About making bullets?

[Duncan M]

Neo's thread got me to thinking about when bullets are hard to come by and since I am just now starting to reload (wasn't worth my time and money before now but everyone knows why it makes sense to reload now)

Well are there any legal issues with making your own bullets? I doubt there are for shotshells as over time I have seen some wild combinations of projectiles and exotic ammo for them. Bullets on the other hand, I have only seen cast or store purchased from a mfg. Even right now store purchased bullets are expensive so I am thinking about the process or options to make my own.

I think pistol bullets won't be a problem like a rifle bullet just due to the distances they travel. It would make sense to me that if the materials have any specific gravity issues the projectile will not keep true and the whole reason for rolling my own won't be worth it. (Got to hit what you shoot at) The process also has to be safe, I only have one face and life and would hate to expend it trying something that isn't safe or never been done before = that is what the big boys with incentive can do with their R&D departments.

SO?

[jefferson101]

Re: About making bullets?

You can get molds to cast your own bullets from lead for most any caliber.

Rifle bullets are a bit more problematic, because you need a harder material than a pistol bullet, or you'll wind up leaving 5% of your bullet in the rifling. For lighter loads, it works fine.

I know people who swear by moly-coated cast lead for pistol ammo, and a lot of their rifle shooting. Wheel weights supposedly increase the hardness.

Which would work, if it came to that. If I really need wheel weights, I can go to Wally World and buy a tool to pull them, and wander around parking lots at night and collect all I need.



The molds aren't expensive. You need a spare tumbler bin for the Moly to coat them, but that's doable too. I've never messed with it that much, but have some more bullet casting dies on my short list. That reduces the absolute "must-have" stuff to powder and primers.

FWIW, for rifle ammo, I'd really sneak up on the loads, and have something arranged so I could check the rounds I fired for condition......Huge stack of wet phone books, or cardboard, or something. You'd want to know if you were deforming the base too much, I think.

[Papadoc]

Re: About making bullets?

For jacketed bullets take a look at this site http://www.corbins.com/index.htm
A little on the expensive side as for equipment, however, you can make your own jacketed bullets from .17 to 25mm and save a ton of money. They even have a die kit that will allow you to make .224 diameter jacketed bullets from .22 LR brass.

[Duncan M]

Re: About making bullets?

DANG Papadoc, that is IMPRESSIVE~!

Lots of money goes into a setup like that. I was thinking more along the lines of the nails at a hardware store, cut down to bullet size and loaded into a shell or something within the range of TSHTF and I have little to work with. Part of the reason I asked about legal issues as I am sure TPTB would think a steel bullet was a bad thing, but then again they are the ones that brought this on by restricting what I have access to. It will come back to haunt them big time, just like the first AWB changed the cosmetics of a firearm and created a more accurate class of weapons without all that crap hanging off the rifle. Anytime Government tries to regulate or help people it backfires.

I just don't want to get in trouble for making a questionable round or some such item if you catch my drift?

The only thing I know the military is restricted from are "Dum-Dum" bullets, but given the thought processes of the military the name should be applied to their BRASS!!

[C. M. Wolf]

Re: About making bullets?

By adding Zinc or Tin to your lead castings you can get what's called Tempered Lead. This is common in many of the non-jacketed magnum cals that are recommended for break-in periods.

And another thing that can be done to compensate in the lead cast bullet dia then copper electro-plating them after casting. This will take quite some research to do correctly, but this process is called, "Copper-Washing" and can be quite a hassel to get just right for the higher/larger cal rifle bores.

IHTH

Michael

[LEE7.62]

Re: About making bullets?

Casting bullets is easy once you understand the properties of the lead/alloy you're working with, the heat needed, proper casting technique, etc. I cast 9mm, .380, .40, .45, .38/357 pistol and .30 caliber, 7.7mm, 6.5mm, and .45/70 rifle. The rifle bullets are hardened up either by adding "printer zinc" or linotype if you don't have wheelweights. You can add the copper cup to the bottom crimped on while sizing- gas check. If you don't gas check keep rifle velocities down below 1100 fps. Pistols under 1000 or you'll lead with pure lead for sure and slightly with wheelweights. Unless you have a hollowpoint mold or can double pour bullets (nose poured with pure lead and rest of mold with mix (gives a softer expandable nose to mushroom) know your shot placement as most lead bullets will not expand but tumble.

[tiller]

Re: About making bullets?

you can paper patch cast bullets to handle at least 2500 fps, if they are hard alloy to begin with. I never heard of zinc helping a lead alloy, but I"ve heard that it may have been responsible ruining a batch of alloy, making it impossible to cast good bullet with (dunno what the mix was, but it was no danged good!)

Do your practicing now, if you ever manage to get truly good, proven to be able to post scores in the top 10% of entrants in major combat matches, you will need little more than dryfire or .22lr conversion unit practice to stay a lot more skilled than a typical SEAL is, for instance. Especially if you have a sound suppressor on your M4. The main thing that makes centerfires harder to use well than 22's is the blast. For real, dudes. The "can", if it is large and heavy enough, also significantly reduces recoil, if you are using a gun and load that has any, of course.

[kARL]

Re: About making bullets?

"Well are there any legal issues with making your own bullets? "

Richard Lee, the fella who built Lee reloading, said that for self defense you were better served to use store ammo.

As, should you ever have to use them, the lawyer for the other side would make the case that you were looking for trouble as you made "killer bullets".

The only other legal issue I know of it that some ranges wont allow hand loads, I would guess because of insurance in case of accidents.

Aside from that Enjoy.

karl

[jefferson101]

Re: About making bullets?

The only other legal issue I know of it that some ranges wont allow hand loads, I would guess because of insurance in case of accidents.

Aside from that Enjoy.

karl

Thank goodness I don't have a range like that, because I couldn't shoot my handguns there, and very few rifles.

OTOH, I have to ask. If you used the same brand of brass for a whole run, how would they ever know? If they can tell my Winchester bullets from those that they put in at the Factory, they have better eyes than I do.

[paintballmagnet]

Re: About making bullets?

I rarely load handgun ammo for self defense, I think I have enough factory loads to last longer than I will. Rifle ammo is another story, I've been loading .308's by the hundreds, am well over 1000 now, all loaded with soft points for maximum effect, chrono'd just over 2800 from a 22" barrel. My next project, provided I can decide on what bullet in the 55-65 grain range to use will be to load for my AR-15, again using soft points for max. performance.

[LEE7.62]

Re: About making bullets?

My ARs are happy with a 55gr FMJBT or soft point over 25.5gr W748. I'd have to go home and dig up the chrono data but my old SP-1 and my newer M-4gerys love that load for plinking.