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question for bullet casters #206091 03/20/2020 1:47 PM
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dave thomas Offline OP
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im looking to buy or cast an expanding lead bullet for 357 and 44 spl/mag for general carry and up to deer. I have been casting WW and then powder coating and it gives a great bullet to plink with, however i was looking for performance closer to what kral got from sixshot's bullets. either cast my own or buy from Sixshot if possible. Thoughts?


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Re: question for bullet casters [Re: dave thomas] #206092 03/20/2020 3:02 PM
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short30 Offline
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I used to cast alot but now not so much but with current conditions I may have to break the pot out. I always did well with water dropped wheelweights and gas checks. Leading was not bad in rifles so they were generally pretty fast for cast bullets. I have a hollow point mould that I have used very little but I would think they would perform pretty well. I have not water tested any so the nose petals may just break off or shatter since pretty hard if water dropped. I need to find time to do some testing for my own curiosity now.

Last edited by short30; 03/20/2020 5:19 PM.

First Handgun Deer: ~1982 8" S&W .38Spl
SW 7.5" 686-7 with Matchdot II
SBHH .45LC 7.5"
Contender G2 .35-30/30 (Bellm), .22LR, .22 Hornet, 25-35
Glock 40 10mm; G21 Poly80 w/ 9 inch barrel (in work)
Re: question for bullet casters [Re: short30] #206100 03/21/2020 12:15 AM
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dave thomas Offline OP
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thanks for the info


Ephesians 6:10-18 because we are warriors.
Re: question for bullet casters [Re: dave thomas] #206101 03/21/2020 2:58 AM
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If you want good cast bullet performance on deer size game you want to cast towards the soft side & don't even consider water quenching, it's seldom needed anyway. Now that powder coating has passed the smell test & almost everyone has accepted it you will find that you can cast your bullets a bit on the soft side, even without a gas check by powder coating & get outstanding results.

I'm talking about using HP's here. If you want more penetration on bigger game like elk, bear, etc then you can use solids & bump up the BHN just a bit, again with powder coating & be very happy with results.

A well known gun writer friend recently run some of my gas checked HP 41 bullets over 1700 fps from a rifle with groups under 3/4" with 4 different powders. These bullets were soft but powder coated.

Dick

Re: question for bullet casters [Re: sixshot] #206107 03/21/2020 2:09 PM
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dave thomas Offline OP
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Dick,
could you pm me with options and prices on your HP bullets that you think would fit my needs, I would like to give them a try.

Thank you Sir!

Dave


Ephesians 6:10-18 because we are warriors.
Re: question for bullet casters [Re: dave thomas] #206145 03/22/2020 11:18 PM
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Best of luck finding alloy to pursue this, it's getting scarce at least in my area.
Steve


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Re: question for bullet casters [Re: S.B.] #206150 03/23/2020 2:35 AM
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dave thomas Offline OP
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i have hundreds of pounds of ww and plumbers lead. i should be able to get what i need with alittle trial and error, however it is always easier to just buy some to start with until you can figure it out.
dave


Ephesians 6:10-18 because we are warriors.
Re: question for bullet casters [Re: dave thomas] #206156 03/23/2020 2:33 PM
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short30 Offline
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I agree water dropped would be too hard and act as a solid but the nose can be annealed and if a hollow point I think it would peel back or even shed petals while the base drove on thru;Even without annealing the nose but again I would want to test it. I really want two holes so water dropped always worked well for me but usually required some tracking. A shoulder shot was always preferred to break them down vs the double lung. I have not dabbled with powder coating but it seems like a gas check for the whole bullet so a softer bullet could be driven faster with no or reduced leading. Please post your results, thanks


First Handgun Deer: ~1982 8" S&W .38Spl
SW 7.5" 686-7 with Matchdot II
SBHH .45LC 7.5"
Contender G2 .35-30/30 (Bellm), .22LR, .22 Hornet, 25-35
Glock 40 10mm; G21 Poly80 w/ 9 inch barrel (in work)
Re: question for bullet casters [Re: short30] #206161 03/23/2020 7:57 PM
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longhunter Offline
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I would suggest these folks for cast bullets, got some really nice hp's.
http://www.gtbullets.com/


