-158 RF Lee bullets (about 500 bullets), one full of .452-255 RF Lee bullets lubed with Alox for smokeless (about 250-300 bullets), and a small container of the .452-255 RF lubed with SPG for loading .45 Colt the original way...with a full case of blackpowder. (I sometimes load .38 with blackpowder, too).

Ever so often, I'll put the pot on the table in the open carport and replenish my supply of bullets.



I started out with Lee Classic Loaders...the tabletop dies that require a mallet and use powder dippers. THAT was a chore. It took forever to make 100 rounds, beating and banging. When I swapped to a Lee Challenger single stage press and a Hornady powder dispenser, I though I was walking in High Cotton. It was so much faster than the Lee Loaders.


I just swapped (yesterday) the single stage setup for a new Lee Classic Turret press and a Lee Auto-Drum powder through die setup. I reloaded 25-30 .45 Colts yesterday faster than I ever have.


In the worst moments reloading, I remind myself how I can actually afford to shoot whenever I want to now, as opposed to before I reloaded. Now, there are guns and calibers opened up to me that I would have previously passed up because I couldn't afford ammo....or because factory ammunition for some calibers is either too expensive, hard to come by, or discontinued altogether.


I could actually shoot some old cool but obsolete cartridge. All I need is brass and a mould.