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Re: question for bullet casters [Re: longhunter] #206207 03/26/2020 3:01 PM
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Memtb460 Offline
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On a bear and an antelope, straight wheel weights worked fine for me.....complete penetration! That?s very limited experience, but those were my results. memtb


You should not use a rifle that will kill an animal when everything goes right; you should use one that will do the job when everything goes wrong." -Bob Hagel

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Re: question for bullet casters [Re: Memtb460] #206222 03/28/2020 3:06 AM
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Brenden Offline
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I'm not sure how Dick's bullets perform on game ( yet ) but his .475 slugs were nicely done and shot real good out of my 475L.

I'd get an assortment from him and see what you like.

For the time and money involved, it's probably cheaper to purchase slugs from those like Dick or GT bullets.

I'm going through this right now. It's damn expensive to get started. At this point, I don't know if I'll fully commit on top of having other various expenses and wants.

Re: question for bullet casters [Re: Brenden] #206227 03/28/2020 2:28 PM
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dave thomas Offline OP
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i already cast bullets for my 44,45,357 however none of my mold throw a HP version. I only cast WW right now but will be messing with mixing different lead recipes this summer. i have seen a lot of posts on the forum about Dick's bullets I finally ordered some to test in both 44 and 357. I have a spring turkey hunt to the black hills where you can use a handgun and am hoping this 44 HP will do the job.


Ephesians 6:10-18 because we are warriors.
Re: question for bullet casters [Re: dave thomas] #206284 04/01/2020 3:42 PM
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short30 Offline
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I had a couple molds modified for optional HP configuration. Just google "mold hollow point service". They will modify your mold if you have one you like. It has been a while so I have forgotten who I used but they performed well as far as casting. Have not tested on flesh. I usually WD but with HP I did straight air dropped WW. It will be hard to beat the performance of the experienced guys here selling their proven alloys and configurations - depends on how much you want to cast your own. Other hot topics on here point out the possible inconsistency with Cast performance and I have witnessed some long chases myself using well placed cast but we old guys have not forgotten when jacketed bullets were not very good either. Cast can be sized to fit better if it is needed but real good jacketed bullets now give me the performance I need for hunting. I only say this as to why I don't cast as much anymore. Good luck.


First Handgun Deer: ~1982 8" S&W .38Spl
SW 7.5" 686-7 with Matchdot II
SBHH .45LC 7.5"
Contender G2 .35-30/30 (Bellm), .22LR, .22 Hornet, 25-35
Glock 40 10mm; G21 Poly80 w/ 9 inch barrel (in work)
Re: question for bullet casters [Re: short30] #206287 04/01/2020 4:53 PM
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short30 Offline
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MP Molds made the best one I have. I bought the 359-640 Hollow Point Plain Base, and it came with 5 sided as well as round pins. I only got the two cavity. Casts well.


First Handgun Deer: ~1982 8" S&W .38Spl
SW 7.5" 686-7 with Matchdot II
SBHH .45LC 7.5"
Contender G2 .35-30/30 (Bellm), .22LR, .22 Hornet, 25-35
Glock 40 10mm; G21 Poly80 w/ 9 inch barrel (in work)
Re: question for bullet casters [Re: short30] #206290 04/01/2020 6:12 PM
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Sawfish Offline
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I have bought some very nice molds off of E-Bite.


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Re: question for bullet casters [Re: Sawfish] #206301 04/02/2020 1:02 AM
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dave thomas Offline OP
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in retirement i have been able to mess with making my own. that being said, i want to learn to make the best bullet i can. HP design is what i will shoot the most of for hunting with the thin skinned game i hunt- working with other lead mixes such as dick has outlined in other posts should help in getting a quality bullet that i dont buy somewhere else.
thanks for all the imput guys.


Ephesians 6:10-18 because we are warriors.

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